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Oddworld Creator: “EA Sabotaged Stranger’s Wrath“
Oddworld creator Lorne Lanning accused EA of “Sabotaging” his studio’s game, Stranger’s Wrath, in a conversation with Eurogamer. Lanning says that the publisher, by not marketing the game properly, condemned it to failure. “It was sabotaged. When you see a big game coming out, just ask what the marketing budget is. If you decide as…
By Mike Epstein Published May 12, 2011 -
Kinect Has Finally Found Its Way Into the Women’s Change Room
European clothing giant TopShop ran a little test in a Moscow store recently: hook a Kinect camera up to a mirror and let the ladies try on clothes without having to actually try them on. It sounds good in theory, and in some instances looks good in theory, but its practical use is limited somewhat…
By Luke Plunkett Published May 11, 2011 -
L.A. Noire Has Its Own ‘Rockstar Pass,’ We’re Just Not Sure What That Is Yet
The next big Rockstar Games release may be hopping on the “online pass” bandwagon, with word of the “L.A. Noire Rockstar Pass” coming from Microsoft today. The 800 Microsoft Point purchase gets you… well, we’re not quite sure just yet. The latest Xbox LIVE Newsbeat e-mail newsletter pegs the release of the “L.A. Noire Rockstar…
By Michael McWhertor Published May 10, 2011 -
A Look Inside The Art of Building The Halo Universe
With the ten year anniversary of the release of the original Xbox shooter Halo looming, Titan Books is preparing to publish a collection of art from the series. We asked the publisher to send us a few examples of what people will find inside Halo: The Great Journey: The Art of Building Worlds. The book…
By Brian Crecente Published May 10, 2011 -
Skype Officially Coming to Kinect, Windows Phone, Xbox Live
Rumored by Reuters last night, Microsoft this morning confirmed that they are buying Internet voice talk and video service Skype for $8.5 billion. They also confirmed that the service will “support” devices like the Xbox, Kinect and Windows Phone and that it will be connected to Xbox Live and other Microsoft communities. They will also…
By Brian Crecente Published May 10, 2011 -
Rumor: Microsoft is Buying Skype
Reuters reports that Microsoft is in talks to buy internet voice communications company Skype for around $8.5 billion. What does that mean to you? Well, you’d presumably kiss Skype on the PSP goodbye. You could also, in a perfect world, expect Skype to hit the 360 via Kinect. [Reuters]
By Luke Plunkett Published May 10, 2011 -
Just How Valuable Are Video Game “Brands”?
Advertising and branding specialists Millward Brown have released their annual chart detailing the 100 most valuable “brands” in world commerce. The list takes into account not just a company’s income, but it’s reputation as well. The 2011 list includes all three video game platform holders, with Microsoft in fifth spot (though no doubt its PC…
By Luke Plunkett Published May 9, 2011 -
Which One Is Worse?
At this point, after 17 days with no end in sight, it’s fair to ask the question. the PlayStation Network Outage, or the Xbox 360’s Red Ring of Death: Which is worse? Let’s leave aside the data breach, though it is one of the largest in history, and is the feature of this disaster that…
By Owen Good Published May 7, 2011 -
Report: Next-Gen Xbox Already at EA; EA: That’s a ‘Total Fabrication’
Now that Nintendo has revealed its plans to jump into the next-generation with a successor to the Wii, will Microsoft and Sony follow suit? A report earlier today from Develop says that not only is Microsoft working on the next Xbox console, it’s already in the hands of developer Electronic Arts. The hitch? EA says…
By Michael McWhertor Published May 6, 2011 -
Should Video Game Retailers Screen Their Employees for Fanboyism?
Should video game store employees be allowed to let their personal preferences influence which products they suggest? That’s the question commenter Uncle Jesse asks in today’s Speak Up on Kotaku. Fanboys are everywhere, but do some of you who work at retail shops and try to influence your customers? Just because you love something, doesn’t…
By Mike Fahey Published May 6, 2011 -
The Xbox 360 and Sony NGP’s Love Child
If the Xbox 360 and the NGP ever mated, this would be their spawn. Dubbed the iReadyGo, the Chinese made handheld is open source and will run Android. The iReadyGo’s CPU apparently runs at 1GHZ, and the handheld supports 3G, GPS and WiFi—meaning those will probably work with some sort of dongle? Like with Sony’s…
By Brian Ashcraft Published May 6, 2011 -
You Can All Play the New Age of Empires Game This Weekend
Age of Empires Online, currently in closed beta, will this weekend throw open its doors and let any old person who downloads the game client in. I’ve been playing for a few weeks and…it’s not bad, not bad at all, so you could do worse things. [Age Of Empires]
By Luke Plunkett Published May 6, 2011 -
The Smithsonian Has Picked the Games of Its Art of Video Games Exhibit
The Smithsonian American Art Museum revealed the winners of its public vote to decide what games will be featured in their exhibit, The Art of Video Games, today. The exhibit creates a visual history of the evolution of gaming from its humble beginnings through the present. The vote, which took place between February and April,…
By Mike Epstein Published May 5, 2011 -
How to Hack Your Kinect
When the Kinect first launched last November, gamers were (to put it charitably) a bit skeptical. Here was a device with incredible technological potential, and the most impressive game that came out with it was a dance simulator. Since then, though, the software problem has been solved. Not by Microsoft, whose Kinect releases have been…
Alex Castle - MaximumPC Published May 4, 2011 -
Don’t Blame Sony, You Can’t Trust ANY Networks
The hack attack that forced Sony to take the Playstation Network and Sony Online Entertainment offline and resulted in the theft of personal information from tens of millions of people around the world wasn’t really Sony’s fault, it was an inevitability, a security expert tells Kotaku Bruce Shneier, internationally renowned security technologist and author of…
By Brian Crecente Published May 4, 2011 -
This Year’s PAX Prime Is Also One Big Halo Fest
The annual Penny Arcade Expo, the one that takes place in Seattle, will also be home to a Microsoft-sponsored festival geared for the Halo fan. The appropriately named Halo Fest, Microsoft says, is “the largest and most expansive live Halo experience ever.” Halo Fest will run alongside PAX Prime 2011, from Friday, August 26 to…
By Michael McWhertor Published May 3, 2011 -
Kinect Getting Its Own Original ‘Core’ Shooter Thanks to New Microsoft Studio
Xbox 360 owners looking to use their Kinect controller to do some hands-free killing may want to pay attention to what young Microsoft Game Studios Vancouver is currently working on—a new “core AAA shooter experience using Kinect.” That’s the description of MGS Vancouver’s new game from one of its senior artists who says the developer,…
By Michael McWhertor Published May 2, 2011 -
Microsoft’s Execrable “Clippy” Returns in Gamified Office Tutorial
Microsoft Word’s loathsome Clippy, the Crazy Crab of application mascots, is making a comeback. Yes, really. Killed off in 2007, Microsoft is now using him as the tutorial host introducing you to the wonders of the latest round of whatever useless bloatware they’re heaping on Office. Ribbon Hero 2: Clippy’s Second Chance – a video…
By Owen Good Published April 29, 2011