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G.I. Joe Game Detailed Now, Unveiled Next Week
Electronic Arts’ take on toy-turned-cartoon-turned-movie, G.I. Joe, will be unveiled during next week’s Toy Fair in New York. “As Hasbro and Paramount Pictures reignite the G.I. Joe property this year with an all-new toy line and film, EA is excited to play a major role in bringing this icon of pop culture history to a…
By Brian Crecente Published February 11, 2009 - Uncategorized
Phil Harrison: Why Was God Of War II On PS2, And Not PS3?
With the PS2 now in its last days, we can safely look back and say that, yes, God of War II was the machine’s swansong. But it could have been oh so different! In an interview with 1UP, God of War II man Cory Barlog reveals that, upon first showing the game off to Sony…
By Luke Plunkett Published February 11, 2009 - Uncategorized
Study Says Gaming Can Make You Totally Stressed Out
A Taiwanese study – backed by British researchers – has found that playing too many video games can (can) contribute to a a rise in stress levels and feelings of anxiety in “young people”. The report found that many games cause a “fight or flight” reaction in the player’s mind, which can often trick the…
By Luke Plunkett Published February 11, 2009 - Uncategorized
LocoRoco Swag Arrives, Only Two Years Too Late
We’ve bemoaned the lack of LocoRoco merchandise previously. For a franchise so steeped in cuteness, it’s a mystery as to why we aren’t drowning in plushies and other assorted pieces of licensed crap. No sooner do we say that aloud, though, and Sony go and drop this on us. The LocoRoco 2 sweepstakes, which is…
By Luke Plunkett Published February 11, 2009 - Uncategorized
You Are Cordially Invited To Attend The Street Fighter IV Launch Party
Street Fighter IV is kind of a big deal. So when it launches, it deserves – and is getting – a big, swank launch party. Want to go? Well you can, because you’re invited. Capcom will be taking over the Geffen Contemporary @ Museum of Contemporary Art in Los Angeles on Thursday night, and if…
By Luke Plunkett Published February 11, 2009 - Uncategorized
More People Play FIFA Than You Could Possibly Imagine
One thing I’ve picked up over the years is how oblivious most Americans are to the success of EA’s FIFA. It’s not your fault, just, it’s not a game on most people’s radar. So it’s probably news to most Americans that the game is popular. Immensely popular. Like, bigger-than-Madden popular. And how popular is that?…
By Luke Plunkett Published February 11, 2009 - Uncategorized
What If Street Fighter IV Was Built On The Unreal Engine?
The characters would all wear giant shoulder pads! We kid. In reality, they’d be a lot more detailed, with a heavy emphasis on arm veins. And would look a little something like this. Some forum dwellers over on Game Artisans have taken it upon themselves to run a little competition, see who can come up…
By Luke Plunkett Published February 11, 2009 - Uncategorized
Mario & Sonic To Meet Again, This Time In Canada
Fewer titles epitomise the gulf in potential and delivery on the Wii more than Mario & Sonic at the Olympics. I mean…Mario and Sonic? Together? With motion-sensing? How did this game end up rubbish? Who knows. All that matters is that it did. Though…actually, that not even that matters, since the game sold millions and…
By Luke Plunkett Published February 11, 2009 - Uncategorized
360 Avatars Can Celebrate Valentines Day Too, You Know
Valentines Day is coming up, marketing teams need ways to somehow tie gaming into that most non-gaming of days…what to do? Romantic costumes are a good place to start, and Microsoft just signed up. Two new clothing options for your 360 avatars are now available, a “formal suit” for the gents and a “red dress”…
By Luke Plunkett Published February 11, 2009 - Uncategorized
Ikaruga & Pong Swap Polarities In Pong-Karuga
“GoS-CPT-Stewart” is a student at game design school Full Sail. As part of his studies, he had to make a Pong clone. So he took Pong and mixed it with, of all things, Ikaruga. The results are as you’d expect. It’s Pong, except there are Ikaruga ships in the middle of the screen to blow…
By Luke Plunkett Published February 10, 2009 - Uncategorized
How Uncharted 2 Hopes To Fix Uncharted 1’s Biggest Problem
