Monthly Archives: September 2009

Apparently, there has been some confusion over how matchmaking works for international users in Modern Warfare 2.

To help set things straight, Robert Bowling has posted a bit of an explanation over on the official forums.

Here is a taste:

The functionality you’re asking for, the ability to connect to BEST connection rather than first available game aka quickest match, is already built into the matchmaking.

There is no need to include an additional toggle where you manually have to ask it to put you in the game best suited for your connection, that should all be done automatically without requiring you, the player, to go through an extra step to request it.

We’re doing extensive beta testing of Modern Warfare 2 internally, including with our Activision partners worldwide to test instances JUST LIKE THIS. Which is why I assure you a lot of your concerns will be unfounded come launch. However, we’ll still continue to monitor activity and performance for our international users post-launch and address anything that may arise.

There’s more through the link.

During its regular PlayStation Update this Thursday, Sony will release and update for Home, bringing it to version 1.3.

Updates include:

• Universal Game Launching.
• New Emotes and Actions
• More Item Types Including limited use items
• Tons of Improvements such as new categories of clothing, the targeting system, bug fixes, and the ability to determine your cache size.

Also, the Central Plaza has been updated with the new World Map Travel Center, a new and improved Listen@Home kiosk, new leaderboards and rewards to the Saucer Pop mini-game and a kiosk in Central Plaza where you can grab prizes associated with events.

The new Neptune Suite personal space is also being released this Thursday, and its a rather cool underwater dwelling where you can play built-in mini-games like Blast Zone and it comes with its own pet that interacts with your avatar.

There are tons of details on the update over on the US PS Blog, along with videos showing off the Central Plaza updates and the Neptune Suite.

Heroes of the Fall, the newest update for Battlefield Heroes, is now live.

The free update includes the Riverside Rush map, game menu changes, loads of bug fixes, and improved social networking.

Release notes are rather extensive, and can be found through here.

South Australian attorney general Michael Atkinson has been reported to be holding up debates proposed by the nation’s officials on the introduction of an R18+ rating for games.

His reason for the opposition, is because he does not want children or “vulnerable adults” to get a hold of violent, interactive material.

“People are participating and ‘acting-out’ violence and criminal behaviour when they are playing a video game,” he told News.com.au. “It certainly does restrict choice to a small degree, but that is the price of keeping this material from children and vulnerable adults.

“In my view, the small sacrifice is worth it.”

In the past, Atkinson tried to censored a public document which polled Australians on the issue of censorship.

Don’t look for any of this to be resolved soon Aussies. Sorry ’bout that.

More through Joystiq (GI.biz)

BioWare’s Greg Zeschuk has told Gamasutra that the biggest difference between Dragon Age: Origins and other RPGs, is that with Dragon Age, you have “a very personalized experience” right from the beginning.

“Dragon Age is very much, right from the beginning, an intimate playthrough of who you are, where you came from, and the decisions that got you to the point in the game where it starts,” he said. “That’s a very personalized experience. It’s a little more traditional in that you’ve got a party and you can directly control the party members. It’s a gigantic game.

“One of the guys from Mythic just finished it, and I was saying to him, ‘Did you get to this part, and did that happen? Did this guy go in your party?’ He goes, ‘What do you mean? You can get him in your party?’

“It’s got that magical thing we strive for, which is personalization.”

Loads more through the link.

NIS America’s Nao Zook has posted over the US PS Blog news that the firm will be re-releasing some of its PSP titles to celebrate the launch of the PSPgo.

Here’s what’s coming for the handheld’s launch tomorrow:

• Blade Dancer: Lineage of Light
• Disgaea: Afternoon of Darkness
• Dragoneer’s Aria
• Holy Invasion of Privacy, Badman! What Did I Do to Deserve This?
• Mana Khemia: Student Alliance
• Prinny: Can I Really Be the Hero?

On top of this, the titles will be 50 percent off for one week starting tomorrow, and will range in price from $4.99 to $9.99.

Head on though the link now, and you can also participate in a poll being conducted for a UMD version of Holy Invasion of Privacy, Badman.

So far, it’s a 60/40 split.

Looks like after breaking the site with so many people signing up for the Star Wars: The Old Republic Beta, the official site is back up and ready for you to beg and plead to be let in on all the fun.

Describing the interest in the testing as “overwhelming” after “a humbling 24 hours,” BioWare has addressed the difficulties many had when registering, beefed up the backend, and reopened the site.

Therefore, get to it before we all break it again.

Thanks, Blue.

Konami has sent over new screens for Pro Evolution Soccer 2010, revealing the headshots of national team players from England, France, Italy and Spain to show how much work went into the players.

The pics are posted after the break, and they look rather nice.

Game’s out in November for the PS2, PS3, PSP, Wii and Xbox 360.

More »

Starting in October, Monster Energy will start selling Modern Warfare 2 branded drinks.

Customers who purchase these four-packs will have the chance to win prizes such as the CoD: MW2 Hardened Edition, a future map pack (planned for the spring), an exclusive PS3 or Xbox 360 MW2 console theme, or Monster Energy drinks.

Should you be a member of Walmart’s specialty service, Sam’s Club, you could win a spot with the Modern Warfare 2 Combat Training Experience (an online event) should you purchase the club’s exclusive six-packs.

More information can be found over on the official site for the contest, which should go live tomorrow.

We have pics of the pack, which Activision was nice enough to send over to us, past the break.

More »

LostWinds and Elite creator, David Braben, has said that the approval system implemented by Apple for the iPhone App Store has resulted in many of the games being a “pile of rubbish”.

