Videogame News Thread

[Emperor Smeat]

Sony and Ubisoft announce the long rumored Assassin's Creed movie will be occurring after both companies signed a deal to allow the production for the movie to start.

Ubisoft initially had stated they wanted to form their own movie studio after having issues with Hollywood studios either rejecting the offers or wanting to change the story to fit their goals.

Their brand new Ubisoft Motion Pictures studio will be working together with Sony Pictures on the project. Ubisoft will have total creative control in return for the marketing and distribution costs to be covered by Sony.

Based on early info for the potential movie, it appears the story revolves more around a guild of assassin's than just 1 main assassin.

Indeed, Sony has spearheaded the campaign to turn Assassin's Creed into an interactive tale of a time-spanning assassin's guild into a decidedly less-interactive version of that same thing.

No other details regarding the story or when the film could be potentially released but work is expected to start once both sides finalize the deal.

http://www.screwattack.com/sites/default/files/imagecache/620x186_Featured_Banner/animaatjes-assassins-creed-12425_0.jpg
http://www.giantbomb.com/news/assassins-creed-is-probably-going-to-be-a-movie-now/3754/

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Quick News Round-Up:
1) Sony is rumored to be in the process of switching over their studios to begin work on PS4 launch titles once the current year's schedule of games is done. The rumor places about 16 of all the studios owned by Sony have already committed towards development of projects for the next Playstation console with a rumored release of late 2013/2014 depending on what Microsoft does.

2) Based on a few reports, it appears EA is in a big panicking mood after both refusing to allow review copies of Battlefield 3 to be available to most review places and rejecting all except a few hand picked early review scores. A lot of the bigger review places, such as Kotaku and Giantbomb, have stated they won't get their review copy until days after the game is released due to EA refusing to allow any review to show any potential negative aspects of the game until well after consumers have purchased the title.

3) Nintendo will be holding a 3DS-centered press conference with the biggest talking points revolving around Super Mario 3D Land, Mario Kart 7, and the upcoming firmware update that allows 3D recording abilities. The conference will be streamed live and starts around 8pm ET although Nintendo did not state it would just talk about those 3 topics and could pull a few surprises or announcements.

[Drakul]

2) Based on a few reports, it appears EA is in a big panicking mood after both refusing to allow review copies to be available to most review places and rejecting all except a few hand picked early review scores. A lot of the bigger review places, such as Kotaku and Giantbomb, have stated they won't get their review copy until days after the game is released due to EA refusing to allow any review to show any potential negative aspects of the game until well after consumers have purchased the title.

What game?

3) Nintendo will be holding a 3DS-centered press conference with the biggest talking points revolving around Super Mario 3D Land, Mario Kart 7, and the upcoming firmware update that allows 3D recording abilities. The conference will be streamed live and starts around 8pm ET although Nintendo did not state it would just talk about those 3 topics and could pull a few surprises or announcements.

We'll get a redesigned 3DS announcement. The second stick add-on is due in the US early next year. They'll announce the redone 3DS at this conference, it'll come out at around the same time as the stick add-on and they'll say something along the lines of "If you don't have a 3DS, you can buy our new model. If you do have a 3DS, you can buy our add-on."

[LoDownM]

Probably Battlefield 3 Drakul

[RoXer]

Great deal on Steam this week. All GTA games for $12.49.

Grand Theft Auto
Grand Theft Auto 2
Grand Theft Auto III
Grand Theft Auto: Vice City
Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas
Grand Theft Auto IV
Grand Theft Auto: Episodes of Liberty City

Not each. Total. Might be worth checking out especially if you have a computer that can handle the realistic mod.

[RoXer]

http://i.imgur.com/PuMbz.png (http://i.imgur.com/PuMbz.png) (http://i.imgur.com/PuMbz.png)

[RoXer]

http://i.imgur.com/qjGzw.jpg

[Kalyx triaD]

@ GTA deal:

That's literally half a year or more of gameplay.

[RoXer]

Glad you clarified that you were talking about the GTA deal and not the possibility of those two wonderful gentleman above and their possible proficiency at playing a video game.

[Kalyx triaD]

They might be better than you think. Uganda Halo Clan ready to go.

[Funky Fly]

What's the deal with the Bushmen?

[What Would Kevin Do?]

Zombies? Darkness? You'd think Halloween was coming up or something.

Rob Zombie, White Zombie, and The Darkness will be available beginning October 25 in the Rock Band 3 Music Store. Set at the price of about $2 a song, here's what will be added next week:

The Darkness – "I Believe in a Thing Called Love"
Rob Zombie – "Living Dead Girl"
White Zombie – "Thunder Kiss ‘65"
White Zombie – "Super-Charger Heaven"
White Zombie's "Super-Charger Heaven" is also known as "Devilman" from its chorus chant.

[Emperor Smeat]

iD Software rumored to have "indefinitely postpone" development on Doom 4 due to negative reception and lack of sales in regard to Rage which also was using a newer engine from the studio.

Rumors had stated the studio was current reorganizing and reworking their development of Doom 4 to remove or change aspects of the game which could have been shared from Rage and possible changes to the engine to fix issues people had with Rage (at least on the PC).

According to the studio itself, no games have been postponed or were required to have changes made while any news concerning Doom 4 is only speculation.

Pete Hines, responding to our request for comment this morning, says no game in development has been postponed.

"We don't comment on unannounced games and DOOM 4 hasn't been announced (though I appreciate that id has previously referenced DOOM 4)," Hines said. "Games are done when they are done and no title under development at id has been postponed – indefinitely or otherwise."

id Software parent company and publisher, Zenimax and Bethesda, were also rumored to have demanded some changes to be made to Doom 4 to prevent any chance of the same negative reception or issues occurring again after Rage had some post launch issues.

The apparent source says that Zenimax and Bethesda made the decision based on the "the issues and reviews" surrounding RAGE's launch, which in their eyes has demonstrated "a serious lack of confidence in the project management at id".

http://www.screwattack.com/sites/default/files/imagecache/620x186_Featured_Banner/feature-Doom-4.png
http://kotaku.com/5851953/doom-4-indefinitely-postponed-following-rages-disappointing-launch

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Quick News Round-Up:
1) EA announces the Mass Effect 3 demo will be bundled in every new copy of Battlefield 3 but there are some catches to the deal once the demo actually arrives by January 2012. While the single player demo is avaliable in every copy, multiplayer demo/beta copies will only be playable to those who have Origin accounts or activate them before the start of the multiplayer beta.

2) Blizzard reveals Diablo III will be free to all World of Warcraft subscribers as long as their current subscription has been over 12 months. The offer only is avaliable to annual subscribers and has to be over a year in length and not just in total months since the purchase of WoW to be eligable for the offer.

3) The upcoming SSX game now has an official release date of Feburary 14, 2012 for the US/Canada region while it wasn't confirmed if the European release date will be the same or different based on the press release sent by EA. The game itself is a reboot or revamp of the SSX series and intialy was meant to be more grittier until backlash forced EA to rework the game to also include classic SSX gameplay.

[LoDownM]

http://www.destructoid.com/new-suikoden-gets-a-story-still-not-old-suikoden-s-story-214230.phtml

New Suikoden game, but for PSP so it probably won't get released outside of Japan :'(

[Drakul]

Great deal on Steam this week. All GTA games for $12.49.

Grand Theft Auto
Grand Theft Auto 2
Grand Theft Auto III
Grand Theft Auto: Vice City
Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas
Grand Theft Auto IV
Grand Theft Auto: Episodes of Liberty City

Not each. Total. Might be worth checking out especially if you have a computer that can handle the realistic mod.

GTA I, II and, I think, London are already free to download on the R* site, along with some other non-GTA games.
It's still a good deal for the 3D games.

[Xero]

That sucks. I already bought the classic pack, but if I wanted to buy just GTA4 and the DLC I'd be paying more than if I bought the whole pack...

I'll probably just wait until the holiday sale anyway. Will probably be like $5 for GTA4 and the DLC. I bought the classic pack for like $5 or some ridiculous price last year.

[Emperor Smeat]

According to Kotaku, the PS3 could be hacked again with the new potential threat being compared to the PSN Outage attack should it actually occur in the near future.

The new dongle device works in a similar way to the previous one Sony said they managed to remove with the changes to the PSN firmware (PSN 2.0) but the new device was able to get around all the new security features from the recent firmware updates.

It could also be troubling to Sony who had promised the PS3 and PSN couldn't be hacked that badly again and the new changes to PSN were designed to prevent it from ever occurring again.

That next time may already be upon us, with videos and reports surfacing showing a USB "dongle" similar to that used by the infamous PS Jailbreak being plugged into a PS3 and seemingly allowing the user to access a disc-free version of Pro Evolution Soccer 2012.

So, yeah, it looks to be exactly the same kind of device used last time, only this time it gets around the copy protection routines put in place by Sony after the last time.

http://kotaku.com/5851968/has-the-playstation-3-been-cracked-again

EDIT: It appears there is some issues with Kotaku's report ranging from the new dongle only was meant for "older firmware" PS3s models and not for hacking, being just a new jailbreak but not affect PSN, or being the start of a future attack.

