Monthly Archives: June 2009

Some more E3 shots for Heavy Rain have landed over on Eurogamer.

You may have seen some already, but we like to keep you informed in case there was something you missed.

Anyway, hit the link for more.

Endless Ocean 2 screens have shown up.

Providing you enjoyed the last round, you will like the looks of this one.

Once again players can explore the ocean, come face to face with fish and other large creatures, and explore shipwrecks. You can sell loot to decorate your reef to attract more fish and dive with friends via Wi-Fi and use the mic to chat.

It’s out next year.

More over on Kotaku.

Tecmo’s Japanese office has said that Fatal Frame IV will not be leaving Japan any time soon, and the European version has indeed been canceled.

“It is regrettable that Nintendo has decided to not publish ‘Fatal Frame IV for Wii at this time,” a rep told Cubed3. “But the only thing we can do is respect the company’s decision no matter what reason they have.

“However, we have once more realized that there are many fans anticipating our franchise and are very proud and pleased to find out this fact. What we at Tecmo can do from this point forward is keep this project for the future and devote ourselves to launching the next version that will live up to those expectations.

“We will definitely officially announce this when the time is right.”

There is hope for fans who want an English version of the game, though.

A completely legal translation patch is in development and works with official copies of the game. It’s at the 60% translated marker and will be completed in the next few months.

More through the link.

Eurogamer Germany has the E3 trailer for Brutal Legend.

We pray to the gods of metal and gaming that this will indeed rock come October 13.

Nathan gets to sit down with Tim Schafer himself today. Actually should be happening any time now.

Check back later to see how he fared.

Professor Layton and the Diabolical Box will land in the US on August 24.

Good news for fans of the original.

Best part is that Level-5 will release downloadable puzzles every week for 33 weeks.

Awesome.

There’s a video of it after the break courtesy of Joystiq.

More »

Twitter users who follow Peter Molyneux just got a tweet saying that he is about to announce something at E3 today. And it hasn’t got anything to do with a game.

Here’s what it read:

“Just off to the show now, ready for the announcement, its not to do with any project but rather more to do with me”

Wondering what it could be? We are too.

Stay tuned.

Sony is more popular with teens than Apple and Nintendo, according to a recent survey.

Global Habbo’s Youth Survey Brand Update 2009 report polled 112,000 teens ages 11-19 from over 30 countries and PlayStation was named the number one brand with Nintendo and Microsoft following.

“Technology is an integral part of teenagers’ lives, and they have strong opinions on the brands operating in the market place,” said Oisin Lunny manager for Habbo UK.

“It would seem teen brand loyalty is directly linked to desirability of the product. Technological innovation is attractive to teens, but it is equally important for brands to excite young people by engaging with them in ways that are relevant.”

The polls does not say how close the numbers were for each brand, but if the survey is accurate, Sony makes you “look” cooler and more socially acceptable.

Alrighty then.

Full thing through the break.

Thanks, Edge.

More »

Obsidian has released four new shots of its espionage-RPG Alpha Protocol.

There’s shooting, sneaking, an explosion, and you can look at ‘em over on Shack.

It’s out for PC, PS3 and 360 in October.

1UP was privy to a behind-closed-doors Mass Effect 2 demo with project director Casey Hudson who reveals that Shepard isn’t dead at all silly, and Mass Effect 2 will allow you to explore “the most brutal parts” of the universe.

The piece goes on to talk about Thane, who Hudson describes “the most deadly assassin in the galaxy.”

However, if you fear that Mass Effect 2 will be all about shooting stuff, think again:

Mass Effect 2 is still more RPG than shooter and really shines when the game enters into the dialogue-driven cinematic storytelling choosing. BioWare has added a new twitch element, called “Interrupt,” which can be used to force action into conversation when the appropriate blinking icon (the Left Trigger, for example) appears on-screen and is quickly pressed. Frustrated by a stalling interrogation? “I’ve got nothing more to say to you,” offered up an NPC, crossing his arms in dismissal. No problem. Just “interrupt” with a quick shove … out the window. “How ’bout goodbye,” Shepard absurdly one-lined as the man plunged to his death. Wait, there was more: “So, when do we read him his rights?” followed up a squad mate.

Full thing through the link.

A demo for Overlord II is coming soon.

So says the man himself on his Twitter account.

“I have exciting news for you all soon about the Overlord II demo, keep your ears to the ground my budding Overlord’s…”

Codies will release the game simultaneously on PC, PS3 and Xbox 360 in the US and UK on June 23 and 26.

Thanks, D’toid.

The large, winged creature in the superb Last Guardian E3 trailer is in fact an eagle, Fumito Ueda told IGN, and this eagle, and you’re ability to get it to do things for you is central to gameplay.

From the piece:

Interacting with the eagle appears to be one of the central aspects to the game. You’re free to touch the eagle whenever you like. Its reactions will differ depending on where you touch it.

