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ESA Report: More than 250 Colleges Offer Game Degrees
More than 50 game development programs have been added to U.S. colleges’ curricula in the past year, bringing to 254 the number of universities offering degrees in video game design, programming and art, according to the Entertainment Software Association. The ESA’s study said 54 were added since 2008, a 27 percent rise in the number…
By Owen Good -
No Fee, and Maybe WiiSpeak, for Western Monster Hunter 3
Capcom’s considering both adding Wiispeak support to and removing monthly fees for online play from its Western release of Monster Hunter, according to a couple of separate reports. In Japan, Monster Hunter 3 will carry a fee for online play, a detail that arched some eyebrows on this side of the Pacific. Speaking at TGS,…
By Owen Good -
Guitar Hero 5 No Longer Half Off at Amazon [Update]
Just noticed this – the Xbox 360 version of Guitar Hero 5, game only, is down to $29.97 on Amazon.com. Update: Looks like the deal is now dead. Sorry. All of this stuff below is now inoperable. Of course, the offer to get Guitar Hero: Van Halen free with GH 5 has by now expired,…
By Owen Good -
Spies Dig Up 20 of 23 Spec Ops Names in Modern Warfare 2
Ever since folks noticed Infinity Ward types playing Modern Warfare 2 over Xbox Live, some have been glued to their sets for map and mission names. They’ve now gotten nearly the full mission list for MW2’s Spec Ops. Spoiler alert, as the names of these might give away general mission details or capabilities. if you…
By Owen Good -
Digital Rentals Built in to PSPgo?
Screwing around with the sorting feature on the PSPgo, someone’s found there’s only one way to arrange games and folders – by their expiration date. Expiration? Renting a movie off of the PSN, now, that’s something that would expire, and we’re all familiar with that. Fareo at the Retail Gamer posted these shots with the…
By Owen Good -
There’s Someone at the Door …
Today, certain people – we’re trying to figure out why – were delivered telegrams by an old-school bicycle messenger. The cable comes from “Mark G Meltzer,” the loner searching for “something in the sea,” on BioShock 2’s hype Web site. That telegram above was sent to reader Andrew B., and also to three friends who…
By Owen Good -
Give Up Your Weapons … and Your Body Armor …
He is one of the LCPD’s best. A cop torn between duty and instinct, justice and the law. In Liberty City, the law is supreme. No matter how many grenades you push across that table, you’re still free to go. Click to view Grand Theft Auto Precinct [Atom.com via Destructoid]
By Owen Good -
Wait a Minute, LittleBigPlanet PSP Hadn’t Been Officially Dated?
Weird. One of these pieces of news that would seem to be out by now, but PlayStation.Blog posted yesterday that Nov. 17 is the North American release date for LittleBigPlanet PSP. The cover art also was finalized. What else, what else. Oh, here’s an LBP bento done by everybody’s favorite game-bento maker, AnnaTheRed, just to…
By Owen Good -
Eminem on DJ Hero Renegade: “The S—t is Dope”
Eminem, one of two big names on DJ Hero’s Renegade Edition, stopped by DJ Whoo Kid’s show to flack the limited series, and declare “the s—t is dope.” See, when the kids say “s—t,” they really mean “cool.” To be fair, I think he’s talking about the carrying case (“DJ coffin”) that transforms into a…
By Owen Good -
Scribblenauts’ Original Name Sounded Like a Gameshow
Scribblenauts is People’s Exhibit No. 1 for giving a game a great name. It’s a unique word, hinting strongly at the quirky adventures you’ll have. Good thing, too, because the original name sounded like something Wink Martindale would host. “Wordplay” was the first title, according to the 5th Cell creative director Jeremiah Slaczka. Yeesh. Slazcka…
By Owen Good -
CrimeCraft Going Free-to-Play by Month’s End
The FPS-MMO-WTFBBQ CrimeCraft offers a “free unlimited trial” by the end of October, according to publisher Vogster Entertainment, which will effectively move the game into three tiers – free, $5 and $10 subscriptions. Vogster, subject of some bad financial news recently, made the announcement Friday, also promising a large content update concurrent to the new…
By Owen Good -
Union Contracts Now Include “Vocally Stressful,” “Atmospheric” Work
Two major unions supplying voice actors for video games have both won pay raises under provisional new contracts, which also spell out terms for “vocally stressful” work and “atmospheric” roles in which one person voices multiple minor characters. Assuming the Screen Actors Guild and the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists ratify the contracts,…
By Owen Good -
NBA Live Achievement Whores Fail to Get 1,000 Online [Updated]
NBA Live 07 – a game now three years old – currently has about 500 players on Xbox Live. And they need 500 more in the next half-hour for every one of them to collect an easy 100 Gamerscore. Update: Doesn’t sound like they made it. No word yet if they’ll try again. The game…
By Owen Good -
Looks Like Modern Warfare 2’s Gone Gold
This is what the news biz calls an “incremental development,” but when it involves a game as highly anticipated as Modern Warfare 2, people notice. Yesterday, folks who’d friended some Infinity Ward types saw them playing it on Xbox Live. Playing an unreleased title on Xbox Live is typically an indicator the game has been…
By Owen Good -
Who’s Responsible for the $60 Price Tag?
Just how did we get to $59.99 for the cost of a new game, anyway? Collusion? Happenstance? For a sector that mimics Hollywood’s studio model, the answer is about as simple – and clear – as why tickets cost $10. Crispy Gamer’s David Thomas went searching for who decided on the $60 standard and more…
By Owen Good -
PSPgo Not Exactly Hacked — but Not Exactly Hack-Proof
People made a big deal about the PSPgo’s lack of a replaceable battery, a design component intended to thwart hackers. One has already found an old exploit is still feasible on the new hardware. Not sure what you’re looking at? Well, modder FreePlay’s found a way in through the hacked save data files of an…
By Owen Good -
A Virtual Golfer Looks Back On — and Ahead to — His Tournament Career
You could say Steven Sobe knows when to go out on top. When you’ve made your living playing video games on a tournament circuit, it’s certainly a sense that will serve you well. Five years ago, Sobe, now 36, was the three-time defending national champion in Golden Tee – the bar and bowling-alley golf simulator…
By Owen Good -
Weekend Coupons: Blind Squirrels
We’ll be honest, Kotakuites, we’re not finding much in the way of insane buy-it-now deals this week. It’s possible that it’ll be this way while we’re in high season for new releases, and retailers know they have a captive audience. Hardware • Remember, Microsoft’s $50 rebate offer for Xbox 360 Elites expires on Monday (Oct.…
By Owen Good