[RoXer]

SUCK MY DICK NBA JAM!!

[#BROKEN Hasney]

Oh wow, did Kotaku ever get the wrong end of the stick there. It just let's you play newer firmware games on 3.55, the hack able firmware.

[OssMan]

Yo. How do I preorder Skyward Sword with the gold wii remote. Seems impossible.

[G]

Yo. How do I preorder Skyward Sword with the gold wii remote. Seems impossible.

As impossible as typing Skyword Sword into Gamestop.com (http://www.gamestop.com/wii/games/the-legend-of-zelda-skyward-sword-bundle/93064) :-\

[OssMan]

Forgot to mention I am not gonna buy it from gamestop

[What Would Kevin Do?]

http://www.destructoid.com/new-suikoden-gets-a-story-still-not-old-suikoden-s-story-214230.phtml

New Suikoden game, but for PSP so it probably won't get released outside of Japan :'(

and not even connected to the main story :(

[G]

Forgot to mention I am not gonna buy it from gamestop

why not? i don't like supporting them as much as the next guy, but if they are the only spot in town that has what i want, you can bet your sweet ass they're gonna get my money. especially something like this.

[#BROKEN Hasney]

Forgot to mention I am not gonna buy it from gamestop

http://www.walmart.com/ip/Legend-of-Zelda-Skyward-Sword-with-controller-Wii-Nintendo-Wi/17335675

[G]

http://www.bestbuy.com/site/The+Legend+of+Zelda%3A+Skyward+Sword+Bundle+-+Nintendo+Wii/3540686.p?id=1218410277084&skuId=3540686&st=skyword%20sword&lp=1&cp=1

[G]

http://www.toysrus.com/product/index.jsp?productId=12165877

[OssMan]

I guess I am gonna go really hipster here.

I hate Wal Mart because of how much of a conglomerate cult they are. I used to go there when I was in Roanoke and the shit I would see there would scar me. I just can't support them.

I hate Best Buy for various reasons, mostly because of how they try to rip you off and buy Geek Squad protection on anything and everything in the store. I was stupid enough to do it when I bought a TV there, and then realized what a rip off it was. I once bought like a $10 razor there and they tried to sell me geek squad for that. Also they have a fucker stand at the front of the store and put a sticker on anything you walk in with. "Excuse me sir, where did you get the coke bottle" "I will need to mark that"

Buying from Toys R Us would make me feel like a child :'(

And I hate Gamestop because of how, for one thing, their prices on used games are ridiculous, and they have all this preorder nonsense like "Preorder this game and get a free in-game chainsaw!" which allows developers to deliberately withhold parts of games from the rest of the world just for a cheap marketing ploy. And they hire the most pretentious employees.

Whatever

[Kalyx triaD]

You have the worst reasons for not getting a videogame from a certain store.

[Kalyx triaD]

Just get the game. You're not selling your soul to the fuckers.

[dronepool]

Buy it from ebay or amazon or craiglist... used.

[OssMan]

...twice

[Emperor Smeat]

Square-Enix reveals some new details concerning the second attempt of Final Fantasy XIV (titled Final Fantasy XIV Version 2.0) with the game potentially expanding to smartphones and the Xbox 360.

Initially the game was meant or at least rumored to be just a PS3 exclusive but financial struggles for the company along with the constant negative impressions by both the media and the public forced Square-Enix to rehaul the entire project.

Besides the change in direction and the reworked character designs, the producer of the game mentioned the development of an in-game store/auction to take advantage of a possible mobile and PS Vita support. This would allow users the ability to purchase items with real cash or even use the devices as an app or another way of checking the inventory.

"Not just the Vita, but also smartphones, so that kind of access will be allowed. That will open the door to things like applications that people can used to check their inventory, or check the market and purchase things from the auctions."

While the top priority is still for the PS3 version of the game, the producer also mentioned the company is currently in talks with Microsoft to have the game be available for the Xbox 360. This comes weeks after it was leaked Square-Enix was looking for Xbox 360 programmers to work on a Final Fantasy project.

http://www.screwattack.com/sites/default/files/imagecache/620x186_Featured_Banner/final-fantasy-xiv_0.jpg
http://www.screwattack.com/news/square-has-big-plans-final-fantasy-xiv

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Quick News Round-Up:
1) Going along with NBA Jam and NFL Blitz getting series revivals, EA announces the FIFA Street series will be joining the group as a new game in the series is set to arrive next year. All the previous Street modes will return along with a type of "Horde Mode" done in a Last Man Standing style where each goal scored removes an opposition player from the field.

2) Blizzard reveals people who purchase the Diablo III collection's edition will get a free 4 month WoW subsciprion as a bonus. A console port of the game was leaked to be in development although the company will not make any official announcements until after the PC release of the game.

3) As part of Nintendo of Europe's promotion for the European release of Kirby's Return to Dream Land for the Wii, the NES classic of Kirby's Adventure will be joining the list of games getting the 3D Classic treatment on the eshop. The 3D Classic is expected to arrive when the Wii game is released on November 25 but no details if the eShop game will also be coming to the US/Canada and Japan.

[Emperor Smeat]

While Minecraft was first announced at E3 2011 to be arriving on the Xbox 360, the official playable debut of the game will occur next month during the MineCon convention in Las Vegas.

The playable debut will act as the official "launch party" for the game as both Microsoft and the creator of Minecraft have big plans to celebrate the occasion.

No actual details of the game were revealed besides the original news from E3 of the XBLA port keeping the same blocky visuals from the PC and the inclusion of Kinect controls.

“We want to keep the core experience of the original PC version intact, while ensuring the game fits its new platform,” said Carl Manneh, managing director at Mojang, in a blog post with the news.

The game is being co-developed with 4J Studios from Microsoft while the creator of Minecraft has been overseeing the development of the game. The game is still set for a Spring 2012 release date.

A mobile version for both the iOS and Android will also be making their official debuts at MineCon next month as well.

http://media.giantbomb.com/uploads/3/39128/1988985-2011_10_16_18.12.31.png
http://www.giantbomb.com/news/minecraft-for-xbox-live-arcade-playable-at-minecon/3760/

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Quick News Round-Up:
1) While EA currently has development kits for the Wii U and DICE has just finished working on Battlefield 3, DICE admits they have no current plans or projects involving the Wii U at the moment. They didn't specifically state Battlefield 3 wouldn't be ported to the Wii U but their current plans with the development kits are more at the testing and tinkering stage than actual development of any potential titles.

2) In an interview with Eurogamer, an executive producer from EA admits they could be reviving the Syndicate series more towards the traditional style than the remake/reboot attempt set for 2012. It was even hinted the series could return to the PC while consoles could get more of the actiony remake for games in the series.

3) Nintendo announces 2 new DSi bundles (Metallic Rose and Midnight Blue) will be arriving on November 6 for the price of $169.99. Mario vs Donkey Kong: Mini-Land Mayhem! was chosen as the free game to be included in each bundle.

[Emperor Smeat]

According to sources close to Nintendo, the company is about to post a mid-year loss of about $1.3 billion which exceeds even the company's own worst case scenario for the report.

The loss would end up being 2x larger than Nintendo was predicting and about 20x larger than last year's loss for the mid-year report.

Slower than usual release schedule by Nintendo contributed to a than normal sales for both hardware and Nintendo published software. The weak sales by the 3DS in comparisons to expectations also hurt while Nintendo also allowed third parties more selling time before pumping out the big sellers by the company.

Profits are supposedly down a staggering ¥100 billion ($1.3 billion), which is twice what Nintendo forecast.

The two major culprits are struggling hardware sales and the stubbornly strong Japanese yen. Nintendo makes 80 percent of its profits from foreign sales, and lost a whopping ¥40 billion yen in foreign exchange. That's $526 million gone right there—poof.

Many Japanese companies have recently been complaining about the strong Japanese yen, threatening to move production abroad. Nintendo, who does not manufacture hardware in Japan, shows just how painful the strong yen is even for those companies who have already moved their manufacturing offshore.

Yet even with these huge losses, Nintendo still expects to turn a profit of ¥35 billion ($460 million), the lowest in the company's past 27 years and less than the company lost on the exchange rate.

The only good news for the company is their big releases for both the 3DS and Wii arrives after the report which is expected to help the company post a profit for the overall fiscal year ending in March 2012. The rumored Wii U launch would also help boost next year's mid-term report.

In terms of actual revenue, the company did make money for the mid-year but not at the expected rate the company nor analysts predicted. It was low enough to dethrone Nintendo from #1 spot in Japan in years with Namco-Bandi making the most money for the mid-term period even though the numbers were close.

http://www.screwattack.com/sites/default/files/imagecache/620x186_Featured_Banner/mariomoney2_0.jpg
http://www.screwattack.com/news/nintendo-may-have-%C2%A5100-billion-hole-its-pocket
http://kotaku.com/5853416/report-nintendo-bleeding-cash

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Quick News Round-Up:
1) The European version of the Metal Gear Solid HD Collection has been delayed from a late 2011 date to now a February 3rd, 2012 with no official reason given by Konami. The US/Canada and Japan versions will still arrive on time for its November 8, 2011 release date.

