Blogcritics

Announcement: Short-content feeds

Phillip Winn — Sun, 26 Aug 2007 12:00:00 EDT

Sunday, August 26, 2007, marks the switch of all Blogcritics.org article feeds from full-content to short-content. This is the result of several converging factors, and is unfortunately a permanent decision (as permanent as any decision can be on the web, that is). We are aware of all of the reasons that this is a Bad Idea, and we are aware that some of you will be quite upset about having to click on something to read the free content, and we're sorry. Unfortunately, despite great effort, full-content feeds are not currently economically viable. Two other factors are involved: full-content feeds have resulted in an unprecedented level of content theft, with BC content appearing on many websites, usually spam sites, without attribution or permission. This duplicate content causes a cascading set of problems, not the least of which is that search engines generally aren't favorable to duplicate content, and don't always guess correctly. Finally, our RSS advertising partner is strongly in favor of short-content feeds. We hope that you'll continue to subscribe to BC via RSS, and when an article grabs your eye, it's only a click away, still free on the BC website. Thank you for your understanding.

Gaming Round Up for 2/10/07

Aaron Auzins — Sat, 10 Feb 2007 17:37:23 EST

Reality Hits NBA LiveNBA Live will be in the spotlight in ESPN's reality competition series Bring it Home.NBA Live: Bring it Home will be airing starting Feb. 11 at 7 p.m. EST as part of a six-episode series. Eight players will be competing for cash prizes and bragging rights while ESPN will be bringing in columnist Scoop Jackson as the host. Bring it Home will also feature cameos by NBA players Vince Carter, Carmelo Anthony, Baron Davis, Antawn Jamison, Dwyane Wade and Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban.The players will compete to advance through elimination and earn home court advantage - the right to play on their own turf surrounded by family and friends. After the first few rounds, the winners will then have to coach an actual NBA player in NBA Live, whose success determines home court advantage for the semi-final rounds. The final two players will square off at the American Airlines Arena in Miami for a shot at $100,000.Nintendo Snags AwardsThe Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences honored Nintendo with five achievement awards Thursday night at the Design, Innovate, Communicate, Entertain (DICE) Summit in Las Vegas.Three of the five awards went to the Nintendo Wii launch title Wii Sports - outstanding innovation in gaming, outstanding achievement in game play engineering and outstanding achievement in game design. Brain Age: Train Your Brain in Minutes a Day for the Nintendo DS was recognized as the handheld game of the year.Along with the recognition of The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess recently reaching one million units sold for the Nintendo Wii (also making it the fastest-selling launch title for a new video game system in the United States since Super Mario 64), it was awarded in the category of outstanding achievement in story and character advancement.Nintendo of America President Reggie Fils-Aime noted the awards are determined by those involved in the industry and are among the most respected honors to be received."These awards, granted by a group of our industry peers, demonstrate that it's possible to please both new and experienced game players," said Fils-Aime. "To see honors given to games as varied as Twilight Princess, Wii Sports and Brain Age tells us the industry hungers for new ideas and great games. We believe both Wii and Nintendo DS are specifically equipped to deliver those experiences."While Nintendo took home five awards, in total, it was nominated 19 times in 11 different gaming categories. Odin to Spring on PS2While a number of online release lists have long been teasing a release date for Odin Sphere for the Playstation 2, Atlus announced Friday a confirmation to publish the title in North America.The title is developed by Vanillaware, who previously developed Princess Crown for the Sega Saturn. The title will feature hand-drawn artwork and animation detailing the main character warrior princess Gwendolyn, in a tale of "power, loss and love." When a bloody war between two nations acts out an ancient prophecy, it will be up to Gwendolyn, daughter of Odin, to bring it to an end before it means the destruction of the entire world.A total of five playable characters will make their way into the game, which features side-scrolling action. The artwork carries over into battle with a number of promised attack and magic effects with fully voiced dialogue to further detail the story. The title also features a cooking and alchemy system so players can create new attack and recovery items.Currently Odin Sphere is scheduled to release in North America this spring.Log On to Xbox LoveA number of events and features are planned for those logging on to the Xbox 360 this Valentine's Day.Catering to those who are dateless and with no reason to go out today, Xbox Live will play host to an all-night Lost Planet fest. Capcom is looking to give away free swag to random gamers who write about their all-night experience. A number of online features are being plugged for the Microsoft title Viva Pinata and the official Xbox Web site has a feature for those guys who are trying to get their special girls into gaming.Gilbert Recognized for GDC NominationManifesto Games recently recognized Dave Gilbert, who has received a Game Developers Choice Award nomination in the category of best new studio.Gilbert's studio, Wadjet Eye Games, has released The Shivah and The Blackwell Legacy within the past six months, each distributed by Manifesto. The conference will be held this year in San Francisco on March 7 at the Moscone Convention Center."You know how people say it's an honor just to be nominated," commented Gilbert. "Well it really is - my co-nominees are incredibly talented and accomplished and I really didn't imagine things would take off like this. The Shivah was my first commercial game and for while I was waiting for someone to tap me on the shoulder and tell me that the reviews and sales weren't real, or that there was some kind of mistake. I think it's great that the industry has evolved to the point where it not only accepts games like mine, but also takes time to honor them."The other studios nominated in the same category include Gastronaut Studios, Iron Lore Entertainment, Naked Sky Entertainment and Ready At Dawn Studios.9Dragons Beta Now OpenAcclaim recently announced its martial arts-based MMORPG 9Dragons has now entered open beta testing.The game, like Acclaim's other public game, B.O.T.S., is free to play and download. Interested players must register on the official Web site and download the 9Dragons game client.In addition to the announcement of open beta testing, Acclaim has also added a European server to the game. The server will initially be located in the United States and later moved over to Europe at a later date.Canessa Hired at PopCapPopCap Games, renowned for its development and publishing of casual games, recently announced it has hired Greg Canessa to the newly created position of vice president, video game platforms.Canessa, formerly the general manager of Microsoft's Xbox Live Arcade service, will begin his role with the company next week."From the Xbox 360 video game console to handheld video game devices and more, PopCap's lineup of casual games are really well suited for a wide range of platforms and I'm excited to have this opportunity to help guide PopCap's future growth," said Canessa. "The fact PopCap is both a recognized leader in its space and a pioneering company with a start-up mentality is very appealing to me and I'm really looking forward to helping the company bring their award-winning suite of games to these platforms."

Aaron Auzins, better known as "nestlekwik," is an avid gamer and collector who resides in Ohio. He has written video gaming reviews for The Northwest Signal, The Disclaimer, personal Web sites, GameFAQs, BitSmack and on Sony's invitation-only Web log - The Gamer Advisory Panel.