We loved Uncharted. Loved it to bits. But it wasn’t without its problems! Chief amongst those being the fact shirtless men somehow took 117 bullets to kill. Thankfully, the sequel’s looking to remedy that. Speaking with MTV, Sony’s Sam Thompson promises that while “bullet sponge” enemies will be back in Uncharted 2, at least this…
By Luke Plunkett Published February 10, 2009 - Uncategorized
New Wanted: Weapons of Fate Screens
Hot off the presses are eight new shots from Wanted: Weapons of Fate. Contrary to most movie-games, Weapons of Fate looks like it actually might be worth a damn. Among the many pluses: no driving segments. During my hands-on with the game yesterday, Associate Producer Ryan French announced that I had just come to the…
By AJ Glasser Published February 10, 2009 - Uncategorized
Finally, Zelda II Has Been Translated Into Latin
While I would prefer to play Zelda II: the Adventure of Link in the original Klingon, a full translation of the Nintendo classic in Latin can do in a pinch. The fan translation, dubbed Zelda II: Expeditio Linci, was created by ROM hacker “abw,” a fan of the dead language who’s also tackling The Legend…
By Michael McWhertor Published February 10, 2009 - Uncategorized
Home Wardrobe Expands To Include Ninja Cosplay
Ninja fanboys have been bombarding forums asking for it, and finally, Sony have acquiesced. Given up fighting it. So starting this Thursday, ninja costumes are to be made available for your Home avatar. At the moment, Sony are only saying that the costumes are “sweet”, and by saying costumes, and not costume, we can assume…
By Luke Plunkett Published February 10, 2009 - Uncategorized
Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon: New Screens, Old Logo
The arrival of a new Fire Emblem is a frightening thing for me. Why? Well, while the prospect of playing this NES remake is exciting, the obsessive desire to keep every soldier alive isn’t. I’ll likely have to forgo that obsession Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon, scheduled to move six spaces forward to retail next week.…
By Michael McWhertor Published February 10, 2009 - Uncategorized
Wanted: Weapons of Fate Shows Promise
I thought I’d seen the last of Wanted after seeing falling asleep during the film — but, nope! Warner Bros. Interactive is determined to do better with the game than they did with the movie. Movie games tend to leave a bad taste in my mouth. They’re most often cheap cash-ins Hollywood studios use to…
By AJ Glasser Published February 10, 2009 - Uncategorized
Team Fortress 2 Demake Gang Garrison 2 Goes 2.0
When things go 2.0, it’s a big deal. Remember Web 2.0? Boy did we have some fun with that! Thankfully, the fan-made, Team Fortress 2-inspired 8-bit”demake” Gang Garrison 2 has reached such a milestone. The game’s creators, having officially flipped the 2.0 switch, feel Gang Garrison 2 “is now stable enough to start telling the…
By Michael McWhertor Published February 10, 2009 - Uncategorized
Report: Game Industry Spent $823M Shilling Games In ’08
The video game industry racked up impressive sales in 2008, pulling in more than $21 billion in sales in the United States alone. That make for a similarly impressive marketing tab. According to researchers at the Nielsen Company and its Monitor-Plus advertising monitoring service, the industry spent an astounding $823 million promoting its video game…
By Michael McWhertor Published February 10, 2009 - Uncategorized
Without Guitar Hero, We Might Never Have Had Brütal Legend
The fate of Double Fine Productions’ Brütal Legend has been in doubt before, but without the success of Harmonix and RedOctane’s Guitar Hero, it might never have seen the light of day. Double Fine founder Tim Schafer tells OXM that pre-Guitar Hero, when the team was pitching concept of a roadie turned savior of a…
By Michael McWhertor Published February 10, 2009 - Uncategorized
Doc
To: Ash From: Crecente Re: “I’ve Heard Warm Dr. Pepper With Lemon Helps” I’m going to the doctor tomorrow for a physical. Somehow I’ve managed to miss the last three year’s worth. Man I hope it only involves removing things and not inserting things too. What you missed: The Cosplay of NYCC (Part Two) Scholastic…
By Brian Crecente Published February 10, 2009