PSPiton? Never heard of it before?
It's a simple application which will help you downgrading/upgrading your PSP to the firmware you need for your games. It also contains alot of real usefull information of other good apps/homebrew, such as CWCheat, Ultimate PSPTube and their links.
Hey everyone,
I updated my application with some new features, such as a rating system and I fixed some annoying bugs. Here's the full changelog:
Code:
Changelog v0.41:
- More apps added (as always);
- Fixed a bug when you pressed on the about button a error popped-up;
- Added a rating system in the info menu;
- Added a button which gives you the chance to have your app on PSPiton ^^;
- Added a icon;
- Colored text bars;
- Updated LEDA v0.1 to v0.2. (Thanks z7shaft for reporting)
Updated release of the File browser and more from Mediumguage:
Heres whats new:
fixed a bug wrong free area was shown when using large (>4G) MS Duo.
added a feature to show GB mode. And, even in larger scale mode, small files are shown on smaller scale.
fixed a bug USB connection was failed on kernel3 using under FW 5.00.
fixed a bug at ripping UMD, to be frozen, when MS Duo was full (that happened depending on CFW version).
fixed a bug to be frozen when finishing built-inn OSK at 333MHz.
-Installing plugins
1.Put your plugins to ms0:/seplugins/
2.Load This app.
3.Press X to start.
4.Select the prx you want to install.
5.Toggle mode (V,G,U,P,A)
6.Watch progress.....
7.Enjoy
-Uninstalling plugins
1.Load this app
2.Press TRIANGLE
3.Select plugins you want to remove
4.Watch progress...
5.Done
-Warning-
Check free space of flash0 before installing
The coder jade2293 French releases Wario Ware: a homebrew written in Lua, structured in 3 mini games based on the homonymous title of Nintendo in 2003.
Ok, this if those of you who know what VIVA is, if you don't go search it >.>
I developed this as a "look I can do it", to prove that I could get an XMB replacement booting from the flash as well as the XMB, and all that fancy stuff. Well, I think now its time for me to hang up my PSP (metaphorically), as I have more pressing things to be doing, however I believe that someone could take this chance to either finish (ugh... might as well have said start) VIVA using the base code I have, or for a budding developer to come along and say "hey, I want to make and XMB replacement, and this guy Aura made a couple, I'll see how he did it", because believe me, first time around it ain't easy
I've included the flasher too, I'm sure you can work out whats going on there, and if you can't you shouldn't be playing in the flash. The patches however aren't included as anything more than a package, this can be used and hex edited to load any file you want. Check the small, not-very-informative readme to get a bit of a better feel for whats there and whats not.
I'm still deving for the PC, and if any kind soul wants to buy me a Pandora I'll dev for that but seriously, its been fun here, and when I get some spare cash I may get the Pandora system and work on that.
After nearly 16 months, here comes a new Pcsx2 version.
These months were somewhat problematic for pcsx2, due to an initial slowdown of the development process. Then, last fall, the Playground branch was created, and development picked up again. Finally, with the merge of Pcsx2 and Pcsx2 playground, the emulator's development returned once again as it was before, and now we can give you a release which should (we hope!) leave you happy.
We would like to thank everyone that was still waiting for a release, and coming to our forums. We would also like to thank everyone to encouraged and otherwise supported us. This release is especially for you.
Important note: you NEED to update directx or you won't be able to use the emulator! You can do it with either of the links below: THIS <-- DirectX End-User Runtime Web Installer
or THIS <-- DirectX End-User Runtimes
What's new in 0.9.6?
- Huge rewrite, mainly from the new members of the Playground branch! Too many speedups, optimizations and other fixes to write here! Many famous games will now work.
- Dropped VM build replaced by the all new Vtlb, meaning no more 'Cannot allocate memory' errors at start up, more accurate emulation, slightly lower speeds but with many optimizations to come
- Full memcard support, working in all games
- Improved Frameskip/VU-skip
- Special Game Fixes Section
- Advanced Options Section for custom tweaking VU/FPU behavior.
- Rewritten Multithreaded GS (MTGS) mode, with as much as 15% speedup for HT machines (only 3-5% for Dual Core), and fixes many instabilities.
- Improved VU/FPU Flags and Clamping support (helps fix odd behaviors and SPS in some games)
- Improved EE/IOP synchronization (fixes many freeze-ups and vmhacks).
- Improved CDVD support.
The older versions will NOT be supported in our forums,so 0.9.4,0.9.5 and playground are not supported anymore
New 360 SKUs always seem to land on Target shelves a bit early, and the new Resident Evil 5 red Xbox 360 Elite limited edition is no exception -- there it is, hanging out in Pembroke Pines, Florida. We don't know if these are just out behind the counter or if the staff is just ignoring that DO NOT SELL BEFORE 3.13.09 sticker, but we're certain some kind soul will let us know soon.
Is your Xbox 360 red in the face? No, not that kind of red, but facing that painstakingly loathsome red ring of death? Well, if group product manager Aaron Greenberg knows anything about the situation -- and we'd imagine he does -- then it looks like the guys at Microsoft have finally found a solution to many gamers' worst nightmares. In an interview with Edge Online, Greenberg said that through repairs they've done as well as updated technology, the guys in Redmond are pretty confident that afflicted consoles should be nonexistent in the not so distant future and that they've "put the worst behind us on this." So, breathe easy obsessive gamers, you needn't worry about getting an infected console any more -- we hope.
A recent addition to the ESRB ratings list reveals an upcoming "Classic Rock" track pack for Rock Band for PS2, PS3, Wii and 360. The ESRB rated the expansion with a "Teen" rating for violence, swearing and drug use. Not that you'll see any of that stuff going on, you'll just be singing about it.
Example lyrics given by the ESRB reveal three of the track pack's songs: "The Joker" and "Take The Money And Run" by Steve Miller's Band and "Holiday In Cambodia" by Dead Kennedys. All of which have been previously released as DLC. Expect EA to announce the full track list, along with the track pack itself, within the next few weeks.
GameSetWatch has put up an article about the characteristics that give games in the survival-horror genre the ability to unnerve, startle, and scare players in ways that most games don't. The genre has seen a resurgence lately, with titles like Dead Space, F.E.A.R. 2, and Left 4 Dead posting strong sales numbers. What triggers your fight-or-flight impulses in games like these? From the article:
"Being visual creatures, humans are most comforted by sight because of our ability to discern objects, action and consequences based on a picture. As a result, cutting visual stimuli and sticking purely to audio or speech is one of the best ways to keep a player on their toes. Even with weapons, it's very hard to find what you cannot see, and what you do not know. Even if visual stimuli is used, limiting or obfuscating the player's view can enhance the horror in a game, especially if the player sees it for an incredible short time. This can hint both at the difficulty of an upcoming encounter, or even allude to matters earlier in the narrative that the player will soon have to face."
Eurogamer is running an opinion piece suggesting that innovation and creativity have been on the decline for years within the games industry. Now, with the threat of the economic crisis looming, game publishers are shying further from new projects and ideas, instead choosing to rehash popular IP in order to minimize the risk of failure. The upside is that their reluctance, along with technological improvements that make game distribution easier, is allowing independent developers to gain exposure like never before.
"This revolution will give us a new wave of developers who see games through very different eyes to those of their studio-bound compatriots. Forced to consider the financial bottom line, the technological bleeding edge and the whims of Metacritic at each turn, big studio development is by no means uncreative, but certainly has to follow certain set patterns. ... The studio system couldn't have created a game like Flower, the utterly beautiful PSN title which came out earlier this month; but more than that, it couldn't have created a persona like Jenova Chen, the mind behind Flower, who happily talks in interviews about evoking emotions, moving past primal feelings and 'maturing' the industry in ways that don't involve sex, blood and swearing. He talks about making games that don't empower gamers, but instead make them experience other things, other emotions. It's spine-tingling stuff. It's also commercial suicide — or would be, to a studio working in the traditional development context."
CNet reports on a bizarre comment from Sony's Computer Entertainment CEO in response to complaints from developers on how hard it is to develop games for the Playstation 3. 'We don't provide the "easy to program for" console that (developers) want, because "easy to program for" means that anybody will be able to take advantage of pretty much what the hardware can do, so then the question is, what do you do for the rest of the nine-and-a-half years?' Given that games heavily drive console sales, and the fact that the PS3 is already 8 million units behind the Xbox 360, I think making a developer's job harder is the last thing Sony needs.
Igor Hardy writes
"I've conducted an interesting interview concerning a new episodic indie adventure game series called Casebook. What's quite uncommon, especially for these kinds of independently developed and published productions, is that they include professionally created FMV — all of the footage is filmed in real locations. Yet what's even more interesting is that the games use an innovative photographic technology which recreates a fully explorable 3D environment through the use of millions of photos instead of building from polygons. The specifics of how it works are explained by Sam Clarkson, the creative director of the series."
The RNSK "Bang! Bang!" iPhone app recreates the sound of several firearms using authentic Hollywood special effects, and will probably get you shot up for real. You even hold it like a real gun
IGN is saying that earlier news that Dead Space: Extraction would support Wii's MotionPlus technology "is merely misinterpretation," according to an unnamed Electronic Arts representative.
A post on Need for Speed: World Online's official blog explains its "a user-selectable gadget interface designed specifically for the PC." Pretty much anything can be added to, deleted from, or moved about the readout.
"We think its about time PC gamers had games that allowed them to arrange their information their way," says a developer. Instead of building a traditional console view, they're developing one that accounts for the increasingly customizable PC gaming experience, which needs to account for multiple monitors as more the norm than the exception.
That's the screen of the in-development game above.
"The gadgets are really flexible and offer a wide range of display options: docked/undocked, floating in the game window or just sitting outside of the game space," says the dev. "A lot of gamers now have more than one monitor so you could keep the game window entirely clean and then have all the gadgets sit in the other monitor."
NFS: World Online gets a release in Asia this year before going to the rest of the world. It'll be a free, web-based MMO set in the racing world.
Earl Weaver Baseball, the heavyweight of baseball simulations in the late 1980s and one of the titles that helped create EA Sports, is being ported to the iPhone by its original programmer.
The ScummVM Team have released a new version of ScummVM for nearly every system released, heres the details and whats new etc:
Information about scummvm
ScummVM is a program which allows you to run certain classic graphical point-and-click adventure games, provided you already have their data files. The clever part about this: ScummVM just replaces the executables shipped with the games, allowing you to play them on systems for which they were never designed!
Some of the adventures ScummVM supports include Adventure Soft's Simon the Sorcerer 1 and 2; Revolution's Beneath A Steel Sky, Broken Sword 1 and Broken Sword 2; Flight of the Amazon Queen; Wyrmkeep's Inherit the Earth; Coktel Vision's Gobliiins; Westwood Studios' The Legend of Kyrandia and games based on LucasArts' SCUMM (Script Creation Utility for Maniac Mansion) system such as Monkey Island, Day of the Tentacle, Sam and Max and more.
Todays release news:
As we turned to a 6 months release cycle, here is our newest and best ScummVM version for you!
A couple of new engines were added, and besides 2 Humongous Entertainment titles, we now support The 7th Guest and Bud Tucker in Double Trouble.
Among other notable things there is a completely new vector-based GUI, which is a merged work of our last year GSoC student Vicent Marti, as well as a General Main Menu which adds a common save/load interface to most of our engines, adding the much awaited Return to Launcher feature along the way. It was the work of another successful student, Chris Page.
release notes
Notes:
0.13.0 (2009-02-28)
General:
- Added MIDI driver for Atari ST / FreeMint.
- Added a 'Load' button to the Launcher (not supported by all engines).
- Added a new global main menu (GMM) dialog usable from all engines.
- Added the ability to return to the launcher from running games (via the GMM).
- Rewrote GUI renderer to use an vector based approach.
- Rewrote GUI configuration to use XML.
New Games:
- Added support for Blue's 123 Time Activities.
- Added support for Blue's ABC Time Activities.
- Added support for Bud Tucker in Double Trouble.
- Added support for The 7th Guest.
KYRA:
- Added support for Auto-save feature.
- Added support for MIDI music.
SCUMM:
- Implemented radio-chatter effect in The DIG.
The ScummVM Team have released a new version of ScummVM for nearly every system released, heres the details and whats new etc:
Information about scummvm
ScummVM is a program which allows you to run certain classic graphical point-and-click adventure games, provided you already have their data files. The clever part about this: ScummVM just replaces the executables shipped with the games, allowing you to play them on systems for which they were never designed!
Some of the adventures ScummVM supports include Adventure Soft's Simon the Sorcerer 1 and 2; Revolution's Beneath A Steel Sky, Broken Sword 1 and Broken Sword 2; Flight of the Amazon Queen; Wyrmkeep's Inherit the Earth; Coktel Vision's Gobliiins; Westwood Studios' The Legend of Kyrandia and games based on LucasArts' SCUMM (Script Creation Utility for Maniac Mansion) system such as Monkey Island, Day of the Tentacle, Sam and Max and more.
Todays release news:
As we turned to a 6 months release cycle, here is our newest and best ScummVM version for you!
A couple of new engines were added, and besides 2 Humongous Entertainment titles, we now support The 7th Guest and Bud Tucker in Double Trouble.
Among other notable things there is a completely new vector-based GUI, which is a merged work of our last year GSoC student Vicent Marti, as well as a General Main Menu which adds a common save/load interface to most of our engines, adding the much awaited Return to Launcher feature along the way. It was the work of another successful student, Chris Page.
release notes
Notes:
0.13.0 (2009-02-28)
General:
- Added MIDI driver for Atari ST / FreeMint.
- Added a 'Load' button to the Launcher (not supported by all engines).
- Added a new global main menu (GMM) dialog usable from all engines.
- Added the ability to return to the launcher from running games (via the GMM).
- Rewrote GUI renderer to use an vector based approach.
- Rewrote GUI configuration to use XML.
New Games:
- Added support for Blue's 123 Time Activities.
- Added support for Blue's ABC Time Activities.
- Added support for Bud Tucker in Double Trouble.
- Added support for The 7th Guest.
KYRA:
- Added support for Auto-save feature.
- Added support for MIDI music.
SCUMM:
- Implemented radio-chatter effect in The DIG.
The ScummVM Team have released a new version of ScummVM for nearly every system released, heres the details and whats new etc:
Information about scummvm
ScummVM is a program which allows you to run certain classic graphical point-and-click adventure games, provided you already have their data files. The clever part about this: ScummVM just replaces the executables shipped with the games, allowing you to play them on systems for which they were never designed!
Some of the adventures ScummVM supports include Adventure Soft's Simon the Sorcerer 1 and 2; Revolution's Beneath A Steel Sky, Broken Sword 1 and Broken Sword 2; Flight of the Amazon Queen; Wyrmkeep's Inherit the Earth; Coktel Vision's Gobliiins; Westwood Studios' The Legend of Kyrandia and games based on LucasArts' SCUMM (Script Creation Utility for Maniac Mansion) system such as Monkey Island, Day of the Tentacle, Sam and Max and more.
Todays release news:
As we turned to a 6 months release cycle, here is our newest and best ScummVM version for you!
A couple of new engines were added, and besides 2 Humongous Entertainment titles, we now support The 7th Guest and Bud Tucker in Double Trouble.
Among other notable things there is a completely new vector-based GUI, which is a merged work of our last year GSoC student Vicent Marti, as well as a General Main Menu which adds a common save/load interface to most of our engines, adding the much awaited Return to Launcher feature along the way. It was the work of another successful student, Chris Page.
release notes
Notes:
0.13.0 (2009-02-28)
General:
- Added MIDI driver for Atari ST / FreeMint.
- Added a 'Load' button to the Launcher (not supported by all engines).
- Added a new global main menu (GMM) dialog usable from all engines.
- Added the ability to return to the launcher from running games (via the GMM).
- Rewrote GUI renderer to use an vector based approach.
- Rewrote GUI configuration to use XML.
New Games:
- Added support for Blue's 123 Time Activities.
- Added support for Blue's ABC Time Activities.
- Added support for Bud Tucker in Double Trouble.
- Added support for The 7th Guest.
KYRA:
- Added support for Auto-save feature.
- Added support for MIDI music.
SCUMM:
- Implemented radio-chatter effect in The DIG.
The ScummVM Team have released a new version of ScummVM for nearly every system released, heres the details and whats new etc:
Information about scummvm
ScummVM is a program which allows you to run certain classic graphical point-and-click adventure games, provided you already have their data files. The clever part about this: ScummVM just replaces the executables shipped with the games, allowing you to play them on systems for which they were never designed!
Some of the adventures ScummVM supports include Adventure Soft's Simon the Sorcerer 1 and 2; Revolution's Beneath A Steel Sky, Broken Sword 1 and Broken Sword 2; Flight of the Amazon Queen; Wyrmkeep's Inherit the Earth; Coktel Vision's Gobliiins; Westwood Studios' The Legend of Kyrandia and games based on LucasArts' SCUMM (Script Creation Utility for Maniac Mansion) system such as Monkey Island, Day of the Tentacle, Sam and Max and more.
Todays release news:
As we turned to a 6 months release cycle, here is our newest and best ScummVM version for you!
A couple of new engines were added, and besides 2 Humongous Entertainment titles, we now support The 7th Guest and Bud Tucker in Double Trouble.
Among other notable things there is a completely new vector-based GUI, which is a merged work of our last year GSoC student Vicent Marti, as well as a General Main Menu which adds a common save/load interface to most of our engines, adding the much awaited Return to Launcher feature along the way. It was the work of another successful student, Chris Page.
release notes
Notes:
0.13.0 (2009-02-28)
General:
- Added MIDI driver for Atari ST / FreeMint.
- Added a 'Load' button to the Launcher (not supported by all engines).
- Added a new global main menu (GMM) dialog usable from all engines.
- Added the ability to return to the launcher from running games (via the GMM).
- Rewrote GUI renderer to use an vector based approach.
- Rewrote GUI configuration to use XML.
New Games:
- Added support for Blue's 123 Time Activities.
- Added support for Blue's ABC Time Activities.
- Added support for Bud Tucker in Double Trouble.
- Added support for The 7th Guest.
KYRA:
- Added support for Auto-save feature.
- Added support for MIDI music.
SCUMM:
- Implemented radio-chatter effect in The DIG.
The ScummVM Team have released a new version of ScummVM for nearly every system released, heres the details and whats new etc:
Information about scummvm
ScummVM is a program which allows you to run certain classic graphical point-and-click adventure games, provided you already have their data files. The clever part about this: ScummVM just replaces the executables shipped with the games, allowing you to play them on systems for which they were never designed!
Some of the adventures ScummVM supports include Adventure Soft's Simon the Sorcerer 1 and 2; Revolution's Beneath A Steel Sky, Broken Sword 1 and Broken Sword 2; Flight of the Amazon Queen; Wyrmkeep's Inherit the Earth; Coktel Vision's Gobliiins; Westwood Studios' The Legend of Kyrandia and games based on LucasArts' SCUMM (Script Creation Utility for Maniac Mansion) system such as Monkey Island, Day of the Tentacle, Sam and Max and more.
Todays release news:
As we turned to a 6 months release cycle, here is our newest and best ScummVM version for you!
A couple of new engines were added, and besides 2 Humongous Entertainment titles, we now support The 7th Guest and Bud Tucker in Double Trouble.
Among other notable things there is a completely new vector-based GUI, which is a merged work of our last year GSoC student Vicent Marti, as well as a General Main Menu which adds a common save/load interface to most of our engines, adding the much awaited Return to Launcher feature along the way. It was the work of another successful student, Chris Page.
release notes
Notes:
0.13.0 (2009-02-28)
General:
- Added MIDI driver for Atari ST / FreeMint.
- Added a 'Load' button to the Launcher (not supported by all engines).
- Added a new global main menu (GMM) dialog usable from all engines.
- Added the ability to return to the launcher from running games (via the GMM).
- Rewrote GUI renderer to use an vector based approach.
- Rewrote GUI configuration to use XML.
New Games:
- Added support for Blue's 123 Time Activities.
- Added support for Blue's ABC Time Activities.
- Added support for Bud Tucker in Double Trouble.
- Added support for The 7th Guest.
KYRA:
- Added support for Auto-save feature.
- Added support for MIDI music.
SCUMM:
- Implemented radio-chatter effect in The DIG.
The ScummVM Team have released a new version of ScummVM for nearly every system released, heres the details and whats new etc:
Information about scummvm
ScummVM is a program which allows you to run certain classic graphical point-and-click adventure games, provided you already have their data files. The clever part about this: ScummVM just replaces the executables shipped with the games, allowing you to play them on systems for which they were never designed!
