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Japan Comes Out For Final Fantasy XIII In Droves
Once again proving that lining up for video games is a national pastime, Japan came out cued up for Final Fantasy XIII. There have been longer lines for game launches in Japan; however, these lines were especially impressive considering that FFXIII went on sale mid-week. The “main” countdown launch was at retailer TSUTAYA in Shibuya…
By Brian Ashcraft Published December 17, 2009 - Reviews
Silent Hill: Shattered Memories Review: Daddy Issues
It is the tenth anniversary of Konami’s Silent Hill series, a franchise that has focused more on the psychological side of horror than its peers. The latest, Silent Hill: Shattered Memories, delves further into the psyche than ever before. Silent Hill: Shattered Memories tells a very different version of the first Silent Hill game, chronicling…
By Michael McWhertor Published December 17, 2009 - Uncategorized
Splinter Cell Conviction Goes All Riggs & Murtaugh
There are two kinds of co-op. The kind where you play through the whole game together, and the kind where you play custom missions together. Splinter Cell: Conviction is one of the latter, and this is how it works. New Footage of Splinter Cell: Conviction Co-Op Emerges [1UP]
By Luke Plunkett Published December 17, 2009 - Uncategorized
TF2 Update Brings New Weapons, Achievements
Team Fortress 2’s “War” update draws near it’s conclusion with a bang today, both the Demoman and Soldier getting new items, new weapons and new achievements. As expected, the Soldier gets a pickaxe (which deals more damage the less health you have) and a banner, which can inspire his fellow troops. The Demoman, meanwhile, gets…
By Luke Plunkett Published December 17, 2009 - Uncategorized
Stocking Stuffers: Despairing Video Game Poetry
Regular listeners of British podcast OneLifeLeft will be intimately familiar with the work of Craig “The Rage” McLelland. Since most of you don’t listen, though, I feel compelled to point out his new book of poetry. Video game poetry. His poetry is bleak, but not bleak in a way that makes you feel empty. Bleak…
By Luke Plunkett Published December 17, 2009 - Uncategorized
Home Produces Sodium
PlayStation Home is moving its social network toward the gaming space by releasing a real, honest-to-god video game through Home. Meet Sodium, “an arcade shooter in an MMO wrapper.” The game launches today, featuring a new game space accessible through a teleporter in the Plaza. If any of you regular Home users were wondering what…
By AJ Glasser Published December 17, 2009 - Uncategorized
Final Fantasy XIV Is Going To Take On WoW
Over the years, many games have tried to take on Blizzard’s World of Warcraft directly. Try and stand toe-to-toe with the MMO giant. And all of them have failed. That’s not going to stop Square Enix boss Yoichi “Imperial Hot” Wada from taking a crack, though. Asked by Develop what he thought Final Fantasy XIV’s…
By Luke Plunkett Published December 17, 2009 - Uncategorized
Microsoft: Hardcore Games “Sell Themselves”
It’s been a constant criticism of both Xbox consoles: that Microsoft can only sell shooters to the hardcore gaming market. So what does it say about Microsoft’s marketing power when the company admits those games “sell themselves”? In an interview with GI.biz, Microsoft’s David Dennis has said that marketing games towards a casual audience –…
By Luke Plunkett Published December 17, 2009 - Uncategorized
Korea Also Gets That Custom FFXIII PlayStation 3 Console
The delicate cherry blossom of the hardware world, the “Lightning Edition” of the PlayStation 3, is out today in Japan. Know where else it’s being released? Korea. It’ll be the exact same deal as the Japanese edition – custom console, controller, copy of Final Fantasy XIII – only, for Koreans. It’ll be out on January…
By Luke Plunkett Published December 17, 2009 - Uncategorized
Get The Gran Turismo 5 Demo A Little Early
While, at time of writing, the Gran Turismo 5 demo is unavailable in the US or PAL territories, it is currently available from the Japanese PlayStation Store. And is 100% “import” friendly. If you’ve figured out how to create a Japanese account (here’s a guide if you haven’t), you can get the demo right now,…