2) Japan's biggest gaming magazine, Famitsu, reveals memory cards are an absolute requirement for PS Vita games that don't have save ability built-in. The Vita will end up refusing to boot games if a memory card is not inserted.
List of known launch games requiring the mem stick => http://www.screwattack.com/news/some-vita-games-dont-stand-chance-without-memory-card

3) While Sega is reviving the Classic Sonic gameplay for the upcoming Sonic Generations game, the company announces they have no plans of making another Sonic game in the classic style outside of Sonic 4. The brand manager for the company admitted the only reason Classic Sonic was brought back was only due to the 20th anniversary of the series and not an actual business decision for future games.

[Xero]

Nintendo is always so stupid with the release of their systems lately. You rarely get the killer app for months, if not a year, and the first inflow of games are all about the gimmick more than the gameplay and tend to be mostly mini games. I can understand allowing time for third parties to get their shit in, but it definitely makes them suffer.

Plus there's the fact that, at least with their handheld devices, you should never buy the first one unless you're a diehard gamer because there will be one one or two years down the line that is vastly superior AND have a better library. The iPhone strategy is fine for some devices, but not for a game system. You're essentially a beta tester who pays more for a far less superior product.

[Emperor Smeat]

With the 3DS, Nintendo finally listened to all the third party companies (ex. EA) who always kept complaining it was impossible to get Nintendo-like sales if Nintendo kept releasing their big hits all the time.

So with the 3DS, Nintendo ended up using their lower tier or N64 games to help show off the 3D effects and instead third party companies flopped badly either producing shit (ex. EA's half-ass Madden 3D) or decided to delay/cancel games.

Wii made some sense because Nintendo went all out in 2010 and then used 2011 to clean up the project schedule so they can start on the Wii U launch games. It didn't help that third party companies also abandoned the system once 2011 occurred and nobody wanted to compete with Nintendo for the Fall because of the new Zelda game launching in that period.

[Xero]

Yeah but it's not like this is the first system to do this. Look at Wii's launch line up. The best thing on there was a fucking Gamecube port. DS had Mario 64 with the failed gimmick of it having a digital analog stick.

I understand holding back your big franchises and not flooding the market with them, but they really should be releasing one of them alongside the console to legitimately show off what it can do.

And honestly, 90% of the third party games released on Nintendo hardware since the DS launched is fucking shit. They don't look for quality anymore, it's about touting a huge library of mini game collections.

[RoXer]

http://store.steampowered.com/app/65235/

[Xero]

Isn't that the game with like $1000 worth of DLC?

[#BROKEN Hasney]

Nah, that was it's prequel.

If this was cheaper than £15.99 with the zombie DLC, I'd be all over it.

[Emperor Smeat]

IGN involved in a scandal after it was found out a reviewer "lied" about what was played during a review and the developer attempted to force the review to be changed due to problems with the hopes of a better score.

The issue involves PixelJunk SideScroller for the PS3 where the reviewer, Daemon Hatfield, complained about the abrupt ending of the game while also claiming it was played on "normal" mode. The developer for the game, Dylan Cuthbert, complained on Twitter the review must have been wrong because only the "Casual" difficulty lacks the real ending.

Daemon Hatfield eventually admitted to playing the game in the casual difficulty for the purpose of the review and even took down part of the review in question as a way to please the developer. He also admitted time constraints forced the original review to be done quickly due to IGN having rights to an early review.

After replaying the game in normal difficulty to see the ending and if anything else changed, the end result was nothing in the actual review got changed. The real ending was not enough to change the primary issue of the game's cost along with it being too short to impact the score of 6.5 given for the game.

PS3 fans ended up being enraged at the lack of a score increase and the fact the original review lied a bit. As of now an attempt to boycott or spread the word against IGN on Twitter and Facebook has started by the same disgruntled group.

http://download.gamezone.com/uploads/image/data/870745/pixeljunk.jpg
http://www.gamezone.com/news/how-ign-s-daemon-hatfield-should-ve-responded-instead-of-removing-review
Review from IGN: http://ps3.ign.com/articles/121/1210725p1.html

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Quick News Round-Up:
1) Update to Nintendo having one of their worst financial reports in 27 years with the company officially revealing the loss in profits was $840+ million which ends up being $500 million less than initially assumed. Nintendo also stated of the mid-term loss, about $600 million was due to the foreign exchange rate into Yen.

2) The rumored sequel to Ubisoft's 2003 cell-shaded shooter called "XIII" has been revealed not to be a shooter at all but an interactive puzzle-story game and only for the iOS platform. The story will take place after the ending of the original game but after that will share almost nothing in terms of gameplay from the original.

3) Sony announces the "first edition" bundle for the upcoming PS Vita will arrive a week earlier than the official launch of the handheld with the catch of only the 3G model will be on sale early. The Wifi version will come with a 4GB card and a carrying case for $299 while the 3G model will include the 4GB card, carrying case, and Little Deviants game for $349.

[Kalyx triaD]

lol

[Xero]

From Joystiq:

If you prefer the vibrant, jewel-toned streets of Vice City or the gritty, decidedly not-jewel-toned avenues of San Andreas to the trappings of Old Liberty City, you might have your fancy tickled by Rockstar soon enough. The developer, which recently showed off its iOS port of Grand Theft Auto 3, recently told Digital Trends that, though it might be a "technical challenge," similarly mobile versions of GTA: Vice City and GTA: San Andreas are "very possible."

That's the kind of can-do attitude that made Rockstar the top-flight development studio it is today. Well, that and the secret deal that Dan Houser made with the devil back in 1999. Oh, right, breaking news: Dan Houser made a deal with the devil back in 1999. We forgot that wasn't common knowledge!

Also: http://www.joystiq.com/2011/10/20/hijacking-the-fun-grand-theft-auto-3-on-ipad/

How did I miss this news of GTA3 being ported to iOS? Not that it pertains to me, but it's interesting.

Though without an actual controller I can't see it working out. Can't play any "traditional" games (read: not something that feels like a mini game) with a touch pad for the life of me.

[#BROKEN Hasney]

From what I've read, it's going to high end Android phones as well.

NOT the Xperia Play, though. Sony really skimped on the power of that.

[Emperor Smeat]

How did I miss this news of GTA3 being ported to iOS? Not that it pertains to me, but it's interesting.


It was part of GTA III 10 year anniversary by Rockstar and sort of came out of nowhere when they first announced it. I think they also released art or something spanning either the entire decade of GTA games (III, VC, SA) or just for GTA III for mobile devices.

[Emperor Smeat]

After some confusion at E3 over Nintendo's press conference debuting the Wii U and the reports of Nintendo re-tweaking the system, the company announces the Wii U will get a second debut with this one called the final version.

Initial confusion had people wondering if the controller itself was the new system due to Nintendo barely mentioning anything about the system itself. The lack of potential prices and other information regarding games also was a factor in the confusion.

"We would like to show the final format of the Wii U at the E3 show next year," he said. "As we learned a bitter lesson with the launch of the Nintendo 3DS, we are trying to take every possible measure so that the Wii U will have a successful launch."

Due to the slow start of the 3DS, the drought of games for the Wii, and the poor financial reports for 2011, the company also has reworked their entire strategy for the system. The main goals revolves around lowering the costs for the consumer and ensuring a steady stream of games are available once the system launches.

Changes to the system itself were also done both to ensure multiple Wii U controllers could be used at once and changing specs after listening to input from several developers.

Current rumors place the launch around a June 2012 release window with he possibility of sliding to a Fall 2012 as a worst case scenario.

http://www.screwattack.com/sites/default/files/imagecache/620x186_Featured_Banner/Wii-U222_0.jpg
http://www.gamezone.com/news/nintendo-says-lack-of-games-is-a-result-of-wii-u-preparation
http://www.screwattack.com/news/nintendo-will-re-unveil-wii-u-what

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Daily Recap:
1) Valve Halloween sale for Steam starts today and ends on October 31 with discounts ranging from 25% to 80% for games.
http://www.screwattack.com/news/deal-day-steam-starts-massive-halloween-sale-major-discounts

2) Ubisoft brining Assasin's Creed and other franchises to iOS devices with Assasin's Creed: Rearmed being the first avaliable.
http://www.screwattack.com/news/ubisoft-bringing-major-franchises-ios-devices

3) Electronic Arts posts a $340 million loss on the previous financial quarter.
http://www.vgchartz.com/article/88330/ea-loses-340m-in-the-september-2011-quarter/

4) Batman: Arkham City and Saints Row 3 are arriving on EA' Origin service as the first non-EA published games for sale on the service.
http://www.screwattack.com/news/batman-and-saints-row-head-origin

[Blitz]

So yeah.

http://bulk.destructoid.com/ul/214790-phoenix-wright-movie-screen/PhoenixWrightMovieStill-620x.jpg

<iframe width="420" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/mTO9eQ9zRGw" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

As directed by Takashi Miike.