Gaming Round Up for 2/8/07

Aaron Auzins — Thu, 8 Feb 2007 14:21:26 EST

Ben 10 Set for Game DebutD3Publisher of America has inked another deal with Cartoon Network in order to bring the action cartoon Ben 10 to video game format.Launching a little more than a year ago, the animated series debuted Ben Tennyson, who is not just a superhero, but 10 superheroes in one. Through an alien "wristwatch" device, Ben is able to transform into one of 10 alien being, each featuring their own distinctive superpowers. The series recently got a go-ahead from Cartoon Network to continue on to a fourth season on air."Cartoon Network's Ben 10 has all the right ingredients for a successful game," said Careen Yapp, vice president of licensing and business development at D3PA. "Working with this strong franchise will give D3PA the opportunity to translate the smart and edgy action of the series into a fantastic game play experience for its large fanbase."The deal grants worldwide publishing rights to develop and publish console, handheld and PC games based on the series. The first game for the franchise is scheduled for a fall release.DS Gets Pick of the LitterCat lovers will get the Nintendogs treatment with Crave's entry into gaming pet care - Purr Pals.Raise, adopt, care and training cats will be made easy on the Nintendo DS with voice recognition and presumably touch-screen support. If only real cats were that easy to train.The game promises 40 different breeds of feline, which can interact with a number of mini-games, accessories and toys that players will purchase through earned in-game money. Purr Pals' pet parade begins this March with a suggested retail price of $29.99.Old Spice Looks to Spice Up GamersLooking to do more for gamers than freshen them up, the company's Experience program on Xbox Live finally sheds light on the rumored achievement point cash-ins.With the announcement of more than 200 million achievements unlocked since the 360 launched a little more than a year ago, achievements earned between the next two months can earn gamers more than respect (which is what it's all about anyway). Those who can rack up 1,500 points between Feb. 12 - April 12 can take home one the program's three-tiered packages. After signing up on Feb. 12, U.S. players at least 13 years of age will have 60 days to start achieving:Gamers who have an annual gamerscore of 0-4,999 at time of entry and raise by 1,500 points will be awarded a game picture, a dashboard theme and Contra for the Xbox Live Arcade. Those with a 5,000-9,999 annual Gamerscore will win the aforementioned package plus 100 Microsoft Points and a contest T-shirt. At the highest tier, those with a 10,000+ annual score will net the level one prize as well as 200 Microsoft Points, a contest T-shirt and a copy of Fusion Frenzy 2.It's noted the contest awards prizes based on availability and are distributed on a first-achieved, first-served basis.EA Drops Box DetailsPart two of Half-Life 2's episodic content will be dropping in two separate formats this fall and will be accompanied by a bevy of goodies when picked up in The Orange Box or The Black Box packages.The Black Box will ship for PC gamers and not only include Half-Life 2: Episode Two but also the titles Portal and Team Fortress 2. The Orange Box will also ship for the PC but also the Playstation 3 and Xbox 360. Orange will not only contain all of the material featured in The Black Box but will also come bundled with Half-Life 2 and Half-Life 2: Episode One.PC Gamers to Get JadedBioware Corp. is preparing to release its martial arts RPG Jade Empire in a special edition PC format this month.Released on the Xbox in 2005, the original Jade Empire will receive a number of touch-ups and additions. New monsters, combat styles, items, enhanced graphics as well as a poster and art book will be included in the PC re-release. With the new platform, the game will feature high-res graphics, new visual effects and details as well as a new control scheme optimized for the PC.Codeglue may go Mobile, LiveDutch mobile game studio Codeglue has entered into a representation agreement with Flashman Studios Inc., with the possibility of having its titles secured by publishers for the mobile and Xbox 360 Live Arcade formats.With the partnership, Codeglue has been actively developing original projects for the formats such as the arcade-style Jetpack Junkies.Square's Kingdom Continues to GrowSquare-Enix's Kingdom Hearts II, having shipped September in the PAL territories, pushes the entire franchise to 10 million shipped worldwide.Buena Vista Games, who is the interactive entertainment affiliate of The Walt Disney Company, made the announcement, stating through just three installments has become one of the top game series in the world. Through December 2006, Kingdom Hearts shipped more than 5.6 million units (3 million in North America), Kingdom Hearts: Chain of Memories shipped more than 1.5 million units (0.9 million in North America) and Kingdom Hearts II has shipped 3.4 million units (1.7 million units)."When we first started developing Kingdom Hearts, we never imagined we would pass the 10 million mark so quickly," said series producer Shinji Hashimoto. "We are delighted and extremely grateful for the support from our fans around the globe. We hope to continue to provide games which fulfill your anticipation in the future."Manhunt Comes Back for MoreRockstar Games recently announced Manhunt 2 is in development for the Playstation 2, PSP and Nitendo Wii systems.Rockstar's newly formed London studio will be will be developing the title in conjunction with Rockstar North for the Sony versions while Rockstar Toronto will be in charge of the Wii effort. Rockstar is anticipating a summer release for the sequel.Women to Play in Print FormOn April 4, the world's first video games magazine targeted at women will launch in Europe.The magazine is titled Play Vanilla and will cover PC, video and mobile games aimed at younger women. The magazine will hit shelves at about 130 pages bi-monthly and will feature a cover price of 1.90 Euros.The Quest UnfoldsTohru Murayama, of Sega's AM R&D department #2, took some time recently to detail Virtua Fighter 5's quest mode in a recent developer diary.He noted the goals players will try to accomplish in the mode are attempting to win tournament championships, continually defeating rivals and completing the game's collection of emblems and items. The mode features two types of tournaments - one held in individual in-game arcades and official ones held in special venues. However, Murayama noted even though players can complete the mode by winning the Official Victory, there is still plenty to do in VF5's quest mode and he encourages players to take the challenge in collecting and achieving everything.Rivals will be located in the various in-game arcades. Rivals will increase a player's level quicker with Murayama noting the AI of opponents will be comparable to the player's current rank. He also mentioned the game's online contest asking for ring names and sayings has been implemented with the winners featured in the mode.Tournaments held in arcades offer emblems as prizes and "Soudatsusen" matches offer players matches where they, as the English translation suggests, battle for items. Winning the matches award players glasses, hairstyles, clothes and more to customize characters or earn gold to purchase other items.Murayama also made interesting observations about the U.S. arcade scene versus the Japanese one (which he admits he adores). While visiting E3, he noted the arcades he visited featured almost nothing but racers and light gun games - a stark contrast to the lineups of fighters where opponents sit across from each other without being able to see one another while they play. He notes the contrast, hoping North American players won't be lost in Virtua Fighter 5's reflection of the culture of Japanese arcades.Murayama works on the Playstation 3 home version of the game, which, in Japan is scheduled to hit shelves Feb. 8.Tennis Goes 1080pVirtua Tennis 3 will mark a first for the Xbox 360, with the game supporting visuals up to 1080p.The Live version of the game will feature a new Virtua Tennis TV spectator mode online along with Ranked and Player modes, complete with leaderboards.

Gaming Round Up for 2/5/07

Aaron Auzins — Mon, 5 Feb 2007 21:47:17 EST

Downloads gone wildBoth the Wii and Xbox 360 get their dose of weekly downloadable goods as the Virtual Console sees the addition of three classic titles while the Live Marketplace is graced with a retro arcade title.Launching earlier this morning, the Virtual Console saw the addition of Super Mario World from the Super NES (800 Wii Points), Vigilante from the TG-16 (600 Wii Points) and Gain Ground from the Sega Genesis (800 Wii Points).Vigilante borrows the old Kung-Fu brawler scheme, allowing players to punch and kick there way through horizontally-scrolling stages. The action title Gain Ground pits players in a futuristic war simulator gone awry, featuring multiple characters with different abilities.On the Microsoft side of things, for 400 MS Points, players can download Root Beer Tapper as the latest part of the Xbox Live's nostalgia kick. The game has players filling mugs and serving rabid customers their frothy servings of root beer. The Live version of the title will feature 12 achievements and two-player online play. Root Beer Tapper hits at the usual time Wednesday.Capcom Caters to CommunityIn order to further increase its presence and involvement with its players and fans, Capcom today launched a central portal to unify its numerous brands on a single location.The aptly named Capcom-Unity plays host to Capcom blogs, news and information about the company and its products and a forum for players to gather and discuss various Capcom titles. Eventually the site will feature additions such as brand-specific community sites, more functionality and user-submitted content.Nintendo Giveaways Take OffLucky Southwest Airlines passengers got some gaming goodness out of their frequent flier miles today.Nintendo mailed out a Nintendo DS Lite system and a copy of Brain Age: Train Your Brain in Minutes a Day to 50 of the airline's most-traveled fliers as a surprise. The tandem marks the first time Southwest has ever partnered with an outside company to provide its Rapid Rewards Members with a reward.NASCAR Sprints to MobileAvailable starting today, Sprint Wireless customers have access to EA's mobile version of the racing title NASCAR 07.The mobile title features the organization's most famous drivers and tracks, quick race and The Chase modes, full sound, damage and pit management and more. NASCAR 07 is available now on capable Sprint and Nextel wireless phones, with a follow-up for all other major networks to hit on March 1.