Because of this, Braben feels a stronger approval process should be considered for the service.

“There’s a little bit of a ‘gate keeper’ thing with Nintendo which raises the bar very slightly because you’ve got to have dev kits, but that’s a good thing,” he told CVG. “Look at iPhone; there are so many games that aren’t up to scratch, without being too negative about it. It’s very hard to find the good stuff amongst the rubbish.

“Another thing I resent is applications or games that are designed to look like something else that’s been successful and people accidentally buy them, or they’re slightly cheaper and they assume they’re getting a cheaper version or the same thing.”

More through the link.

Band Hero will get a new drum and guitar controller kit just in time for the holidays in Europe.

Here’s the skinny:

“A revamped drum kit controller with a ‘floating’ drum pad design with quiet drum heads and easy access first party controls for additional flexibility when navigating the game. The updated kick pedal offers players a new level of responsiveness while drumming along to the music, as well as two built-in kick pedal ports, so players can bang out the double bass beats of Expert+ drum tracks that will be available via downloadable content and song importing. The new drum kit controller also features a handy slot for players to store their drumsticks under the drum pads. The entire unit rests upon a newly designed stand offering stability as well as height guides on the vertical supports to make adjustments a breeze.

In addition, the guitar controller shipping with Band Hero in Europe will also feature an improved strum bar and the neck slider to help with accuracy when nailing those tricky solos. The guitar controller is finished off with chrome effect tuning pegs and a sleek red and white faceplate to let Band Hero players strum in style.”

It is to be made available for PS2, PS3, Wii and Xbox 360 this fall.

EA has released the first in a series of videos showcasing Bad Company 2′s multiplayer.

The first one is posted following the break.

It’s out on March 2 and 5 next year for PC, PS3 and Xbox 360 in the US and UK, respectively.

More »

Square Enix has released a multiplayer demo for Order of War.

You can get it via FilePlanet, if you are a registered user.

The demo includes two of the game’s multiplayer maps, Manor House and Across the Canyon, and allows players to play as Americans, Germans or Soviets.

Thanks, Blue.

Microsoft has decided to remain mum regarding Holiday Bundles in the UK for Xbox 360.

CVG reached out to MS when the Xbox 360 Elite Holiday Bundle with Pure and LEGO: Batman was announced for North America, and was told that the firm had “nothing to share at this time for the UK”.

However, the Controller Bundles announced earlier this week will be available this November in “all countries where LIVE service is supported” for $59.99.

At least that is something for the time being.

More through the link.

An independent UK games developer is currently in talks with Activision’s FreeStyleGames for work on DJ Hero 2, according to a report over on GI.biz.

DJ Qbert has also been approached for inclusion in a sequel.

This should honestly come as no surprise to anyone, as Activision hopes to reach “a market wider than the 15 million already playing Guitar Hero.”

More through the link.

Some new Mass Effect Avatar items were added to the XBL Marketplace.

Looks like there’s more clothing, the RC Mako, and we think the Garrus Eye Piece is new too, but don’t quote us on that one.

The Major has all the info you need, along with a snazzy shot or two.

According to a LinkedIn help wanted posting from Visceral Games, Dead Space 2 is currently in pre-production.

Here’s some information pulled from it:

This M-rated action/shooter sequel will set new standards for an action-packed story-driven console experience.

The game is in the later stages of pre-production, ready for production in the next few months, with many of the navigational and combat mechanics in place. We have complete autonomy and creative control over our own decisions. The Games Label at EA is 100% committed to this IP, and has already worked on IP extensions such as comic, animated features, and action figures.

The ad was spotted by Superannuation.

Thanks, Blue.

Nintendo Australia has revealed that DSiWare games cannot be transferred over to a new DSi.

Apparently, all games downloaded are locked to the particular system each was purchased for.

However, should you break your lovely DSi, Nintendo has a solution. Send in your broken handheld along with your new one and the company will transfer the data for you.

Should you decide to get a new one for whatever reason – you pawned the last one, a bear ate it, or you just want a shiny pink one with glitter – you are out of luck.

More through Nintendolife.

Via D’toid.

Level-5 has revealed to Sony that once players have completed Chapter One of White Knight Chronicles in Story Mode, the online mode will open up.

To get you sorted on the basics, Sony has posted a bit of an explanation of three of its features.

• GeoNet: A social networking service for online players, where you can meet and interact with other players to get set for multiplayer quests.

• Georama: Design your own HomeTown, which serves as a lobby for the online mode, and contains three different fields for 18 different building combinations. Players can make hedge mazes or pixel art and recruit NPCs from the story mode to come live in your town and give ‘em a job.

• Subquest: You control your own avatar in this mode, and as the story unfolds, quests will become available and you’ll accumulate points which will build your guild rank. The higher the rank, the more quests and weapons that are available for you.  50 subquests will be available at launch, and new ones will be added along the way online.

An exclusive feature for North American and European gamers is Rogue Galaxy’s Live Talk, which is part of voice chat allowing characters to issue  a “huge variety of context-specific commentary as the quests unfold”.

The game’s out in spring 2010 and loads more can be learned regardin the online mode over on the US PS Blog.

Move over BioWare: your sexy game throne is about to be challenged. Assassin’s Creed II director Benoit Lambert’s confirmed to VG247 that his free-running sequel contains a bit of the old uppy-tiger-squealy-monkey.

“Ezio is a womaniser,” said the developer, speaking in response to a reader question.

“There’s a bit of sex. I can’t say more.”

Ubi in hot cock action shock. Saying that, bet it’s nothing more than half a tit and a suspiciously swollen codpiece.

We’ll all know “come” November 20.