Archive for July, 2007
Trauma Center: Second Opinion Wii review
The Nintendo DS doctor sim Trauma Center: Under the Knife now comes to the Wii console as Trauma Center: Second Opinion, in which you use the Wii controller to save patients’ lives!
You play the surgeon in this exciting medical drama simulation. You’ll need to cure patients of everything from routine medical maladies to life-threatening designer viruses. And, of course, there’s all that drama waiting just outside of the operating room. Your medical toolkit includes scalpels, forceps, defibrillator paddles, syringes and more, all designed for use with the Wii Remote!
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1 comment »Xbox 360 price drops on all models starting August 12 in America
No doubt you’ve heard the Xbox 360 price drop rumors for the past week. Several major sources are now confirming the Xbox 360 price cuts unofficially by announcing the price reductions will be retail wide in America. Yet another Circuit City flyer ad reveals the different Xbox 360 price drops for all 3 models in detail, with the Premium even getting a free Table Tennis game. Prices will be effective August 12, 2007.
The new Xbox 360 model prices are as follows:
* Elite: price drops $30 from $479.99 to $449.99;
* Premium: price drops $50 from $399.99 to $349.99;
* Core: price drops $20 from $299.99 to $279.99.
Considering the Core model does not have a hard disk to save game data, fixes, demos, other online downloads like arcade games, and you have to pay $30 for a 64MB memory card to even save your game progress, it makes no sense to buy a Core model, so I’m not surprised to hear rumors about Microsoft maybe phasing out the Core. I guess the different price reductions show they are trying to break-even on every system. No word yet on if these various discounts will take place in the rest of the world in August as well, if at all.
Bigger scans of the discount flyer at Joystiq.
Tabula Rasa, sci-fi MMORPG, release date is October 5th on PC. Creator Richard Garriot, aka Lord British, goes in-depth with Q&A
Richard Garriot is one of the veteran video game designer’s in the industry and he is most famous for his work on the Ultimate series of PC RPGs. Which he first sold by making copies of the games himself, putting them in Ziploc bags, and distributing them to stores.
Born in Cambridge in the UK, his family moved to the US when he was a young boy. He was nicknamed Lord British by classmates because of his then-thick British accent. Although he no longer speaks with a British accent, the nickname has stuck with him throughout the years, and like-wise made his name stick in the heads of gamer’s the world over.
Lord British’s newest title is a sci-fi MMORPG called Tabula Rasa, which has a release date on the PC of October 5th in the U.S. Tabula Rasa, according to his claims, will fix the mistakes of many MMO’s in his mind, which focuse to much on level grinding, respawning, and have a static game world. He’s planning on changing all that with Tabula Rasa, and you can read all about how he’s going to do that in this interview.
GameSpot UK (GSUK): You say you’ve revolutionised the combat system. But don’t you think that maybe some people actually like the usual gameplay mechanics, that whole turn-based and respawning method just the way it is right now?
Richard Garriott (RG): The word turn-based has a variety of interpretations. Article continues »
World of Warcraft: Wrath of the Lich King expansion pack demo to be shown by Blizzard in August
In August 2006 Blizzard promised that “Starting with The Burning Crusade, every year thereafter we plan on bringing out a new expansion set.” Then back in April the first murmurings of the second World of Warcraft expansion started popping up claiming it was set in Northrend, the frozen continent found at the roof of the world of Azeroth.
Today, the German software ratings board Unterhaltungssoftware Selbstkontrolle (USK) has revealed the title World of Warcraft: Wrath of the Lich King with the tag “GC-demo,” implying Blizzard will be showing the expansion at this year’s Leipzig Games Convention, from August 22nd to 26th in Germany.
GS tries to confirm the legitimacy of this news further by pointing to a report on WOWinsider, an anonymous tipster sent word that the Video Games Live orchestra, slated to perform the final concert at this year’s BlizzCon in California on August 3 and 4, will play three pieces titled “Northrend 1,” “Northrend 2,” and “Northrend 3.” Warcraft fans will be quick to note that Northrend is where the Warcraft III hero Arthas Menethil made his stand against the dreadlord Mal’Ganis, only to be corrupted by the powerful yet chaotic Frostmourne sword due to the meddling of Kel’Thuzad.
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Bleach: Shattered Blade brings anime fighting to the Wii
Bleach: Shattered Blade, like it’s DS counterpart Bleach: The Blade of Fate, is a fighting game based on the insanely popular anime and manga series. It is being developed by Polygon Magic and published by Sega and has a release date of October 9th 2007 in the U.S.