Gaming Round Up for 2/3/07

Aaron Auzins — Sat, 3 Feb 2007 23:03:05 EST

Gentlemen, Place Your BetsEA Sports recently released its bet on the upcoming Super Bowl results, with Madden NFL 07 predicting the underdog Bears' teeth won't be sharp enough in its encounter with the Colts.Based on an automated simulation, Madden 07 has the Colts taking home the Lombardi this year in an 11-point spread, 38-27. Hitting the Bears hard at the start of the game, the Colts lead 10-0 after the first quarter. While the Bears actually outscored the Colts in the second quarter (13-7 to make a halftime score of 17-13, Colts) and enjoyed a short lead following a first-strike, third-quarter touchdown, the team failed to continue such momentum in the second half as the Colts rallied back with three second-half TDs.The simulation tagged Colts quarterback Peyton Manning and Bears running back Thomas Jones as the game's MVPs.Pokemon Explodes Yet Again in JapanJust when people tend to forget that Pokemon exists, new releases of the IP-giant surface just to remind us of why we have "to catch them all."The Pokemon series, in total since its birth 10 years ago, has sold 155 million games through September 2006 and a recent announcement by Nintendo to hype its newest U.S. releases indicate 5 million units of Pokemon Diamond and Pearl have already been shipped to Japanese retailers. The games launched Sept. 28 in Japan and are scheduled to be unleashed in America on April 22.The new titles will take place in the exotic Sinnoh region and through successful play in Pokemon Ranger, players will have access to an egg code that will hatch the water-type Pokemon Manaphy in the newest versions. By completing Pokemon Ranger's story mode and capturing the said Pokemon's egg, players can visit the official Manaphy Web page and obtain their code.Homecourt demo hits homeXbox 360 owners will be able to test the courts as EA Canada's NBA Street Homecourt hit the Xbox Marketplace.The demo features the game's "Trick Remixer" and "Flight Control" game play mechanics in a sample battle between the Denver Nuggets and Detroit Pistons at the Venice Beach street court. The full game will be available Feb. 20 for the 360 and March 6 for the Playstation 3.Win the Final Four, Take Home a New RideMarch Madness starts early thanks to 2K Sports, who recently announced its second annual Pontiac Virtual NCAA Final 4 Tournament.The tournament pits players in every match-up of the actual NCAA tournament before it happens through Xbox Live play in College Hoops 2K7. The four finalists in the tournament will be invited to play the actual NCAA Men's Final Four match-ups live in Atlanta (where this year's Final Four will be held) for bragging rights and a new 2007 Pontiac G5 GT.To qualify for entry, players must have a gold account on Microsoft's Live service and complete 10 online, ranked games of College Hoops 2K7 on the Xbox or Xbox 360 by March 10. Qualified players can then register on the tournament's official Web page. The top-ranked 192 registered contestants will advance to the full online tournament.Mercenaries Sequel Finds PublisherAlthough the title has been in the works almost immediately after its first effort in 2005, Pandemic Studios now has a confirmed publisher in Electronic Arts for its upcoming Mercenaries 2: World in Flames.While no financial terms have been made public on the agreement, David DeMartini, vice president and general manager of EA Partners, noted the company is "thrilled to partner" with the studio.The launch of the brand-new IP was published by LucasArts and went on to become a best-selling re-release in the United States. The Japanese version of the original title (and its "Best" reprint) was, coincidentally enough, handled by Electronic Arts.EA Drops Icon Soundtrack DetailsRap and fisticuffs mend once again in March as the newest iteration of the gritty Def Jam fighting series makes its way to the Xbox 360 and Playstation 3.Electronic Arts recently unleashed the in-game songs that will be featured in Def Jam: Icon - a game where the beat of the music will affect how players will fight opponents and avoid dangers in the game's environment.The licensed tracks will include tracks from Big Boi, E-40, Fat Joe, Ghostface, Jim Jones, Konkrete feat. Big Boi, Lil Jon, The Eastside Boys, Ludacris, M.O.P., Method Man & Redman, Sean Paul, T.I., The Game, Young Jeezy and Young Joc. While there are 29 tracks in total featured in game, players will be able to utilize MP3 song files on storage devices to implement their own flavor of music into the game.The9 Continues Chinese WoW ResponsibilitiesBlizzard recently announced it has signed an agreement with The9 in order to operate its recent best-selling expansion, World of Warcraft: The Burning Crusade, in China.The company already maintains the original installment in the country, which features more than 3.5 million subscribers. Localization is currently underway and further details regarding the released will be announced at a later date. The9 will be responsible for providing community management, technical support and around-the-clock in-game service as well as distribution of game cards and physical hosting of the title on local servers.The Dreamcast's Last Hope?RedSpotGame's title Last Hope went on sale starting Friday. What's so special about it? It marks the newest release for the oft-thought-dead Sega Dreamcast.The game has no region protection according to the sales page on Play-Asia and can be had for the price of $39.99. Of course, the new title is another of Japan's arcade shmup-turned-console game, which the system has enjoyed commercially in Japan for the past number of years.The horizontal shooter relies on the use of rotating satellites, which players can rotate around the ship for protection from small projectiles and engage in eight different directions. The Dreamcast version will feature a 16-bit CD soundtrack, VMU support for saving and visuals, Dreamcast joy pad and arcade stick support, use of 64 channels of stereo, a high-res title screen, adjusted difficulties, explosion/particle effect reduction (for screen clarity), better hit detection and improved visualization of boss weak points.A limited edition (only 500 pieces) will feature a multipack case for two CDs, adjusted spine card with handwritten numeration, a game CD with multicolor label print, 12-page color game manual, official soundtrack on vinyl-CD and a 4-page soundtrack booklet.Sega does not license the title and the publisher warns the CD-ROM-based product may not work in Dreamcast systems manufactured after October 2000.Atlus Announces Etrian SuccessThe Japanese must be happy with the Atlus effort Sekaiju no Meikyuu, as the company is reporting the title has nearly sold out in stores.The RPG for the Nintendo DS is designed by Trauma Center director Kazuya Niinou and will be translated and released as Etrian Odyssey in North America. The title also has other game veterans to its credit including scenario writer Shigeo Komori of Shin Megami Tensei: Devil Summoner fame and composer Yuzo Koshiro, most known for his work on Actraiser and Streets of Rage.The title is scheduled for a May release in the United States. For more information on the title, see our preview.

Gaming Round Up for 1/22/07

Aaron Auzins — Mon, 22 Jan 2007 03:56:45 EST

Two million puts Capcom at topThrough two releases, Capcom announced it has become the single-most successful Japanese developer of games for Microsoft's Xbox 360 system.With sales still continuing to roll in, Capcom announced Lost Planet: Extreme Condition, released Dec. 21 in Japan and January 12 worldwide, and Dead Rising, released summer 2006, have each surpassed one million units shipped.Gamers cracking down on CrackdownCrackdown, scheduled for a Feb. 23 release on the Xbox 360, has gone gold, according to Microsoft Game Studios.The game puts the responsibility of taking out the gangs of Pacific City in either a single-player campaign or a cooperative mode over Xbox Live.Microsoft Studios further announced a downloadable demo of the title will be made available yet this month. And, of course, players will be able to imitate the dreams of finding Willy Wonka's golden ticket, as specially-marked launch copies will contain access to the Halo 3 multiplayer beta program.Lumines downloads finally dropThis Wednesday, gamers will finally be able to make do with their odd Microsoft point amounts, as Lumines Live! content downloadables will be offered at limited time reduced prices.The best discount of all comes with the free download (for gold members) of the Heavenly Star Skin, featuring a song performed by Genki Rockets and produced by Q Entertainment's Tetsuya Mizuguchi. Available for a mere 100 points each are a new vs. CPU pack and puzzle/mission pack.After Feb. 21, the packs will increase to a cost of 300 Microsoft Points and the new skin will no longer be available.Koei announces summer releasesKoei recently announced two projects that will be released this summer.The futuristic racing title Fatal Inertia will feature unique weapons and customization and is the debut title from the company's Toronto-based studio. Developed by Dynasty Warriors studio Omega Force, Bladestorm takes players back to the 14th century to recreate the epic battles between the English and French during the Hundred Years' War in real-time combat.Both titles will be available for both the Playstation 3 and Xbox 360 consoles.THQ tackles UFC licenseTHQ recently announced it has entered into an agreement to publish Ultimate Fighting Championship games through 2011.Among the rights entitled to THQ's games include the Octagon ring, present and past UFC stars and champions and any other event content.The agreement allows THQ to create video games for all currently available consoles, PC and handheld platforms, as well as wireless, which can include online, downloadable and multiplayer capabilities.Atlus to release Izuna in FebruaryAtlus announced late last year it has obtained the rights to publish Izuna: Legend of the Unemployed Ninja for the Nintendo DS in North America.With a February release, the game takes place in a world where ninjas are now obsolete and its up to players to guide the female ninja Izuna through the portable dungeon RPG.Billed as an "old-school dungeon crawler," Izuna promises massive dungeons with plenty of monsters and huge boss encounters. The labyrinths are mapped randomly and change every time players enter but with the use of talismans, Izuna can cast spells or power up her equipment.Guitar Hero notesA couple of interesting bits have come up regarding Activision's Guitar Hero in the past week:Most notably, Guitar Hero is now listed on Neversoft's (of Tony Hawk fame) official Web site. Bryan Lam of Red Octane was able to confirm this move, stating "Neversoft will indeed be working on the Guitar Hero franchise, though we have yet to confirm what exactly it will be. We'll be making an announcement shortly, and will have further details then."We are also awaiting details on the series' first specialized version of the game, Guitar Hero 1980s, which will feature ... '80s rock music, duh.For hardcore fans of the series, you'll be happy to know, there are steps to creating your own custom Guitar Hero II playlist as long as you have a modified Playstation 2. Bemanistyle reported news Thursday confirming the Web site Score Hero has a number of steps in its forum, detailing the way they have found to put your own songs into Guitar Hero II.