Some of the adventures ScummVM supports include Adventure Soft's Simon the Sorcerer 1 and 2; Revolution's Beneath A Steel Sky, Broken Sword 1 and Broken Sword 2; Flight of the Amazon Queen; Wyrmkeep's Inherit the Earth; Coktel Vision's Gobliiins; Westwood Studios' The Legend of Kyrandia and games based on LucasArts' SCUMM (Script Creation Utility for Maniac Mansion) system such as Monkey Island, Day of the Tentacle, Sam and Max and more.
Todays release news:
As we turned to a 6 months release cycle, here is our newest and best ScummVM version for you!
A couple of new engines were added, and besides 2 Humongous Entertainment titles, we now support The 7th Guest and Bud Tucker in Double Trouble.
Among other notable things there is a completely new vector-based GUI, which is a merged work of our last year GSoC student Vicent Marti, as well as a General Main Menu which adds a common save/load interface to most of our engines, adding the much awaited Return to Launcher feature along the way. It was the work of another successful student, Chris Page.
release notes
Notes:
0.13.0 (2009-02-28)
General:
- Added MIDI driver for Atari ST / FreeMint.
- Added a 'Load' button to the Launcher (not supported by all engines).
- Added a new global main menu (GMM) dialog usable from all engines.
- Added the ability to return to the launcher from running games (via the GMM).
- Rewrote GUI renderer to use an vector based approach.
- Rewrote GUI configuration to use XML.
New Games:
- Added support for Blue's 123 Time Activities.
- Added support for Blue's ABC Time Activities.
- Added support for Bud Tucker in Double Trouble.
- Added support for The 7th Guest.
KYRA:
- Added support for Auto-save feature.
- Added support for MIDI music.
SCUMM:
- Implemented radio-chatter effect in The DIG.
The ScummVM Team have released a new version of ScummVM for nearly every system released, heres the details and whats new etc:
Information about scummvm
ScummVM is a program which allows you to run certain classic graphical point-and-click adventure games, provided you already have their data files. The clever part about this: ScummVM just replaces the executables shipped with the games, allowing you to play them on systems for which they were never designed!
Some of the adventures ScummVM supports include Adventure Soft's Simon the Sorcerer 1 and 2; Revolution's Beneath A Steel Sky, Broken Sword 1 and Broken Sword 2; Flight of the Amazon Queen; Wyrmkeep's Inherit the Earth; Coktel Vision's Gobliiins; Westwood Studios' The Legend of Kyrandia and games based on LucasArts' SCUMM (Script Creation Utility for Maniac Mansion) system such as Monkey Island, Day of the Tentacle, Sam and Max and more.
Todays release news:
As we turned to a 6 months release cycle, here is our newest and best ScummVM version for you!
A couple of new engines were added, and besides 2 Humongous Entertainment titles, we now support The 7th Guest and Bud Tucker in Double Trouble.
Among other notable things there is a completely new vector-based GUI, which is a merged work of our last year GSoC student Vicent Marti, as well as a General Main Menu which adds a common save/load interface to most of our engines, adding the much awaited Return to Launcher feature along the way. It was the work of another successful student, Chris Page.
release notes
Notes:
0.13.0 (2009-02-28)
General:
- Added MIDI driver for Atari ST / FreeMint.
- Added a 'Load' button to the Launcher (not supported by all engines).
- Added a new global main menu (GMM) dialog usable from all engines.
- Added the ability to return to the launcher from running games (via the GMM).
- Rewrote GUI renderer to use an vector based approach.
- Rewrote GUI configuration to use XML.
New Games:
- Added support for Blue's 123 Time Activities.
- Added support for Blue's ABC Time Activities.
- Added support for Bud Tucker in Double Trouble.
- Added support for The 7th Guest.
KYRA:
- Added support for Auto-save feature.
- Added support for MIDI music.
SCUMM:
- Implemented radio-chatter effect in The DIG.
Today, I present you with the 100% complete Japanese to English translation of the game “Cadillac”.
Cadillac is a puzzle card game featuring several women that try to take every last bit of money from you. The object of the game is to clear all of the cards at the end of the deck, which can be pretty tricky. During the game, you have cards that come down from the top and make their way to the bottom where you position them to make poker combinations, like three of a kind, 4 of a kind, 5 of a kind, flushes and straights. There are 10 levels to beat in this game. Your reward on a few levels is to see a full screen view of one of the women that host the game. This game is a one or two player game.
Steve Martin translated the scripts, so thanks to him!
After almost 3 years of work, Bare Knuckle 3 is finally available in English. That means you now have a chance to play Bare Knuckle 3 the way it was originally intended before Sega of America got their censoring hands on it. So grab the patch, a friend and enjoy some old school beat’em up action today!
Puyo Puyo Sun is the third Puyo Puyo game in the series. The game was released in 1996 by Compile on the arcade and was later ported to several consoles and the PC. This is the English translation of the PC version. The translation is complete, however it has some minor elements untranslated (title screen appearance and several backgrounds).
Yes, this is another Wii rant. There are plenty of other articles talking about the poor recent game offerings, the hardware limitations, and the primitive online play. I’m not here to talk about those. Instead, I’m going to talk about the Wii’s software stack, and how it compares to other consoles.
The Wii’s software architecture sucks.
If you look at lists of software updates for the PS3 or the XBox 360, you’ll find things such as PS3 update 2.40, which made XMB available in-game, or XBox 360 update 2.0.7357.0, which added the New XBox Experience, among many smaller updates are stability fixes, new peripheral support, and new features like in-game screenshots. A large amount of the features affect or improve the in-game experience.
Meanwhile, the Wii got all of:
Things, such as copying saves to SD, which should have been there from the start
Support for new features for new games, with zero improvements for any games already released (USB keyboards, WiiSpeak, etc).
Updates to built-in channels (WiiShop, etc)
Wii menu or messageboard tweaks, like moving channels or, get this, a clock.
Security updates, or their failed attempts at stopping homebrew.
This isn’t a coincidence. As it turns out, Nintendo chose not to have any operating system or common code at all running on the Broadway CPU. When you run a game, everything that shows up on your screen, ever, is being loaded from that spinning polycarbonate disc. And there are no mechanisms for anything else to run on that CPU: no update infrastructure, no Home Menu updates, nothing. If they ever want to have a “hypervisor” run above games, they’ll need to get a new CPU with full-blown virtualization capability (or an emulator), because games assume they have direct access to the CPU and most of the hardware.
If you’ve been following the Wii scene, you might be thinking, “what about IOS?” Indeed, Nintendo’s security and I/O Operating System runs alongside games (on a separate CPU built in to the Hollywood chipset) and it is updated as part of system updates. It includes some important bits and pieces like some peripheral drivers. However, as it turns out, Nintendo has decided that every new feature will be developed as a separate fork. Your Wii contains many IOS versions, and the older have never been updated except for security reasons (to fix our exploits). Not that they’ve added many new features, but if you look closely, new IOS features do not operate when you’re playing older games. This includes any updates to the WiiConnect24 downloads code, and even some minor things like the “slot LED blinks when you eject a disc” feature - try it when you’re playing Zelda and you’ll see that it doesn’t work, because it’s using the very old IOS9.
There are 23 IOS versions installed with current updates (this is also wasting the scarce 512MB internal memory!). Any new feature that they want to use in older games would have to be retroactively and individually added to each version, and it could create compatibility concerns because the interfaces with IOS functions aren’t all that stable either. Just doing these updates would cost them an immense amount of effort - it took them well over half a year to fix the fakesigning exploit and ship the IOS updates for all 23 versions, and that’s a minor update that can’t possibly affect games. Every time they’ve added a new feature (for example, the recent Wii Speak support, or USB keyboard support, or USB mouse support) they’ve just made a new fork of IOS for it. And IOS is limited to what it already handles - the ARM CPU that it runs on has no access to the graphics capabilities of the Wii (nor is it fast enough anyway - it has no floating point capability and it is a lot slower than the Broadway), so they can’t add any user-interface features to it.
Even worse - some things that should have been implemented in IOS aren’t. Like the Bluetooth stack and the Wii Remote code. Forget about any Bluetooth device support in older games - they couldn’t pull off a VoIP feature, ever. The SD card filesystem code is implemented in the games, which means that they can’t possibly add any code that uses SD card files, because two filesystem drivers can’t be used on the same device at the same time. Some things, such as saving games to SD for titles that don’t otherwise use the SD slot, are possible, but the changes needed to accomplish them would be so hacky and intrusive that I doubt they’re ever going to happen. One of the few things they can update with relative ease is networking (because the TCP/IP stack runs in IOS), but even then they still need to touch all IOS variants to fix it retroactively in older games. We’ve seen some changes but I doubt we’ll see many more.
As a specific example, let’s look at the much-discussed future ability to load Virtual Console and WiiWare titles from an SD card (seriously, what the hell were they thinking with 512MB of internal storage and no sane infrastructure to ever expand it externally?) There are three possible solutions to get this to work:
Add FAT filesystem code to IOS retroactively, disabling any SD access for titles that launch from SD
Add FAT filesystem code to IOS retroactively and push title updates for everything that uses SD, to remove the in-title FAT code and replace it with a new interface to IOS
Just fake it and transparently copy titles to the Wii system memory when you want to launch them, causing more Flash wear and tear and longer launching times
Chances are they’re going to go for number 3. And the only reason 1. and 2. exist is because downloadable content access is implemented through a unified “application security” subsystem, which forced them to define a sort-of-standard interface for it. They wouldn’t have done it otherwise.
While other consoles get firmware updates, new peripheral support, bugfixes, and even major updates like the XBox New Experience, pretty much everything on the Wii will remain just as it is now. The best Nintendo can do is update the Wii Menu, but once you get into a game, there’s nothing it can do. Forget about an improved Home Menu. Forget about any changes to online gaming beyond minor server-side tweaks. A unified friends system to avoid having to enter friend codes for every game? Not going to happen. Bad game bugs? Tough luck, there’s no patching system (remember the Zelda issue?) Some future proper online support with social features, like the other consoles have? Will never work with older games. Worse, Nintendo are really proud of themselves, so they won’t admit that they screwed up their software by releasing such big new features and having them only work for newer games. Instead, they’ll wait until Wii2 (or worse, Wii3), lag behind their competitors, and the features still won’t work in backwards-compatibility mode.
All in all, the Wii’s software stack is designed with little to no future proofing. There are basically zero provisions for any future updates; even obvious things like new storage devices or game patches. What’s worse is that this will affect the compatibility mode of any future Wii successor. Just like DS titles won’t get WPA support on the DSi, effectively making the DSi’s WPA mode useless if you ever want to use DS titles on-line. The DS WiFi drivers and configuration stack are built in to every game.
Remember, when Nintendo fails to deliver new Wii features, it won’t be because they aren’t trying. It’ll be because they’ve killed their chances from the start.
4 lines = 4 lines attack on opponent
3 lines = 2 lines attack on opponent
2 lines = 1 line attack on opponent
1 lines - no effect
Thanks to Pete for the soundtrack.
The graphics and sounds are customisable to an extent. All the images and the soundtrack can be changed by swapping the files in the images / sounds directory. The background JPEG can be swapped no problem, the PNGs for the blocks and so on need to be in the format required by GRRLib. I use libogc's mp3player v1.7.0 for soundtrack, there seems to be an issue where the last second or two of the file are not played so I had to add some padding to compensate. It would be good to see what someone with better graphic skills than me could come up with.
The Nintendo 64 emulator for Sony PSP has been updated.
Changes:
[+] Added exception handler to emulation (Chilly Willy)
[+] Made UI selection wrap at top and bottom (Chilly Willy)
[+] Cleaned up the ROM preferences (Chilly Willy)
[+] ME Audio uses CPU event (CPU event system made thread-safe) (Chilly Willy)
[+] ME Audio made conditional (Async = ME, Sync = Old Audio) (Chilly Willy)
[+] Several Custom Blends Added (Kreationz, ShinyDude100, Wally)
[+] Rewrote microcode detection to fix a couple of bugs (StrmnNrmn)
[+] Added support for LOAD_UCODE, fixes a number of rendering glitches (StrmnNrmn)
[!] Fixed an assert causing some homebrew not to run (StrmnNrmn)
[^] OSEHLE Enabled with several OSHLE commands (Small speed up)(howard0su)
[^] Improved Audio ME code (Faster with Audio on) (Chilly Willy)
[^] Use VFPU to handle more transform and lighting (StrmnNrmn)
[^] Various rendering optimisations (StrmnNrmn)
[^] Various ucodes, many games show up correctly now. (Wally)
[^] Corrected many savetypes in rom.ini (Wally)
Download and Give Feedback and Compatability Reports Via Comments
Without a doubt, creating a public release of Pcsx2 is an exhausting affair. We just got finished posting the latest and greatest in 0.9.6 (available in our Downloads Section!), and while it's nice having everything done and over with for now, it sure feels like there should have been a better way.
This time around we tried to make use of our GoogleCode Svn in "smart" fashion, and created a branch for the Release Candidate. The jury's still out on if this proved to be successful or not. Several ground-breaking fixes were submitted shortly after the RC branch was made, so we had to merge all of that stuff in. Furthermore, I got carried away and experimented with partial merges, without fully understanding the advantages of reverse merges, so I had to undo several of my own merging errors. And just to add salt to the wound, TortoiseSvn had a bug that would frequently "forget" line breaks; merging all code changes into one super-long line.
So in the end, the merges required a lot of brain power, a lot of time, and may have led to some small mistakes. These were all things we were hoping the RC branch would help reduce, so it was a bit of a fail on that account.
The other stress tester when doing an official release is the updating of the compatibility list, which is both a lot of work for our dedicated testers and has the nasty side-effect of making us devs completely and totally aware of just how many games actually emulate worse now, instead of better. So each day was a mad dash to do regression testing on each new set of titles that came in as no longer being playable. This was made even more challenging by the fact that most of the regressions ended up being pretty old, dating back to the pre-Playground days (meaning they were attributed to 0.9.5 Svn revisions). We only managed to get a few of the riddles solved.
So yeah, it's true -- the overall "playable" number of games is lower in 0.9.6 compared to 0.9.4, due to many semi-obscure titles which are unable make it past the intro in 0.9.6. But on the other hand, games that are playable tend be much more accurately emulated now, and are certainly much faster. And 0.9.6 also runs a couple dozen games that 0.9.4 could not (most of which are big titles many folks have looked forward to for some time). In the meantime, though, you might want to keep that old 0.9.4 copy around for some of those titles that need it.
In like a lamb and out like a lion, or vice-versa? Whether March finds you digging out from a late-winter blizzard or reeling in the spring thaw, the fun is both mild and wild at the Wii Shop Channel. Even the littlest lambs in your household can take part in a cool new family-friendly WiiWare game, while strategy-loving gamers will be roaring like lions as they battle evil foes in a classic Virtual Console title.
Nintendo adds new and classic games to the Wii Shop Channel at 9 a.m. Pacific time every Monday. Wii owners with a high-speed Internet connection can redeem Wii Points to download the games. Wii Points can be purchased in the Wii Shop Channel or at retail outlets. This week's new games are:
WiiWare
Family & Friends Party (Gammick Entertainment, 1-8 players, Rated E for Everyone, 1,000 Wii Points): Have fun with all your friends and family as you take on some very exciting challenges. This is an interactive board game for as many as eight players of all ages. The goal is to be the first to complete a series of challenges. During each turn, a challenge will be played by one or two players per team depending on the type of challenge you've been given. (Other players on your team can still help and support you). There are six different "Single" challenges that must be played cooperatively by members of the same team. Family & Friends Party can also suggest "Versus" challenges, which must be played competitively by all teams at the same time.
Virtual Console
Ogre Battle: The March of the Black Queen (Super NES, 1 player, Rated E for Everyone, 800 Wii Points): It's up to you to defeat the Empire. It's been nearly a quarter of a century since the Zetegenian Empire first conquered the Kingdoms of Zenobia with a wrath of fear and bloodshed. You are the leader of a band of rebels who've fought to preserve the last shred of honor in this desperate time of treachery. Manage the ranks of a full-blown rebel army, complete with hundreds of characters, magic items, weapons and mystical Tarot cards. You must succeed in ousting the evil usurpers-your fate, and that of the entire population, depends on it.
Hooka has updated the NeoGeo Pocket Emulator for the GP2X:
Hello again,
I must''ve had a busy week for GP2X stuff, didn''t remember it being that overwhelming though... but anyways, I finally managed to get save states into RACE!! Mind you it''s still missing a menu, you can only save one save state (not per game, I''m meaning in total atm) and I did experience a weird crash at one point in time, so this is just a beta to see if anyone else has any problems, I''ll try and get it all fixed up and start working on a menu here soon, but school starts tomorrow...
I have just uploaded the most recent version of Take The Eggs for everyone to enjoy. It has taken longer than expected to get this game to this stage but now I am happy to say that the game seems to be complete with the exception of any bugs that people may find.
It is disappointing that I was not able to implement a multiplayer option for this due to several restrictions, the main one bein the current libs, but everything else that I planned to add is now n there including some secrets for you to find.
I hope you enjoy this and be sure to let me know if you notice any bugs.
changelog
Vehicle speed on world 2 increased to be closer to the original game.
Time stop active time decreased to be closer to the original game.
Ghost / Death Messenger can now hit eggs and loose babies.
Added 5 new stages.
Added 4 new characters.
Score sprites positioning improved.
Added Hi-Score menu and awards for story mode.
Story sections incorperated.
2 hidden modes available for ranking high in story mode.
Options screen with sound level options added.
Save game support added to keep your Hi-Scores and unlocked modes etc.
Beat characters in story mode to unlock them in versus mode.
Play worlds in story mode to unlock them in versus mode.
First Sorry for my bad english, second sorry for another Pong Game
This is my first game for DS with SOCCER-PONG game mode.
Ciao a tutti da Roma --> Hi all from Rome
First Sorry for my bad english, second sorry for another Pong Game
This is my first game for DS with SOCCER-PONG game mode.
1.Win at 15 Pts
2.Cursor Key Player1 and B+Y Player2
3.Press L for Reset
4.Pong and Soccer-Pong game mode
5.WiFi Vs Players mode (STILL IN DEVELOPMENT!!)
6.Sounds like real Pong
7.ENJOY!!
Text OS is a small application designed to be of quick use to developers. The purpose of Text OS is to get developers to test their games faster on the DS Hardware.Text OS provide support to boot only Homebrew apps. It will also boot what ever is in slot-2 of the device.There is a R4 ready version in the "R4_ready" folder. This replaces the R4 interface.All you have to do is delete the old R4 files, backing them up of course and placeing the files from the folder on the root of your card.
#######Text OS Features:
- Back Light Support
- Slot-2 boot
- Homebrew Boot
- Boot Save (Press A to boot lasted played game)
- Battery Detection
- DS Detection
- Date, Time, Name, etc.
#######Using the OS:
Copy the following files to your cart: gbaframe.bmp, TEXTOS(.nds, .ds.gba or _patched.nds), and textos.txt. The OS reads from the "Homebrew" folder on the root of your card. Place all homebrew files you wish to view in that folder. To launch a .nds file simple select it by touching the file name and Press A to launch it. Simply scroll the browser with the D-Pad Up/Down buttons.
#######Credits:
Funkystuff (Creator)
Spinal (for the battery mod)
#######Known Working Cards:
- AK2.1
- R4
#######Notes:
_Patched.nds version has been patched to stop dldi auto patching. This is used for r4 or other similar carts.
Konami is re-releasing PSP games in Europe, offering two titles for GBP 19.99.
Available from March 27, the first two pairings will be Metal Gear Solid Portable Ops and Silent Hill Origins, and Metal Gear Solid with Coded Arms.
Sony has recently unveiled a renewed software drive for the portable device, confirming new LittleBigPlanet, MotorStorm and Buzz games are in the works, along with Assassin's Creed from Ubisoft and Rock Band Unplugged from Harmonix.
copete23 updates homebrew "Dspertator" which I recall, is an alarm clock.
The author has corrected the following aspects:
Quote:
Warning if inconsistent color depth
Without exception if saved palette name
Message after loaded
Preview updated after load
Preview updated after tab change
New button 'Update Row'
No more minitemp.png
Correct aspect ratio in preview
Error handling in file access
Mature ratings on videogames are designed to keep age-inappropriate content out of the hands of children. But the very act of designating some games as mature makes them desirable to young people, according to a new study on the effects of videogame ratings.
Researchers at the University of Michigan and VU University in Amsterdam studied 310 Dutch children between the ages of 7 and 17. The participants were shown made-up game descriptions and then answered a survey about how much (or how little) they wanted each fictional game. The games with the most mature content, which the researchers refer to as "forbidden fruit," were consistently more desirable for the participants, the researchers found.