[Vietnamese Crippler]

Amazing.

So they're telling the story of the first game?

[Boomer]

Not that I'm in a rush or anything, but why the fuck does Goozex have nothing available? Way too much demand and no supply. I can trade my games in immediately all day, but I've got 2500 points and absolutely nothing to spend them on.

[G]

There is plenty available, just not any new releases.

[Xero]

Go get 25 PS2 games.

[Boomer]

I would not consider Condemned 2 or Dead Rising 2 or the Sly Collection new, and there are zero copies available. Everything that is available is either something I've already played or a five year old sports game.

And getting any copies of PS2 games would be useless, as the laser in my PS2 is broken. Thankfully, I can still play games from the hard drive and that my stupid ridiculous mod chip is still working after seven or eight years of use.

[Emperor Smeat]

Microsoft announces as part of the upcoming Kinect's first anniversary celebration, the company will be providing selling the tools for commercial products to expand the device beyond gaming-only applications.

The inspiration for the idea came due to PC hacking enthusiasts who were able to hack the add-on and show off all the amazing things possible since the early beta of the device.

The plan called "Kinect for Windows commercial program" will also help integrate the Kinect and the Xbox to the company's Windows 7 platform as part of the push towards a more unified service and branding.

At least 200 businesses have either placed orders or shown interest in the tools once it officially goes on sale.

200 businesses--including Toyota, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt and Razorfish--have reportedly signed up for a Kinect pilot program, gaining early access to the updated software development kit.

http://media.giantbomb.com/uploads/3/33504/1117256-project_natal_sensor_middle.jpg
http://www.giantbomb.com/news/microsoft-turning-kinect-into-a-business-tool-early-next-year/3777/

----------------------------------------------------
Daily Recap:
1) Original beta planned for Counter Strike Go has been delayed after Valve listened to feedback from CS pro-gamers who were given early access to the pre-beta copy.
http://www.screwattack.com/news/pro-gamers-delay-counter-strike-go-beta

2) Former Wii-exclusive rail shooters of Resident Evil Umbrella Chronicles and Darkside Chronicles will be arriving as an HD set for the PS3 with full Move support.
http://gamrfeed.vgchartz.com/story/88349/resident-evil-chronicles-hd-announced/

3) Darkstalkers: The Night Warriors will be getting a re-release on PSN with the likely scenario of the game being a PS1 Classic title and not from the arcade version.
http://www.screwattack.com/news/darkstalkers-night-warriors-coming-ps3-and-psp

[D Mac]

Modern Combat 3 for iOS looks worth getting.

[Emperor Smeat]

As part of Nintendo's re-evaluation in their development and strategy process for games and marketing, the company reveals a few things such how they "sacrificed" a year's worth of profits for the 3DS and the need for new games without getting the assumption of the company only makes those types of games.

In terms of the 3DS, Nintendo was willing to "sacrifice" a year's worth of profits at the cost of their other plans and platforms for 2011 just to ensure the 3DS had a stronger start than the DS. This was meant to make investors happy and continue the strong momentum the DS generated.

"As far as the current term, ending in March 2012, is concerned, we have decided that driving the sales of Nintendo 3DS hardware is our main priority, and in a sense, we can say that by doing this, we have sacrificed our profitability for this fiscal year," Iwata said.

While investors were not happy at the supposed slow sales in terms of hardware, Nintendo didn't back away from the plan knowing they only needed more time for games to ensure a strong end for 2011. They also focused more on ensuring a stable future than the current fiscal term once the system outsold the amount the DS did for its first year.

In terms of games themselves, Nintendo was well aware people started to believe the company could only make Brain Age or certain "casual" games due to only those games getting high sales. They also realized this occurred due to a huge misunderstanding by consumers which ended up hurting other new IPs and lower tier titles because of those games being different than what the public believed Nintendo makes.

"We have made efforts to develop video games that are in tune with various consumer tastes; however, we have not been able to gain adequate consumer understanding regarding our intentions, while in the common perception there are no or few core users playing Nintendo platforms, which is not the case."

The company also has been well aware for a while the growing impact of smartphones for gaming. While the company is worried at the speed of which phones can "innovate" with games and features, Nintendo has changed their strategy to focus more on innovating more with new games to create another "Brain Age" instead of just relying on Mario or other powerful IPs.

Iwata noted Brain Age and Wii Fit as past success stories that innovated with new gameplay styles, while at the same time being big sellers for Nintendo. He says that there plans in motion to sell new games that will break new ground in a similar fashion over the next fiscal year.

But he said he is a bit concerned about how competitors from the ever growing smartphone market can come up with new and interesting ideas at a seemingly faster rate.

http://www.screwattack.com/sites/default/files/imagecache/620x186_Featured_Banner/Nintendo-Handheld-Gaming.jpg
http://www.screwattack.com/news/nintendo-sacrificed-profit-3ds
http://www.screwattack.com/news/nintendo-just-misunderstood
http://www.screwattack.com/news/nintendo-wants-boost-sales-creating-new-kinds-games

----------------------------------------------------------------------
Daily Recap:
1) Massive layoffs confirmed to have occurred at Silicon Knights with about 75% of the workforce released and the company currently in a restructuring phase.
http://www.giantbomb.com/news/silicon-knights-reportedly-lays-off-dozens-of-employees/3780/

2) EA dismisses claims of their Origin digital service scanning inside people's computers after complaints of the application going as far as looking for tax returns folders during scans.
http://www.screwattack.com/news/bf3-origin-users-arent-being-spied-ea-says

3) Sonic CD and other free goodies revealed to be in the bundle of stuff given away for those who purchase Gamestop's produced Android Tablet devices.
http://kotaku.com/5855334/sonic-cd-comes-early-to-gamestop-tablet-customers

[ClockShot]

Silicon Knights is still around?

[Kane Knight]

As part of Nintendo's re-evaluation in their development and strategy process for games and marketing, the company reveals a few things such how they "sacrificed" a year's worth of profits for the 3DS and the need for new games without getting the assumption of the company only makes those types of games.

In terms of the 3DS, Nintendo was willing to "sacrifice" a year's worth of profits at the cost of their other plans and platforms for 2011 just to ensure the 3DS had a stronger start than the DS. This was meant to make investors happy and continue the strong momentum the DS generated.

LOLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL!

Silicon Knights is still around?

Yup, and they're apparently going back to their roots.

http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/113973-A-Weakened-Silicon-Knights-Refocuses-On-One-Of-Its-Most-Requested-Titles

Pleeeeease be Eternal Darkness....

[Funky Fly]

My hopes are a little less lofty.

Pleeeeeease just don't make shitty games anymore. :'(

[Emperor Smeat]

If it is Eternal Darkness 2, then it might end up as a launch title for the Wii U depending when it finally gets released. Nintendo owns the rights to the sanity meter effect and they have been trying to figure out how to use the vitality sensor for a game.

[Kalyx triaD]

We mustn't forget Silicon Knights have sucked for years now.

[Emperor Smeat]

Based on recent patent filings and design documents from Sony, it appears the company is currently working on a new controller tech similar to the Vitality sensor from Nintendo.

The idea also has some similarities to a previous patent filing from a different company which uses a liquid-like substance to improve rumble technology in devices.

Sony's potential tech would measure skin resistance to certain areas of a device gripped by hands and then calculate the stress level of the current player due to the friction from the sweat or pulse.

These results could then be relayed to the game which then would adjust certain aspects such as difficulty or music changes to either benefit the gamer or help increase tensions for a quick fear effect.

Well they'll reportedly measure galvanic skin resistance (moisture on the skin); electrocardio data (your heartbeat); and electro-muscular data (muscle movement). That info gets sent to the game, and will then be used to influence gameplay in a number of ways including the following:

Weapon changes based on stressed level, either increasing or decreasing in accuracy. For example, imagine being in a sniper situation where the weapon becomes more accurate as you relax.
Charging a shield by tensing your muscles
Characters that sweat when you sweat, or change expressions, movement, and posture based on your biometric data.
Harder punches, higher jumps, and faster running speeds when stressed.
Quicker health depletion as your stress levels increase.
An attack button that allows a character's move to change based on your stress level.
Changes in background music and scenery based on stress levels.
Changes in game difficulty depending on stress levels


http://www.screwattack.com/sites/default/files/image/images/News/2011/1102/image_thumb2.png http://www.screwattack.com/sites/default/files/image/images/News/2011/1102/image_thumb3.png
http://www.screwattack.com/news/your-sweat-could-change-everything

----------------------------------------------------------------------
Daily Recap:
1) Ubisoft buys RedLynx studio (creators of the Trials racing series) for an undisclosed fee which will take effect after Trials Evolution is released due to Microsoft being the publisher for the game.
http://www.giantbomb.com/news/ubisoft-buys-trials-hd-developer-redlynx/3785/

2) Sony's 2nd quarter financial report shows the company lost $350 million with the revised March 2012 yearly report now showing an overall loss of $1.1 billion instead of the previously expected $700+ million in profits.
http://www.vgchartz.com/article/88359/sony-loses-350m-in-july-sept-2011-ps3-shipments-within-2m-of-x360/

3) Ninja Theory states the current Dante character for the reboot of the Devil May Cry series is now considered a spin-off or a separate Dante in a "parallel" universe from the Dante in the original DMC series.
http://www.screwattack.com/news/dmcs-dante-exists-parallel-universe

[Captain of Fun]

http://img801.imageshack.us/img801/9401/20110328thewaitinggame.png

[Kane Knight]

My hopes are a little less lofty.