Gaming Round Up for 1/15/07

Aaron Auzins — Mon, 15 Jan 2007 08:28:57 EST

Angels proclaim Love and WarNothing says I love you like a chainsaw to the throat and Gamingangels.com is looking to recognize that with an upcoming couples multiplayer Gears of War tournament.In best out of five melees, couples consisting of one male and one female (17+ due to the game's mature ESRB rating) will compete for prizes awarded to the top three places. The contest is limited to 16 teams with the entry deadline of Feb. 2. The actual tournament will be held on Feb. 17 at noon.Nintendo confident in figuresWith the staggering success of the Nintendo Wii and Nintendo DS, Nintendo has a bunch of numbers to throw around for what is projected to be its best financial performance in company history.More than 1.6 million Nintendo DSs made their way into U.S. homes in December alone and more than 1.5 extra Wii Remotes have been purchased along with every console available at retail, according to NPD statistics.With nearly two million DS systems moved during the holiday month, Nintendo chalked up more than 5.3 million units sold for the entire year. Assisting the hot sales were the NPD chart-toppers New Super Mario Bros. and Brain Age: Train Your Brain in Minutes a Day, which both finished in the NPD's top-10 sellers for 2006.Through November and December, Nintendo accounted for more than half of all video game hardware sold in America according to the statistics. With its financial year ending March 31, Nintendo has already increased its project worldwide earnings.Wii want classic gamesNintendo's virtual console isn't slowing down any time soon - in fact, it's just starting to roll with a new lineup of first quarter releases.A recent release indicates a total of 36 games are currently slated to be released for download this quarter. Twenty of the titles will be from Nintendo systems, nine Sega Genesis titles will be available and NEC will be offering seven Turbo-Grafix games.Among the titles mentioned by name, Nintendo will be serving up Mario Kart 64, Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, Super Mario World and Contra. Sega has confirmed Streets of Rage, Bio-Hazard Battle, Bonanza Bros., Comix Zone and Gain Ground. Double Dungeons and New Adventure Island are the only named titles for the TG-16.Acclaim strikes advertising dealAcclaim recently inked a deal with IGA Worldwide, Inc., to provide in-game advertising in a number of upcoming massively multiplayer online titles.Acclaim has made strides to stress its games are free to play, thanks to in-game advertising and in-game item purchasing, and with the agreement, IGA will allow the games to generate advertising revenue. The current deal covers the fully-released title B.O.T.S. and will also branch into 9 Dragons (currently in open beta), 2Moons and Dance! (two titles developed by David Perry now in closed beta testing), as well as two currently unannounced Acclaim projects.IGA Worldwide also partners with a number of other well-known publishers including Electronic Arts, Atari and Codemasters for in-game advertising.