"Although the Pan European Game Information system was developed to protect youth from objectionable content, this system actually makes such games forbidden fruits," the researchers concluded. "Pediatricians should be aware of this forbidden-fruit effect, because video games with objectionable content can have harmful effects on children and adolescents."
Oh, copper. For so many years, you've been second fiddle to silver and gold. Sure, you get the wiring and pipes, but most of the time it's because you're the cheapest of the bunch. When folks are handing out medals, you go to third place, and not even in your pure form. We all see your dark reddish-orange facade, but on the inside, we know you're blue.
But in the world of TrackMania DS, Coppers are everything. For every successful race, players receive Coppers, credits that can be used to unlock a variety of game content from the Shop. Want more tracks to race on? Fork over some Coppers and discover new courses to master (and some of the best ones really must be unlocked). Want more track editor parts to spice up your custom courses? Spend and you shall receive. Tired of the same old texture for your car? New skins are on sale now. There are three different sets of unlockables to shop, based on the environment (Stadium, Desert, Rally) of your choosing.
See, copper, things aren't so bad. You may be the whipping boy of the precious metals, but in TrackMania DS, you're the currency of choice.
TrackMania DS is currently scheduled for release on March 17th.
The games industry needs to stop relying on sequels or risk developers and consumers losing interest, Harvest Moon creator Yasuhiro Wada has warned.
"I think the games industry worldwide is in danger if we keep making sequels," Wada told our sister site Eurogamer Italy in an interview about the upcoming release of Little King's Story on Wii.
"Games have been popular recently because of the amount of choice a person has to spend many hours on one title and then many hours on another title. If they keep playing the same games they will become bored eventually."
And it's not just about gamers, either. "I think new IPs must keep coming, not only to give more variety to the gamer but also to keep the creative people creative," Wada said.
"What is the point of having creative developers if they are just making existing games better and not thinking of new ideas?"
The danger, of course, is that new IP won't always hit the mark commercially, as Electronic Arts discovered to its cost in 2008, despite great critical notices for the likes of Dead Space and Mirror's Edge.
Wada's latest release, Little King's Story, for which he is executive producer, is due out on 24th April in Europe, and puts players in the role of a young boy who discovers a crown that allows him to make people do his bidding, which is to grow the village and make people happy (just as well really).
Asked whether he thinks the game will return later on, he said "Maybe."
"If Little King's Story turns out to be a big hit and if I can get everyone together again then maybe we will consider it," he said, presumably referring to the shared development between Town Factory and Cing.
"At the moment I can't say whether we will or not because we are concentrating on getting this one finished. I can say that we have never considered making a series out of Little King's Story, we only thought about getting together and making a good game. Let's wait and see."
Indeed. And if you fancy reading more of Wada's thoughts, check back on our Man on the Moon interview from 2007 concerning Harvest Moon: Innocent Life, and correspondent Keza MacDonald's infatuation with all things farming.
Microsoft's Major Nelson has quietly confirmed that the upcoming Resident Evil 5 Limited Edition Console Bundle, announced last week, is the first Elite to use the new Jasper hardware revision.
One of the telltale signs of a Jasper, which sports a 65nm CPU and GPU along with 256MB of onboard flash memory, is that it comes with a 150W power supply, reduced from 175W in the previous Falcon designations and the monstrous 203W distributed with Xenon (originals) and Zephyr.
"Some folks have asked about the power supply," Larry 'Major Nelson' Hryb said in his video unboxing of the new bundle. "The power supply is y... it's a 150W Xbox 360 power supply," he said, holding it up to the camera.
He also recorded that the manufacturing date on the unit was "January 16th 2009". Up to now, the only Jaspers in the wild have been Arcade units, and fluctuating stock levels and few external signs has meant it's difficult to obtain one without a savvy retailer's assistance or a bit of blind luck.
The Resident Evil 5 Xbox 360 is due out on 13th March, and comes bundled with a 120GB hard drive, Resident Evil 5 itself, Super Street Fighter II Turbo HD Remix, a wireless red controller, a black headset, and an exclusive downloadable premium theme.
HDD Decryption is the very actual topic in the PS3 Scene, but what do you expect of it? A custom firmware + isoloader and choco cookies? The bad truth is that, this "hack" only removed the HDD layer encryption, but not the file encryption itself. Means: You get a few sprx, rco and xml files, possible a few more types but those are useless unless you can remove the encryption of the file itself. But you can't yet. So the only thing you can do for example is getting the firmware part which is on the HDD. But these are only UNPACKED files, NOT DECRYPTED files. You may be able to replace several firmware files ye, so if replacing some text in the XMB or an icon is a custom firmware for you, have fun with the knowledge that this may brick your PS3 and is useless as hell.
If you now ask me if this hack is even true, I would say yes. There were several very unknown (but public in some forums) HDD decryption methods in the first PS3 days which worked aswell, so why not on the new firmware...
Guerrilla Games producer Seb Downie has stated that there are "no changes required" to Killzone 2's often-complained-about controls.
We mentioned it in our review, and it seems enough of you have made a noise about it in forums to get the developer to look into, but the sluggish analogue controls in Killzone 2 are here to stay.
"After carefully looking into this, reading the posts, talking to a lot of you directly and analysing the controls at GG we have come to the conclusion that there are no changes required to the system," affirmed Downie.
75 percent of the CVG team disagree.
"If at all, any changes to the controls would put the majority of people who have not had problems or have adapted out of whack, which may be more serious," he said, adding: "Killzone 2 is a weighty, slower, more tactical first person experience that focuses on immersion.
"It is not a twitchy, split-second gun-wielding experience like some shooters. Also, the online experience is quicker as we've made the controls and animations a little faster during design."
Downie had previously said that the slow response of the controls was "down primarily to the design decision to make the game weightier," and suggested that, instead if throwing the sensitivity right up to max, that you "work your way up the sensitivity scale slowly as you become more accustomed to the game".
75 percent of the CVG team had to whack the sensitivity up to max.
eKaraoke is my new homebrew for the PSP that turns it into karaoke.
Description
This homebrew works through files to MP3 music files and lyrics for the RSC. RSC files are compatible with most MP4 players and now functional with the PSP thanks to my homebrew. To learn more about the RSC and for links to download, go to Wikipedia.
Heres what one member of team Dar Alex has posted:
Looking at that huge console that is getting dusty on the corner of the room of the kids, so many friends have told me, "heya, why not to develop on PS3, it's kindy a cool platform and so on", and yeah, i also thought that they didn't knew about what they were talking about, being that cool-fans of Halo3.
Well, want some reasons to develop on PS3? Thinking a bit on it, i've got onto some of them.
1. It's cool. Using a cell processor to play within the SPU's like you were using a CellBlade, wtf? Too bad that it's too limited to the normal users, even using the IBM Cell SDK, and that the RSX is still too overprotected and we just can imagine the great work that it could do rendering that graphic details that some friends keep on asking for.
2. It's necessary. Ok, this point only applies for the game developers. Considering the market boost that has the rival consoles from Microsoft or Nintendo with their easy-to-play (and-to-buy) games, game developers should try to duck directly onto this console without any fear (considering that they have the funds to do this), so we can see cool games coming directly to this cool engineering piece of hardware.
3. It's not necessarily piracy-related. Well, this is a little bit of drama. At the moment, on the scene, all what you can see are fakes, "teams" that are fighting each other, and people saying that "hey, that thing was mine, not yours!" How regrettable. So, at the moment you can't find piracy and BRD Game Downloads on this console. Therefore, even though you, game developer, make an omfg-cool game that it's out at the market with a price of 70€, you'll find two kind of buyers: The ones that buy it directly, and the ones that wait till it's platinum so they can buy it for 20€.
4. It's the normal progression. Well, let's be honest. You have made cool games for PSX, then you have used the cool improvements of PS2 to move it to a next generation, and now with PS3 you have the choice to take the next step onto the third-generation consoles. Yeah, i know that it would be easier to stop, take a break and turn on your 360 and play a little of Bioshock, but that's not the point.
5. It's hard. As Sony said recently, "We don't provide the 'easy to program for' console that (developers) want, because 'easy to program for' means that anybody will be able to take advantage of pretty much what the hardware can do, so then the question is, what do you do for the rest of the nine-and-a-half years?" (Kaz Hirai, CEO, SCE). This is a good decision or what? Considering the facts, saying that is hard and saying on other hand that you need more people to go and play with your bits, it's a bit contradictory. But anyway, this is not quite a bad argument or something to make you definetly say NO to develop on PS3, but a challenge, as, having in mind the three third-generation consoles, PS3 is the one that has the better hardware, even though that usually turns onto more costs.
When the Resident Evil 5 trailer was first shown, it raised some eyebrows. Some were critical, saying the set-in-Africa game used racist imagery.
Later builds of the game showed a variety of races as the zombies, but several website reported that some of questionable imagery remained. Both Eurogamer and Kikizo described a scene depicting "a white blonde woman being dragged off, screaming, by black men."
Apparently, the version of the game submitted to the British Board of Film Classification did not contain this potentially offensive scene. Sue Clark, Head of Communications at the British Board of Film Classification, explains, "In the version [of the scene] submitted to the BBFC there is only one man pulling the blonde woman in from the balcony, and I can't say the skimpiness of her dress impressed itself on me. The single man is not black either. As the whole game is set in Africa it is hardly surprising that some of the characters are black, just like the fact that some of the characters in an earlier version were Spanish as the game was set in Spain."
The BBFC states that it does take racism "very seriously"; however, it added that the version of RE5 is not racist. "As I said yesterday, we do take racism very seriously," said Clark, "but in this case there is no issue around racism."
Updated release of Doom for the PS2 from pedroduarte0 :
Time for updates:
Version 1.0.2.0 features USB keyboard support, so if you own a keyboard compatible with the PlayStation2 (not all USB keyboards are, unfortunably) it’s time to try it! It was as simple as enable it at the SDL makefile
Now it’s possible to change the weapon at will Select previous/next weapon with the Square and Circle buttons, respectively.
Also, gamma correction, run, and map view are accessible. L1 button now results in ‘n’ key instead of a ‘x’ key, which is good for confirmation input.
Saving and loading is still only possible via host: device.
Dualshock Joystick mappings:
============================
Left Analog Stick : Move
Cross: Shift / Run
Square : o / Previous weapon
Circle : p / Next weapon
Triangle : Escape
L1 : n
L2 : y
R1 : Fire
R2 : Space / Open doors
Start : Enter
Analog Left click : Map
Analog Right click : Brightness (gamma)
Please note: Enter key action (required to menu operations like starting new game) is a bit clumsy for now. For bringing up the menu, use the Cross button but to select items, use the Start button. This will be fixed.
A crown for Sackboy. Sony's spelled out some new ways to earn one in LittleBigPlanet, but that's not to say getting crowned is any easier. Sony expects only 50 will be handed out this year.
The latest "Sack It to Me" update identifies these three ways to win the rarest piece of DLC in the LBP community. (Words are theirs)
• A "Gold Star" on the LittleBigWorkshop
Frequently, when we're on LittleBigWorkshop.com, every so often, we come across a submission, whether it is an inspiration, workshop or forum post that makes us smile. As a small token of our appreciation, we like to put a smile on your face too by giving you a Community Prize Crown.
• Raising our Eyebrows
Every once in awhile, LBP fans do something that immediately grabs the attention of a few people, spreads on the web, and eventually is talking about it. We love it when this happens, and as a sign of thanks, you may just get a Community Prize Crown in your mail box.
• LittleBigChallenges
We're in the process of coming up with more LittleBigChallenges, so get your creative thoughts together and stay tuned next week for LittleBigChallenge2.
So, the first two are more or less, impress us, or do something that goes viral, and the standard seems arbitrary. The third, complete a LittleBigChallenge, was the only way to get a crown going back to its origins in November. Guessing LBC #2 won't be any easier than the first.
The tracker is tailored for much faster machines so this is more an experiment than anything else.
If you intend to use it to create music for the PSP you'd better go very easy on the dsp effects and channels polyphony, especially the flanger fx is a really heavy toll because the media engine doesn't have any integrated hardware sin/cos or pow instructions.
The replay routine of the tracker uses the 2nd processor so the occupation time of the main CPU is really minimal.
Samples depacking with the PSP codecs isn't implemented yet (so samples packing should be set to "none" in that case).
The tracker itself is open source and available on Windows, Linux and Mac OS X.
v1.97b:
- Modified the behaviour of the ring mod stereo filter.
- Added a few more constants for the replay.
- Song name wasn't displayed in the plugin infos.
- Fixed a bug in the flanger (early cut).
- Right mouse button on the "Lock / All" button to locked/unlock
all instruments at once.
- More granularity in constants generation (potentially smaller replay).
- Mp3 samples packing bitrate is now selectable between:
64, 88, 96, 128, 160 & 192 kbps.
- LSHIFT+I: Show instruments list / LSHIFT+S: Show synths list.
- Forgot to include LameACM.inf in the windows distribution
(without that file the codec couldn't be installed
and samples using mp3 packing scheme weren't packed at all, shame).
- Added At3 samples packing scheme (Windows users need to install
the atrac3 codec located in the install directory in order to pack samples).
Rates are: 66, 105 & 132 kbps (depacker not yet implemented on PSP, tho).
- Added the ability to select a range of positions for songs rendering to .wav.
- The nasty click occuring when loading a module while another one
was still playing should be gone.
- Added mouse wheel navigation support in samples editor.
- Cubic interpolation can now be disabled
(should increase speed a bit but at the expense of lower quality).
- Added ADPCM packing scheme.
- Added an option to pack & lock instruments and use them directly
in the tracker. (unpacked versions of the instruments are kept safe
and are saved in .ptk files as usual).
These instruments can't be modified in the samples editor.
This should come in handy to finetune a module prior to a .ptp export.
- Fixed a bug with TrueSpeech packed samples.
- Introduced small tracks
(right click on the 3rd icon of a track or globally via the sequencer).
- Added 3 commands in the sequencer to zoom all tracks at once.
- Filesizes are now displayed beside names.
- Added an instruments remapper in the sequencer tab.
- Added some colors for the notes
(also changed the font so patterns should be a bit easier to read now).
- Added volume ramping for the 303 units.
- The 2nd 303 unit wasn't triggered correctly.
Here's an object lesson in the importance of timing. Just one week ago, the announcement that a port of the Wii's Tenchu: Shadow Assassins would be coming to the U.S. in March would have sounded like manna from Japanese heaven to game-starved PSP owners.
But now, in the light of Assassin's Creed, LittleBigPlanet, Rock Band: Unplugged and MotorStorm: Arctic Edge being in the pipeline for Sony's portable, today's announcement is a little more like ... well, it's like a Tenchu game being announced. See? It's all in the timing.
Turbine has created a new test server for its Lord of the Rings Online MMO, and loaded it with the game's next big content update - the first since last year's Mines of Moria expansion - Volume 2: Book 7. That means pre-release patch notes giving us some idea of what will be in the final update.
The storyline continues with the addition of Elven haven Lothlorien, where players will be reunited with the Fellowship of the Ring, but not before they've earned faction standing with the Galadhrim. Over 50 quests, 9 chapters of story and 4 instances are involved. For high-level players, there's also a new 12-man raid in the Waterworks of Moria.
Turbine's also showing new and lower-level players some love with a revamped new player experience, a new quest guide and a speedier levelling curve. Elf and Dwarf new player progression has been "completely redesigned", there are new quests and travel routes and a re-structure of existing quests to improve flow.
The quest guide works with the quest tracker to provide map support. The overall amount of experience needed to reach the current level cap of 60 has been reduced (this works retrospectively, so you might find you suddenly gain up to 3 levels after Book 7 lands).
There's also a "revive" feature that allows you to resurrect yourself in place, rather than retreating. It's on a half-hour cooldown to begin with, increasing to one hour at level 10 and 2 hours at level 40. It doesn't work in group instances.
As for the usual round of tweaking, there are plenty of adjustments to most classes - new boys the Rune-keeper and Warden unsurprisingly getting the most attention - and a rebalancing of Monster Play in the Ettenmoors. Furthermore, both creature difficulty and weapon damage are being reduced in the high levels to make skill more of a factor than gear.
Sounds like an extremely comphrehensive update, as LOTRO players have come to expect from Turbine. We'll have more LOTRO action on Eurogamer soon.
I made this little text based game at school. I was bored.
When you start this game it first asks you for a number. the psp then choose a number between 0 and the chosen number.
Then you have to guess the number. You psp will say if your guess is TOO HIGH or TOO LOW.
Konami's released a new trailer and details on the Wii version of PES 2009... which should probably be renamed PES 2010 now.
The Wii version boasts "enhanced AI, "added game modes" and "improved controls" over last year's game, including an enhanced version of the 'point and drag' system. Options for Classic Controller or the Wii Remote held sideways are now also included.
New modes include the introduction of the UEFA Champions League, an expanded Champions Road mode and PES Master League from the other console versions.
"A greatly improved online mode" is also promised, with support for up to eight players competing online at once, using two consoles with four players on each.
It's out on March 17. Enjoy the video.
Update: A Konami spokesperson has contacted CVG to amend its 17th date, which is actually March 27.
The next iteration of Sony's PSP handheld will feature a sliding screen, will no longer carry a UMD drive and will allow shoulder button-only games to be played when the screen is in its 'closed' position.
That's according to a development source close to Sony, speaking to Eurogamer on condition of anonymity. We first broke the news of a new update to the system late last year, revealing that PSP-4000, the third incremental hardware revision of the console, is planned for release later this year.
While Sony has refused to comment so far, further rumours have emerged in the past week claiming that 4000 will represent the first major overhaul of the system, with a sliding screen added and the UMD drive removed.
Our development source today confirmed these reports, adding: "The screen is basically the same as the one in the 3000 - except it slides." When 'closed', we were told, the screen won't cover the entire face of the console, but the unit will be "significantly smaller in width" as a result.
With the console in its 'closed' state, most controls will be inaccessible. However, our source claims that games which use the shoulder buttons exclusively - such as LocoRoco - will be playable, as these inputs will still be accessible. It's expected that the unit can also be used for media playback in this configuration.
Eurogamer further understands Sony is approaching developers for ideas for games that only require the shoulder buttons.
Sony said this afternoon it does not comment on rumour or speculation.
When we were kids, a box of cereal wasn't worth eating if there wasn't a free toy buried in the bottom somewhere. Emma Schweiger of Janesville Township, Wisconsin has sadly forgotten those days, reacting in horror not joy when she found an unexpected free prize in her bag of potato chips purchased at Aldi.
While rummaging through the greasy fragments she uncovered an aged Nokia handset, bereft of charge, covered in cholesterol, and sporting a T-Mobile SIM card. No address book has yet been retrieved to identify the phone's owner, but the discolored disc on the back where an adhesive belt clip had been applied is a pretty strong clue to how it came to its carb-laden cocoon.
As for Schweiger, she's pledged to always pour her bag of chips into a bowl prior to eating -- which happens to also be the easiest way to get the toy out of a particularly unappealing box of cereal.
I was originally going to post this on the CWCheat forums but I am still waiting for my account to be activated so I can post therefore I am posting it here. I'm hoping I can get some help.
Ok, don't expect much from this at the momment, I only bothered starting this because no-one else has done it yet and many of the PSPAR cheats are not available in the CWCheat database.
Basically it can only convert "some" standard 8-bit, 16-bit and 32-bit type cheats to CWCheat format. I'm releasing this now because I have very little idea of how to fix the issues I am having. If you think you can help please post any information here.
Please DON'T post a list of cheats which don't work as I can quite easily see which cheats don't work and until it can convert the cheats better I DON'T care about reports of cheats which don't work. Also when you do convert the cheats you must place the PSPAR code file in the root of the Memory Stick and call it "pspar_codes1.bin". The difference between conversion mode 1 and 2 is that mode 1 will try to convert the addresses and values if needed to CWCheat format and save the file to "ms0:/cheats.txt". Whereas mode 2 will simply dump the addresses and values as they are written in the original PSPAR code file to "ms0:/cheats_nomod.txt".
Since I am unable to solve these issues further releases will be unlikely unless I can get some help fixing the issues which I am having.
However that is fixed in version 0.21.
*****************
Here is another quick update to fix a few issues.
Changes in version 0.21:
- Fixed: Crash if CIRCLE is enter
- Fixed: Issue converting various DMA cheats (thanks to haro and NoEffex)
Version 0.21 can be downloaded here.
With this version I have tested ~235 cheats and this is the compatibility results:
- version 0.10: 71.30%
- version 0.20: 87.75%
- version 0.21: 90.13%
As you can see that is quite close to the 100% however I still need help fixing the codes which aren't converted correctly. I've attatched all of my notes with version 0.21 and there is quite a lot more than there was before. I've also added a few links to some useful information and a useful java PC application to the first post.