Pleeeeeease just don't make shitty games anymore. :'(

Bah. If they're not going to release a game I give a damn about, they can go away for all I care.

[Emperor Smeat]

Ubisoft confirms the upcoming Rainbow Six game does have the title of "Rainbow 6: Patriots" and also confirmed moral choices in the game plays a huge role in how the gameplay and plot develops.

The plot revolves around a new enemy group in the game is called "True Patriots" who are home-grown terrorists. Their primary goal is to topple the US government which they feel is "corrupt".

In a new feature for the series, the game will offer "moral" choices for certain sections and based on the decision taken, the game will then branch-off into different levels instead of the more linear style of previous games. The branching will affect future choices and even the storyline itself as a way to provide multiple endings and experiences.

The new branching feature is why the game no longer goes by the older "Rainbow Six" tag but now as "Rainbow 6" due to them feeling the game breaks away enough to be considered a new series.

Players will have to make "tough ethical decisions" as the story progresses, signaling a brand new direction for the franchise. Perhaps that's why they've stopped using Rainbow Six in favor of the sleeker, sexier Rainbow 6.

The studio gave an example of a branching storyline in the game where at one point a home burglary occurs by an unknown group who straps a bomb to the chest of a "hostage."

In the video we see a group of men break into a home and threaten a man who they say cashed in when everyone else got foreclosed on.

A bomb is strapped to the man's body. He is told to hold the bomb's detonator and keep it from exploding until they get to Times Square—or his family dies. When the perspective shifts to the Rainbow Six team they're eventually asked to toss the man off a bridge to save the lives of hundreds of people. While not shown in the video released to Game Informer, Kotaku saw gameplay that shows the player the number of nearby civilians that could die if a player makes a different decision at the game's predetermined crossroads.

The game is expected for a 2013 release date with at least the Xbox 360, PS3, and PC confirmed as platforms.

http://cache.kotaku.com/assets/images/9/2011/11/f61a4c999f233fed79af50ff943cc4ac.jpg
http://kotaku.com/5856191/branching-levels-driven-by-moral-choices-could-be-rainbow-6s-secret-weapon
http://kotaku.com/5856120/homegrown-terrorists-fight-to-take-back-america-in-rainbow-6-patriots/gallery/1

-------------------------------------------------------------------
Daily Recap:
1) Major Nelson's blog confirms the next Alan Wake game will be an XBLA downloadable title and will debut at this year's Spike TV VGA show.
http://kotaku.com/5856231/the-next-alan-wake-will-indeed-be-an-xbox-live-downloadable-game

2) Spike Tv reveals the nominees for their Game of the Year award with a Nintendo gaming included for the first time since 2003 and 4 of the games were not actually released during the time the list was made.
http://www.giantbomb.com/news/2011-spike-video-game-awards-will-award-video-games-with-awards-also-announce-things/3787/

3) Apple and Steve Jobs voted as the most influential company and person in the video game industry based on a poll involving only people in the industry.
http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/113986-Apple-Voted-Largest-Influence-On-Gaming-Industry

[Captain of Fun]

8-bit sunglasses

Would be all over these if they weren't 280 fucking dollars.

http://www.ufunk.net/wp-content/uploads/2010/05/6-dpi-eyewear-8bit-glasses-1.jpg

[G]

Nov 18 (wife's bday & day we are closing on our new house - both relevant) appears to be the end of gamesharing on ps3. $ony (haha) is now limiting the amount of systems per account to 2, down from 5. I guess paying half price is still better than full, but I might as well just buy it on the 360.

[Emperor Smeat]

Surprised it didn't happen sooner considering how huge requests for gamesharing are on a lot of the big video game forums and publishers always complaining about lost sales or favoring XBLA for digital games.

[Kane Knight]

Systems per account? You mean, like, you're limited to the number of consoles your account can be tied to or something?

No real clue what this is aboot.

[G]

Systems per account? You mean, like, you're limited to the number of consoles your account can be tied to or something?

No real clue what this is aboot.

Right. You can have the same account on 5 ps3's. That means 5 people can play the same one time purchased games. I regularly get in groups over at CAG to do this, so I pay 1/5th of the price. Sony is now changing it to 2 systems.

Example: RoXer1 purchases a game. I then use his log in info to put his account on my system. I go to his download history and redownload said purchased game. I can then log onto my main account and play it like I bought it.

[LoDownM]

Nevermind, G types faster then me.

[G]

The great thing about gamesharing (besides 1/5th the price) is that you can resell your share after you're done.

Example: I bought Crysis 1 the other week for $3. After I beat it someone pays me $3 and I give them the account info and I deactivate the account on my system.

[Kane Knight]

Right. You can have the same account on 5 ps3's. That means 5 people can play the same one time purchased games. I regularly get in groups over at CAG to do this, so I pay 1/5th of the price. Sony is now changing it to 2 systems.

Example: RoXer1 purchases a game. I then use his log in info to put his account on my system. I go to his download history and redownload said purchased game. I can then log onto my main account and play it like I bought it.


I'm surprised they had a system like this in the first place.

[G]

Example:

[G]

I'm surprised they had a system like this in the first place.

Yah, no idea why they would do that.

[#BROKEN Hasney]

Right. You can have the same account on 5 ps3's. That means 5 people can play the same one time purchased games. I regularly get in groups over at CAG to do this, so I pay 1/5th of the price. Sony is now changing it to 2 systems.

Example: RoXer1 purchases a game. I then use his log in info to put his account on my system. I go to his download history and redownload said purchased game. I can then log onto my main account and play it like I bought it.


Which also includes PSP's and Vita's for those games that can also be used on the handheld, so it can only be tied to 2 Sony systems in it's entirety. You have to call Sony to deactivate systems.

[G]

You have to call Sony to deactivate systems.

That's a change coming up?

[Kane Knight]

Yah, no idea why they would do that.

Have they been planning this for a while? I only ask because of the news that 56% of gamers don't buy games (http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/114009-56-of-American-Gamers-Dont-Buy-Games).

I have little perspective on the firm that did the study. All I really know is that when one of their analysts said EA and Blizzard would have to court the casual market sooner or later, the Escapist forums were all "This is a crock of shit!" And when this hit, the tone switched from dismissal of the firm to "OMG! ONLINE PASSES WILL SAVE GAMING!"

It's not like Michael Patcher, where you know where he stands. On a hill of bullshit.

Which also includes PSP's and Vita's for those games that can also be used on the handheld, so it can only be tied to 2 Sony systems in it's entirety. You have to call Sony to deactivate systems.

Oh wow, that's fucking stupid.

Seriously, I could certainly see 5 PS3s being unnecesary, but 5 devices off two generations, two of which are portable?

And I've never really got the "You need to call to deactivate" thing. I don't know, I like Amazon's system where I can just go and deactivate my devices. I wouldn't mind calling to deacvtivate something if I was more likely to not wait 30 minutes just to talk to a real human. If they're going to make me interact with a machine, at least make it a computer so I can finish in ten seconds....

Much like Sascha's love life.

[G]

http://www.blogcdn.com/www.joystiq.com/media/2011/11/gamnightsprings530.jpg

[G]

Have they been planning this for a while?

Planning the upcoming changes? Or the whole gamesharing idea to being with?

And I've never really got the "You need to call to deactivate" thing. I don't know, I like Amazon's system where I can just go and deactivate my devices. I wouldn't mind calling to deacvtivate something if I was more likely to not wait 30 minutes just to talk to a real human. If they're going to make me interact with a machine, at least make it a computer so I can finish in ten seconds....

Over at CAG they are saying you will be able to deactivate your system on the computer also.

[G]

should have changed your font to red, to gear up for the season :(

[Kalyx triaD]

Never played Alan Wake.

[Kane Knight]

I meant planned the changes, yeah.

If they're downgrading the system, they probably have been doing it for a while, rather than implementing it in the future.

[Kane Knight]

should have changed your font to red, to gear up for the season :(

Ho Ho Ho, motherfucker.

[Emperor Smeat]

According to the executive producer of Gears of War 3, Rod Fergusson, the reason Epic Games can charge for DLC is because they view discs as a delivery system and not as an actual full product anymore.