By Luke Plunkett Published December 17, 2009 - Uncategorized
Square Enix Ship Nearly Two Million Copies Of FFXIII
On Tuesday, Square Enix were expecting to ship around one million copies of Final Fantasy XIII to retailers in Japan, ready for the game’s launch. Today, on launch day, the actual number is higher. Square Enix boss Yoichi Wada, His Imperial Hotness, has issued a release today stating that number of units shipped was actually…
By Luke Plunkett Published December 17, 2009 - Uncategorized
Battlefield: Bad Company 2 Trailer Blows Up The Panama Canal
Publishers, marketing teams, know this: showing us cinematics where cool stuff happens is all well and good, but a trailer is much more exciting when it shows gameplay footage of cool stuff happening. Click to view
By Luke Plunkett Published December 16, 2009 - Uncategorized
Let’s Play Final Fantasy XIII’s Battle Tutorial
Today, you’ll be one of two people. One that is sick to the gills of Final Fantasy XIII, or one that cannot get enough. If you’re the latter, this is for you. Enjoy, as Mr. Tim Rogers – who has rested after his arduous start to the day – takes you on a guided tour…
By Luke Plunkett Published December 16, 2009 - Uncategorized
TF2’s Propaganda Contest Winners Will Delight & Amaze
Well, this is a surprise. Those entrants in Team Fortress 2’s propaganda competition we posted the other day? While good, they’ve got nothing on the eventual winners, which aren’t just good. They’re so much better than good. Valve have picked the three winners from a field of over 11,000 entries, each of which will receive…
By Luke Plunkett Published December 16, 2009 - Uncategorized
The Medal of Honor Trailer Requires Its Own FAQ
The debut trailer for Medal of Honor at the Video Game Awards was entertaining, but as these things are designed, it raised more questions than it answered. Medal of Honor‘s executive producer is happy to clear up a few. For starters, what you saw was 100 percent in-game footage, says Greg Goodrich. Some of that…
By Owen Good Published December 16, 2009 - Uncategorized
Final Fantasy VIII Coming To The PlayStation Store
It’s Final Fantasy day here today, the latest piece of news concerning Square Enix‘s flagship franchise coming in the form of a PlayStation Store re-release. In an email sent out to PlayStation email subscribers, Sony announce in the “coming soon” section that Final Fantasy VIII will be turning up on the PlayStation Store. I’m interested…
By Luke Plunkett Published December 16, 2009 - Uncategorized
Video Game Artists Come Together for a Cause
More than 200 artists, many from the games industry, have rallied to support one of their own – the girlfriend of a Mythic Entertainment artist who has faced down breast cancer and is looking at a long, expensive recovery. The woman, Cat, is the 25-year-old girlfriend of Mythic’s Mike “Daarken” Lim, who has along with…
By Owen Good Published December 16, 2009 - Uncategorized
Modern Warfare 2 Fixes “In Test” For These Problems
With a few million people playing and actively trying to exploit your game, some issue are going to crop up. And Modern Warfare 2 has had some issues. But Infinity Ward is tackling them, including that recent infinite ammo thing. IW’s Robert Bowling updated the Modern Warfare 2 masses on the developer’s current plans to…
By Michael McWhertor Published December 16, 2009 -
UncategorizedDungeons & Dragons For Microsoft Surface Has Come A Long Way
The guys who are bringing Dungeons & Dragons (unofficially) to Microsoft’s tabletop Surface system have been plugging away at their creation, giving us an extended, in-depth look at how one DMs the world’s most expensive, most technically impressive campaigns. The SurfaceScapes team at the Entertainment Technology Center at Carnegie Mellon University gives us a very…
By Michael McWhertor Published December 16, 2009 - Uncategorized
Five Panels I’m Looking Forward To At GDC 2010
Goodness knows as a member of the press, I don’t always get to pick which Game Developers Conference panels I go to. But if given the choice this time around, I really want to see what comes out of these panels. “A Big Dash of Success: How to Capture the Female iPhone Gamer” — Chris…
By AJ Glasser Published December 16, 2009