It's wrapped, packed and ready for action - PSPVC v3.60 is here!
In this version, a new "logo" section has been added that enables you to add your very own logo/watermark to the video - in any size - anywhere on the screen - and in any transparency level you want A new "Line Darkening" option has also been added to the "Tweak Image" options, which (as the name implies) darkens the lines in the video (useful and effective in animated videos). Other things has been changed/updated/improved as well, here are the changes in v3.60:
Added a whole new "Logo" section that enables you to add your own logo/watermark
Added a new "Line Darkening" option to "Tweak Image" which makes the lines... eh... darker
Added a memory stick space-check when uploading a video to the PSP
Updated the sharpening filter LimitedSharpen to LMFmod
Increased the "Custom Resolution" limit from 3 to 4 digits
Fixed a subtitle-extraction bug when converting
fixed bug causing some subtitles to show up incorrect while previewing video
Fixed a screenshot-marker bug
Misc improvements
After over three years of hype and unimagined pressure to perform, Sony’s PS3 exclusive first person shooter Killzone 2 has kept its nerve and debuted at the top of the ELSPA GfK-ChartTrack All Formats Top 40.
The victory is all the sweeter having had to fend off the advances of Microsoft’s latest instalment to its Halo franchise, Halo Wars, which begins its charts career in second spot.
Last week’s number one, Capcom’s Street Fighter IV, is forced in to third place, though it holds off Nintendo’s Wii Fit for another week as that drops to fourth spot.
Elsewhere in the listings, Professor Layton has a strong week, climbing from 11th to fifth. Konami’s Silent Hill: Homecoming debuts just outside the Top Ten at number 11, whilst THQ’s Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War II slip dramatically from third to 18th.
Capcom’s Wii only Dead Rising: Chop ‘Til You Drop failed to make the Top 40 this week, making it to just number 13 in the Wii listings.
The ELSPA GfK-ChartTrack All Formats Top 40 in full (for the week ending Feb 28th):
1. Killzone 2 (Sony)
2. Halo Wars (Microsoft)
3. Street Fighter IV (Capcom)
4. Wii Fit (Nintendo)
5. Professor Layton and the Curious Village (Nintendo)
6. Sega Mega Drive Ultimate Collection (Sega)
7. FIFA 09 (EA)
8. Call of Duty: World at War (Activision Blizzard)
9. Ben 10: Alien Force (D3P)
10. Mario Kart Wii (Nintendo)
Street Fighter IV, which was released by Capcom on consoles this past February, will be made available for the PC some time this summer. Capcom VP Christian Svensson said a new bundled version of the game might be released as well which could include Mad Catz control pads.
This installment of the popular fighting franchise has presumably been doing well, as Capcom Japan said it shipped 2 million units worldwide of the console versions.
When asked for more detail concerning the PC version's staggered release date, Svensson said that the game simply isn't finished yet, according to videogamer.com. "To put things into perspective, the Street Fighter IV team is working on two things right now," said Svensson. "They're finishing the PC SKU, and people are like, well the arcade was the PC, how hard can it be? Well we had all of these additions for the console version in terms of content that didn't exist on the PC. All of that needs to be rolled back in."
Svensson continued, "We have to do an online integration with an online service. I won't discuss which one yet because it hasn't been announced yet. Obviously the arcade had no online. Here we have an online integration that has to be done. We have to optimise the game for a variety of configurations, both up and down, so that it looks pretty on things that are more powerful than the arcade system and it runs well and at 60 frames per second on things that are considerably less powerful, so we sell to more than the top two per cent of the market."
As for why the PC version wasn't released by Capcom at the same time as the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 versions, "The answer is the unfortunate financial realities of making our numbers within certain financial years or quarters drives when we have to actually get some stuff out of the door. The other part of this is while the PC is an important part of our business today, the forecast does not justify holding back the lion share of the revenues that comes from consoles to make it happen."
For more on Street Fighter IV, head on over to our object page and the review of the console version.
Samsung's new value priced Blu-ray player managed to fly under our radar at CES in favor of its better equipped brethren but that hasn't stopped Dave Zatz and others from stumbling into them at retail lately, like this one sitting on a Best Buy shelf. By making BD-Live required 1GB storage and WiFi dongle aftermarket accessories, you can grab a slim, Netflix streaming, fast Blu-ray loading box for $299. Right now we'll probably wait until the whole product line appears and prices slide down a bit more before considering picking one up, but depending on your needs this could be a good option, more pics of this bird in its unnatural habitat beyond the read link.
Well, we can't say we didn't see this one coming -- the US District Court for the Central District of California just ruled that Guitar Hero doesn't infringe Gibson's goofy patent on "simulating a musical performance." Just as we thought, the case more or less turned on whether Guitar Hero controllers are actually "musical instruments," and not surprisingly, the court said they're not -- it called them "toys that represent other items." What's more, the court also found that Gibson's patent only applies to devices which output analog audio signals and not MIDI signals or other types of control signals, so it's looking like other rhythm game developers are in the clear for now. We're guessing this also means Gibson's similar lawsuit against Harmonix for Rock Band is on hold while the company decide whether or not to appeal -- let's hope it decides this nonsense isn't worth it.
he lead designer of “EVE Online” talked to me about how his game holds up against other upcoming space MMOs. He also shared plans to connect “EVE” players on handheld devices and a Facebook-like social networking site.
“Watchmen: The End is Nigh” isn’t the only title being released for the upcoming comic book film. Described as “a dynamic strategy fighting game,” “Watchmen: Justice is Coming” will be available exclusively for the iPhone and iPod Touch.
Sony has spent over a year trying to convince third-party developers to support the PSP again. Their recommended recipe for success: bigger names and shorter games.
***
How does Sony go from making the darling of portable gaming devices to an afterthought?
And, more importantly, how did Sony spend 2008 privately working with publishers to turn that situation around and line the PSP up for its best gaming year ever?
“We did have a bit of a downturn last year in terms of software quality and quantity.”
John Koller, head of marketing for PSP, told MTV Multiplayer that story as part of a wide-ranging interview about Sony’s four-year-old gaming machine. The topic of today’s portion of the interview: Sony’s pitch to bring the PSP back to the gaming forefront.
“We did have a bit of a downturn last year in terms of software quality and quantity,” Koller told me as we began our interview with a look back on how the PSP fared in 2008. “We had a few big games like “God of War” and “Crisis Core,” but we knew going in that there were going to be some quantity issues and we wanted to ensure that 2009 and 2010 would see a tremendous resurgence. This has been about a year-and-a-half roadshow project in talking to the publishers and making sure they understand how best to create games for the PSP.
Koller said the 2008 PSP gaming line-up was soft because the PSP hardware sales had been soft 18 months earlier. He recalled feedback he was hearing nearly two years ago. “A lot of the publishers were looking at that and were saying, ‘Is the installed base going to be near where I need it to be in order to recoup my costs?’ That all changed when we launched the PSP 2000 in September of 2007. The sales have been on a very strong trajectory ever since.”
But how to get publishers back on board? It wasn’t as simple as showing them a graph with an inclining ascent of PSP hardware sales numbers. Publishers had reasons to prefer making games for PSP’s rival, the Nintendo DS. “If you look at it just from a strict unit sales metric, PSP games outsell the DS counterpart,” Koller explained. “But the DS games require much less development investment, because the graphics aren’t as good, the gameplay isn’t as deep. In general it’s just not created for a more sophisticated, mature gamer, but usually [someone who is] under 12.” The result, Koller said, is that publishers felt they could make more money making games relatively cheaply for the DS.
According to Koller … almost every first-party PSP game has been profitable.
Koller said that Sony’s PSP team spent 2008 “making the rounds” with every major third-party game publisher, sharing data and showing how PSP games could be more profitable for publishers. According to Koller, Sony was backed with evidence that almost every first-party PSP game has been profitable, a “positive gross margin,” to put it in his words.
The trick would be how to convince other game makers that they could have the same experience.
Sony presented a “recipe” for success, suggesting marketing budgets and even offering ideas about which publisher franchises might best suit the PSP. “The number one request we had was: look at franchise games, and don’t port them.” Koller mentioned, as he did last year in an interview with MTV Multiplayer’s Patrick Klepek, that the high-selling “Transformers” and “Iron Man” games were cited as successes.
PSP fans might shudder at Koller’s mention of “Transformers” and “Iron Man” games, neither of which received good reviews. That’s not lost on Koller. “We did get into quality, and we did get into size. So quality is very important, obviously… Size is another thing. Many of the publishers had gotten caught up in the idea that ‘We have to make a console-sized game’ and it’s just not true. We launched ‘God of War‘ last year in March with eight hours of gameplay. When we launched it there was an immediate reaction [against that]. But when you realize how a PSP is used, you use it for 10 minutes, put it down for an hour, pick it up for 15 minutes — eight hours was a very deep game. If you look at that size, that translates into development investment.” Translation: it’s cheaper, publishers, if you make shorter PSP games.
“Many of the publishers had gotten caught up in the idea that ‘We have to make a console-sized game’ and it’s just not true.”
Another thing the Sony PSP team pushed to publishers was PSP-PS3 connectivity. Make the games talk to each other, they urged. “If you have a big franchise, think about ways you can connect it to the PSP,” Koller said of the pitch to third parties. “Of PSP owners, 30% own a PS3, so that cross-ownership rate is growing. It’s a very strong loyalty. And there’s a really good opportunity for a publisher — or even us on the worldwide studios side — to have two sales, plus the consumer loving the interaction between both of them.” Sony’s connections between the PS3’s “Resistance 2″ and the PSP’s upcoming “Resistance Retribution” offer a showcase for this kind of two-system/two-games link.
“It’s kind of hard to ignore a 15 million-plus installed base,” Koller said. But the time to talk hardware is past. If 2009 is the year of the PSP game resurgence, it is the “LittleBigPlanet,” “Rock Band,” “Assassin’s Creed” and other major games coming to Sony’s portable that will need to be hard to ignore.
Do you know the exact number of Trophies you have ... off the top of your head? We know how tedious it is loading up your PS3 every time you want to remind yourself of your in-game accomplishments. Thankfully, this is now a thing of the past. Once PlayStation.com updates with its new Trophy tracking features, you'll be able to check your PSN level, Trophy count and lists for each individual game from anywhere with internet access.
The update is due to go live tomorrow. The functionality will be very basic at launch, allowing you to simply check your own Trophy stats. After a later update, you'll be able to compare your Trophies against friends' and "look at your Trophies in new and interesting ways." We're hoping the info will be made available for third-party applications and websites to access at some point in the future, too.
In the meantime, check out our gallery below to see what your Trophies will look like on PlayStation.com and visit the PlayStation Blog for a video walkthrough of the new site features.
A sliding screen and no UMD drive for the rumored PSP-4000? If Eurogamer's "close to Sony" source is to be believed, these are the changes you can expect to see in the next iteration of portable PlayStation. The screen is supposedly the same as the PSP-3000, with the only difference being that it can slide. When in the "closed" position, the unit will be "significantly smaller in width" and most controls will be inaccessible; however, shoulder button-only games like LocoRoco will be playable while in this state.
The noted hardware change, which would make the PSP a UMD-less device, mimics statements made by former COO of Acclaim Dave Perry last week -- to which Sony's PSP marketing head John Koller offered a vague non-denial. With the PSP-4000 rumored to arrive later this year, it won't be long before we get more verifiable information.
[Ben Heck] the uber modder has posted a new project. He has made a breath controlled kick pedal for all of the Guitar Hero style games. Though the tutorial focuses on Guitar Hero World Tour, he does explain how it could be done for Rock Band at the end. This is intended for someone in a wheelchair who couldn’t actually use the kick pedal and needed their hands free to play the rest of the drums. He took apart the kick pedal that came with it to get the piezoelectric switch out of it. Then, he made a little chamber and placed the switch on a diaphragm at one end. When you blow, the diaphragm moves and triggers the switch. Pretty simple really. There is a video available of [Ben] trying it out as well.
Don't pay good money for Watchmen tickets. Re-up your Xbox Live Gold status instead. That's the deal currently being offered at retailer Best Buy, one that might be too good to pass up.
Best Buy's promotion takes your purchase of either an Xbox 360 console or an "Xbox Live product" and tosses two tickets to the comic book movie adaptation. That's a nice bonus, considering the price of movie tickets.
The Playstation Blog sat down with Resistance: Retribution to talk about the upcoming Playstation Portable's multiplayer modes.
The game includes five multiplayer modes:
Team Deathmatch: Eliminate the players on the opposing team. The team with the highest score wins.
Capture The Flag: Grab the opposing team's flag and deliver it to your base to score the capture. You flag is required at your base to score.
Containment: Capture coolant nodes to overheat and destroy the opposing teams reactor. Controlling both coolant nodes increases the overheat time
Assimilation: The Cloven must eliminate the Maquis forces and assimilate them to their team. The last Maquis to be eliminated ends the round. The player with the highest individual score wins.
Free For All: All players are out for themselves. Eliminate the opposition and the player with the highest score wins.
Tons more information can be found in this video, as well as a look at multiplayer gameplay.
The Tokyo District Court ruled an injunction against the Chinese R4 makers for "violation under Japan's laws". You'd think that would mean one couldn't walk into a game shop and buy one. You'd think.
In late 2008, Nintendo (and 53 other companies) took legal action against the makers of the R4 cart, a device which allows, amongst other things, the pirating of games on a DS.
In the wake of last week's injunction, Yahoo! Auctions Japan has issued a notice that putting R4 devices up for sell on its site is now prohibited.
Even after the Tokyo District Court's injunction, stores in otaku shopping paradise Akihabara continue to opening advertise the R4, and the device seems widely available. Sure, there might be a lag for retail to catch up with the recent decision to prohibit selling the devices, but don't expect the R4 business in Japan to dry up any time soon.
The Nintendo DSi’s two cameras are the system’s most noticeable feature and are often perceived as the major advantage it has over the DS Lite. However, that’s not quite how Nintendo’s internal development team sees it.
In the latest volume of Iwata Asks, we learn quite a bit more about the thinking behind the DSi’s sound features. Yusuke Akifusa of the Entertainment Analysis and Development team sees it as the DSi’s second supporting pillar. Says Akifusa-san:
This time, when I heard Miyamoto-san thought Nintendo DSi needed music, it kicked off my own train of thought. I thought, we’ve already got the cameras as one important pillar, so why not institute music as another one, reinforcing the appeal of Nintendo DSi?
Akifusa-san is the man behind “DSi Sound,” the DSi’s music player and its many sound-editing features, which include changing the pitch and speed of sounds. DSi Sound also lets you distort sounds to make them sound like they’ve gone through a voice changer. Hmm… I wonder if I could use that to make myself sound like L’s electronic voice from Death Note.
Also present in the conversation, Miyamoto adds:
We talk about suddenly adding Nintendo DSi Sound, so people might think we just threw it in in a burst of enthusiasm, but it’s not really so. Nintendo has a proper sound team and each of its members perform multiple tests in compression and editing. Akifusa-san’s flurry of activity was able to bring something to shape because he could gather the already-existing sound technology and channel it into the Nintendo DSi system. All at once he brought together the sound technology being developed by other teams around the company.
Miyamoto also mentions that there was talk of using sounds recorded through the DSi’s microphone as startup sounds, which actually sounds very cool. I hope they decide to add the feature through a future update as it falls completely in line with Nintendo’s concept of a customized DSi. There’s a ton of potential for games to use it, too. Coming back to Akifusa-san for a second:
Also—and this is another idea that came from a different in-house team–you can play drums in time with music. The L Button is your bass drum and the R Button, your snare. As you listen to the music, you can be all boom bap bap! ♪
Yeah, he put the musical note in there, too. Speaking of the microphone, I can think of another couple features for it that would be very neat… like the ability to switch between menus and channels using your voice or sending voice messages to other DSi users. It would also be neat to be able to command party members in an RPG using the mic. Keep in mind that the DSi features louder volume settings and “better sound quality” than the Lite, too. Although Nintendo isn’t making a big deal out of the latter, so it probably isn’t as noticeable as one might imagine. I just hope they plan to add MP3 support to that list of sound features someday.
Make sure to read both DSi-related Iwata Asks volumes. The entire feature is pretty enlightening. I’d love to meet the people behind the DSi someday…they all sound fascinating. But more importantly…Daigasso Band Brothers DSi with proper downloadable content, anyone?
Sega, Nintendo, Activision, and Hudson share at least one thing in common. They all use the DS’ GBA slot for accessories. Since the Nintendo DSi is the new toy on the block you would think publishers would quit building devices that require a GBA slot now. Not Hudson!
Specific for Metal Fight Beyblade is a Beypoint Reader. This GBA slot device acts as an adapter that connects the Nintendo DS game to a Beypointer, a device that keeps track of your top spinning Beyblade stats in real life and now the Nintendo DS game too. Another interesting idea and another device for collectors to track down.
features
Gameplay simulates the perceptual effects of fear, drugs and your shell-shocked state due to combat. Experience the true chaos, horror and disorientation of the Vietnam War
Every shot counts, and every bullet is precious. Fight off fear and push forward not knowing what unspeakable horror could be waiting to claim your life
Fight a cunning and elusive enemy that takes every advantage of everything at their disposal. Napalm attacks, intricate tunnel systems and vicious homemade traps - cruel, violent and unfiltered war
Fight the victims of WhiteknIght - an enemy that has no side, one who is brutal, insane and ready to rip you to shreds
description
ShellShock 2: Blood Trails is a violent, first-person, survival horror game set against the backdrop of the Vietnam War. Gameplay centers on the use of psychological horror and fear, relying on the power of suggestion, mood, tension and foreshadowing - implying the notion of danger, potential danger, imminent danger, and horrifying acts that have or are implied to have occurred or will come to pass.
features
Gameplay simulates the perceptual effects of fear, drugs and your shell-shocked state due to combat. Experience the true chaos, horror and disorientation of the Vietnam War
Every shot counts, and every bullet is precious. Fight off fear and push forward not knowing what unspeakable horror could be waiting to claim your life
Fight a cunning and elusive enemy that takes every advantage of everything at their disposal. Napalm attacks, intricate tunnel systems and vicious homemade traps - cruel, violent and unfiltered war
Fight the victims of WhiteknIght - an enemy that has no side, one who is brutal, insane and ready to rip you to shreds
description
ShellShock 2: Blood Trails is a violent, first-person, survival horror game set against the backdrop of the Vietnam War. Gameplay centers on the use of psychological horror and fear, relying on the power of suggestion, mood, tension and foreshadowing - implying the notion of danger, potential danger, imminent danger, and horrifying acts that have or are implied to have occurred or will come to pass.
description
The King of Fighters '98 Ultimate Match is a 2D arcade-style fighting game in which players compete in one-on-one combat with a large international cast of selectable characters. Players engage in hand-to-hand battles by mostly kicking, punching, and blocking their way to victory until the opposing player's life meter runs out. Some female fighters wear clothing that exposes their posterior and cleavage, while bouncing breasts are depicted during battles.
NDS Lite Game Selector is the worlds first DS Lite game selector!It can select from 3 DS games at once,simply flick the switch to change the game you are playing. Easy to fit and use,simply clip the DS Game Selector onto the back of your NDS Lite and plug in the connector to the game card slot.
Ergonogic design, comfortable to use and ideal for use when travelling too.
Worlds first DS Lite game selector
Simply flick the switch to change the game you are playing
Easy to fit and use
Ergonogic design, comfortable to use
Ideal for use when travelling
Lino has released a new versionn of the Nintendo DS Emulator for Windows:
Here's the changelog :
Fixed a bug in video memory writing.
Fixed a bug in SWI Breakpoints (now are SWI 0xFD000, 0xFC000 in ARM mode and SWI 0xFD and 0xFC in THUMB mode).
Fixed a bug when resizing debugger window.
Fixed a bug in LISTRAM_COUNT register.
Fixed a bug that occur when you load a savestate (no more lcd swapping).
Fixed bug in Display Capture feature. (DISPCAPCNT).
Fixed bug in DMAxCNT registers when starting mode is 4.
Fixed bugs in BGxCNT registers.
Fixed a bug in VRAM Display.
Fixed bug in rendering of polygons with alpha channel in textures.
Fixed bug in VRAMCNT_A and VRAMCNT_B registers.
Added SpeedUp Button (CTRL+Space Bar).
Added BKPT opcode for ARM and THUMB state.
Added Main Memory rendering (only Display Capture).