The Wii version, naturally, has full support for the Wiimote and Nunchuck so you will literally be swinging the remote to control the character’s sword slashes, whether or not the character uses a sword. The game is viewed from a side-perspective, so this can make it a bit confusing when swinging the remote. Special and unlockable attacks are performed in conjunction with the A & B buttons and swings. As is typical for fighters, there is both a story and arcade mode, with full voice overs, and a training and gallery mode.
The game stars a large cast of over 14 playable characters, including an all new character created in conjunction with Bleach creator Tite Kubo, named Arturo Plateado. The character list includes: Article continues »
Warning: Super Mario Bros worm (virus) targets retro gamers via email
The Romario-A worm is the latest computer virus spreader in a series of malware packages that pose as computer games or that actually run real games to disguise the damage they inflict. Infected emails being sent around lure readers to click on them by promising a playable version of the Nintendo classic Super Mario Bros games by clicking on an email attachment. In addition to launching the game, the worm also attempts to infect other unprotected computers by mass-mailing copies of itself. So while people might not open emails from strangers, they might instead get one from a friend/relative with an infected computer.
Bottom line is you shouldn’t open suspicious emails in the first place, especially not for games like Super Mario Bros that you can legally download from the Wii Virtual Console for just $5 / €5, but if you do open an email by accident you should always have an anti-virus scanner active. When I visit acquaintances or relatives it always shocks me how few people even have a virus-scanner installed on their computer. If you’re one of those people who haven’t, you should download the free AVG Anti-Virus scanner, which also keeps your email safe.
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Tokyo Game Show 2007 runs from September 20-23. 168 companies taking part, Nintendo notably absent from list
Now that E3 has been downsized, other shows only seem to be growing as they step-up to try and be THE video game show. Even though the Tokyo Game Show has been going on for a long time, it too has grown since last year’s show.
The Tokyo Game Show 2007 is looks set to be the biggest ever. The TGS Web site has just been updated to include a list of exhibitors that will have booths at this year’s event. So far a total of 168 companies taking up 1,708 booth units have been revealed. In comparison, 2006’s TGS show had 148 exhibitors occupying 1,701 booths.
Some of the exhibitors confirmed for this year include Capcom, Koei, Konami, Microsoft, Namco Bandai, Sega, Sony, and Square Enix.
But Nintendo was notably absent from the exhibitor list. A spokesperson for the company though said that it’s absence from the initial lineup did not necessarily mean it would not be present. “We’ve not announced our plans yet for TGS 2007. Although it is worth nothing that we haven’t taken part in many TGS events over the last few years, so were we not to be present it would not be unusual.”
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Dr. Who: The Videogame release by Christmas 2007 on PC, PS2, DS and Mobile
Top Trumps have revealed their plans for a Doctor Who videogame to be released by Christmas 2007. The game will be released on PC, PS2, DS and Mobile. This was revealed in an advert for the game appears in the new Doctor Who Top Trumps card pack, spotted by the Dr. Who TV show fansite about the tenth Doctor played by David Tennant.
In 2005 the BBC relaunched the Dr. Who sci-fi TV show successfully. But this upcoming game isn’t the first time a Doctor has stepped out of the main TV series. Doctor Who also spawned spin-offs in multiple media, including the current television series Torchwood and The Sarah Jane Adventures. Worthplaying mentions the game is being developed by Eidos‘ Ironstone Partners studio.
What will the game be about? Time travel? Killing Daleks?
Penny Arcade Adventures: Episode One first gameplay video shows its a text-adventure RPG-style
Developer Hothead Games is still busy at work on the first chapter of Penny Arcade’s episodic, Lovecraftian text-heavy adventure series for Windows, OS X, and next-gen consoles. Penny Arcade Adventures: Episode One: On the Rain-Slick Precipice of Darkness has a script and art direction by the comic’s creators, it should remain true to the source material. But as the latest trailer from Comic-Con 2007 shows, it’s also an RPG.
Watch the lads walk, talk, talk, and take turns to attack.
Click on the bottom-right corner arrow to view it full-screen.
Harvey Birdman: Attorney At Law ready for a drink on PS2 & PSP. First gameplay video shown
Here’s the latest intelligence we have on the upcoming PS2 and PSP game Harvey Birdman: Attorney At Law. Capcom has revealed new details that make Harvey Birdman look pleasantly similar to Phoenix Wright on DS, while promising more comedy thanks to voiced dialogue from same writers of the AdultSwim TV series.
The cases involved in the title must be solved by Harvey Birdman through investigating the scene of the crime, gathering evidence, talking with other cartoon characters, and even having occasional drinks with the opposing council. No release date was hinted by developer High Voltage Software, but they did show the first gameplay video at Comic-Con 07.
Key features include: Article continues »
