We know that a vast majority of the gaming media consumers out there have a fairly negative outlook when it comes to pre-orders for popular titles (did anyone really have a hard time finding Halo 3 last September?), but that's not why we're writing about the recent pre-order listings on Amazon and Gamestop for the next (Barlog-less) installment in the well-received God of War franchise. What we find intriguing is the March 2 release date listed on both websites -- three quarters earlier than the last rumored launch window for the title. Is this wishful thinking from these two gaming retailers, or could the further adventures of everyone's favorite ashy Spartan hit shelves much sooner than expected?
After stirring up a hornets' nest of gamer contempt last week by announcing that the forthcoming PC flavor of Mass Effect would require re-validation every 10 days, BioWare community manager Jay Watamaniuk has come forward as the voice of reason on the game's official forums, stating that the developer has now removed the "feature" from the game.
Instead of employing the previously revealed DRM madness, Watamaniuk explained that Mass Effect will include just a one time online authentication, allowing players to play the game once validated without the disc in the drive at all. That said, if any new content is downloaded, the game will again have to bite the disc to make sure it's real. The caveat to all of this, however, is that each Mass Effect purchase will only be able to be installed a maximum of three times, news that has again incited us to pick up our torches and pitchforks and join the mob outside.
Sometimes one set of hands just isn't enough to bring games stateside. At least, that's the thinking over at niche game publisher XSEED, which just signed a co-publishing deal with Harvest Moon virtuoso Marvelous Entertainment. The pair note that the agreement will help let Marvelous set up shop here in the US, while XSEED will help localize "key" titles from the Japanese studio.
While the news makes us think that we'll soon be up to our eyeballs in farming sims, XSEED has only thus far confirmed that it will help localize Valhalla Knights II, though the companies note that additional game announcements will follow shortly. The sequel to last year's PSP action RPG Valhalla Knights is expected to ship this fall, with XSEED marketing guru Ken Berry stating belief that the game "will help to set the quality standard high for all future games coming out of this deal." That's certainly a lofty expectation for a sequel to a game that was largely panned by critics last year.
Man, running through a post-apocalyptic city and sticking a chainsaw into anything that moves is just the perfect thing for a Friday night. That being said, we've decided to stay in this evening and watch the first Gears of War 2 gameplay footage instead. If you want to catch a glimpse of all the testosterone-driven, monster-shooting madness promised in Epic Games' sequel, all you need is an Xbox 360 and enough dexterity to find the trailer on the Xbox Live Video Marketplace. Well, we suppose you'll need an internet connection too. Also, electricity.
Those of us lucky enough to possess computers (and internet and electricity) can also find the video on 1UP at 10:30PM PST -- that's a full 30 minutes before it gets to Xbox Live. When the embeddable Gamevideos clip becomes available at around the same time, we'll be sure to stick it up on Joystiq. We're staying in tonight, remember?
Super Stardust HD received its first expansion pack last month, one that was very well received by players and critics alike. The second, multiplayer add-on promises to do the same, judging by the time we spent with at Sony's recently PlayStation Day 2008.
The "Team Pack" adds a Co-op Split Screen mode as well as the incredible Versus Mode. While the concept of Versus Mode remains very simple, the menus add depth and a huge amount of variety to the experience. At your disposal are several gameplay modes, similar to many other multiplayer games' gameplay arsenal, including deathmatch, king of the hill and grab-and-run. This whole mode has been built specifically with party gaming in mind.
Up to four players can play against each other on the same planet, but the "layout" of the planet can be changed before the game commences. This allows you to overlay a maze of rocks onto the planet's surface in various shapes which players will need to navigate through. These rocks can be destroyed and, depending on the options settings, can either harm players who come too close or simply ignore them. For people who prefer a less restricted battlefield, there's an option for a clear level layout too.
We've really been enjoying Gametrailers' well-researched and engaging Star Wars retrospective, so we were happy to see this morning that they had turned their attention to everyone's favorite sneaky soldier with their Metal Gear retrospective. The first episode, seen above, covers Metal Gear, Snake's Revenge and MG2: Solid Snake.
It's a good way to refresh before Metal Gear Solid 4, but we hope the narrator is prepared for when he has to start recapping Metal Gear Solid plots. (Exploded brain washes out of microphones, right?)
Ninja Gaiden II hasn't even been released yet and we're already bored of Ryu Hayabusa's costumes. Why? Our attention spans are just that sho-- oh crap, look, it's a ladybug! ... What were we saying? Oh, right, ninjas. As we're already deep in the clutches of boredom you can imagine our relief to hear that three new costume packs for the game would be released this July for 200 points (that's $2.50) a piece. You can see a full-sized version one of the offerings right here.
The strangest part? You actually have to jump through some hoops to be able to buy the first one, seen above. According to the Gamerscore Blog, the armor "will be exclusively available in selected countries to 39,000 gamers on launch day as part of pre-sale or launch promotions," whatever that means. We'd love to sit here and be incensed about the whole thing, but we've got a ladybug to track down. Seriously, it was right here.