Anyway, if you’re one of those people who are happily bundling The Homebrew Channel, Twilight Hack, warez launchers, and a whole bunch of illegal wads and IOSes, would you please stop including our stuff? You know, because our scammer friends love to link to your downloads as part of their “product”. Like homebrewinstaller, who is selling links to DJTaz’s warez launcher pack hosted on his personal pages at iol.ie. The file named 002fixGammaLoader.zip.
I know I’m not going to stop any of you guys from using our hacks to pirate games, but at least have the decency to not distribute our (OMG free!) apps and unknowingly help the scammers. It’s bad enough dealing with the stuff that they put out and host.
Since System Menu 3.5K recently came out, and it makes sense to monitor the activity of updates separately for each region, I’ve updated Wiimpersonator to check the USA, EUR, JPN, and KOR regions individually. As a reminder, it checks for updates hourly and produces a report if any new titles or updates are detected. You can check the update lists and reports here. Have fun .
Harmonix and MTV Games announced today the addition of fourteen tracks to the Rock Band Music Store catalog of downloadable content for Wii home videogame console from Nintendo, including tracks from electric blues artists Stevie Ray Vaughan and Double Trouble as well as alternative bands Jimmy Eat World and No Doubt.
All ten tracks from Stevie Ray Vaughan and Double Trouble's debut album Texas Flood (1983) will be made available in the Wii Rock Band Music Store. Tracks include the popular studio cuts of "Pride and Joy," "Texas Flood" and "Rude Mood,"as well as "Love Struck Baby," "Tell Me," "Testify," "Mary Had a Little Lamb," "Dirty Pool," "I'm Cryin" and "Lenny."
In addition, the lineup will also include "New" from the alternative rock pioneers of No Doubt. The track is featured on the band's album Return of Saturn (2000). As previously announced, the aforementioned tracks from No Doubt and Stevie Ray Vaughan and Double Trouble will also be available to Rock Band owners of Xbox 360 video game and entertainment system from Microsoft and PlayStation 3 computer entertainment system this week.
Wii owners can also look forward to three tracks from alternative band Jimmy Eat World including "Lucky Denver Mint" from the band's 1999 album Clarity, "Futures" (Futures, 2004) and "Sweetness" from the band's 2001 album Bleed American. The tracks come from the Rock Band Music Store catalog of downloadable content just released last week to owners of Xbox 360 and PLAYSTATION 3 system.
Wii fans can expect a rollout of previously released downloadable Rock Band content until the entire back catalogue of more than 570 songs is available. In addition, the regularly scheduled future DLC releases for Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 system will also be available for Rock Band 2 Wii owners soon.
Release Date: Tuesday, March 3, 2009
** Dates for Rock Band game tracks are tentative and subject to change **
Tracks:
Stevie Ray Vaughan and Double Trouble "Love Struck Baby"
Stevie Ray Vaughan and Double Trouble "Pride and Joy"
Stevie Ray Vaughan and Double Trouble "Texas Flood"
Stevie Ray Vaughan and Double Trouble "Tell Me"
Stevie Ray Vaughan and Double Trouble "Rude Mood"
Stevie Ray Vaughan and Double Trouble "Testify"
Stevie Ray Vaughan and Double Trouble "Mary Had a Little Lamb"
Stevie Ray Vaughan and Double Trouble "Dirty Pool"
Saturday night, while many of us were stuffing food into our faces, plenty of folks were still playing Halo 3. At precisely 6:36pm PST, in a three minute and nineteen second game of Infection on Foundry, four players participated in Halo 3's one billionth match.
One Billion. It's a giant number, one that's difficult to understand without the proper context. Our first thought was to put it into perspective by comparing Halo 3's total games played with its predecessor, Halo 2, a title that we are still super proud of, and one that's topped the original Xbox LIVE Leaderboards since its launch through to present day - over four years of online gaming.
But there's a problem with that comparison. Halo 2 has yet to achieve one billion games played. As of right now, it's sitting pretty at 798 million total matches played. Surprised? We were.
Still, we wanted to find ways to help you (and us) better comprehend just what one billion games means in the grand scheme of things.
If each game of Halo 3 lasted only three minutes and nineteen seconds, mirroring the Infection game outlined above, the total amount of time played would eclipse sixty-three centuries. For those looking for more granularity, that's roughly 630 decades, 6,300 years, or 2,300,000 days.
But admittedly, that's working from a pretty rough estimate. No worries, we keep tabs on this sort of stuff. We recruited our database guru, RocketMoose, to provide us with some more accurate numbers. The data point he supplies below is a sum total of all player time spent in matchmaking. If ten players completed a ten minute match, the database would log 100 minutes of total playtime. This figure also does not include data from Custom or Offline matches.
Total Matchmaking Playtime: 2,023,153,340,764 seconds.
Version 3.5 of the System Menu was announced on March 3, 2009, by Nintendo sending notices to the Wii Message Board. (Korean Region Only As Of This Posting)
Update appears to include IOS52 (used by menu) and IOS254 (a copy of IOS9, to block PatchMii). Along with Updates to all 4X IOS versions (IOS40 IOS41 IOS43 IOS45 IOS46)
What is affected
Affected Workaround
Twilight Hack 0.1beta1 and below? - Status Unknown
PatchMii - None (yet, but should be easy)
DVDx - Status Unknown
Wii Homebrew Launcher is an interface similar to that of the Wii menu. It allows you to start homebrew stored on your SD card in the Wii front SD slot. Each program is represented by its own customizable "channel".
A new version of Wii Homebrew Launcher is available, plus the source code of this project are now available.
As a reminder, here is a summary of the main functionalized homebrew:
Launch a homebrew Wii or ELF to DOL from an SD card, an SD-gecko, a DVD or a shared folder (Samba).
Opportunity to learn the homebrews in sub-folder (allows to set up categories Emulators, Games, eg ....)
Opportunity to start a ROM directly with an emulator developed for this purpose.
Launch a Channel on your Wii any area without having to change the area of your Wii.
Can be installed as a chain or be run directly with the fault Zelda TP (for those who do not want to install in console)
A mode 'Lite' (a kind of safe mode) is accessible by launching this homebrew from the game in Zelda TP trucsigné autoboot.
Customizable with themes
It was some time that he had not been updated and inspiration missing me, so I decided to put the sources online. This allows me to re-do the music (which had been disabled for licensing reasons) and include a loader for homebrew GameCube 'Wii GameCube Homebrew Launcher' to MegaMan. I hope that the dissemination of these inspirational source developers and that the loader will evolve.
Here is a list of changes in this version that passes for the occasion in version 1.0:
The file path dol / elf password as an argument to homebrew is correct (he pointed to the parent folder).
Various changes related to libfat.
The chain was moving subjects.
Re-activation of the music font.
The music is re-refresh when changing theme.
Pooling of some source files with the library MyFS.
Inclusion of Wii GameCube Homebrew Launcher to launch GameCube homebrew.
The GameCube loader tries again to play a DVD GameCube (better compatibility with SD-Boot) and creates a dummy if GameId
there is not in the drive.
Dissemination of sources under the GNU General Public License
Using the loader for GC homebrew
To launch a homebrew GC, you will need a patched MIOS,
be included in the 'Wii Gamecube Homebrew Launcher' to MegaMan
be included in the 'Gamecube Backup Launcher' WiiGator
Then create a folder GAMECUBE at the root of the SD card, the USB stick, DVD or the shared folder.
As for Wii homebrew, create a folder for each homebrew
Place the homebrew GC which must be in DOL only and name it BOOT.DOL
[Optional] To give a name to hombrew, title.txt create a file, edit it and enter the name you want.
[Optional] To give a specific icon, create an image 132 pixels wide and the height of which is multiple of 95. The image must be either 24-bit BMP format and named the title.bmp or PNG and appointed title.png. Copy it into the directory homebrew.
Jeff Lait, world famous author of Powder, one of the best NDS homebrew games on the DS has recently released a science fiction novel, both in print, and digital form.
The Moon Books Project has made available a version specifically formatted for viewing on the Nintendo DS, with the blessing of the author.
Visit the Menoetius website for the physical and digital versions, and the Moon Books Project for the NDS version.
Nintendo has advised people to buy a Nintendo DSi early, as demand could easily outstrip supply during the busy festive period at the end of the year.
Recent Christmases have seen Nintendo's hardware top the must-have lists, with stocks of the Wii falling short of demand consistently since its release in 2006 – and it looks like it could be a similar situation with the soon to be released Nintendo DSi.
"I always advise people to buy early," Nintendo's UK general manager David Yarnton told The Times in a recent interview, picked up by gamesindustry.biz. "One of the things that people don't seem to understand is that factories are producing constantly; they don't peak and trough. So we're producing product all the time, but then everyone wants it all at the one end of the year. It's just so hard to try and keep up."
Retailers are already reporting huge demand for the new handheld, the third iteration of Nintendo's DS hardware that introduces multimedia capabilities. It's slated for an April 3 release in Europe, with a US launch coming two days after.
I made a game to help study kanji readings. Below is part of the instructions.
===========================
Gameplay
Blocks labelled with kanji fall toward the bottom of the screen. The point of the game is to shoot down the blocks with missiles labelled with pronunciations.
If a missile with an incorrect pronunciation hits a block, the block is not destroyed. If the block reaches the bottom of the screen, it explodes and causes the player damage. When the player's life bar is empty, the game ends.
In the gameplay menu, the player can control how many blocks there are and how fast they fall.
===================================
Controls
Move cursor:
Use left and right on the direction pad, or drag with the stylus.
Fire missile:
Press A or tap the space above the cursor.
Switch missile:
Press B or tap the space diagonal to the cursor.
The full instructions are at kanjistrike.sourceforge.net/readme_ds.html
IMPORTANT This must be run on a DS, not an emulator, and there must be a folder called 'ks' in the root of the flashcart. This is to allow save files to be written and stored.
Pirate from haxnetwork.net posted a tutorial how to decrypt a retail PS3 HDD. Here's what he posted:
1.) Make a dump of your PS3 HDD (connect to your PC via SATA)
2.) Plug HDD back to your PS3
3. Copy a large-dummy file to the HDD
4.) Unplug HDD from PS3, and plug it back into your PC
5.) Dump the HDD image againt, it
6.) Compare the two dumps you know have, and locate the encrypted dummy data (use HxD or any hex editor to do this)
7.) Replace the encrypted dummy data with sections of the data you want to decrypt
8.) Place the HDD back into your PS3
9.) Copy dummy data from PS3 to external media (USB drive/flash drive)
10.) Inspect the dummy file on PC from USB stick/flash drive.
Been looking for an inexpensive all-in-one to unify your life, something that your zombie slave Fido could use in the kitchen to look up recipes yet would also look equally good perched on a minimalist desk? ASUS's first Eee Top could fit the bill, and it looks to be very close to US availability with the appearance of a pre-order page on Amazon.com. The 15.6-inch touchscreen model has the standard 1.6GHz Atom processor, 1GB of memory, and XP installed on a 160GB drive. Right now it's available in either black or white, and whether you're choosing the presence or absence of all colors you'll be asked to pay $599.99 -- naturally with free shipping available if you're not in too much of a hurry.
Just like Eye-Fi promised in January, the WiFi SD card maker is adding video sharing to its repertoire. The new Explore Video and Share Video cards bring video sharing and 4GB capacities to the existing photo sharing lineup. The new cards go for $99 and $79, respectively, while the old 2GB Eye-Fi Home and Eye-Fi Share cards have been marked down to $49 and $59 each. The cards can handle uploads to YouTube and Flickr, and are built for HD uploads, and naturally the Explore card adds the hotspot service and geotagging on top of regular service. You can pre-order the cards today, and they should be shipping by the end of the month. Eye-Fi is also releasing a free iPhone app (as promised) this week, which works with your existing Eye-Fi account (yeah, you need to own a card) and allows you to upload iPhone shots to the same 25 services the SD cards work with, along with the computer syncing Eye-Fi is known for.
it seems appropriate that after striking the fatal blow in the war between HD DVD and Blu-ray, Warner is the first to break rank and ally itself with the China Blue HD team. Ready to enter the ordinary Chinese consumer's family, according to Managing Director Tony Vaughan, the Harry Potter series, Speed Racer and others will launch for 50-70 yuan ($7.30 - $10.22) per disc. Excuse us while we pick our jaws up from the floor, but with at least one Hollywood studio in pocket and 1999 yuan ($292) players on the way the son of HD DVD looks closer to a real Blu-ray competitor -- and less like the destined for the scrap heap reject we predicted -- than ever. With DVD sales shrinking and Blu-ray not quite ready to pick up the slack, how long until another studio decides the Chinese market has enough potential to publish movies on CBHD?
Microsoft's senior regional director for the Entertainment and Devices division, Neil Thompson, has declared himself happy with the performance of the Xbox Live download service, noting that the "phenomenal" past year for the Xbox 360 has put the company ahead of its own curve predictions.
"What I can say is that we have 17 million Xbox Live subscribers worldwide that are very active, and all of our download content - especially in the UK - is above where our expectations put us," Thompson told GamesIndustry.biz at the launch of the Microsoft/NBC Universal partnership last week.
"So we're very confident that these sorts of services that we've announced are proving very popular, and will be very successful. Our consumers are telling us."
And although he declined to reveal the specific numbers for downloads in the UK, or split them out into proportions of game add-ons versus other content such as film and TV downloads, he does feel that Microsoft is getting the right blend overall.
"The way I encourage people to think about this is that we're trying to make the Xbox 360 platform as completely compelling as a whole platform" he said. "What we feel you have to do is have a variety of different entertainment experiences that people will want to consume at different times, for different reasons. And different types of people will want to consume them.
"So we tend not to look at individual pieces and ask if it's doing well as a piece. What we do is look at whether or not the range of what we're offering more compelling than anybody else can offer. If the answer is yes, and when we look at new content we can offer, does it enhance what the range of that offering looks like - and that answer is yes - that's how we think about it and how we focus on it.
"In today's world consumers are incredibly demanding about what they get out of consumer technology, and technology services. Quite often it's just about having the choice, irrespective of what within the choice they use, they still want to see the choice. That's how I think about it - so therefore, what an individual piece does to the whole is quite difficult to judge specifically.
"As a proposition as a whole, if you look at Xbox 360 in the past 12, 18 or 24 months - especially in the UK - it's been pretty phenomenal. We think we're getting it right with these sorts of content plays."
Sony's PS3 shooter Killzone 2 has stormed the UK charts at number one this week, making it the first all-formats number one for the firm in almost two years.
The title becomes the fourth fastest-selling game for Sony in the UK, and the second fastest-seller on the PlayStation 3 behind GT5 Prologue.
Last week's number one, Street Fighter IV, saw sales drop 49 per cent as it slipped to number three according to GfK Chart track data, leaving Microsoft's Halo Wars to enter the charts at number two.
Apart from Professor Layton and the Curious Village at number five, all the other titles in the top ten lost sales for the week ended February 28.
The only other new entry this week is Konami's Silent Hill: Homecoming, which debuts at a respectable number 11.
01 Killzone 2
02 Halo Wars
03 Street Fighter IV
04 Wii Fit
05 Professor Layton and the Curious Village
06 Sega Mega Drive Ultimate Collection
07 FIFA 09
08 Call of Duty: World at War
09 Ben 10: Alien Force
10 Mario Kart Wii
Outspoken developer David Perry is adamant the next iteration of the PSP will not include a UMD drive – despite Sony claiming continued support for the format.
The latest teasing from Perry comes as numerous rumours of a PSP 4000 and a true PSP 2 do the rounds across the internet.
Perry had originally posted on his Twitter feed that the PSP 2 was due soon, and Sony had ditched the UMD drive. Sony's John Koller responded by denying any such console is in development, refusing to discuss whether UMD will feature in future PlayStation Portable hardware.
"John Koller is publicly questioning my post about PSP 2," wrote Perry yesterday. "So I confirmed with top PSP 2 developers. John, state that PSP 2 will have UMD," challenged Perry.
Sony is unlikely to respond beyond the usual corporate line, but many in the industry are expecting the continued evolution of the PSP, and key developers are believed to be creating for new Sony hardware.
According to our sister site Eurogamer.net, Sony could be releasing the PSP 4000 this year, and announcing a PSP 2 in 2010.
The PSP 4000 is expected to drop the UMD format, as well as feature a new sliding screen. All eyes are now on E3 in June, where Sony is expected to reveal the new handheld.
Sony has embarked on a renewed push for the PSP, after a quiet 12 months for the format.
New LittleBigPlanet, MotorStorm and Buzz titles are due for the system this year, and publishers such as MTV and Ubisoft have recommitted to the system with titles such as Assassin's Creed and Rock Band.
The latest installment in THQ's flagship real-time strategy franchise, Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War II, has entered the US PC chart at number one, according to NPD data for the sales week ending February 21.
It displaced previous long time number one - World of Warcraft expansion Wrath of the Lich King - which moved down to second place, ahead of Sims 2 titles Double Deluxe and Deluxe in third and fourth respectively.
Spore took fifth place, ahead of the Battle Chest and original World of Warcraft products, while FEAR 2 fell to eighth position.
The Apartment Life expansion for The Sims 2 and Crysis: Warhead completed the top ten with EA taking half of the entrants. Activision Blizzard was responsible for three, while THQ and Warner Interactive held one position apiece.
The full top ten is as follows:
1. Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War II
2. World of Warcraft: Wrath of the Lich King
3. The Sims 2 Double Deluxe
4. The Sims 2 Deluxe
5. Spore
6. World of Warcraft: Battle Chest
7. World of Warcraft
8. FEAR 2: Project Origin
9. The Sims 2 Apartment Life
10. Crysis: Warhead
Having the most expensive console on the market by a distance during a global recession is unlikely to have featured in Sony's original PlayStation 3 masterplan. But that is where the company finds itself today, and declining hardware sales, contrasting with rivals' fortunes, have increased pressure on the Japanese firm.
But rumours of an imminent price cut are circling, which, if correct, would be music to the ears of retailers and publishing partners. Not least Electronic Arts, one of many firms to have invested heavily in the future success of the platform.
Speaking to GamesIndustry.biz, Redwood Shores general manager Glen Schofield revealed his fears over the positioning of the console in the market, agreeing that the pricepoint placed PS3 as a luxury item in difficult economic times.
"I'm really not sure what's going on with Sony," he said. "They've been such a great, great partner and PlayStation 2 being such a great machine that, God, I hope they get out of this and they figure it out and they're around for a long time."
He refused outright to call for a price cut, stating: "You know, I can't tell them what to do. I don't know their finances." But Schofield added that it was good for health of the whole industry to have three successful home consoles in the market. "I love having the three major machines like that."
Redwood Shores' most recently released Dead Space to critical acclaim. The next title from the studio will be Dante's Inferno.
Capcom's Keiji Inafune has said that developing titles for the Xbox 360 was the only way the publisher could successfully break Western markets.
Although the publisher had tried to create more Westernised titles in the past, including Shadow of Rome and the critically panned Without Warning, it wasn't until the current generation that the publisher scored blockbuster hits.
"I think I can only get away with saying this now, but I really thought that the using the Xbox was only way to break into overseas markets, and I took that hypothesis all the way," said the acclaimed developer.
Capcom supported the Xbox 360 with two exclusive titles – Dead Rising and Lost Planet – both of which were early hits for the publisher on Microsoft's console.
"I think the success of these two titles was a major achievement for our company," added Inafune.
"That the Xbox 360 was such a big hit, and the products that we made for the overseas market were so well received was extraordinary."
Sony has been talking to publishers about bringing classics from beyond the Sony console family to the PSP’s download service.
***
The PSP may not just be (legally) a system for PlayStation games anymore.
Sony is in discussions with game publishers for companies to bring their back-catalogue to digital download on the PlayStation Network and is interested in past games from beyond the PlayStation family.
“In general there’s a lot of discussion about [publishers'] back catalogs that will finally find its way to PlayStation Network in the back half of this year,” John Koller, Sony’s head of U.S. marketing for PlayStation hardware said in an interview with MTV Multiplayer late last week.
“PSOne is included, but everything is on the table…We look for some of those big hits from all of the past games in their history and look for ways we can bring them over. It’s not always easy. There’s obviously technical areas that need to be bridged. But when those are solved, consumers will see a wide variety of retro games and brand new games coming to PSN.”
Sony’s talks with publishers is part of a 2009 goal to greatly improve the offering of digital games available to PSP users through the PlayStation Network. To accomplish this, a few tactics are being employed:
Sony’s internal studios are preparing more internally developed download-only titles.
Sony is working to bring more of its PSOne back catalog to the U.S. market, to catch up with the flood of PSOne releases available digitally in Japan. (”Those are being worked on now,” Koller said. Of the regional disparity, he added: “That’ll change.)”