"We're not saying that everything on the disc is the product," Gears 3 executive producer Rod Fergusson said in a telephone interview. "The disc is another delivery mechanism."

They also responded to the growing resentment at the recent Horde DLC pack being a small 1.42 MB download on Xbox Live Marketplace even though the pack was advertised as all brand new stuff not found in the game itself. This would have meant the DLC pack would have been at a larger size and not been secertly locked away on the disc.

While the executive producer understands why people are upset, his actual reasons for locking content included feeling the stuff already unlocked for players was more than enough for $60 and their schedule getting delayed "messed up" their plans for DLC.

Fergusson can justify his game's on-disc DLC. His answer is complex, but logical. It goes back to the fact that Gears of War 3 was originally going to ship in the spring, but was delayed to the fall. "We had begun DLC packs early enough, and with the extension to our schedule. It meant we had that stuff done before we shipped." He was talking specifically about this first DLC pack. The others aren't on the disc. This first one included weapons and maps that needed to be visible to all players, even those who weren't going to pay for them.

Game developers don't want to splinter their multiplayer community into sub-communities that each have to own the exact same pieces of content to play with each other. To get around that, they often provide new DLC to all players, ensuring that all of them can see the content. But only those who pay for it can use the DLC weapon skin or host the DLC map.

...

The spring delay gave Epic a new option: instead of making every gamer download the Horde Command Pack content, they could finish that DLC before the fall and put it in some of the open space on the Gears game disc. "We felt it was a win/win, because no one is going to have to download anything huge when the DLC comes out."

Gears of War 3 already had a lot of content, even for a full-priced game. Fergusson said reviewers have said there is as much as three games in one, what with the game's replayable co-op campaign, its extensive co-op Horde and Beast modes and its competitive multiplayer. He doesn't think gamers were short-changed for the $60 even if they weren't getting access to all the content on the disc without paying an extra $10.

"I think the thing that makes it muddy for people is when it's on the disc," he said. But Fergusson views the disc not simply as a purchased game but as a delivery mechanism. "We could have left it off and said, 'Hey, here's another disc.'" ... It all comes down to what people believe they're paying for and, as far as Epic is concerned, gamers paid for the full game that they got access to this past September.

He also tried to shift blame away from his company by saying other companies were doing the same thing in terms of locking content for DLC and his company nor was Gears of War 3 the first to do this idea.

http://fastcache.gawkerassets.com/assets/images/9/2011/11/ba418c452561512974e53cb4e3ca3a4b.jpg
http://kotaku.com/5856425/gears-of-war-3-creator-explains-why-theyre-charging-to-unlock-content-thats-already-on-the-disc

---------------------------------------------------------------------
Daily Recap:
1) Square-Enix announces a "Winter of RPG" will be arriving on PSN with Chrono Cross (Nov. 8), Final Fantasy V (Nov. 22), and Final Fantasy VI (Dec. 6) as the games avaliable in the promotion.
http://www.screwattack.com/news/winter-rpgs-hits-psn

2) Based on recent patent filings, a sequel to Dead Island from developer Deep Silver studio is in development and could be titled as "Dead World."
http://gamrfeed.vgchartz.com/story/88395/is-dead-world-the-sequel-to-dead-island/

3) According to an employee involved with work on Fable 2 and Fable 3, Lionhead almost had the chance of shutting down if it wasn't for the eventual purchase of the company by Microsoft in 2006.
http://www.vg247.com/2011/11/04/lionhead-was-on-its-knees-before-microsoft-buyout-says-former-environmental-artist/

[Kane Knight]

Call me old fashioned, but I think DLC should be downloadable.

Winter of RPGs :y:

[#BROKEN Hasney]

Over at CAG they are saying you will be able to deactivate your system on the computer also.

Destructoid is just saying "via customer services", which I just assumed to be telephone. I could be wrong.

[Kalyx triaD]

They should rename all DLC - 'Bonus Content'.

[Kane Knight]

I can't wait until endings are bonus content.

[D Mac]

Never played Alan Wake.

I bought it used, played the first level, and got rid of it a week later.

[Kalyx triaD]

Seemed nice, though.

[Kane Knight]

Looked like a decent game, just not one I'd pay full price for.

[Emperor Smeat]

Sega hints a new Sonic game could arrive next year and the basis for the new game would be from Sonic Generations than something completely new or different from the series. Their goal is to start a new "generation" for Sonic similar to how adults grew up with Classic Sonic and children with Modern Sonic.

http://www.screwattack.com/news/will-we-see-brand-new-sonic-2012


The news is related to a recent patent filed by Nintendo that would include a touch-pad like screen to a controller either as a potential add-on to existing Wii-motes or as a brand new controller outside of the tablet Wii U controller and current Wii-motes.

http://download.gamezone.com/uploads/image/data/871307/01_wii.jpg
http://www.gamezone.com/news/nintendo-patents-new-touchpad-accessory-for-wiimote


While it might seem like a weird idea from Nintendo, the current rumor is Sega wants a touch-pad on a controller because the new Sonic game will be using touch-pad controls or at least revolve around them for a console release.

Sega might have made the request to Nintendo similar to Capcom requesting the Slider Pad (Circle Pad in the US) for the 3DS.

The new Sonic game will be called Sonic Dimensions and based on a potentially leaked report could be exclusive to the Wii U due to the tablet screen on the controller. The game is also being hinted as a "spiritual" successor to Sonic Colors which was exclusive to the Wii last year.

- working title
- takes place directly after Generations
- spiritual successor to Sonic Colors
- visual quality in line with Generations
- will take advantage of many Wii U specific capabilities
- includes the use of the Wii U controllers for up to a 4 person multiplayer
- use of touchscreen to destroy enemies and activate powers
- storyline will center around another time-space continuum shift at the hands of Eggman
- this alters Sonic’s world and Sonic himself
- Sonic will allegedly split into multiple personalities denoted by color
- each color has its own unique abilities
- blue Sonic will be the core Sonic, and will be the uniting figure with the other colors
- five other colors: Red, Orange, Purple, Green, and Yellow
- Red Sonic can cause explosions to open up new areas, but has a slow speed and a short jump
- Purple Sonic will be able to move platforms and float and will have a dark attitude
- Orange personality similar to Big the Cat
- yellow Sonic will be the fastest of them all, but takes damage easily
- only two of the personalities can be used in-stage
- all may be able to combine and act as an equivalent Super Guide
- White Sonic allegedly pops up as an option after dying in a stage a certain number of times
- using White Sonic will make the game easier, but will give you a low rank
- SEGA may be working with Nintendo developers on this game
- includes most of the Sonic Colors staff
- Nintendo helping with level design, which will take a more surreal approach
- Music Plant from Sonic Advance 2 may be revived for this project
- Rival battles: fight evil versions of friends like Amy Rose
- Eggman's personality will split, making a nice version
- classic Sonic-style 2D elements

http://nintendoeverything.com/76861/rumor-sonic-dimensions-in-the-works-for-wii-u-details/

The original site that leaked the potentially new Sonic game was taken down either from Sega themselves or according to the website for "maintenance" issues due to an "attack."

[Kane Knight]

Is Beenox making it?

[G]

boy i sure hope so. they did a fantastic job with edge of time

[Kane Knight]

did they?

[#BROKEN Hasney]

So take Sonic Generations, a game that has very few gameplay gimmicks and has been praised overall, then add a touch-screen gimmick and basically make it colours.

Sounds like Generstions really was a one-off :(

[What Would Kevin Do?]

[COLOR=Lime]Originally Posted by Kane Knight
Have they been planning this for a while?

Planning the upcoming changes? Or the whole gamesharing idea to being with?

And I've never really got the "You need to call to deactivate" thing. I don't know, I like Amazon's system where I can just go and deactivate my devices. I wouldn't mind calling to deacvtivate something if I was more likely to not wait 30 minutes just to talk to a real human. If they're going to make me interact with a machine, at least make it a computer so I can finish in ten seconds....

Over at CAG they are saying you will be able to deactivate your system on the computer also.

So what happens if you have more than 2 systems active when it switches, as I think I have 4, and I only have access to 2 of them. One is attached to a PS3 that died, and the other is attached to my friend's old PS3 that he sold, and "deleted" my account, but didn't deactivate it.

My main concern is I don't want to have my current PS3 die, and not be able to put my account on another one. In the past, Sony support has pretty much downright refused to deactivate PS3s over the phone. So if they're switching, I want to make sure the right ones get dropped.

Hopefully Sony doesn't fuck this up royally.

[What Would Kevin Do?]

