Archive for February, 2006
First Mega Man ZX DS screenshots
Famitsu has new pictures for Mega Man ZX on the DS and their looking 2D great. The game’s Mega Man Zero style. Added is the ability to scan your enemies via the touchscreen or use it as a map of the level you’re playing. Take a look at the scan, from jeux-france.
No comments »TV & movie tie-in MMO games by James Cameron & Jon Landau planned
Joystick mentions an interesting tale for online gamers. The Massively Multiplayer Online (MMO) game platform startup Multiverse recently announced that movie-makers James Cameron and Jon Landau have joined its board of directors, and this has some interesting implications for the future of MMO games and other entertainment media. While movie tie-in games are ten a penny, and franchised MMOs lurk around every corner, Cameron has a more ambitious project up his sleeve. The plan?
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Play Half-Life 2: Episode 1 without Half-Life 2
Valve’s Doug Lombardi has revealed that Half-Life 2: Episode 1 would not require the original Half-Life 2 to play. Episode 1 is expected to provide about 4-6 hours of gameplay and will feature “markedly richer” complexion and density than its predecessor. The new content will retail for $19.99 and includes Half-Life 2 DM and Half-Life DM: Source.
Lombardi also joked that Half-Life 2: Episode 2 will arrive much faster than Half-Life 2 arrived after Half-Life 1. Episode 2 has actually been in production for a while and should provide fans with “a similar offering as Half-Life 2 Episode 1 at the same price.”
Final Fantasy & Dragon Quest game merging
Eurogamer reports on a PSP title that will see Final Fantasy and Dragon Quest character meeting up for the second time. Here’s a quote “Japanese magazine Shonen Jump has revealed the first snippets of info about the game, including news that it will feature playable characters from both series, including Final Fantasy XII’s Fran and Balflear. Stages will include one based on the Phantom Train in Final Fantasy VI.
This isn’t the first time Square-Enix has produced a DQ/FF game, back in 2004, they released Dragon Quest & Final Fantasy in Itadaki Street Special for the PS2. It was a big hit in Japan, but never made it over here. The PSP game won’t be a direct port of the original, instead it’ll feature all-new characters and stages.”
Over 1000 Revolution Development Kits shipped, price speculation & announcements
In the recent interview with Engadget, Nintendo of America’s executive vice president of sales and marketing suggested that software houses everywhere should be able to get their hands on a Revolution development kit in the near future, if not already.
“We have shipped over a thousand controller dev kits to developers so that they can begin getting experience with the controller mechanics,” Reggie Fils-Aime elaborated.
IGN Revolution has been in talks with a half dozen studios around the globe for further details about the nature of the kits. While the fundamentals of the innovative new controller can be experienced with the barebones development hardware available to most developers, the majority of kits out there are hardly representative of the final Revolution system.
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Peter Jackson hints at King Kong game sequel
Ubisoft holds the rights to do additional King Kong games. The publisher’s decision to include an alternate ending may not only have been to give players more value, but also to open the doors for a continuation of the story. When asked about a possible sequel Jackson did not outright deny it, but he wouldn’t spill the beans either.
“I have been in discussions with Michel Ancel and the Montpellier team, but there is nothing to share at this point in time.”
Read on to see, when asked, what Peter Jackson’s outlook on the future of gaming is.
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Infinium Labs Phantom game console on hold
The Phantom is quite the vague game console, some say it never even existed much like a ghost, but it looks like it’s coming to a closing soon.
Slashdot writes “Looks like the Infinium Labs Phantom Game Console is put on hold until they can secure some more funding. Right now the company is focusing on getting its Phantom Lapboard to the market, and may pursue the Phantom Game service later. Interesting note, they have spent almost 4 times as much on Consultants as they have in development costs so far.”
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Ubisoft admits King Kong too dark on Xbox 360
Ubisoft boss Yves Guillemot has suggested fans wanting to get the best out of the King Kong video game should avoid monkeying around on Microsoft’s Xbox 360 version, and admitted the game is too dark on standard TVs.
The French company worked closely with King Kong film director Peter Jackson to spawn the game version of the Hollywood blockbuster, which has received plaudits for recreating the cinematic experience of the film. Yet Guillemot is disappointed: “We have a problem on the 360. The screen is dark on some TVs and it totally changes the experience. When it’s dark, you don’t see where you have to go,” he was quoted as saying in a media report.
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Ultimate Ghosts ‘n’ Goblins confirmed for PSP
According to PSPfanboy you can break out those heart boxers, as summer 2006 the PSP will be getting an old, albeit classic installment of the 2D platformer starring the faithful night Arthur.
Ultimate Ghosts ‘n’ Goblins is basically a revamping of the older Extreme Ghouls ‘n’ Ghosts title.
Interview with Dorian Richard of Atari about Neverwinter Nights 2
In an interview with Dorian Richard, the Atari external producer for Neverwinter Nights 2, the interview discusses the relationship between publisher and developer, and touches on some of the challenges of creating a sequel to a title like Neverwinter Nights.
GT: What kind of mistakes do publishers make during the development process?
DR: The publisher’s producer needs to be good at spotting red flags and should have a good working relationship with the developer so she can help them work through issues in a productive way. Publishers often find out too late that there’s an issue that can no longer be addressed. A good publisher keeps on top of that stuff, as long as the developer is being responsible and open with them. A bad publisher won’t take notice of problems until it’s too late. But again, the publisher really needs to work to establish trust with the developer (and vice versa) or none of this works.
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