The company is preparing to being more PS3 PSN titles to PSP for download, in the vein of “Flow” and the upcoming “PixelJunk Monsters.”
And Sony is reaching out to other publishers for their back catalogues, now appearing to expand their interest to non-PlayStation platforms, a broader multi-console appetite seen elsewhere in services like GameTap or Nintendo’s Virtual Console.
The drive to digital content is backed up by Sony’s sense that this is what consumers want. “We know that 50 percent of our base, plus, is interested in downloadable games for pay, not for free, from the network,” Koller said. “That’s something that needs to be acted on.”
Naturally, many non-Sony games are being played on the PSP already anyway. The system has been hacked since the day of its release to play pirated games from many classic systems, including those from Sony rival Nintendo. It’s impossible to fathom Sony bringing Nintendo games to the PSP, but any efforts short of that may finally reach hackers — and millions of paying consumers — more than halfway.
As the EVE Online creators ramp things up for the free Apocrypha expansion due out next week, lead designer Noah Ward sat down with MTV's Multiplayer blog to discuss the future of the game and what characteristics continue to keep players interested. Ward says they've considered branching out to consoles, but ended up deciding that the game doesn't really lend itself to console play. He left the door open to using smartphones for "augmenting" gameplay. Ward also mentioned that upcoming space MMOs Jumpgate: Evolution and Star Trek Online are so different from EVE that they're not really worried about direct competition; EVE thrives in part because of the player-generated drama and scandals, which few games pull off as well. Massively has gathered a variety of details about the Apocrypha expansion, which includes the game's first epic mission arc, and they've also posted some screenshots. CCP Games launched a website for the expansion containing concept art and interviews with some of the developers.
After the closure of Tabula Rasa over the weekend, the Opposable Thumbs blog asks if that's what it takes for a game to have an actual ending these days. Quoting: "It's no surprise that most games hope for a sequel, as it's the easiest way to get some of that money back while taking advantage of the staff, engine, assets, and other advantages you've banked while creating the first title. The problem? This has lead to a generation of cliff-hangers at worst, and endings that hedge their bets at best. ... As all the game's characters die, as the servers are shut down, as the data is erased or backed up and then boxed or whatever happens to MMO data once the game is done, it's hard not to be a little sad. The sights and sounds of the world of Tabula Rasa are gone, forever. All the memories written into those ones and zeroes will quickly be forgotten, and no one will walk those grounds again." Massively put together a few screenshots and videos to commemorate the ending of the game
Copy all your Playstation 2 game saves and data onto your Playstation 3 hard disk with this plug and play adapter. A very useful accessory!
- Compact design and easy to set up
- Compatible with all Playstation 3 systems
- Compatible with all Playstation 2 memory card and games
- High quality and efficient product
- High speed transmit signal USB 2.0
- Transmit all PS2 games data and storage in PS3 hard disk
Compatible with PSP-3000, PSP Slim and PSP console, this airfoam pockect offers maximum protection against scrtch and shock. Its mega capacity lets you store the console and the crystal case inside.
Zoozen brings Wii owners the first truly realistic and professional Sports Pack. But why stop there; we have doubled most of the accessories, for the ulimate two player experience!
A dream comes true! Use your Xbox 360 wired controller on your Playstation 3 with XCM Cross Battle Adapter. Also feature a Rapid Fire function and Plus version supports rumble and all PS3 versions.
Capcom's highly-anticipated horror title Resident Evil 5 has already been leaked on torrent sites ten days before its official release.
The title isn't officially available in Europe and the US until March 13, but a cracked Xbox 360 version of the game, weighing in at 6.71GB, is already being downloaded by users.
Like the majority of games publishers, Capcom has faced the headache of piracy in the past. Last year, the company complained that sales of the PC version of Devil May Cry 4 were hit hard by severe piracy.
Resident Evil 5 is likely to be one of the biggest games of the year, and was recently voted the most anticipated title by the GamesIndustry.biz Network.
Last week, downloads of the Xbox 360 and PS3 demo reached over 4 million users.
A five-year-old boy allegedly stabbed her ten-year-old sister over a Nintendo DS. The prosecutor says that little Chucky here thought the knife was part of a Power Rangers game. Yeah, let's blame games again.
It happened in Uckange, France. Apparently, the prosecutor thinks the Power Rangers may be the key to his behavior because in that game there is a part in which you have throw knives, which completely explains why a kid would try to kill her sister to get a Nintendo DS.
Fortunately, there's also another explanation: The mother—who was sleeping in the house while all this happened—was a victim of domestic violence. Whatever it was, the good news is that the life of the stabbed kid is not at risk.
Graphics card manufacturer Nvidia, which has been working with Microsoft for the past two year on support for its products in Windows 7, has released new drivers for the beta, announcing an expectation that the new operating system will bring "many graphical improvements" over previous platforms.
The new drivers for GeForce cards - release 181.71 - will apparently offer "increased performance and reliability in both 2D and 3D applications" for users on the Windows 7 beta.
"Since its release last month, the Windows 7 Beta has been eagerly tested by hundreds of thousands of Nvidia GeForce owners, who are excited about the many graphical improvements Microsoft has added into the upcoming operating system," said Ujesh Desai, VP of GeForce desktop business at Nvidia.
And VP of software engineering, Dwight Diercks, added: "We expect that all of our hard work teaming with Microsoft over the past two years will pay off for GeForce GPU owners when Windows 7 officially launches. Our customers are demanding an experience that is faster and more visual, and with the addition of many new GPU-accelerated features, including DirectX Compute, we believe Windows 7 will be well positioned to meet those needs."
Microsoft's EMEA VP for the Interactive Entertainment Business, Chris Lewis, recently told GamesIndustry.biz that the new operating system would be "great for games" although remained coy on specific details.
The Xbox 360 "game" Rumble Massage is basically just a way to control the rumbling of your controller. So who better to have review it than someone very familiar with vibrating plastic objects?
Stoya is surprisingly down with geeky things. A dedicated Sid Meier fan who grew up learning DOS from her IT dad (daddy issues, just as I suspected), she also rocks both a Blackberry and a G1.
But as for the game, she's not a fan, saying she wouldn't use it in either her professional or personal lives. Man, and I was just about to buy it, too.
Square has released more so-good-they-could-be-CGI screenshots of Final Fantasy XIII, that'll make the inevitably long wait for its launch seem even longer.
We won't be seeing it any time this year, as Square unfortunately confirmed recently. So the only hope you have of playing it is speed-learning Japanese within the next 10 months and grabbing that version which should be out before Christmas. Easily done, right?
Let's just hope there aren't any further delays. Shots are here, and there's more where they came from on Famitsu.
Not only does the latest issue of Nintendo Power have the scoop on Excitebots, it also features the return of the game that sold a million jelly beans, A Boy and his Blob.
The classic NES adventure game A Boy and his Blob is being "reinvented" for the Nintendo Wii. So says the April issue of Nintendo Power, indicating that Pitfall creator David Crane's jelly-bean eating hero Blobert and his pal, the boy, will soon be making their triumphant return.
Remember A Boy and His Blob in NES? Then you're old! But this reinvention of the property on Wii is simply stunning.
How stunning is it? We'll have to check back on March 5th for that particular information, as right now Nintendo Power is teasing us with a blurry image of the article. That, or wait for the April issue to go on sale March 17th.
Nintendo's announcement of the existence of Excitebots: Trick Racing—the sequel to Wii launch title Excite Truck—was annoyingly short on details. Consider us detail-free no more, thanks to the latest issue of Nintendo Power.
Excitebots: Trick Racing gets properly previewed in the mag's April issue, a portion of which is now available online. Don't worry, these scans are kosher, coming direct from Nintendo Power itself.
Perhaps most exciting about the Excitebots blowout is our first look at the game's visuals. Yes, you'll be piloting robot frog cars.
EA captures the tension and excitement of NCAA basketball's March Madness with an Xbox 360 exclusive downloadable special edition of NCAA Basketball 09.
Rather than a retail release of a special March Madness edition of their NCAA basketball title, EA is releasing NCAA Basketball 09: March Madness Edition as a downloadable exclusive for the Xbox 360. For 1200 Microsoft points ($15.00 real money), players will be able to play through the entire NCAA tournament, from the opening round to the Final Four itself, complete with a virtual replica of Ford Field court in Detroit.
"We really wanted to make our game available to a wider selection of fans that are drawn to college basketball by the passion, excitement and drama that surrounds March Madness," said Connor Dougan, Producer for NCAA® Basketball 09: March Madness Edition. "Fans will be able to experience the tournament, feel the adrenaline rush that comes with a single loss elimination tournament and write their own history."
God of War III could truly be a killer app for the PlayStation 3, as one analyst's data indicates that one in three potential buyers of the game don't own the console yet.
Speaking to Gamasutra, OTX analyst Nick Williams suggests that a price drop is in order before God of War III hits retails store shelves, as data indicates a substantial number of potential purchasers who have yet to invest in the newer console.
The launch of God of War III in late 2009/early 2010 will mark a pivotal moment for Sony. But in order to ensure that this game is a hardware sales driver, the cost of the base-level PS3 will need to be in the same ballpark as the Xbox 360 and Wii. According to our latest consumer tracking study, only two in three people who plan to purchase God of War III currently own a PS3."
If their numbers hold true, it could either mean a substantial jump in PlayStation 3 sales towards the end of the year, or less than expected sales of God of War III if too many players still can't scrounge up the cash.
All of the Sega Genesis collections show Sega isn’t ashamed to profit of their history. Sega isn’t afraid to license their history to third party companies like Blaze either. A Taiwanese bus company got in on the action and put Genesis ROMs like Sonic & Knuckles, Golden Axe 2, and Alien Storm in their on board entertainment console.
Why a bus? If you travel outside Taipei the trip can be hours long and handhelds just aren’t that popular over there. To alleviate boredom some buses have entertainment devices with movies. One company includes Sonic the Hedgehog as part of the package.
Here’s a list of games shown in the advert. Wish I rode the bus to see what other stuff Sega managed to sneak on the device.
Alien Storm
Sonic & Knuckles
Sonic Spinball
Ecco
Golden Axe 2
Alex Kidd and the Enchanted Castle
Gain Ground
Arrow Flash
Fatal Labyrinth
Golden Axe
Before Disgaea DS and Rhapsody were even announced for Japan NIS America jumped to publish Nintendo DS games starting with Puchi Puchi Virus. I played a build of the US version a year ago, but the match-three-make-a-triangle puzzle game still hasn’t arrived in stores. What’s the deal?
We spoke with NIS America about the status of Puchi Puchi Virus and like Cross Edge it’s slated to come out sometime in May. No changes were described, but I hope they keep the localization. Star Wars, Naruto, and Adam Sandler references snuck their way in an early build.
Before they became known for Moon and Major League Eating: The Game (ugh) Mastiff brought us quirky games from Japan like Gurumin and La Pucelle Tactics before NIS America set up shop. Are they going back to their roots?
Gamefly says yes with a listing for a generically named “Tactical RPG” coming out for the PSP. While there is a healthy supply of tactical RPGs for the PSP most of them have been picked up. What game does Mastiff have hidden in their lineup? One possibility is Vantage Master Portable since Mastiff worked with Falcom in the past, but we haven’t seen Mastiff pick up any Falcom titles aside from Gurumin so take this speculation with a grain of salt. Another thought is this might not be a localized game. Mastiff could commission the development of a brand new tactical RPG for the PSP too. In any case it looks like PSP owners will have another tactics game to look forward too in the future.
Between all the Alex Kidd and Wonder Boy games we got a quality release that should keep you busy until the next major retro RPG. Square Enix put Ogre Battle: The March of the Black Queen on the Virtual Console for 800 Wii Points ($8).
First released on the Super Nintendo and later ported to the PsOne, Ogre Battle has warriors fighting against an evil empire. While the plot sounds cliche, Ogre Battle makes use of a unique real time strategy meets classic RPG combat system. It’s different from your run of the mill grid based strategy RPG and has multiple endings to find. The Super Nintendo cartridge was quite a rarity so it’s a good thing Ogre Battle: March of the Black Queen is getting a digital re-release.
Sunday x Magazine Shuuketsu! Choujou Daikessen is the PSP’s Jump Superstars counterpart without the Shonen Jump license. Konami’s game brings together icons from Weekly Shonen and Shonen Sunday, two popular manga mags in Japan, and throws them into a Street Fighter-like fighting game.
Characters from Air Gear, Inuyasha, Fair Tail, Hajime no Ippo, Cromartie High School, and Flame of Recca are in the roster. However, Sunday x Magazine Shuuketsu! Choujou Daikessen doesn’t just cover recent series. Konami dug deep into the history of both magazines and brought classic characters like Yaiba and Devilman into the game. The list of characters is enormous if you consider the selection of support characters that flash by in this video. Anyone you’re looking forward to playing as when the game comes out on March 26?
features
Multiplayer maps and tips from the testing team!
Details for every unit and vehicle.
Maps of all battle areas with tactical advice to give players a leg up on their opponents.
Strategies for using the various units to their full capacity. Tips on what units complement each other best to make the most effective fighting force.
Platform: Xbox360
features
Set in the iconic Halo universe, Halo Wars predates the original first-person shooter Halo. Experience the early battles between the UNSC and Covenant, the far-reaching conflict that has been diligently followed by the masses in the blockbuster Halo series. Join the crew onboard the Spirit of Fire, a Phoenix-class colony ship converted for UNSC military use and guided by the A.I. persona Serina. The storyline follows the Spirit of Fire's discovery of an ancient artifact during a journey to the planet Harvest, the first planet to be attacked by the Covenant
Halo Wars puts you in command of the battlefield over an arsenal of UNSC units and vehicles as you engage Covenant forces. Counter and crush your opponent by tactically fielding the superior army. Choose among Leaders that possess elite skills, which turn the tides of battle. Using various combinations of Leaders and units, create countless strategies tailored to your preferred playing styles and personalized strategies
See who the superior commander is through multiplayer online skirmishes supporting up to 6 players with the New Xbox Experience. Choose to command either unique civilization, UNSC or Covenant, each with unique attributes and strategic characteristics. Ancient Forerunner technology can also be found to create unique units to gain an upper hand in battle
Since inception, Halo Wars was explicitly designed to cater to console gamers and bring to Xbox 360® a genre that has typically been played on the PC. Easily command and manage powerful armies, effortlessly control troops and incredible machines, engage in epic battles and expand your empire using an intuitive user interface. Halo Wars represents the true next-generation experience, combining a masterful control scheme using the Xbox 360 controller with the award-winning strategic gameplay only Ensemble Studios can provide
description
Halo Wars is an exciting strategy game based on the legendary Halo® universe. In campaign mode, command the armies of the UNSC warship Spirit of Fire, with familiar and new UNSC units in its initial encounters against the Covenant, an alien coalition threatening to obliterate mankind. Halo Wars will immerses you in an early period of the storied Halo universe, allowing you to experience events leading up to the first Halo title for Xbox®.
With the guidance of Serina, a spirited artificial intelligence (A.I.) persona, direct legions of UNSC soldiers, Warthogs, Scorpions, and more, each group having its own strengths and uses in battle. Adventurous commanders can also call upon ancient Forerunner technology, if they are fortunate enough to find it hidden throughout the battlefield.
Covenant forces are also waiting for you to lead them into battle in multiplayer skirmishes via the New Xbox Experience. Call upon an arsenal of new and familiar Covenant units such as Grunts, Elites, Ghosts, and even Scarabs to defeat foes on the battlefield. Strategic-minded players who react well under pressure will emerge victorious.
description
Because of the invasion of the dragons, the world Eden ends up being covered by a killer flower called Furowaro. To prevent the flowers from taking over the world, expatriates are sent to defeat the dragons that currently infest the land.
Form your party with the characters you like and assign them with different job classes, each job has 30 skills, learn them all and apply them on different dragons. Given the cute character designs and the array of colors on the palette, this game is providing you with a wonderful experience in an art book.
features
E.R.S. is in-game technology that helps turn novice aviators into elite pilots of the future. The Enhanced Reality System is the core of the HAWX flight experience: aircraft interception trajectories, incoming missile detection, anti-crash system, damage assessment, tactical map, and weapons trajectory control. E.R.S. also allows players to issue orders to their squadron and other units, making this system as iconic to HAWX as the Cross-Com system is to Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon Advanced Warfighter®!
Players can ease into their flight missions and gain a level of comfort with the use of the assistance mode. Once employed, players can take full advantage of their technological support through the E.R.S and gain maximum piloting security. If the situation calls for the player to unleash the full potential of the aircraft, the assistance mode can be switched off and all safety features will be deactivated. This comes with increased risks, but allows the player advanced dogfighting maneuvers and stunning third-person views
For the first time ever in the air-combat genre, players will be able to experience the entire solo campaign with seamless JUMP IN/JUMP OUT functionality. In PVP mode, players can challenge each other in intense dog-fighting sessions and find out who's the top gun. Winning players are rewarded with experience points and money to unlock more weapons
Players have the opportunity to take the throttle of over 50 famous aircrafts, and take them over real world locations & cities in photo-realistic environments created with the best commercial satellite data on the civilian market
description
As the era of the nation-state draws toward its end, the world of warfare is evolving rapidly. New challenges demand new solutions, sometimes with unpredictable outcomes.
For many years, state-sponsored militaries have struggled to maintain and modernize their forces. Increasing budget restrictions and difficulties in recruiting skilled personnel have led many countries to seek other solutions. More and more nations now rely increasingly on Private Military Companies (PMC) – elite mercenary groups staffed with equally elite personnel - to support their field operations.
PMCs have proven to be excellent partners in respect to efficiency, skills, low prices, and reliability. They’ve been able to fulfill most of the mission normally handled by regular armies, without risking political fallout.
In time, these private military corps diversified their field of operations, from mere securing land objectives to motorized assault and counter-intelligence. It was not long before a few of these PMC secured enough resources to require being involved complete support air and sea-bound operations.
With each passing year, the PMCs expand their influence and scope of activity. Initially just consultants, they are now involved in surveillance, logistics, site security, and other essential roles. In order to keep the war machine going most of the PMC warranted firms dealing with other sources of income such as mining, oil extraction, airliners, goods manufacturing etc. Ensuring a steady flow of currency allowed these companies to operate a tighter game against their opposition. Each year, they come closer to serving as fully operational field units, and their services are so widely used they’re already essential. Pandora’s Box has been opened. There’s no getting rid of the PMCs now.
features
E.R.S. is in-game technology that helps turn novice aviators into elite pilots of the future. The Enhanced Reality System is the core of the HAWX flight experience: aircraft interception trajectories, incoming missile detection, anti-crash system, damage assessment, tactical map, and weapons trajectory control. E.R.S. also allows players to issue orders to their squadron and other units, making this system as iconic to HAWX as the Cross-Com system is to Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon Advanced Warfighter®!
Players can ease into their flight missions and gain a level of comfort with the use of the assistance mode. Once employed, players can take full advantage of their technological support through the E.R.S and gain maximum piloting security. If the situation calls for the player to unleash the full potential of the aircraft, the assistance mode can be switched off and all safety features will be deactivated. This comes with increased risks, but allows the player advanced dogfighting maneuvers and stunning third-person views
For the first time ever in the air-combat genre, players will be able to experience the entire solo campaign with seamless JUMP IN/JUMP OUT functionality. In PVP mode, players can challenge each other in intense dog-fighting sessions and find out who's the top gun. Winning players are rewarded with experience points and money to unlock more weapons
Players have the opportunity to take the throttle of over 50 famous aircrafts, and take them over real world locations & cities in photo-realistic environments created with the best commercial satellite data on the civilian market
description
As the era of the nation-state draws toward its end, the world of warfare is evolving rapidly. New challenges demand new solutions, sometimes with unpredictable outcomes.
For many years, state-sponsored militaries have struggled to maintain and modernize their forces. Increasing budget restrictions and difficulties in recruiting skilled personnel have led many countries to seek other solutions. More and more nations now rely increasingly on Private Military Companies (PMC) – elite mercenary groups staffed with equally elite personnel - to support their field operations.
PMCs have proven to be excellent partners in respect to efficiency, skills, low prices, and reliability. They’ve been able to fulfill most of the mission normally handled by regular armies, without risking political fallout.
In time, these private military corps diversified their field of operations, from mere securing land objectives to motorized assault and counter-intelligence. It was not long before a few of these PMC secured enough resources to require being involved complete support air and sea-bound operations.