Console Gaming Round Up for 2006

Aaron Auzins — Thu, 4 Jan 2007 07:43:45 EST

Breaking news! The year 2006 is over! What? You already knew that? Good. I was … testing you. Yeah, that’s it.Now that we’ve torn all of the calendars off the wall and replaced them with the new Sports Illustrated Swimsuit 2007 (or in sexist fairness, Chippendales 2007) calendar above our workspace, there’s nothing wrong with taking one look back at 2006, i.e. “The Year We Spent Hearing About Nothing but the Playstation 3 and Wii.”Below are most of the major “hard-hitting” news stories for the year of 2006. Note some of the news bits are injected with a shot of personal opinion.360s finally become buyable in stores The year reared in with a bit of a next-gen whimper as hoards of gamers were still left without an Xbox 360, with some being those who had paid for the system in full before its release in 2005 stuck waiting until the April/May area. Even those who had the system still yearned for the delayed flagship title Oblivion, the fourth in the series of The Elder Scrolls games.While owners did have quality titles such as Call of Duty 2 and a selection of Live Arcade titles to tide them over, it wasn’t until the launch of Oblivion that the system had its first breakaway game. Although the game is now making its way onto consoles via the Playstation 3 (someday) and even in portable form on the PSP, the 360 quest still continues for some with its seemingly never-ending game play and downloadable content and will soon see an expansion.At the end of the 2006, Microsoft had a huge advantage as while the shelves were bare of Playstation 3 and Wii systems and accessories, gamers now had regular access to 360 units, exclusive titles and current-generation hardware without having to hide under 20 sleeping bags for 12 hours in 20-degree weather at the storefront of a video game retailer.Gizmondo finally laid to rest The world forgets about yet another ugly handheld when the Gizmondo fizzled off the market following the escapades of Stefan Ericksson, who was at the head of the company. After wrapping his Ferrari Enzo around a pole in Los Angeles (while reportedly driving at a speed of around 200 mph), police tied one thing to another and brought a world of hurt down on the executive.The Enzo, which had been sheared in half by the accident, was reported stolen by a European bank, which led to other sources claiming he had other defaulted vehicles in his possession. Just Google Ericksson’s name if you want to see the events that unfold from here – it gets more hilarious every time I read about it.I think the first crime was launching a handheld that is actually more useless than the N-Gage, but I guess there are no laws against such a thing. Pity. The Gizmondo failure resulted in a bankruptcy that saw around $400 million flush down the toilet through a mere four years.The system saw no known hit titles and featured multimedia and wi-fi capabilities including a much-touted GPS system, camera and media player. While it had a 128-bit accelerator, no games truly used the specs, and other hardware specs failed to match those of the DS or PSP, which it aimed to compete against. The system’s “most hyped” game, Colors, was never released to the U.S. and it sits at the top of a mountain of titles slated for and never released for the Gizmondo.Sony bites the bullet, announces PS3 woe After being slated for a spring release, Sony sent its mouthpiece Ken Kutaragi to the frontline to bare the news that gamers would have to wait until almost the end of the year to fight for a Playstation 3 system. Kutaragi pitched out the month of November for the system’s release. Unfortunately he also mentioned the release would be a worldwide release.Hey, Europe, how are you enjoying those Playstation 3 units over there? Oh, yeah, that’s right … March … Sorry. At least you’ll be able to import a Japanese unit if – wait, scratch that. You’ll see in a news bit further down why that isn’t even an option anymore. In video gaming Europe always gets the short end of the stick it seems.DS sheds Lite on gamers Given Nintendo’s track record of redesigning the same portable system numerous times over, it was only a given the same happen to the Nintendo DS. Much like the transfer from GBA to SP, the move from DS to Lite made a world of difference with a much brighter screen (which brought out colors in games that I didn’t even see before), easier to manage microphone and start/select positions, a more durable stylus and much smaller, more portable size. Along with a few new colors, it’s no doubt the Lite is a sleeker, sexier machine.Nintendo’s other huge contribution to the system comes in the form of an amended relationship with Square-Enix. As a result, Final Fantasy III and the sleeper hit Rocket Slime have made their way to the DS and games based on the Final Fantasy XII and Dragon Quest franchises are on their way to the handheld system. In a joint effort, Square handled the development for Mario’s most recent sports foray – Mario Hoops. “Smart gaming” is popular for once Edutainment has been around forever. Even when I had my Commadore 64 or Apple computer, math games were always a part of the software lineup. The NES even had Donkey Kong Math and the theme carried on with curiosities such as Mario is Missing. Sad to say, almost none of the edutainment games were any fun, and the concept certainly wasn’t a popular one, let alone a moneymaker. Then along came Brain Age.The game had already spawned multiple spin-offs and titles in Japan, but it wasn’t until 2006 that it tapped the American market. Through the simple nature of the game plus the promise of benefiting your mental faculties (and the attractive $20 price tag), the series became a poster child for the “games are for everybody” theology that Nintendo has been benefiting from as of late.At last count a couple of months ago, the Brain Age title has sold more than 6 million units worldwide (since then the title is marked at number 10 on the NPD’s best selling titles of 2006 through November). Big Brain Academy was the “follow-up” that tested your mental mettle and was nearing 25,000 units sold in America when Nintendo announced the Brain Age figure.Following the success, Nintendo actively featured a number of grandparents and parents enjoying the games through contests and promotions. Even my mother wants Brain Age so she can play Sudoku. Nintendo definitely succeeded and of course with success comes imitation – a few non-Nintendo games featuring brain challenges have squeaked their way on to various portable systems.Sony becomes E3 laughingstock, Wii unveiled To say the 2006 E3 wasn’t a good show for Sony, in my opinion, would be an understatement. To the laughs from the audience to the blank stares of people who were trying to decide whether what they were seeing or hearing was reality, you had to know something was awry.The earliest builds of the Playstation 3 controllers (yeah, the Batarangs – had to keep up the superhero theme to go along with the Spider-Man font for the PS3 logo, you know) were evidently scrapped as Sony presented … the Playstation 2 controller! Okay, well, that’s not true, but Sony kept the comfy design of the Dual Shock 2 (sans the shock due to its legal battle with Immersion) and outfitted it with triggers for the L2 and R2 positions, given a central button for menu navigations and inserted motion-sensing controls … that Nintendo announced they were implementing a year earlier.The controller caught the same flack the Wii caught the year prior when its revolutionary controller was finally unmasked. The initial response to the controller was “I came to see the most revolutionary controller in video game history and you show me a DVD remote?” type of attitude. On Sony’s showcase, history kind of repeated with responses of “I came to see the most mind-blowing system in video game history and you show me a Playstation 2 controller?” At least in both cases there was more to the controllers than pictures alone can tell us.While the final design turned out nice, Sony was initially blasted for its unoriginality on many fronts and its endlessly looping videos of Genji, F1 Racing and Warhawk did little to impress show-goers as they flocked for information on PS3 titles such as Metal Gear Solid 4. Sadly for Sony, most of the buzz surrounding the PS3 is still solely stacked on MGS4’s shoulders.It also didn’t help that Sony started said conference an hour late without explanation. Whoops.And if they weren’t checking out MGS4, the allure of the Wii definitely stole the spotlight in the E3 2006 next-gen showcase. Everyone wanted to know more about the system since Nintendo was so tight-lipped about the project. Unfortunately prior to the expo, Nintendo announced the name change from Revolution to Wii.Of course, everyone thought Nintendo had gone absolutely bonkers and made up the most ridiculous name in video game history but as of right now, I don’t hear any complaints. Video game stores still echo with people frothing at mouth with the demand “I want a Wii.” And, yes, the puns that insinuate the Wii as a reference to taking a number one or the male genitals have still not ceased. Microsoft had a solid outing, showcasing most of its current titles and upcoming heavy-hitters such as Grand Theft Auto IV and Halo 3. The company seems to place its bigger announcements at its own show held in Europe, labeled X’06 where many more huge announcements and game releases were teased for the 360 system such as Halo Wars. It was like Microsoft and other companies were losing interest in E3 in favor of its own events. Foreshadowing!Price points cause discussion Also at E3, both Sony and Nintendo gave more insight on the price points of their upcoming systems.Sony was labeled as a copycat once again as it offered two different units at launch – one at $499 and a beefier 60 GB version at $599. Even though people were warned by Sony itself it would be costly, analysts crunched very identical numbers and if featured costly new technology, casual gamers everywhere couldn’t add one and one together and were outraged about the price. With a price tag of $599, many gamers failed to grasp the concept of the Blu-Ray technology, which in a stand-alone unit tops $1,000, and much complaining ensued online.With a slow start on the hype machine, interest in the Wii avalanched more and more through 2006, presenting a much friendlier $249 price tag and advancing developer support that saw announcements of more than 20 games trickle in for the launch window along with downloadable classic games from Nintendo, NEC and Sega. While many shunned the Wii’s lack of graphical prowess, once the media started to chime in on the system, many began changing their tune. Nintendo felt it could compete with the Playstation 3, releasing the system a mere two days after Sony’s new hardware beast (Always on a Sunday so people don’t skip work or school. How thoughtful.).0mG! E3 D34d0Rz!!! 0 N0z!!!11 With speculation stemming back from a couple of years ago, the Electronic Entertainment Expo in its current form took a final current call as the 2006 E3 was marked as the dénouement. As the gaming show spiraled into an entertainment escapade, many game companies felt the toll of the show had reached its boiling point as they felt the E3 conference was no longer worth the effort. Many companies believed the massive chunks of money put into shows and displays would be better used elsewhere and the May show dates placed fake deadlines on developers that pressured them to pump out some sort of showing for the expo.It was noted the expo would be completely retooled to a much smaller scale at a different date and location to eliminate such deadlines and create a better environment with a much smaller number of guests so the companies can more associate with the people they need to. What this means: All of the scamps who create Geocities sites about games just to get in to the expo will no longer be at E3.Of course, the announcement was blown way out of proportion as online reports claimed things just short of vanilla ice cream ninjas poured hot sauce on the Staples Center and ate the expo alive. Those who actually read the reports would have seen the expo is still alive and the “Now I’ll never be able to go,” comments really allowed people to see how much gamers really care about the state of the industry.UMD goes MIA, emulation goes official Quite a few changes, including a $50 price drop, shook up the PSP platform this year, but most surprisingly, came at the expense of the UMD movie format. While movie studios and Sony fully supported the format, its lack of sales led to many retailers giving the UMD a big FU. With many retail giants axing the product from its shelves, Sony finally pulled the plug on the media and shifted its focus on shoving Blu-Ray down our throats.Sony added another product, however, in December, allowing gamers to download Playstation One hits such as Crash Bandicoot and Syphon Filter onto their PSPs. Stronger game support and PS3 functionality at the tail end of the year gave the PSP a much brighter image, but didn’t necessarily improve its sales.Bully gets bullied Bully was the flavor of the year for Rockstar, who has basically caught flack for every game it has released since Grand Theft Auto III. Coming out of a sticky situation in the tale end of 2005 through the infamous “Hot Coffee Mod,” the announcement of Bully tied a collective knot in the underwear of many people who obviously didn’t even take one second to look at the premise of the game.Controversy swirled as the game was predicted to receive a teen ESRB rating, which, of course, is wrong because