NEvermind

http://blog.us.playstation.com/2011/11/04/upcoming-change-to-playstation-3-and-psp-game-content-on-playstation-network/comment-page-2/#comments

Nov
04

2011 Upcoming Change to PlayStation 3 and PSP Game Content on PlayStation Network

+ Posted by Eric Lempel // VP, Sony Network Entertainment

We’d like to inform you of some upcoming changes to the usage policies for PlayStation Network game content. As of November 18, 2011, the number of devices that can be activated on one PlayStation Network account for game content purchased from the PlayStation Store will be updated as follows:

For game content purchased after November 18, 2011, a new policy will apply and the number of devices that can be activated will be as follows:

•PS3: Users will be able to play the game on up to 2 activated PS3 systems.
•PSP: Users will be able to play the game on up to 2 activated PSP systems.
Please note that this update will not affect game content purchased before November 18. The PSP rights include PSP-1000/2000/3000 series as well as the PSPgo system.

PlayStation Network users are able to change the activation setting through each device, and Sony Computer Entertainment plans to provide a new PlayStation Network accoun

[Kane Knight]

Hopefully Sony doesn't fuck this up royally.


They wouldn't be sony if they didn't.

[D Mac]

Finally beat Fallout New Vegas.

[Kane Knight]

I really need to pick F3 back up.

[DaveBrawl]

Same here.

[G]

http://media1.gameinformer.com/imagefeed/screenshots/News/Alan_Wake_GI_teaser.jpg

[Emperor Smeat]

In an interview with My Games website, the producer for the Zelda series, Eiji Aonuma, reveals some new details on the upcoming Zelda project for the 3DS.

While Nintendo hinted months ago a new Zelda was in development and also hinted a Majora's Mask 3D remake is a possibility, the upcoming 3DS Zelda game will not be a remake of Majora's Mask nor be directly related to previous handheld Zelda games.

The game will also rely heavily on the 3D effect in a stronger way than what Ocarina of Time did on the 3DS while also being the start of a new sub-story or direction for the Zelda storyline involving handhelds.

"We are already preparing a new game, a game in the series for the Nintendo 3DS, but don't think that it is a direct sequel to the Zelda titles released on DS. We are talking about a new game, but it takes much of what has been done on previous handhelds."

http://www.screwattack.com/sites/default/files/image/images/News/2011/0826/aonuma%281%29.jpg
http://www.screwattack.com/news/aonuma-sheds-bit-more-light-next-3ds-zelda

-----------------------------------------------------------------
Daily Recap:
1) Valve has taken down the Steam forums with no re-upload date announced after a recent hacking attack occurred and was redirecting links to the hackers website.
http://www.screwattack.com/news/steam-forum-gets-fknowned]

2) Harmonix praises Dance Central as "saving" the company due to the first DC game generating $100 million and helped the company from shutting down after getting dropped by Viacom.
http://www.screwattack.com/news/harmonix-dances-away-bankruptcy-thanks-dance-central

3) S&P threatens to lower Sony's credit rating after an early report showed the company will post its 4th consecutive yearly loss and trigger the stock review. Sony also revealed their Playstation division will not be posting a profit even though software and hardware sales are up for the year.
http://www.vgchartz.com/article/88416/s-amp-p-warns-sony-on-projection-for-4th-consecutive-annual-loss/

[Drakul]

Rumour on the next Xbox.

Insider blog MS nerd, which has been right on a few things coming out of Microsoft HQ from time to time, reckons it has some info on the next Xbox console.

Currently codenamed "Loop", the site says the console will have a single main processor that's joined by "assistive cores" for "graphics, AI, physics, sound, networking, encryption and sensors".

To be both smaller and cheaper than the Xbox 360 (it's not specified whether it'll be cheaper than the 360 is now or cheaper than it was at launch), it will also apparently run on a modified version of Windows 9. The console will, according to the site, be designed as a joint venture between Microsoft and "two partners based on the ARM architecture".

All of which sounds interesting. And, with the next Xbox not due for at least another year or three, completely unverified and liable to change (if it's true in the first place!).

We've contacted Microsoft for comment, and will update if we hear back.

Source (http://kotaku.com/5857315/next-xbox-codenamed-loop-runs-on-modified-windows-9).

[Emperor Smeat]

Microsoft current plans for Kinect involve the device to become the new center piece for the company with the main goal of having the device eventually become the new standard for PCs within the next few years.

This would go along with their upcoming plans for 2012 to integrate all the Microsoft brands into a more centralized service with Xbox Live and Kinect playing a huge role for Windows 7.

"The updated software development kit that we released today includes some great new features that help us get closer to realizing this vision, including faster skeletal tracking, better accuracy rate when it comes to skeletal tracking and joint recognition, and the ability to plug and unplug your Kinect without losing work/productivity."

Previous reports showed Microsoft was expanding Kinect's ability outside of just gaming to take advantage of support from businesses and from early hacking accomplishments from the PC modding community.

Kinect was also rumored in other reports to become the standard feature for the next Xbox console.

http://www.screwattack.com/sites/default/files/imagecache/620x186_Featured_Banner/Kinect-Test_0.jpg
http://www.screwattack.com/news/kinect-aims-be-bigger-part-everyones-life

---------------------------------------------------------------------
Daily Recap:
1) The plans for an Assassin's Creed movie appears to be stalled at the moment due to Hollywood studios upset at the level of control and direction Ubisoft has for the potential movie.
http://www.screwattack.com/news/assassins-creed-movie-might-not-get-ground

2) Based on PEGI ratings, the next set of PSOne Classics on PSN for Europe will be Fighting Force 1 & 2 and Fear Effect 1 & 2.
http://www.screwattack.com/news/fear-effect-and-fighting-force-series-coming-out-psn

3) According to a few sources, the recent spec changes to the Wii U now allow two Wii U tablets to be used at once and is currently the standard in recent dev kits.
http://www.screwattack.com/news/wii-u-could-support-multi-tablet-action

4) THQ confirms Saints Row 4 is in development and could arrive for the next generation of consoles with a 2013 or 2014 release date
http://xbox360.ign.com/articles/121/1211947p1.html

[Kane Knight]

Did Screwattack or you write these? Because the Assassin's Creed "recap" is completely inaccurate and belies the actual article. And even that's not entirely accurate to the original piece.

[Emperor Smeat]

Screwattack who got it from Game Informer. There were potential problems way before Sony agreed to sign on to the film which is why Ubisoft was thinking of just making their own movie studio.

Sony went into the deal mainly for distribution reasons so I assume the issue would involve one of the other movie studios Sony owns who is having potential problems with Ubisoft.

This wouldn't have been the first time Ubisoft "clashed" with Hollywood studios because the first Prince of Persia film had similar issues until Ubisoft backed down a bit.

[Kane Knight]

It still doesn't mesh with the report.

[Kane Knight]

I mean, you just posted something spelling DOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM! When even following the link doesn't come remotely close to it.

[Emperor Smeat]

Ubisoft reveals a bunch of Assassin's Creed related info and news with the main stuff concerning the next year's AC game and Revelations having first person mode missions.

Based on the financial report recently released by Ubisoft, the company confirms another Assassin's Creed game will arrive next year but didn't confirm the earlier rumors of Desmond's story ending with the game. The main plot revolves around the 2012 doomsday predictions and will also be considered as a "main title" and not a side-story or spin-off.

The upcoming Assassin's Creed Revelations will have first person mode missions that are related to the storyline from AC Brotherhood. The company has said these missions feel and play differently than typical AC style gameplay.

These missions will also tie in the story from the entire series with each mission being related to a previous AC game.

At the end of Brotherhood Desmond fell into a deep coma, during this time you will play through dream sequences of Desmond. You are essentially trying to escape Desmond's brain by solving puzzles and adventuring through some platforming type levels. While trying to escape from Desmond's locked down mind you will play in a first person view, getting to see what Desmond sees.

The best part about all of this is you get to go deeper. As Desmond you can access Ezio's memories and adventure through his sequence. From that point Ezio can access Altair's memories going all the way back to the first Assassin's Creed. Falco said that these parts of the game were inspired by the movie Inception.

AC Revelations will also require mandatory installs before the game can be played and was announced to be about 3.8 GB in size.

http://media1.gameinformer.com/imagefeed/featured/ubisoft/assassinscreedrevelationsoverflow/stab610.jpg
http://www.gameinformer.com/b/news/archive/2011/11/08/new-assassin-39-s-creed-coming-in-2012.aspx
http://www.screwattack.com/news/assassins-creed-superpost

---------------------------------------------------------------------
Daily Recap:
1) The Simpsons Arcade game is rumored to be arriving on Xbox Live Arcade based on a leak showing the developer being Backbone Entertainment and a leaked ratings review from Australia.
http://www.egmnow.com/articles/news/rumor-the-simpsons-arcade-game-coming-to-xbla/

2) Capcom confirms the latest DLC pack for Dead Rising 2:Off the Record is only cheat codes at the cost of $5 (400 MS Points) with most being cosmetic gameplay changes.
http://www.screwattack.com/news/capcom-selling-cheats-dlc

3) Nintendo reveals the new rewards for the US Club Nintendo starting on November 12 will have 2 sets of classic Mario-themed shoe laces for 300 Club points while a classic Mario-themed T-shirt will be available at 500 Club points.
http://www.screwattack.com/news/new-club-nintendo-rewards-mario-shoelaces-and-t-shirt

[Kane Knight]

Oh good. Just what a Parkour-focused game needs more of. First Person perspective.