With each passing year, the PMCs expand their influence and scope of activity. Initially just consultants, they are now involved in surveillance, logistics, site security, and other essential roles. In order to keep the war machine going most of the PMC warranted firms dealing with other sources of income such as mining, oil extraction, airliners, goods manufacturing etc. Ensuring a steady flow of currency allowed these companies to operate a tighter game against their opposition. Each year, they come closer to serving as fully operational field units, and their services are so widely used they’re already essential. Pandora’s Box has been opened. There’s no getting rid of the PMCs now.
features
E.R.S. is in-game technology that helps turn novice aviators into elite pilots of the future. The Enhanced Reality System is the core of the HAWX flight experience: aircraft interception trajectories, incoming missile detection, anti-crash system, damage assessment, tactical map, and weapons trajectory control. E.R.S. also allows players to issue orders to their squadron and other units, making this system as iconic to HAWX as the Cross-Com system is to Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon Advanced Warfighter®!
Players can ease into their flight missions and gain a level of comfort with the use of the assistance mode. Once employed, players can take full advantage of their technological support through the E.R.S and gain maximum piloting security. If the situation calls for the player to unleash the full potential of the aircraft, the assistance mode can be switched off and all safety features will be deactivated. This comes with increased risks, but allows the player advanced dogfighting maneuvers and stunning third-person views
For the first time ever in the air-combat genre, players will be able to experience the entire solo campaign with seamless JUMP IN/JUMP OUT functionality. In PVP mode, players can challenge each other in intense dog-fighting sessions and find out who's the top gun. Winning players are rewarded with experience points and money to unlock more weapons
Players have the opportunity to take the throttle of over 50 famous aircrafts, and take them over real world locations & cities in photo-realistic environments created with the best commercial satellite data on the civilian market
description
As the era of the nation-state draws toward its end, the world of warfare is evolving rapidly. New challenges demand new solutions, sometimes with unpredictable outcomes.
For many years, state-sponsored militaries have struggled to maintain and modernize their forces. Increasing budget restrictions and difficulties in recruiting skilled personnel have led many countries to seek other solutions. More and more nations now rely increasingly on Private Military Companies (PMC) – elite mercenary groups staffed with equally elite personnel - to support their field operations.
PMCs have proven to be excellent partners in respect to efficiency, skills, low prices, and reliability. They’ve been able to fulfill most of the mission normally handled by regular armies, without risking political fallout.
In time, these private military corps diversified their field of operations, from mere securing land objectives to motorized assault and counter-intelligence. It was not long before a few of these PMC secured enough resources to require being involved complete support air and sea-bound operations.
With each passing year, the PMCs expand their influence and scope of activity. Initially just consultants, they are now involved in surveillance, logistics, site security, and other essential roles. In order to keep the war machine going most of the PMC warranted firms dealing with other sources of income such as mining, oil extraction, airliners, goods manufacturing etc. Ensuring a steady flow of currency allowed these companies to operate a tighter game against their opposition. Each year, they come closer to serving as fully operational field units, and their services are so widely used they’re already essential. Pandora’s Box has been opened. There’s no getting rid of the PMCs now.
features
E.R.S. is in-game technology that helps turn novice aviators into elite pilots of the future. The Enhanced Reality System is the core of the HAWX flight experience: aircraft interception trajectories, incoming missile detection, anti-crash system, damage assessment, tactical map, and weapons trajectory control. E.R.S. also allows players to issue orders to their squadron and other units, making this system as iconic to HAWX as the Cross-Com system is to Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon Advanced Warfighter®!
Players can ease into their flight missions and gain a level of comfort with the use of the assistance mode. Once employed, players can take full advantage of their technological support through the E.R.S and gain maximum piloting security. If the situation calls for the player to unleash the full potential of the aircraft, the assistance mode can be switched off and all safety features will be deactivated. This comes with increased risks, but allows the player advanced dogfighting maneuvers and stunning third-person views
For the first time ever in the air-combat genre, players will be able to experience the entire solo campaign with seamless JUMP IN/JUMP OUT functionality. In PVP mode, players can challenge each other in intense dog-fighting sessions and find out who's the top gun. Winning players are rewarded with experience points and money to unlock more weapons
Players have the opportunity to take the throttle of over 50 famous aircrafts, and take them over real world locations & cities in photo-realistic environments created with the best commercial satellite data on the civilian market
description
As the era of the nation-state draws toward its end, the world of warfare is evolving rapidly. New challenges demand new solutions, sometimes with unpredictable outcomes.
For many years, state-sponsored militaries have struggled to maintain and modernize their forces. Increasing budget restrictions and difficulties in recruiting skilled personnel have led many countries to seek other solutions. More and more nations now rely increasingly on Private Military Companies (PMC) – elite mercenary groups staffed with equally elite personnel - to support their field operations.
PMCs have proven to be excellent partners in respect to efficiency, skills, low prices, and reliability. They’ve been able to fulfill most of the mission normally handled by regular armies, without risking political fallout.
In time, these private military corps diversified their field of operations, from mere securing land objectives to motorized assault and counter-intelligence. It was not long before a few of these PMC secured enough resources to require being involved complete support air and sea-bound operations.
With each passing year, the PMCs expand their influence and scope of activity. Initially just consultants, they are now involved in surveillance, logistics, site security, and other essential roles. In order to keep the war machine going most of the PMC warranted firms dealing with other sources of income such as mining, oil extraction, airliners, goods manufacturing etc. Ensuring a steady flow of currency allowed these companies to operate a tighter game against their opposition. Each year, they come closer to serving as fully operational field units, and their services are so widely used they’re already essential. Pandora’s Box has been opened. There’s no getting rid of the PMCs now.
features
Aircraft: Advanced tips and tactics will help you jump in the pilot's seat and master any of the 50 available aircraft.
Advanced Tips: Detailed flight instruction will help you dominate every dogfight and escape every missile lock.
Co-op: Co-op strategy will help you and your friends master working as a team.
Tactical Maps: Detailed tactical maps will expose every objective, reveal every enemy position, and show you the most direct route to completing your goal.
Squad Command: Learn when and how to command your squad to devastate the competition.
Multiplayer: Detailed strategy will help you unlock every weapon and stockpile experience points.
Platform: Playstation3, Xbox360, PC
features
Once again MLB 09 The Show is the only game where fans can play offense and defense from a custom-created player’s perspective. This year, Road to the Show includes interactive training, a new steal/ lead-off system, updated presentations, and coach interactions. Interactive training will consist of a set of mini-games designed to improve a player’s ability and performance in various areas of baseball
MLB 09 The Show has boosted the number of overall animations with more than 700 new gameplay animations, more than 400 new presentation animations, and more than 150 personalized pitcher and batter animations
Fielders will now have more dynamic reactions and take different routes to run down hit balls. New “hotshot” plays are included, and depending on a player’s attribute level, they can misplay balls and drop a ball too hot to handle. Additionally, players can experience more realistic barehanded flips and the ability to dive with the ball in the fielder’s bare hand for the putout
description
MLB 09 The Show introduces Online Season Leagues to allow players to hold fully functional drafts and utilize a flex schedule, allowing players to play games ahead of the schedule. Users can also access a new Roster Vault to tweak player attributes, appearance, and accessories to create the ideal roster.
Additionally, MLB 09 The Show raises the overall level of detail and realism from customizable fan chants, to jumbotron animations, to crowd atmosphere. Accurate lighting transitions, including realistic afternoon to dusk to nighttime effects provide more realism than ever before. Mascots are available for all teams and each will show off signature moves throughout the game. End of game replays are also available to provide players with an instant post-game visual replay of exciting plays, much like a true-to-life MLB broadcast.
features
Once again MLB 09 The Show is the only game where fans can play offense and defense from a custom-created player’s perspective. This year, Road to the Show includes interactive training, a new steal/ lead-off system, updated presentations, and coach interactions. Interactive training will consist of a set of mini-games designed to improve a player’s ability and performance in various areas of baseball
MLB 09 The Show has boosted the number of overall animations with more than 700 new gameplay animations, more than 400 new presentation animations, and more than 150 personalized pitcher and batter animations
Fielders will now have more dynamic reactions and take different routes to run down hit balls. New “hotshot” plays are included, and depending on a player’s attribute level, they can misplay balls and drop a ball too hot to handle. Additionally, players can experience more realistic barehanded flips and the ability to dive with the ball in the fielder’s bare hand for the putout
description
MLB 09 The Show introduces Online Season Leagues to allow players to hold fully functional drafts and utilize a flex schedule, allowing players to play games ahead of the schedule. Users can also access a new Roster Vault to tweak player attributes, appearance, and accessories to create the ideal roster.
Additionally, MLB 09 The Show raises the overall level of detail and realism from customizable fan chants, to jumbotron animations, to crowd atmosphere. Accurate lighting transitions, including realistic afternoon to dusk to nighttime effects provide more realism than ever before. Mascots are available for all teams and each will show off signature moves throughout the game. End of game replays are also available to provide players with an instant post-game visual replay of exciting plays, much like a true-to-life MLB broadcast.
It's not that I don't enjoy an Alien PS3 as much as the next guy. It's just that I would have gone with the famed stomach scene instead.
One tattoo artist/case modder molded this Alien PS3 out of super heated epoxy putty—a material that required a few sacrificial burns before becoming immortalized as a 1979 horror flick creature.
Apparently the material cools to become as hard as metal, so it's impossible to remove it from the PS3's case. Can you imagine the face on some Sony tech who opens a box to find this system for repair? Well I can. And it's hilarious.
features
Once again MLB 09 The Show is the only game where fans can play offense and defense from a custom-created player’s perspective. This year, Road to the Show includes interactive training, a new steal/ lead-off system, updated presentations, and coach interactions. Interactive training will consist of a set of mini-games designed to improve a player’s ability and performance in various areas of baseball
MLB 09 The Show has boosted the number of overall animations with more than 700 new gameplay animations, more than 400 new presentation animations, and more than 150 personalized pitcher and batter animations
Fielders will now have more dynamic reactions and take different routes to run down hit balls. New “hotshot” plays are included, and depending on a player’s attribute level, they can misplay balls and drop a ball too hot to handle. Additionally, players can experience more realistic barehanded flips and the ability to dive with the ball in the fielder’s bare hand for the putout
description
MLB 09 The Show introduces Online Season Leagues to allow players to hold fully functional drafts and utilize a flex schedule, allowing players to play games ahead of the schedule. Users can also access a new Roster Vault to tweak player attributes, appearance, and accessories to create the ideal roster.
Additionally, MLB 09 The Show raises the overall level of detail and realism from customizable fan chants, to jumbotron animations, to crowd atmosphere. Accurate lighting transitions, including realistic afternoon to dusk to nighttime effects provide more realism than ever before. Mascots are available for all teams and each will show off signature moves throughout the game. End of game replays are also available to provide players with an instant post-game visual replay of exciting plays, much like a true-to-life MLB broadcast.
From the publisher: Major League Baseball® 2K9 captures the essence of baseball down to some of the most minute, player- specific details including batting stances, pitching windups and signature swings.
2K Sports has gone above and beyond the call of duty to deliver this in true major league fashion. Additionally, gameplay enhancements in pitching, batting, fielding and baserunning promise this year’s installment to be user-friendly and enjoyable for rookies or veterans.
New commentary and presentation provide the icing to this ultimate baseball experience. If you really want to Play Ball this is the game for you.
Get your bats and mitts ready, its time for a game. Major League Baseball® 2K9 is available on these consoles:
Xbox360™
Major League Baseball 2K9 US US$ 64.90
Major League Baseball 2K9 ASIA US$ 49.90
PlayStation3™
Major League Baseball 2K9 US US$ 64.90
Nintendo™ Wii
Major League Baseball 2K9 US US$ 54.90
PlayStation2™
Major League Baseball 2K9 US US$ 24.90
Nintendo™ DS
Major League Baseball 2K9 Fantasy All-Stars US US$ 24.90
Vavoom is a source port based on sources of Doom, Heretic, Hexen and a little bit from Quake. Supported platforms are DOS, Windows and Linux.
This version has been released a few days ago.
Leading video games publisher and developer NAMCO BANDAI Games America Inc., today announced The Munchables an entertaining romp into a colorful and delicious action adventure for Wii. Exploring rich and vibrant environments, players will devour delectable enemies as they guide their quirky heroes in this zany alien munching mash-up filled with fun and addictive gameplay. The Munchables will chomp its way to stores this May.
"NAMCO BANDAI Games is thrilled to provide such a fun and exciting addition to the vast library of quality Wii titles," said Todd Thorson, director of marketing and public relations for NAMCO BANDAI Games America Inc. "With colorful characters and eye-popping worlds, The Munchables will delight players of all ages."
The home planet of the hungry Munchables is at stake when it is invaded by the evil Don Onion and his vicious band of space pirates. As their lively planet has been usurped, the embattled Munchables have only one hope; to devour their food enemies to grow large enough to defeat Don Onion and inevitably return peace to their captive land.
In The Munchables, players are called upon to eat and defeat over 150 insidious enemies who have taken over the planet including Eggplanter, Space Shroom and Rice Baller. With each fallen foe, the daring omnivorous Munchables grow in size and power in their brave struggle. In this tantalizingly addictive game, players can also enjoy Mirror Mode, where stages are in reverse order and they must beat the clock in order to save the world. Eating your way to take on Don Onion and his delicious minions, The Munchables will leave you hungry for more!
Nintendo of America officially revealed this week that the upcoming Wii boxer, Punch-Out!!, based on the classic franchise of the same name, will support multiple control options when it debuts exclusively for the platform later this year. According to the company, players will be able to use the Wii remote motion or classic control to play the game. Control descriptions below:
Motion Control (Wii Remote and Nunchuk controllers)
Punch-Out!! uses the Wii Remote and Nunchuk controllers to simulate throwing punches. Use the Nunchuk to throw a left punch and the Wii Remote to throw a right punch.
Classic Control (Wii Remote NES style)
Fans of the NES version and core gamers will be excited to see Nintendo has also included the option to play Punch-Out!! using the classic layout from the original NES controller. Use the 1 and 2 buttons along with the cross pad to throw hooks and jabs or to dodge.
Every word's a winner in this revamped digital version of everyone's favorite word game! SCRABBLE on the Nintendo DS and PSP will offer something for every crossword puzzle fan. Fans of the traditional version of SCRABBLE can get the authentic SCRABBLE experience in Classic mode, and more experienced players can race the clock in Speed mode. Those who want a new twist on the classic SCRABBLE experience can battle it out against friends or the computer in the fast-paced SCRABBLE SLAM mode, based on the upcoming spring 2009 card game from Hasbro in which players try to be the first to discard all their SLAM cards by making four letter words. SCRABBLE SLAM will be available for the first time digitally on the handheld versions of SCRABBLE.
With six difficulty levels, SCRABBLE will also serve up a Training mode with six training exercises that enable new or rusty players to polish their skills before their first big showdown. SCRABBLE comes loaded with extras such as the Official SCRABBLE Players Dictionary, SCRABBLE Word Finder, which provides hints on best words, and Wi-Fi multiplayer capability (both single and multi-cart play for Nintendo DS).
GAME FEATURES
Three Modes of Play
Choose Classic mode to play the timeless, traditional version of SCRABBLE.
Race the clock as you take on the computer or friends in Speed mode.
Put your skills to the test in the SCRABBLE SLAM card game, the newest take on the classic SCRABBLE experience.
Your SCRABBLE Trainer!
Like never before, you can strengthen your vocabulary, pattern recognition, and point strategies through fun and interactive training exercises.
You then can apply your newfound skills in real games against your friends and family as well as our adaptable computer A.I.
Track your progress with the game's built-in Skill Tracker and see how you've improved in each training category.
Wi-Fi Multiplayer Fun
Challenge your friends and connect with up to four players in Classic, Speed, or SCRABBLE SLAM modes.
Nintendo DS multiplayer modes include Hot Seat (multiple players passing one console), DS Download play (one-cartridge multiplayer) and Multi-Cart play (multiple cartridges allow players to customize game rules and enable additional game features).
PSP multiplayer modes include Hot Seat and Ad Hoc play (head-to-head multiplayer).
EA Brings SCRABBLE Full Circle
In 2008, EA launched authentic digital versions of SCRABBLE online at Pogo.com, three separate mobile versions on iPod, iPhone and mobile phones as well as social networking sites.
2009 rounds it out with SCRABBLE on the Nintendo DS and PSP handhelds as well as a version for Xbox LIVE Arcade.
Pricing, Rating and Availability
SCRABBLE on DS and PSP is rated "E for Everyone", will carry as MSRP of $29.99 and be in stores on March 17, 2009.
Every word's a winner in this revamped digital version of everyone's favorite word game! SCRABBLE on the Nintendo DS and PSP will offer something for every crossword puzzle fan. Fans of the traditional version of SCRABBLE can get the authentic SCRABBLE experience in Classic mode, and more experienced players can race the clock in Speed mode. Those who want a new twist on the classic SCRABBLE experience can battle it out against friends or the computer in the fast-paced SCRABBLE SLAM mode, based on the upcoming spring 2009 card game from Hasbro in which players try to be the first to discard all their SLAM cards by making four letter words. SCRABBLE SLAM will be available for the first time digitally on the handheld versions of SCRABBLE.
With six difficulty levels, SCRABBLE will also serve up a Training mode with six training exercises that enable new or rusty players to polish their skills before their first big showdown. SCRABBLE comes loaded with extras such as the Official SCRABBLE Players Dictionary, SCRABBLE Word Finder, which provides hints on best words, and Wi-Fi multiplayer capability (both single and multi-cart play for Nintendo DS).
GAME FEATURES
Three Modes of Play
Choose Classic mode to play the timeless, traditional version of SCRABBLE.
Race the clock as you take on the computer or friends in Speed mode.
Put your skills to the test in the SCRABBLE SLAM card game, the newest take on the classic SCRABBLE experience.
Your SCRABBLE Trainer!
Like never before, you can strengthen your vocabulary, pattern recognition, and point strategies through fun and interactive training exercises.
You then can apply your newfound skills in real games against your friends and family as well as our adaptable computer A.I.
Track your progress with the game's built-in Skill Tracker and see how you've improved in each training category.
Wi-Fi Multiplayer Fun
Challenge your friends and connect with up to four players in Classic, Speed, or SCRABBLE SLAM modes.
Nintendo DS multiplayer modes include Hot Seat (multiple players passing one console), DS Download play (one-cartridge multiplayer) and Multi-Cart play (multiple cartridges allow players to customize game rules and enable additional game features).
PSP multiplayer modes include Hot Seat and Ad Hoc play (head-to-head multiplayer).
EA Brings SCRABBLE Full Circle
In 2008, EA launched authentic digital versions of SCRABBLE online at Pogo.com, three separate mobile versions on iPod, iPhone and mobile phones as well as social networking sites.
2009 rounds it out with SCRABBLE on the Nintendo DS and PSP handhelds as well as a version for Xbox LIVE Arcade.
Pricing, Rating and Availability
SCRABBLE on DS and PSP is rated "E for Everyone", will carry as MSRP of $29.99 and be in stores on March 17, 2009.
Ignition Entertainment sent out word today that is sure to please fighting game fans here in the U.S. The King of Fighters XII, the next installment in SNK Playmore's popular franchise, is heading to the states this July for the PS3 and 360. According to the press release, this three-on-three fighter features a "complete graphical overhaul. The antiquated character sprites used over the past 14 years have been dropped in favor of all-new, high-resolution fighters fluidly animating across painstakingly detailed, 100% hand-drawn backgrounds."
Masaaki Kukino from SNK Playmore comments: "our development slogan for KOFXII is 'KOF Re-Birth' and we've aimed to create an entirely new King of Fighters game." Although no other details are given in the press release, this news is sure to please long-time King of Fighters enthusiasts, especially in the wake of Street Fighter IV's notable success, both critically and commercially.
Ignition Entertainment sent out word today that is sure to please fighting game fans here in the U.S. The King of Fighters XII, the next installment in SNK Playmore's popular franchise, is heading to the states this July for the PS3 and 360. According to the press release, this three-on-three fighter features a "complete graphical overhaul. The antiquated character sprites used over the past 14 years have been dropped in favor of all-new, high-resolution fighters fluidly animating across painstakingly detailed, 100% hand-drawn backgrounds."
Masaaki Kukino from SNK Playmore comments: "our development slogan for KOFXII is 'KOF Re-Birth' and we've aimed to create an entirely new King of Fighters game." Although no other details are given in the press release, this news is sure to please long-time King of Fighters enthusiasts, especially in the wake of Street Fighter IV's notable success, both critically and commercially.
World in Conflict was first announced as coming to Xbox 360 back in 2007 by publisher Sierra Entertainment. Later, the ambitions shifted to the sequel, World in Conflict: Soviet Assault and the PlayStation 3 entered the picture. When Vivendi, parent company of Sierra, merged with Activision, many of Sierra's projects were canceled or dropped, including Soviet Assault. It was later saved by Ubisoft when that company purchased the World in Conflict developer, Massive Entertainment.