the game is developed by Rockstar, who can do nothing but create mature-rated games, such as the disgustingly violent Table Tennis, that cause people to do bad things. The game did in fact receive its T rating and the world ended immediately as the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse instantaneously devoured the entrails of Earth’s population. End sarcasm.Marked as a “Columbine simulator” by those against it failed to do any research to find out the game was about a down-on-his-luck kid defending other students from bullies at his newest school. The matter went as far as to a court case where a judge was insulted by Jack Thompson, giving the game much exposure. Of course, the game sold quite well and received accolades from a number of media.On a similar note, among other video game stranglehold bills our government has spent large amounts of time on, which, I’ll add, have been shot down and been declared unconstitutional, millions of dollars every year go toward keeping violent video games off the market. The government would rather spend millions on that then helping hurricane victims, supporting education or the poor or other similar trivial things. Just pointing that out as my two cents.PS2 notches stellar year in PS3’s shadow While everything this year on Sony’s front has been PS3, PS3, PS3, that other black system has made quite a name for itself amidst a lacking year for the Xbox and Gamecube. The system has even gone as far to outsell all other home consoles – even the newest ones – no doubt in part to an attractive $129 price point. Furthermore, it is arguable that the Playstation 2 was the best format for games this year featuring hit titles such as Okami, Final Fantasy XII and Guitar Hero II.On the other hand, however, even the Game Boy Advance got more love than the Xbox and Gamecube this year. Microsoft has officially pulled the plug on first-party support for the Xbox and it is led to believe Nintendo has done the same with the recent movement of Super Paper Mario and Donkey Kong Bongo Blast to the Wii. Gamers failed to realize the Gamecube even existed this year with decent games such as Chibi Robo and Baiten Kaitos Origins falling completely out of public view – at least until Twilight Princess finally hit the system in December after being officially announced eleventy billion years ago (well, it seemed that long) at E3 2004.The companies, however, seem to be giving the platforms some love in the form of backwards compatibility. The Wii shows strong support and accessibility to use the Gamecube’s controllers and memory cards, even in some of the Wii games such as Metal Slug Anthology and the much-anticipated Super Smash Bros. Brawl fully-utilizing the controllers.After a huge spike in sales and value to Halo 2 once 360 owners found out the game was fully playable on the new system (duh), Microsoft is revamping the game with new maps that are only playable on the Xbox 360.Microsoft grants dev power The release of the XNA program by Microsoft now allows players to not just get in to the game, but also actually make the game. The studio is the first time since the Playstation One’s Japanese Net Yaroze that home console development tools have been made public. While it’s too early to tell what kind of results the tool has yielded, hopefully 2007 will see an active option to check out other people’s creations as well as programs catching the eyes of publishers for retail release.Capcom’s Clover isn’t lucky In a surprise announcement, Capcom dropped the news that Clover Studio, developers of the critically acclaimed Viewtiful Joe and Okami, would be shutting down. The news came around the release of the studio’s final sleeper title God Hand for the Playstation 2. Clover’s final duty will be overseeing the release of God Hand in Europe.Sony “strangleholds” PS3 importing Sony kept Playstation 3s out of Europe’s hands even longer, with lawsuits filed against longtime import site Lik Sang. While the lawsuits were justified as a result of blocking PSP sales to Europe and the Web site had been sued in the past for similar reasons, Sony caught huge flak for putting the final nail in the coffin.Unable to recuperate from the litigations, Lik Sang announced it was closing its doors, blasting Sony in press release and accused the company of false claims and for being the reason for the closure. Sony refuted the claims in a very brief release of its own.In the wake of the lawsuit, other sites immediately pulled the plug on sales of Playstation 3s.Microsoft adds media power to 360 The launch of the HD-DVD kit has finally arrived. (Cue chirping crickets).More noticeably though, Microsoft has partnered with a number of studios to offer television and movie downloads available through the Marketplace. For a slight fee, players can download temporary movies and shows onto their hard drives. While initially the downloads took forever, constant tweaks and updates have made the dashboard process a little easier – well, unless your system was refurbished and the update labeled your system as pirated. Oops.However, Microsoft quickly took responsibility for the damaged systems and finally replaced systems for those unlucky enough to get a dud at launch.Next-gen now officially current-gen Nov. 17 and 19 marked the dates where the United States fully entered a new generation of gaming with the retail releases of the Playstation 3 and Wii. With shelves completely bare of either product, it’s safe to assume the systems did quite well – at least on the sales front.Ebay scalpers, most likely taking a cue from the insane Xbox 360 Christmas bids, were in full force, with many shoppers in line (most notably for the PS3) blatantly admitting they were screwing over someone who actually wanted the system in order to pitch it online for an insane asking price. Initially for the Playstation 3, the auction site was flooded with systems, many of which flopped and resulted in the seller breaking even or losing money. The Christmas crunch was even more frustrating for scalpers with no greater results.With the launch of both systems, the PS3 and the Wii are at a standstill for releases, leaving gamers wanting more and waiting until the tail end of January for the next fix. In a missed opportunity, Microsoft didn’t really capitalize on the shortages, but offered quality over quantity with its delivery of Gears of War, which has already sold in the millions and was the cited reason for the biggest surge in Xbox Live usage since the launch of Halo 2.With such a fixation on the new systems this year, not as many quality titles came out for the year, but once the systems are in full swing, 2007 should make for an interesting year.Rolling into 2007 … Gathering all of the numbers and news I could find, I scribbled a bunch of notes down, check it twice and ran it through the CompuStat 5000 at Blogcritics Gaming HQ. After putting on a laboratory coat and looking over the receipt tape that was spat out by our technological wonder while nodding to myself, I’ve concocted a few notes of things we may see down the line in our new year. Keep in mind these are all predictions and notes so don’t take anything here as straight fact.Official go R.I.P., demos/betas to follow? News broke recently both Official Playstation Magazine and Official Xbox Magazine have stopped production due to the advent of digital downloads – the home systems all have their respective shopping programs and PSP demos are available on the system’s browser.When players can download demos of the games they choose at their leisure much sooner than they became available on the magazines’ demo discs, it becomes a bit of a lost cause. With no disrespect to either magazine – most people I know didn’t get the magazine to read and I think the companies understand that.Unfortunately for collectors, this might also mean a big reduction in the amount of demo discs distributed, much like the superb package sent out to Playstation Underground members to hype up Rogue Galaxy (a logo flag, foldout poster and demo disc).Another of the Underground’s infamous perks is the beta testing done on select Playstation 2 and PSP games. The Xbox 360 has been featuring demonstrations that allow players to jump in online matches to test out the waters and it’s very likely the Playstation 3 (Nintendo too? … Please?) will follow suit.Xbox, Cube, GBA choke for good; PS2 dwindles Unlike the other systems, the PS2 has a bit of solid life within it, especially with the anticipated God of War sequel and Rogue Galaxy. However, a mere five Xbox titles are on tap for 2007 thus far and releases for the Gamecube in 2007 are opting for Wii releases or being dropped. The Game Boy Advance has one more Final Fantasy in the works, but aside from that, there’s only a handful of family movie licenses.As the current generation of systems settle in, the previous generation is sure to lose a lot of steam and by Christmas, the industry should have fully shifted away from the Xbox, Gamecube, Game Boy and Playstation 2. After that we can look forward to the occasional sports release from EA and Sony, but probably not much else unless budget titles run rampant much like they did at the very end of the Playstation One’s life.Destroying the definition of final Everyone has been clamoring for it and people are set on the belief that Square has caved in and is making it a reality. Ever since Square showcased the opening cinematic of Final Fantasy VII using the specs of the Playstation 3, every fan of the series has convinced themselves that the entire game is sure to follow at some point.Well, September 3, 2007 will mark the 10th anniversary (Jan. 31 in Japan) on which the acclaimed RPG hit retail stores. If Square is going to act on such a revival any time soon, it would seem fitting to be done later this year. Regardless of whether the game gets re-released or not is pure speculation, but I’d be willing to bet Square will at least do something in order to cash in on the 10-year date.PSPing in your eye One thing that needs to go away: PSP advertising. In my opinion, some of the worst video game commercials on television are a majority of those advertising the PSP. The commercials put so much focus on its multimedia capabilities that gamers just scratch their heads and wonder why the system is worth their money.When the focus a commercial is on games, terribly animate critters with grossly stereotypical racial accents spout confusing tag lines. Foreign advertising gets pulled due to offensive racial material and Sony’s viral Christmas campaign is deemed so stupid, it’s pulled off the Internet in record time. How many dots do I have to connect for Sony to realize its PSP advertising needs a complete 180?PSP Dark? Speaking of the PSP, rumors have been swirling like mad and insist Sony is going to be redesigning the PSP system, much like Nintendo did with the DS Lite. Noted improvements include a dual-analog design and a longer battery life. Sony is still denying the rumors up and down, but I for one would like to see a much-improved PSP system.If anything, something that would extend the battery life of the system would be a huge improvement and the much-speculated second analog stick would make the waves of PS2 to PSP ports much easier to bare. With a solid outing at the end of 2006, Sony could make use of such a momentum to move the stagnant sales of the system.Online reaches full volume Now that all three systems have brought Internet and wireless capabilities into the forefront, it’s only a matter of time before our home consoles bring us a new world of multimedia entertainment. The much-criticized connectivity from the Gamecube-GBA days has a chance to start over fresh and bring new ideas to the table with PS3-PSP and Wii-DS connectivity. With the table set, connectivity should see a new life in 2007 and hopefully become an important part of how we use our portable systems in our home.Commercial gaming With the release of the three Burger King games in 2006 and sales of those titles totaling more than 2 million copies, maybe we’ll see more in the future. With a pretty penny earned for Burger King, we could possibly see another video game promotion next year and I’d welcome it.Games like this aren’t anything new as Japan has had its share of cross-promotional titles including one I’ve been looking for forever – Pepsiman for the Sega Saturn (he’s in the Japanese version of Fighting Vipers as a secret character too). Everyone loves a cheap video game and it doesn’t get any cheaper than $4. It makes me wonder what type of game Taco Bell could put together. Run for the border indeed.The rarity of exclusives With the ever-rising costs of video game development, it seems the days of third-party console exclusivity is going the way of the dodo. The general consensus suggests a company needs to sell 500,000 copies of a title to merely break even on an average project and by spreading the content to multiple systems, a company has a better shot of reaching that mark.The facet is becoming quite obvious with a number of one-time exclusive titles making their way onto other systems (Assassin’s Creed, Grand Theft Auto IV, Oblivion, Virtua Fighter 5, etc.) and it seems like 2007 will mark a year where third-party exclusivity will have to come with an extremely beefy pay-off.And there you have it - 2006 in a nutshell with a little 2007 for garnish. Through the thick and the thin, bad news and good, the main idea is that gamers continue to have fun with the products that are the result of development teams’ hard work. As always, Blogcritics will be dedicated to bring readers all the news and reviews it can as we continue to grow in the new year.