In a surprise announcement that completely defies typical industry practices, Sierra has revealed that it will soon capture the "intense action-adventure, fantastic creatures and epic locations" in Hollywood's third money-making Mummy movie and then stick it all into a game. Developed by Eurocom for the Wii and PlayStation 2 (and by A2M for the DS), The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor will closely follow the events of this August's reanimation of long-dead material, complete with "a fast and fluid combat system and an arsenal of weaponry that can be used to vanquish the many bone-chilling enemies."
There's also mention of "hieroglyphic decoding gameplay elements," but we figure Sierra had you at the whole movie tie-in thing. Look for the evil to be resurrected on July 22nd.
French site Jeuxvideo.fr states that PSP games Daxter and Wipeout Pulse are being ported to the PS2. The story seems probable considering how many PSP to PS2 ports there have been, but at this time it's an unconfirmed rumor.
Although they have an in-house engine for the Battlefield series (Frostbite), EA DICE has gone with Epic's mega-popular Unreal Engine 3 for the Parkour-inspired Mirror's Edge. According to the development team (via Electronic Arts PR), the reason was that the Mirror's Edge project began early on in Frostbite's development, so they decided to use the more-developed Unreal technology instead.
DICE is also developing "a new lighting solution that truly makes Mirror's Edge stand-out visually." If you haven't had a chance to check out the trailer, do so now. Full statement after the break.
SCEE President David Reeves has indicated that PlayStation 3 owners may be able to enjoy some Grand Theft Auto IV downloadable content, after all. Speaking to VideoGamer at yesterday's PlayStation Day, Reeves said, "Well I think you probably will see it, it's just that a deal obviously was struck between Microsoft and Take-Two to do that, and if that's what they want to do, I think that's the last shot they have."
Of course, executives are known for their superhuman ability to talk a lot of hot air, and Reeves is no exception. The deal Reeves refers to is the $50 million Microsoft reportedly gave Take Two for exclusive GTAIV "episodes." It's unclear if Reeves is hinting at that DLC coming to Sony, entirely new DLC (also of questionable exclusivity) or absolutely nothing tangible at all.
It's been a long time coming, but Ubisoft's Free Radical-developed shooter, Haze,has finally been given the demo treatment, with the publisher sending word that a single and multiplayer-flavored demo is now available over PSN in Europe and that the same hors d'oeuvre will make the rounds in the U.S. starting May 8.
As if offering apology for Haze'snumerousdelays, the demo will include both a sampling of the game's single player campaign called "Salva Region," as well as "drop-in drop-out" co-op multiplayer for up to four players online or over a LAN, or with two players via split-screen. We're sure that there is some "coming out of the haze" joke to be made here, but honestly, after months of waiting we're simply all joked out.
At last! The miserable, sleepless nights we've had to endure since Grand Theft Auto IV's launch will come to an end, with the New York Times thoughtfully informing us just how much money a gigantic corporation has earned from the release of one of the year's most anticipated games. That would be 500 million dollars in the first week, just so you know.
Other statistics expected to escape from Take-Two's maw later today (Update: The figures have now been officially announced by Take-Two) point to the open-ended carjack caper having sold 6 million copies so far -- 3.6 million on the first day. Though Rockstar's smash success comes as little surprise and exceeds expectations, it'll be more interesting to see how it affects EA's ongoing hostile takeover attempt. Will the deal be sweetened?
With so many proposed WiiWare titles crossing Nintendo's gold-lined desk, you might think that the company would be interested in picking the best and brightest to release alongside its upcoming online service on May 12. And you'd be right, if by best and brightest, you meant old and uninspired, two terms that are well suited to describe Protöthea, the latest launch game confirmed for WiiWare, and the first from Ubisoft.
If the game's name sounds familiar, that may be because the top-down shooter is actually a port of a nearly three year old PC title, and judging from the above video Protöthea feels antiquated even by those standards. The game will include newfangled controls care of the Wii remote and nunchuck, as well as a number of other additions being introduced by the developers at Sabarasa and Digital Builders, but with Protöthea sharing download space with more interesting shooters like Star Soldier R and Gyrostarr, we can't help but wonder what the point is.
Niko Bellic apparently isn't stopping with conquering with Liberty City, he's now extended his dominion as Grand Theft Auto IVtook the top slot on the weekly Xbox Live activity charts, dethroning longtime king Call of Duty 4. The rest of the top five was rounded out by Halo 3, Guitar Hero III and that old stalwart, Gears of War.
To anyone who's grown accustomed to their friends list just being a solid column of "GTA IV" this shouldn't come as much of a surprise. But we'll be interested to see if the game's multiplayer can help it hang on in the charts even after fans start finishing Niko's story en masse.
