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Is Microsoft Getting Serious About Next-Gen? [Update]
Console makers are always working on new stuff – you know, tinkering. But Microsoft is putting its money where its mouth is and hiring up for what could very well be a new console. There are three job listings: one for a “hardware verification engineer“, another for a “VLSI graphics architect” and one for a…
By Brian Ashcraft Published March 8, 2011 - Uncategorized
Activision Wants To Make A Dance Hero Out Of You
Back in 2008, Activision applied for a trademark for a game called Dance Hero. Then…we all forgot about it. Now, it seems, the publisher might actually be releasing the thing. While the world was busy lamenting (or celebrating) the demise of the Guitar and DJ Hero franchises, Activision seems intent to carry on and release…
By Luke Plunkett Published March 8, 2011 -
UncategorizedA Nintendo 3DS Magic Trick To Amaze And Confound
The 3DS is able to render 3D without the need of 3D glasses. Neat trick, but the 3DS has another ace up its sleeve. The 3DS can, as pointed out on blog Tiny Cartridge, continue to play music while in sleep mode when it is placed on a DS Lite. When placed on a DSi,…
By Brian Ashcraft Published March 8, 2011 -
UncategorizedWould You Play A Shooter Against 999 Other People?
Developers Pikkotekk are trying something new: they want to make a shooter where 1000 people can go at it. On the one map. At the same time “About one year ago, we were talking with CCP and we came up with this idea that if we made a MMO FPS in Unity, the technical achievement…
By Luke Plunkett Published March 8, 2011 - Uncategorized
Making Killzone 3 Was Hard Work And Fake Kisses
Killzone 3 cinematics director Jim Sonzero was feeling the heat. Long, brutal days turned into nights — nothing new to those in the game industry. Sonzero wanted actor Ray Winstone to get in Malcolm McDowell’s face. That’s when they started to pretend like they were kissing. “These guys are real pros, yet are still always…
By Brian Ashcraft Published March 8, 2011 - Uncategorized
At Least Australians Know When Deus Ex: Human Revolution Is Coming Out
EB Games Australia has gone very public with an official release date for Deus Ex: Human Revolution. It’ll be out Down Under on August 25, so other regions shouldn’t be too far off that mark.
By Luke Plunkett Published March 8, 2011 -
UncategorizedEx-Halo Guys Show Off New, 2D Shooter
What happens when four guys instrumental in the development of the Halo series leave Bungie and start up their own studio? They make a stylish 2D shooter/platformer. Fallen Frontier is the debut game from new indie studio Moonshot Games, which is comprised of four developers, three of whom served as producers, designers and programmers on…
By Luke Plunkett Published March 8, 2011 - Uncategorized
The (Small) Price You Pay For Playing DS Games On The 3DS
You can play DS games on the Nintendo 3DS. No problem there. But did you know they take a lot longer to load on Nintendo’s new handheld than they did on the old one? A series of tests run by GameSpot, booting up five games on both the DS and 3DS, found that the new…
By Luke Plunkett Published March 8, 2011 - Uncategorized
The History Of Blizzard, From Broke Nerds To World Of Warcraft
This year, Blizzard Entertainment – the developers behind series like Warcraft, StarCraft and Diablo – turns 20. To celebrate, they’ve released this fascinating video retrospective. It tells a story most of you have probably never heard, at least not to this level of detail: of nerds collecting money to start a development studio, of making…
By Luke Plunkett Published March 8, 2011 - Uncategorized
Phony Nintendo DS Units Seized At Japanese Border
The real, honest-to-goodness Nintendo DS is made in China. Phony Nintendo DS handhelds are also made in, you guessed it, China. Funny, that. Over 90 percent of counterfeit goods that entered Japan in 2010 were, according to Japanese customs, from China. The number is 11 percent higher than the previous year. The number two country…
By Brian Ashcraft Published March 8, 2011 - Uncategorized
After Murder, There Was Online Gaming