However, it seems that Ubisoft's ambitions are not as grand as Sierra's were. When contacted for an update on the console release, Ubisoft provided this statement, "World of Conflict: Soviet Assault will be released for the PC later this month. A console version of World in Conflict is not planned for release at this time."
World in Conflict was first announced as coming to Xbox 360 back in 2007 by publisher Sierra Entertainment. Later, the ambitions shifted to the sequel, World in Conflict: Soviet Assault and the PlayStation 3 entered the picture. When Vivendi, parent company of Sierra, merged with Activision, many of Sierra's projects were canceled or dropped, including Soviet Assault. It was later saved by Ubisoft when that company purchased the World in Conflict developer, Massive Entertainment.
However, it seems that Ubisoft's ambitions are not as grand as Sierra's were. When contacted for an update on the console release, Ubisoft provided this statement, "World of Conflict: Soviet Assault will be released for the PC later this month. A console version of World in Conflict is not planned for release at this time."
For those who found Street Fighter IV to be a little bit too 3D, Arc System Works may have the game you're looking for. The latest issue of Famitsu has first word on a home version of the publisher's latest arcade fighter, BlazBlue. Both the PS3 and Xbox 360 will get a conversion of the game, with a Japanese release planned for summer.
BlazBlue is a high definition 2D fighter from the makers of Guilty Gear. Known for its sharp visuals, the game is now available for play in arcades. Be sure and check out all our coverage of the arcade version.
The home versions will see some big additions. Most notable is an all new story mode, with individual stories on offer for each character. This mode promises branching stories based off both battle results and player choices, along with full voice for all dialog. Arc has even gotten Studio Gonzo to work on animated sequences!
It appears that this story mode will be huge in terms of volume, with general director Toshimichi Mori joking with the magazine that the staff complained about there being too much content! Players can expect the equivalent of a full Japanese-style dialog-based adventure game, with over 30 hours of play time.
Also new for the home is network compatibility. Players throughout the world can look forward to online matches along with online rankings and a viewing mode. Download content is also being planned.
The game will also see a few gameplay changes, most notably the addition of Astral Heat special moves for all characters. In the arcade version, only a few of the boss characters had access to these moves.
Since online play is confirmed to be worldwide, we're going to assume Arc has some plans for BlazBlue in international markets. We'll let you know once something official is announced outside of Japan.
For those who found Street Fighter IV to be a little bit too 3D, Arc System Works may have the game you're looking for. The latest issue of Famitsu has first word on a home version of the publisher's latest arcade fighter, BlazBlue. Both the PS3 and Xbox 360 will get a conversion of the game, with a Japanese release planned for summer.
BlazBlue is a high definition 2D fighter from the makers of Guilty Gear. Known for its sharp visuals, the game is now available for play in arcades. Be sure and check out all our coverage of the arcade version.
The home versions will see some big additions. Most notable is an all new story mode, with individual stories on offer for each character. This mode promises branching stories based off both battle results and player choices, along with full voice for all dialog. Arc has even gotten Studio Gonzo to work on animated sequences!
It appears that this story mode will be huge in terms of volume, with general director Toshimichi Mori joking with the magazine that the staff complained about there being too much content! Players can expect the equivalent of a full Japanese-style dialog-based adventure game, with over 30 hours of play time.
Also new for the home is network compatibility. Players throughout the world can look forward to online matches along with online rankings and a viewing mode. Download content is also being planned.
The game will also see a few gameplay changes, most notably the addition of Astral Heat special moves for all characters. In the arcade version, only a few of the boss characters had access to these moves.
Since online play is confirmed to be worldwide, we're going to assume Arc has some plans for BlazBlue in international markets. We'll let you know once something official is announced outside of Japan.
Square Enix has at long last given the official Japanese Final Fantasy XIII site a major update, with new screens and even a message from producer Yoshinori Kitase.
The screens (accessible under the "character" section of the site) show off the characters we introduced here at IGN last week. Yes, you can now have your first moderately-sized look at Team Nora, including Gadot, Lebreau, and Maqui. These three don't appear to be primary characters, as they're all bunched together while Snow, Lightening and Vanille get their own pages.
There's a bit of new information at the site regarding the characters. Gadot and Lebreau are revealed to not only be subordinates of Snow in Nora, but also his childhood friends. Maqui, who was previously revealed to look up to Snow, is described as lacking confidence, and being not too big on fighting.
For everything else, we'll refer you to our writeup from last week.
The "message" section of the site has also been updated. Following up on the first message from director Motomu Toriyama, producer Yoshinori Kitase is in the hot seat for this update. He mostly teases in his message, revealing that as he creates the message he's viewing FFXIII running on dev kits. The ability to play FFXIII in advance of everyone else in the world is the thing that makes him happy about developing FFXIII, he says, adding that players will get a chance to experience a similar feeling when the FFXIII demo hits Japan in April.
Kitase also teases at a few names:
"Strategic battles using using XXXXX"
"Summon beasts like Shiva and XXXXX"
"Lightning does XXXXXX to XX and XX..."
The Xs represent Japanese characters. If you can figure out what they are, you get to advance directly to Final Fantasy XIV.
Kreationz posted this news concerning the next Beta of the N64 Emulator for the PSP:
Sorry, I haven't posted here in a long while. With Beta 2 successfully out the door over the weekend. I thought it was time for an update from myself as far what my plans are for Beta 3. I wasn't as active this time around, except in the background this time around, but Howard and Strmn's work was amazing. Having fallen way behind, I plan to start on the new GUI (a Coverflow kinda of GUI with some extra ideas I had.) I also am going to try to get as many of the bugs in the Bug tracker closed as possible and take a look at why Async audio is unstable. Finally, I am going to look at making all the Buffers Dynamic based on ROM size, PSP type, etc... Howard plans to move at least part of the CPU to the ME. Wally and Salvy are going to make sure the Microcodes are correct. Not sure about Chilly's or Strmn Plans, but I know Strmn, plans on some code clean-up. Well that's it for now enjoy the release. Don't know when I'll update this next, probably when I get started on the parts I plan on working on.
What would you like to see addressed in future betas of DaedalusX64 ?
Look who’s back: it’s Quake with a brand new version of Extreme Link. Veterans know what’s up and newcomers must know; Extreme Link for Windows simplifies the whole CISO creation process and acts as a USB/NetHostFS front end. In addition, Extreme Link packs other useful elements making its complete feature set very handy.
It's hard to call two incidents of some occurrence around the world a trend, but, when those incidents both involve an electrical device catching fire spontaneously, it creates a situation that's hard to ignore -- especially when that device is the iPhone. On Saturday, Italian blogger Tim Colbourne was charging his 3G handset and, after three hours, it sparked and caught fire at the base. Tim did a little investigation and found a case of a Swedish handset doing the same thing back in 2008, making us a little concerned that there could be more melted chargers out there. Apple replaced that earlier phone after something of a fight, and while we're hoping they'll be a little friendlier here, we're also hoping this gives Cupertino another bit of incentive to go ahead and switch over to micro-USB already. All the cool kids are doing it, and you don't see their cables catching fire -- usually.
Atari and Starbreeze have made a 360 demo of imminent Riddick reboot, The Chronicles of Riddick: Assault on Dark Athena, available on Xbox Live.
A PS3 demo will arrive on the PlayStation network some time later this month.
The demo features the Athena Main Decks level, and offers players a chance to control a Drone, one of the semi-sentient, remote-controllable enemies that will play a central part in the first-person stealth actioner.
Assault on Dark Athena is a sequel to the 2004 Xbox game, The Chronicles of Riddick: Escape from Butcher Bay - also included in this release, in a full high-definition remake.
It's out on April 7th in North America and April 24th over here on 360, PS3 and PC. Get more info, including hands-on impressions, at the Dark Athena gamepage.
Speculation is mounting this week that the Wii MotionPlus add-on will be released before the end of June, but Nintendo remains tight-lipped.
Sharp-eyed Wii watchers at GoNintendo noted today that EA's MotionPlus-compatible Grand Slam Tennis is due out in the US on 18th June - and that a recent preview in the official US magazine Nintendo Power referred to the MotionPlus as "due out prior to Grand Slam's release".
Meanwhile, another publisher with a MotionPlus-supporting project under way has told Eurogamer that it expects the add-on to launch in June as well, although as of late February Nintendo had yet to brief third parties about the exact timing.
Speaking to Eurogamer today, a Nintendo UK spokesperson said "the release date is still TBC", and anything else was "rumour and speculation".
The MotionPlus, announced at E3 last year, enhances the precision of the Wii remote, allowing games to achieve almost one-to-one movement recognition. Games that will support MotionPlus include Nintendo's own Wii Sports Resort, EA's Grand Slam Tennis, Tiger Woods PGA Tour and Ubisoft's Red Steel 2.
"With six degrees of freedom you can basically make any movement at all, and be able to track that in combination with the sensor bar and other sensors included in the Wii remote," Joe Virginia of MotionPlus developer InvenSense told Eurogamer last summer. "Add the gyroscope capability and you have the ability to work in all three dimensions of space.
"What you're looking at are golf swings; tennis rackets where you can put top-spin on balls; bowling where you can bowl curves; sword motions with forward thrusts; and in Wii Sports Resort the throttle ability."
We'll let you know more on the MotionPlus date when we hear it.
As anticipated as it was, the Resident Evil 5 demo was met with some degree of criticism from fans who were not quite happy with a few aspects of Capcom's latest effort - notably the controls.
RE5 plays much like RE4, which may please some, but it can feel a little clunky and restrictive for a game so action-orientated. But producer Jun Takeuchi says that's all part of increasing tension levels.
"We went in knowing that we weren't making a typical third- or first-person shooter; we were making a Resident Evil game," said Takeuchi.
"It was important for us to go with the design choices that would make the best Resident Evil game that we could. When it comes to Resident Evil, we feel that by imposing a restriction on the player you actually increase the tension that they feel while playing," he explained.
"Finding the balance between that and the player's frustration is very important when approaching the design of a game like this. I think that by imposing certain restrictions on the player you actually help to heighten the fear and the tension, and, ultimately, you create a better horror game."
As anticipated as it was, the Resident Evil 5 demo was met with some degree of criticism from fans who were not quite happy with a few aspects of Capcom's latest effort - notably the controls.
RE5 plays much like RE4, which may please some, but it can feel a little clunky and restrictive for a game so action-orientated. But producer Jun Takeuchi says that's all part of increasing tension levels.
"We went in knowing that we weren't making a typical third- or first-person shooter; we were making a Resident Evil game," said Takeuchi.
"It was important for us to go with the design choices that would make the best Resident Evil game that we could. When it comes to Resident Evil, we feel that by imposing a restriction on the player you actually increase the tension that they feel while playing," he explained.
"Finding the balance between that and the player's frustration is very important when approaching the design of a game like this. I think that by imposing certain restrictions on the player you actually help to heighten the fear and the tension, and, ultimately, you create a better horror game."
Majesco's official announcement for A Boy and His Blob for the Nintendo Wii comes with a little more information and twelve new screens of the beautiful game in action.
First revealed to varying degrees yesterday via Nintendo Power, A Boy and His Blob is indeed a rebirth of the classic NES adventure game, developed by Contra 4 developer WayForward. Along with the gorgeous graphical redesign, the new title expands upon the original, delivering 40 levels of gameplay filled with hidden treasures and unlockable bonus content. New jellybean flavors have been added to the games repertoire of shaft-shifting sweets, including Bubble Gum Bubble and Caramel Cannon, adding a new twist to the already tried and true experience.
A Boy and His Blob for the Wii is due out later this year in the U.S. and Europe. Until then, enjoy the 12 new jellybean-flavored screens here!
Okay, see if you can wrap your head around this one: MSI has announced a new device designed to simplify peoples' internet experiences by cutting out all the extraneous stuff, presenting a clean, decidedly OS X-like interface to commonly used apps. It's the same sort of skin we've seen applied many a Linux-powered device before, but MSI has taken the unusual decision to call this a "new internet interactive device without an operating system." We're not sure if that's supposed to be a subtle dig to the Linux community or just marketing misinformation, but, regardless, the device (which MSI has yet to reveal) will ship with a number of web-related tools like Firefox for browsing, Pidgin and Skype for chatting, and other apps for browsing media and whatnot. No word on whether users will be able to install their own apps, and if so what happens when they run out of room on that not-a-dock, but we are certain of one thing: this is clearly the cutest name for a non-OS device of all time.
We've always had a thing for instant-on OS environments like SplashTop, and now Xandros is looking to bring that concept to every laptop with Presto!, a new Linux distro that's said to boot in "seconds." The idea isn't so much to replace Windows as it is to supplement it -- you select between Windows and Presto at boot, you'll still have access to all your files, and you can even uninstall Presto from Add / Remove programs. Not a bad way to get your Linux feet wet, and Presto seems like it's pretty functional as well: Xandros already powers the Linux Eee PCs, and it sounds like Presto will run decently on similarly low-powered / older hardware. The stock install comes with Firefox, Skype, a media player and office suite, but Xandros is working on an app store, so you should have lots of other options soon. Sounds promising -- we'll see how it goes when the beta's released on March 16.
We're pretty sure a good lot of you with PSPs have used them for, shall we say, less than reputable means -- like playing 16-bit era games using emulators. Soon, there might be a more legit outlet for that fix, as Sony's head of US marketing for PlayStation hardware John Koller tells MTV Multiplayer it's looking to bring classics from before Sony entered the arena to the handheld, à la Nintendo Wii's Virtual Console. The company's also expanding North America's library of PSOne downloads to eventually match the plethora of titles available to the Japanese market. It's all part of a greater initiative to make more digitally-distributed, download-only titles, which we wholeheartedly support -- now, about those pesky UMD-less PSP2 rumors...
Sure, Amazon could pit the Kindle squarely against phone- and PDA-based e-book apps, but why not play both sides? The company had previously mentioned its desire to embrace non-Kindle devices in its digital delivery ecosystem, and the first fruits of that labor have now hit the iPhone App Store. The uncreatively-named Kindle for iPhone allows you access to all of your Kindle content right from the comfort of your iPhone or iPod touch, and if you have the good fortune of owning an honest-to-goodness Kindle, Whispersync will kick in to keep your location synchronized between readers. It's a huge win for owners of both devices, considering that the Kindle's still just a little bit big to be carrying everywhere you go, but your phone -- well, if you don't have that everywhere you go, you're just plain weird.
DSi software will be region locked because of the growing number of different age ratings and restrictions seen in the world’s varying games markets, Nintendo has stated.
Speaking to The Times, UK boss David Yarnton explained: “There are many different age requirements with games around the world. I’ve been involved with the industry body, and we’ve just had the Byron review, so it’s quite topical.
"As an industry, we are trying to take a responsible stance in that area, to make sure that we have people aware of what content they get, and that there is a certain amount of protection.”
Yarnton also went on to discuss the firm’s ongoing efforts to battle the threat posed to gaming from piracy, and the measures Nintendo has taken to combat it:
“The DSi has a number of enhancements to built-in security. There’s firmware that we can upgrade, to try and keep one step ahead at all times. Hopefully that will protect not only our Intellectual Property but also our publishers, who put a lot of time and investment into developing games.”
So then, what do you think of Nintendo's policy of region-locking the DSi software? Reply via comments below.
Ben Heck's at it again, and this time, he's cobbled together a breath-controlled kick pedal for use with Guitar Hero (or Rock Band, if that's your flavor) meant for people in wheelchairs, or who don't have use of their legs, but still want to get in on the rocking action. After tearing apart the kick pedal to expose its piezoelectric sensor, he mods it so that, rather than reacting to physical pressure, it'll react to air pressure. To get the job done, you'll need some PVC piping, a hot glue gun, and a drill. Hit the read link for full instructions and video of Ben himself testing out the device!
A story at CongressDaily points out that the Entertainment Software Alliance (ESA) is busily lobbying for policies to spur broadband adoption across the country. "Opportunities to play games online and download games and game-related content from a range of legitimate download services help drive demand for broadband, the Entertainment Software Association said in a briefing paper sent to President Obama's transition team. 'We're the only form of entertainment online that's interactive — movies and music are linear.' Gallagher told CongressDaily. 'We're very pleased with the president's strong embracing of broadband deployment as a high value goal for our country.' The $6 billion-plus in broadband funds in Obama's economic stimulus package was a good start, he added. Gallagher's group also supports efforts to free up wireless spectrum as gaming moves from PCs and plasma screens to handheld devices."
Demon's Souls - a JRPG that's sold like hot pork buns in Japan - is only out in Asia. And may never be released in the West. Doesn't mean you can't play it!
Because decent JRPGs are few and far between on Sony's latest console, fans of the genre may want to look at importing the Asian edition (not the Japanese one, the Hong Kong/Taiwan one) of the game, which features full English language support. And yes, that includes the voice acting.
Sure, the game doesn't look great (least to me), but then, with bigger-selling (Tales of Vesperia) and better-looking (Star Ocean 4) games somehow turning up exclusively on the 360, beggars can't afford to be choosers.
M3rk sends an excerpt from an opinion piece on Gametopius discussing what it takes for an open game world to be successful. Interesting stories and characters are important, but they must be balanced by varied and entertaining gameplay. The lack of either will be a limiting factor in how many people return to play once the primary plot is completed. Quoting:
"A game like GTA IV takes itself and its fiction very seriously. It spends a lot of time, effort, and gameplay resources convincing you that the world you are traveling through is the same world that the story and cutscenes take place in. It may not be a game that allows you to own or control property to the degree seen in Burnout Paradise or Saints Row II, but it wants its world to be cohesive, not divided. ... While GTA IV's game systems almost serve its plot, Saints Row II and Burnout Paradise live for their game mechanics. Sure, these worlds are fun to look at and explore, but any exploration and discovery that the player enjoys merely drives them to these games' raison d'être: fun systems to play with."
After its successful rollout last year, Microsoft is to make NXE a mandatory upgrade for 360 users wanting to play the latest titles on their machines, according to reports.
NXE, or New Xbox Experience, was released last year and completely overhauled the Xbox 360’s previous dashboard ‘blade’ system. It also introduced avatars to the 360 experience, as well as hard drive installs for games.
After its successful rollout last year, Microsoft is to make NXE a mandatory upgrade for 360 users wanting to play the latest titles on their machines, according to reports.
NXE, or New Xbox Experience, was released last year and completely overhauled the Xbox 360’s previous dashboard ‘blade’ system. It also introduced avatars to the 360 experience, as well as hard drive installs for games.
According to Microsoft, you can now surf the audio podcast catalog in their Zune site and stream them directly without connecting to the Zune Marketplace, as well as waste your time doing music quizzes, like
It's bad enough going through the hassle of shipping your Xbox 360 off to customer support, but now Microsoft won't even give you the box to ship it in. Updated.
A Consumerist reader complained that after his Xbox red-ringed – again – he called Microsoft to get a shipping box to mail his console in for repairs. But the customer service rep told him he'd need to find his own box. As he pointed out, this gives them a possible out. Who's to stop them from claiming the box was damaged in the mail?
My Xbox red-ringed for the second time this weekend. Which is almost a relief after hearing how bad my disc drive was sounding, but not so much after hearing the new policy. I was told that Xbox no longer ships out a box to you and you must find a box to ship it out in. Yeah I guess its not a big deal, but I think it gives them another thing to hold over your head; "We are sorry, Sir, but you didn't back it well enough and it appears the damage was due to shipping, we cannot help you."
Bummer move, Microsoft, especially over something that's very much your own fault.
Update: Microsoft is saying that they do in fact still ship boxes to customers with broken Xboxes (if the customers ask for one), according to Kotaku. Which would mean this whole debacle is just one case of one employee being terrible, rather than the entire company. Unless you count how people wouldn't need to ship their Xboxes in anyway if the company had bothered making them right in the first place.
Codemasters has a couple new execs talking about the publisher's "cautious strategy" on the Wii -- and, by "cautious," they mean making titles that appeal to core gamers. UK General Manager Jeremy Wigmore and Marketing VP Alex Bertie tell MCV that Codemasters "can't ignore Wii," despite the publisher's emphasis on next-gen titles.
Bertie finds it "bewildering" to see what other companies are doing with Nintendo's juggernaut. He expresses that Codies isn't going to make "cheap, crappy ports" and expects the company to produce "gamer's games." Wigmore believes that other publishers constantly going to retail with a "mass-market product" only makes those games become "white noise." It'll be interesting to see if Codemasters retains its thinking about Wii after Overlord: Dark Legend releases in a few months and the publisher starts seeing sales figures.
There are 
.