Gaming Round Up for 12/07/06

Aaron Auzins — Thu, 7 Dec 2006 03:09:57 EST

Study shows parents aware of ratingsAccording to an Activision survey, the ESRB is a notably effective tool as eight out of 10 parents stated they are familiar with the video game ratings and use them when buying games.The survey was handled by The Harrison Group as part of Activision's "Ratings Are Not a Game," educational campaign. With the holiday season approaching, the survey was done in order to determine the awareness and influence of the ratings among gamers and their parents.The study found that 84 percent of parents said they were very familiar with the ESRB ratings while only 65 percent of children ages 8-17 indicated the same. A slightly less percentage, 79 percent, claimed they pay close attention to the ratings on video games (parents with children ranging from ages 8-12 noted a higher response at 89 percent).Sixty-eight percent of parents believe the ESRB ratings system is effective in determining the appropriateness of a game for their children and 56 percent of the parents cited the content rating as their top purchase influencer when buying games for their children. Furthermore, 52 percent of the parents said they actively research more than half of all video games prior to approving them for their children.The knowledge and enforcement of the ratings in the household likely stems from the fact the survey shows 74 percent of the parents feel video games are part of their family's lifestyle and are comfortable with that. In fact, 58 percent said they play games themselves, with 52 percent of those parents spending time playing video games with their children.Gears of War attributed for Live service spikeSandvine Incorporated noted a huge spike in Xbox Live service since Nov. 7.Following the release of six new games for the 360 -- most notably Gears of War, which sold 1 million copies in its first two weeks on the market -- contributed to an 80 percent increase in the number of Xbox Live users across a sampling of North American-based broadband ISPs during the games' first week in circulation.Sandvine noted the spike in Xbox Live traffic is reminiscent of Halo 2's release in November 2004, which marked the first boom in online gaming and cemented the popularity of the online service.Sabertooth to expand two CCG seriesSabertooth Games is anticipating two new January card expansions, which will add on to its Dark Millennium and Warcry franchises.Shadows of the Warp will be the title of the newest Dark Millennium series and features all-new artwork from Clint Langley. Among the 120-card set include appearances by Biel-Tan Eldar, Hammers of Dorn Space Marines, Death Guard, Thousand Sons, Speed Freeks and more from the Warhammer 40,000 series.WarCry will be expanded with the upcoming Veterans of Battle. Veterans is another 120-card expansion by Sabertooth and brings in an entire set where each action card provides a strength bonus.Both sets have a retail price of $3.29 per booster. For more information on Sabertooth's products, visit sabertoothgames.com.Burger King kids meals looking to make kids danceWhile Burger King is offering its specialty Xbox 360 games, the chain also began throwing in some video game flavor in its kid's meals courtesy of Konami.Burger King kids meals will feature a total of eight Dance Dance Revolution-themed toys through the end of 2006. A fully integrated marketing campaign will be launched which includes a micro site, bk.com/dance.Most interestingly, the Web site features a mini-game, which upon completion, finally reveals the Memories unlock code for Konami's Dance Dance Revolution Extreme for the Playstation 2 - a game that was released two years ago.The Adventures of HamsterIn case you missed it - a random hamster video game video.Tsquared to be featured on IconsG4 will be airing a new Icons, which will feature Tom "Tsquared" Taylor on Sunday, Dec. 10.The renowned professional Halo player will have his competitions followed by the Icons series and will air at 11 p.m. EST. Taylor current plays competitively under Major League Gaming with a $250,000 contract.

Gaming Roundup for 9/15/06

Aaron Auzins — Sat, 16 Sep 2006 02:52:21 EDT

Doing another catch-up after a busy week:RollerCoaster Tycoon 3 update availableRollerCoaster Tycoon 3 now has a free universal patch available for download by Aspyr Media, Inc.The official update will revise any version of Tycoon 3 to version 1.2 Rev. A and provides fixes for several minor issues.The change allows for the program to run natively on Intel-based Macs, fixes a crash when communicating with iTunes to retrieve the “RCT3” playlist and now Cmd+Tab and Cmd+H can be used in fullscreen mode to switch in and out of the game.The 8.4 MB download is available here.Commercial version of Shot-Online availableSyNET Entertainment recently released the world’s first massively multiplayer online golf game to the PC – Shot-Online.After a long period of beta testing, the game is now available in retail stores at the price of $29.99. The game allows players to customize in-game characters and build up experience to increase stats and money to buy equipment while competing against other golfers. Players can also socialize with other golfers while traveling around the country club searching for games and shops.There is no subscription fee for online play and the retail package includes $20 worth of in-game currency, entry into exclusive tournaments and a lottery ticket with a grand prize of a in-game set of clubs worth $100.Frogger’s mobile version brings more greenFrogger, Frogger Puzzle and Frogger for Prizes has now exceeded $10 million in gross sales to date on the mobile platform, Konami recently announced.The releases, along with the 360 Marketplace version, come amidst the frog’s 25 anniversary, which Konami will be marketing as Frogger 25th Evolution this fall for another mobile release.Atari announces bonuses for NN2Neverwinter Nights 2, currently in development by Obsidian Entertainment, will take players back to the Forgotten Realms universe, and with a limited edition in the works, players will be able to take advantage of a few exclusive in-game items as well as bonus items included in the package.Available for pre-order at participating retail stores, the limited edition will grant players a new feat which grants a bonus to all saving throws, two special items and access to a unique weapon. The limited edition also surrounds players with a magical golden aura. The packaging will also include a detailed cloth map showcasing in-game locations, a book of art and two silver antique rings.Those who pre-order the title from GameStop or Best Buy will get an additional bonus – access to the NN2 toolset one month before the game is released. The pre-order offer will also include The Merchant’s Friend, a feature which enables players to obtain powerful items for each of the 12 classes.Konami touts pre-order bonusesKonami recently announced pre-order bonuses for the upcoming releases Elebits and Metal Gear Solid: Portable Ops through participating retailers.When gamers pre-order Elebits for the Nintendo Wii, they will receive a plush Elebit doll. There are two dolls up for grabs – a blue Elebit and a rare red Elebit.EB Games, Gamestop or Gamecrazy is rewarding pre-orders for Metal Gear Solid: Portable Ops for the PSP with a special Metal Gear Solid protective case for the PSP system when the game is released. According to the release, the case seems to be camouflage.N/B announces ship date for PC debutNamco Bandai Games recently announced it will be shipping its fantasy action role-playing PC game, Mage Knight: Apocalypse.Available starting Sept. 26, Mage Knight is the first game developed for the PC by the company and has already achieved gold status. The game is scheduled to feature a single-player campaign as well as cooperative modes.Sony introduces new PSP packageA new PSP package is now available in stores, offering a game, a UMD and a bigger stick for the price of $249.99.The new package gives players not only the PSP system but the recently-named greatest hit ATV Offroad Fury: Blazin’ Trails, Lords of Dogtown on UMD and a 1 GB Memory Stick Pro Duo.DS reaches European milestoneNintendo today announced the Nintendo DS has now sold 6 million units in Europe since its launch in March 2005.Nintendo reported since the launch of the DS, it has maintained 70 percent of the market share in Europe for 11 consecutive weeks. The company also noted 44 percent of the consoles sold have been purchased by women.Wii details announced for Europe, AustraliaGamers overseas will still be able to snatch the Nintendo Wii console this year, with December releases for Europe and Australia.The console will release in Europe on Dec. 8 at the price of 249 Euros (or 179 pounds in the U.K.), bundled with Wii Sports. Around 20 software titles are anticipated for the launch with the estimated retail prices of between 49 to 59 Euros (34 to 39 pounds in the U.K.). Additional controllers are priced at 39 Euros and nunchuk and classic controllers at 19 Euros.The Wii will hit Australia one day earlier on Dec. 7 at the price of $399.95 (AU).PS2 preparing for MeltdownAtari and Ignition Entertainment today announced Mercury Meltdown Remix for the Playstation 2.The game will be a home version of the recently released PSP title. The PS2 version will feature two more labs exclusive to home, offering more than 200 levels. The game is scheduled to ship this winter.Atari announces Silverfall for PCSilverfall, developed by Monte Cristo Games, has been announced for North American PCs this February.The title is a 3-D action role-playing game that allows players complete customization of their characters. The game is scheduled to feature a 25-hour main quest, side quests and multiplayer modes.