There’s a care aspect for the eagle as well. You can feed the eagle and remove spears and arrows that have pierced it. Ueda feels that the development staff will have to take care to strike a balance and make sure the care aspects do not becoming a chore.

Also, if you think that it’s a rather strange looking eagle, then you’ll find Ueda agrees with you: “It’s important that it be ‘a strange creature,’” explained Ueda. “We made sure and not make it too balanced.”

More through the link.

The Perfect Dark theme Major Nelson tweeted about last night has landed.

It is only available to Gold members, is free, and only available for two weeks.

Still no word on when to expect the game.

Thanks, D’toid.

RedLynx Trials 2: Second Edition, dubbed as Trials HD, will be heading to Xbox Live thanks to Microsoft’s Summer of Arcade promotion.

The motorbike game has 50 courses, rider-customization, unlockables, leaderboards, crashes, death, explosions, stunts, broken limbs, the works.

Eurogamer has some nice shots of it, and loved it, apparently.

Hit the links to judge for yourself.

Rebellion’s new Aliens vs. Predator (working title) trailer is looking the part, we reckon. The graphics are in place, the atmosphere and character modelling are all up to scratch.

All we need now is a date, although the best we can get from Sega right now is “early 2010″ for PC, Xbox 360 and PS3.

Watch the trailer and look at some new screenshots over at Shacknews.

Venture Beat had the opportunity to sit down with Micrsoft’s Shane Kim, VP of strategy and business development, and talk about Project Natal.

During the chat, Kim said that the 3-D body control function has nothing to do with Sony or Nintendo and the company’s focus with the innovation is breaking down barriers in gaming. The company hopes to usher in the “birth of the next-generation of home entertainment” with the motion-control tech.

“It has everything to do with breaking down barriers and getting to the mass market, where controllers are barriers and they’re intimidating,” said Kim. “It’s awkward for some people to learn to use a controller.

“This is really about unleashing a new category of controller-free gaming and entertainment. We didn’t want to do something that would be derivative of what Nintendo did with the Wii. That’s been a nice innovation for them but this goes much farther. We’re talking about full-body recognition. It can tell when someone is standing or sitting down. It can tell when something moves in front of you or behind you.

“It’s multiplayer as well. This is not tracking points the way that the Wii controller does or Sony’s new controller does. It’s tracking your full body movement. That alone is very different. It’s also got voice recognition. It has a multi-array microphone so that it can recognize different voices in a room among the different players. It also recognizes faces.

“This is the birth of the next-generation of home entertainment.”

Microsoft has been hard at work on this for quite a while is seems, and started handing out development kits this week.

More through the link.

Capcom’s Frank Felice has assured PS3 owners that the PS3 version of Lost Planet 2 won’t be rubbish compared to other platforms. As the first one may have been.

“Any concerns that fans had for the original, there’s no need for any concern on Lost Planet 2,” said Felice, speaking in the video interview after the break.

The title will have “full support for the Sony platform,” he added, including Trophies.

The PS3 version was announced in Sony’s E3 press conference yesterday.

Hit the link for the full thing.

More »

EA has unveiled some of the new features included in FIFA 10 when it lands later this year.

There’s was the company calls “the first-ever true 360° dribbling system” that gives players “finer control of the ball, enabling them to find spaces between defenders that previously were not possible.”

There’s also something called “Freedom in Physical Play” that enables you to “perform wider dribble touches and new collision sharing creates a varied, less predictable, and extended fight for possession between the dribbler and a defender.”

FIFA 10 also promises a deeper Manager Mode including more than 50 major improvements.

The official FIFA 10 site is set for a reveal in two days time, so expect more soon.

Full thing after the break.

More »

Supreme Commander 2 promises to be just as large as the original and address a number of issues that were present as well.

That’s according to Gamespot, which got hands-on time with the game at E3.

Supposedly it has a better art design, economy, improved pathfinding, tech upgrades effecting existing units, and new tech trees allowing units to include barrels, anti-aircraft weaponry, and more.

Sounds lovely.

More through the link.

Square told Kotaku at E3 yesterday that it’s “targeting” a 2010 release date for the European version of FFXIII.

The RPG releases in Japan this winter, followed by the US next year.

Hit the link for the full thing.

EA CEO John Riccitiello has told IndustryGamers that EA has been aware of Sony and MS’ motion-control tech for a while now, and thinks Sony’s model might be more instantly accessible.

He refers to Sony motion control efforts as “a great bridge technology,” that provides users with an brand new experience but one that “doesn’t require quite the leap of faith that Natal does.”

Of Natal, Riccitiello spoke about potential development: “It’s certainly very compelling for a number of game concepts I’ve got in my mind and my teams are working on,” he said.

“I think the challenges around it is that there’s a lot to be worked out – it’s not something consumers have interacted with before.”

Through the link more.

Thanks, D’toid.