Earlier this month at a supermarket in Japan’s Kumamoto, 3-year-old Koko Shimizu went to the restroom while her mother paid for their groceries. Within minutes, the little girl was missing. Her body was discovered 500 meters away inside a large drain near a river. A twenty year-old college student named Yoshihiro Yamaguchi was captured on…
By Brian Ashcraft Published March 8, 2011 - Uncategorized
There’s Hope Yet For Buying “Proper” Console Games Online (And On Time)
One of the great unfulfilled dreams of the present hardware generation is the ability to buy full, retail console games online. On the day they’re released in stores. Microsoft sells old games via Xbox Live, but they’re laughably over-priced. Sony has sold a few as well, like Burnout Paradise, MAG and Warhawk, but had never…
By Luke Plunkett Published March 8, 2011 - Uncategorized
How To Make Dragon Age II Look A LOT Better On PC
Don’t worry, elitist PC owners: while the demo for Dragon Age II made the game look like a sloppy console port, you can already download a patch that will have it looking more to your liking. Developers BioWare have posted a “High Resolution Texture Pack” on their website, a 1.08GB download that will “enable higher…
By Luke Plunkett Published March 8, 2011 -
ReviewsBeyond Good & Evil Goes Way Beyond 2003
Now here’s something. After years of listening to fans call this one of the great, under-appreciated classics of video gaming, people will actually get the chance to play a polished, updated version of Beyond Good & Evil. First released all the way back in 2003, Beyond Good & Evil is what happens when you let…
By Luke Plunkett Published March 8, 2011 - Uncategorized
Now, Plain Zero!
Now that we’re all back from the whirlwind that was GDC 2011, the nightly open thread can resume its regular programming. This is where we talk about things like The Running Man or what we had for lunch or what music we’re listening to, should you just be joining us. So, speaking of the Running…
By Michael McWhertor Published March 7, 2011 - Uncategorized
Tomb Raider Is Also Getting A Reboot At The Theater
Tomb Raider, the video game, is starting fresh with a new Lara Croft adventure planned to reinvigorate the 15-year-old series. That game, simply called Tomb Raider, will be an origin story of sorts for Lara. Now, Hollywood is following suit with its own reboot, planning a new Tomb Raider flick for 2013. The Hollywood Reporter…
By Michael McWhertor Published March 7, 2011 - Uncategorized
Climbing Mortal Kombat‘s New Challenge Tower Is A Bloody Good Time
The new Mortal Kombat, as revealed last week, will feature a 300 mission long mode dubbed the “Challenge Tower.” We played a handful of levels of the mode that lives up to its name with demanding while teaching players the finer points of this year’s Mortal Kombat. Those 300 missions feature no lack of variety.…
By Michael McWhertor Published March 7, 2011 - Uncategorized
Is Grand Theft Auto V Codenamed Rush? And Are These Its Major Players?
The next Grand Theft Auto game may be heading back to Los Angeles—or its GTA equivalent Los Santos—if rumored casting details dug up by Google search crackerjack “superannuation” for a project codenamed “Rush” are Rockstar-related. Casting calls for a project by the name of Rush tied to Take-Two Interactive, which owns Rockstar Games, point to…
By Michael McWhertor Published March 7, 2011 - Uncategorized
The 10 Best Video Games Of All Time To Be Decided Again At PAX East 2011
Going to PAX East? So is Kotaku’s own Stephen Totilo, where he will join Newsweek alum N’Gai Croal in sorting out which video games deserve to be included in the ten best of all time. “Canon Fodder Season 3” will continue the list-sorting drama that ended last year with Doom ranked in the #1 spot…
By Michael McWhertor Published March 7, 2011 -
UncategorizedHomefront’s In-Game Quadracopter Comes to Life
Turns out that Rango the video game could be as good as last year’s Toy Story 3. I loved Toy Story 3, but more importantly Tristan loved it and he’s the one saying Rango could be better. I’ll be checking it out tonight probably. Totally unrelated, how weird is it that THQ sent me two…
By Brian Crecente Published March 7, 2011