Gaming Round Up for 09/03/06

Aaron Auzins — Sun, 3 Sep 2006 19:05:19 EDT

The beginning of September brings in a ton of news bits from Electronic Arts:Madden Challenge underway, '07 sets record for franchise The Madden Challenge tournament for 2006 kicked off this month with this year's competition marking the first time it has expanded to other countries.Not only will U.S. competitors take to the virtual field, but also Mexico, Canada, United Kingdom, Germany and Hong Kong. The winners from the 26 U.S. cities and the five international competitions will advance to the finals to be held in Hawaii during the NFL's Pro Bowl week in February.The finalists won't go away empty handed as EA will be stuffing $100,000 into the pockets of the winner, and those who win the regional competitions will walk home with $1,000.While two events have already occurred, the remainder of the competitions is as follows:Sept. 9 - Indianapolis, RCA Dome Sept. 10 - Chicago, Soldier Field Sept. 16 - Green Bay, Lambeau Atrium Sept. 17 - Detroit, Ford Field Sept. 23 - Atlanta, Lenox Mall Sept. 24 - New Orleans, Superdome Sept. 25 - New Orleans - MNF, Superdome Sept. 30 - Cincinnati, Newport on the Levee Oct. 1 - Pittsburgh, Heinz Field Oct. 7 - Boston, Gillette Stadium Oct. 8 - Philadelphia, King of Prussia Mall Oct. 14 - New Jersey, Jersey Garden Mall Oct. 15 - New York, Grand Central Station Oct. 21 - Baltimore, M & T Bank Stadium Oct. 22 - Washington DC, Fed Ex Field Oct. 28 - Charlotte, Concord Mills Oct. 29 - Tampa, Raymond James Stadium Nov. 4 - Houston, Reliant Stadium Park Nov. 5 - Dallas, Texas Stadium Nov. 11 - Phoenix, Cardinal Stadium Nov. 12 - San Diego, Qualcomm Stadium Nov. 18 - Los Angeles, Hollywood & Highland Nov. 19 - Oakland, McAfee Coliseum Nov. 24 - Seattle, Qwest Field Nov. 26 - San Francisco, Metreon Jan. 13 - Toronto, TBD Jan. 20 - Hong Kong, EA Experience Jan. 27 - Mexico City, TBD Feb. 4 - London, Superbash Feb. 4 - Frankfurt, Commerce Stadium Feb. 8 - Honolulu - 2006 Madden Challenge Finals, Pro BowlFor more info, visit the official website. The tournament comes amid EA's announcement that Madden '07 has become the fastest-selling title in the franchise's 17-year history. In its first week on the market, the title sold more than 2 million copies, generating more than $100 million. The sales of '07 are up 12 percent over '06.With 17 years behind it, the Madden football franchise has sold more than 53 million copies to date.EA announces Burnout 5 to hit next-gen Criterion Studios is amidst development for Burnout 5, which will hit the Xbox 360 and Playstation 3 in 2007.Director of Game Design Alex Ward explained part five is built from scratch to completely reinvent the series while also taking heavy advantage of the power the new systems have to offer.Set in Paradise City, the next-gen title promises an open-ended world with its trademark traffic battleground game play. Players will be assigned a driver's license that will keep a hard tally of the player's destructive driving record. The studio is removing the constant menu-surfing found in its other Burnout titles and creating a living city where every intersection is a crash junction waiting to happen and the most infamous racers be keeping an eye on your racing results.However, while the premise might be different, players will be happy to know the destruction that made the series so popular will remain intact. Utilizing the new technology, Criterion is upping the level of the crashes. Serious crashes will literally rip a player's car in half and the release promises over-the-top pile-ups and crashes.Currently no date or time period is announced for the release of the game in 2007.EA turns back time with Replay Electronic Arts recently announced a Sony PSP retro compilation of its own: EA Replay.Those who miss the Genesis heydays of the company will now be able to own a good portion of EA's lost franchises that, for the majority, haven't been seen since the 16- or 32-bit era. Set to ship Nov. 7 at a retail price of $19.99, Replay will contain 14 classic games.The compilation's lineup includes B.O.B., Budokan, Desert Strike, Jungle Strike, Haunting: Starring Polterguy, Mutant League Football, Road Rash, Road Rash II, Road Rash 3, Syndicate, Ultima: The Black Gate, Virtual Pinball, Wing Commander and Wing Commander Secret Missions.Atari receives good news... and bad news Atari was recently able to walk away with an award but also is under the possibility of being delisted of its stock.Marc Ecko's Getting Up: Contents Under Pressure was the winner of MTV's Video Music Award, taking the trophy for the ceremony's first ever best video game soundtrack category. Released in February, the game contained a number of licensed and original tracks from artists such as Fort Minor, Jane's Addiction, The RZA and many more.On the other end, however, the company has received notification from NASDAQ that it has failed to maintain a common stock closed at $1.00 per share or more for a minimum of 10 consecutive business days prior to Aug. 30. As a result, Atari has received a staff determination letter from the NASDAQ Listing Qualifications Department and its common stock is subject to delisting from the NASDAQ Global Market.Atari has responded by requesting a hearing before the panel and will submit its plan of compliance. It is expected the hearing will be held in approximately 25 to 45 days.Can you beat Boon at his own game? Midway recently announced it has teamed with GameSpot to hold "The Ultimate Mortal Kombat Fanatic" contest.The contest asks fans to create a short film demonstrating why they are the ultimate fan of Mortal Kombat. The films will be hosted on GameSpot, which also judge the entries following the Oct. 6 deadline to enter.The grand prize winner will be flown to GameSpot's offices in San Francisco to challenge Mortal Kombat co-creator Ed Boon himself at the upcoming Mortal Kombat: Armageddon. When Armageddon releases, the grand prize winner, as well as three runner-ups, will win a copy of the game autographed by Ed Boon.Entries will be accepted starting Sept. 18 and those submitting entries must be at least 18 years of age to qualify.