Simpsons Arcade game, rumoured release again? My, has it been six months already?

[DaveBrawl]

Isn't 800 points $10?

[Drakul]

Simpsons Arcade is good and everything but I'm still waiting for Sunset Riders. The arcade version.

[D Mac]

Isn't 800 points $10?

Yes.

[Verbose Minch]

Oh good. Just what a Parkour-focused game needs more of. First Person perspective.

Simpsons Arcade game, rumoured release again? My, has it been six months already?

Because there's never been a well received first person parkour-focused game before, right? :roll:

[Kane Knight]

Because there's never been a well received first person parkour-focused game before, right? :roll:

And since I said there had never been one, you're totally not being a moron again.

Seriously, do you just search for my posts looking for straws to grasp at?

Of course, that aside, Mirror's Edge still received a fair share of complaints owing to the nature of a first-person parkour, but still.

[Kalyx triaD]

I mean, it did read like you had little love for a first-person parkour game. Even if that's not what you're saying, just look how it reads for a sec.

[Emperor Smeat]

After making Online Pass become a popular and standard practice for games, EA might be testing a new idea to help generate more sales by taking an older game and selling it "a la carte" style.

While the full game for Fight Night Champions is available digitally on Xbox Live Marketplace and PSN Store for $29.99, EA announces they are also selling parts of the game only on PSN with prices varying from $4.99 to $10 for each piece.

The only requirement to the plan is Championship mode has to be purchased regardless if the person doesn't want it due to the mode being the basis for the game.

Buying all the pieces however won't create a real discount nor increase the game's cost due to the parts totaling $29.99 just like the current digital game on PSN.

Full game: $29.99
Champion Mode: $4.99
Fight Now: $5.00
Legacy Mode and Boxer Share: $10
Online Play: $10


http://www.screwattack.com/sites/default/files/imagecache/620x186_Featured_Banner/mop7vb29_0.jpg
http://www.screwattack.com/news/fight-night-champions-gets-pieced-out

-------------------------------------------------------------------
Daily Recap:
1) Warner Bros announces the Gotham City Impostors public beta will start in December but will have limited spots while the game itself has a release date of January 10, 2012.
http://www.screwattack.com/news/gotham-city-impostors-beta-and-release-info

2) In an interview with GamesRadar, Eiji Aonuma mentions how Miyamoto's original plans for Zelda on the 3DS involved remaking LoZ: A Link to the Past to take advantage of the new 3D effects from the 3DS.
http://kotaku.com/5858166/nintendo-might-bring-2d-zelda-games-back-in-3d

3) Update to the Steam forums recently getting hacked as now Valve is investigating potential fears of credit card info being stolen due to the data being on the same database as the forums which were hacked.
http://kotaku.com/5858473/steam-hacked-valve-investigating-possible-credit-card-theft

[Kane Knight]

I mean, it did read like you had little love for a first-person parkour game. Even if that's not what you're saying, just look how it reads for a sec.

I do have little love for First Person Parkour games.

That's not what I said I wasn't saying, nor what the dipshit claimed contrary.

He brought up there never being a well-received FP parkour, an obvious reference to ME. That has little to do with what I like.

I don't know why you would think "Because there's never been a well received first person parkour-focused game before, right? :roll:"

Was a valid response to "I don't like First Person Parkour games," even if that was what I said. Which, I might repeat for the autistics in the audience, does more or less reflect my sentiments.

[Kane Knight]

3) Update to the Steam forums recently getting hacked as now Valve is investigating potential fears of credit card info being stolen due to the data being on the same database as the forums which were hacked.
http://kotaku.com/5858473/steam-hacked-valve-investigating-possible-credit-card-theft

Don't like Steam much, but credit where it's due: At least they didn't wait a couple weeks and then act like it was no big deal.

If Sony had handled things this way, people wouldn't have been as pissed.

[Kalyx triaD]

Jus sayin

[Captain of Fun]

KK's original statement was pretty clear to me.

Also, as much as I love ME, this is a terrible idea for AC.

[Kane Knight]

Jus sayin

Jus sayin something that demonstrates you had absolutely no grasp of the conversation?

Yes, yes you are.

[Kalyx triaD]

Be a dick, fine. See ya later.

[Verbose Minch]

Oh good. Just what a Parkour-focused game needs more of. First Person perspective.

Simpsons Arcade game, rumoured release again? My, has it been six months already?

The point I was trying to make, albeit poorly, is that Mirrors Edge was well received by the general populace. It seemed to me you are treating it as if Ubisoft is shoehorning in this failed gimmick that nobody likes.
I don't play the Assassin's Creed games, but reading the description for the missions in which you 'play through dream sequences of Desmond.' sounds pretty interesting to me. Personally, I don't think things like that are half as well received when played in a third person.

[Funky Fly]

As long as it isn't soul crushingly difficult due to FPS platforming problems and not prevalent in the overall game, I won't mind it. It's just that FPS platforming was still far from perfect in ME. Until we have true virtual reality gaming, FPS platforming will always be awkward due to that detachment it has from your actual senses of balance and depth perception.

[Emperor Smeat]

Ubisoft hints the potential fate of a Beyond Good & Evil 2 game relies on how well Rayman Origins sells regardless of praise from the critics.

According to Tony Key, sales executive at Ubisoft, he doesn't want the new Rayman game to become a one-trick pony like the original Beyond Good & Evil game but at the same time did hint the person who worked on the game would have more leeway with other projects.

"Ultimately, Rayman is [Ancel's] original creation, and if all the people that love Beyond Good & Evil understand he is more than a one trick pony... and that if Rayman: Origins does well, it gives him more leeway for other opportunities because he has to build up his studio"

Ubisoft has been undecided for the past couple of years whether or not to fully commit to a Beyond Good & Evil 2 project. They have hinted multiple times a game could be made but also have stated they have no current plans in actually making the game.

This wouldn't be the first time Ubisoft or other companies have tied a future game to a game about to be released in hope of generating extra sales.

http://www.screwattack.com/sites/default/files/imagecache/620x186_Featured_Banner/RaymanOrigins_002_0.jpg
http://www.screwattack.com/news/rayman-origins-becomes-tipping-point

------------------------------------------------------------------
Daily Recap:
1) If the prices for Japan's plan stay the same for other regions, the PS Vita's UMD-to-Digital transfer plan for PSP games could range from $6.50 to $20 depending on the game.
http://www.giantbomb.com/news/sony-introduces-umd-to-digital-program-but-itll-cost-you/3803/

2) After years of complaints, Microsoft finally enables a simplier auto-cancellation process for Xbox Live subscriptions through the use of the recently redesigned Xbox.com website.
http://www.egmnow.com/articles/news/microsoft-enables-xbox-live-auto-renewal-cancellation/

3) According to the makers of Limbo, Playdead studio, the game has officially sold 1 million copies with a Mac version planned for release before the end of the year.
http://www.screwattack.com/news/limbo-freaks-out-one-million-players-worldwide

[LuigiD]

Have a giftcard to target.
Do I wait for WWE 12 or get the new Elder Scrolls?
this crap is keeping me up at night making this decision.

[OssMan]

don't buy the games that come out every year

get skyrim

[Emperor Smeat]

Game Informer is reporting a current rumor for the Wii U involves Nintendo and EA working out an agreement to make EA's Origin digital service become the basis for Nintendo's revamped online network set to launch with the Wii U.

The basis of the rumor could be due to Nintendo hinting earlier in the year they have been contacting companies for advice on how to revamp their online network with Valve and EA being the big names leaked.

The biggest part of the rumor involves the online network would be more "open" in a sense compared to Microsoft's Xbox Live strict "closeness" that has upset a lot of companies in recent years especially EA and Valve. Up until the addition of PS+ service, Sony's PSN was less "closed" but required publishers to cover all server costs including demo downloads.

Nintendo's Wiiware did allow a higher percentage of revenue for publishers but the heavy restrictions on file size and lack of advertising were key negative factors for interest in the service by publishers.

In theory this would mean Nintendo's new network service would be more publisher-friendly than Xbox Live by either allowing more leeway in the guidelines or a better share of the revenue. One big complaint regarding Xbox Live involves restricting games if they arrive on PSN at the same time or even before Xbox Live gets them.

If true, it would allow EA's Origin service a potential foothold into the console market and as a way to compete against Steam which currently can be accessed from a PS3. It would also allow Nintendo some network experience from EA who already built 2 network services (EA Network and Origin).

Other rumors state Nintendo is still debating between Steam and Origin as a potential basis with Valve and EA in heavy competition to win the partnership contract.

http://download.gamezone.com/uploads/image/data/871759/Does_EA_Want_the_Wii_U_s_Online_to_Be_Exclusive_to_Origin.jpg
http://wiiugo.com/exclusive-ea-origin-to-be-a-key-element-of-nintendos-online-strategy/
http://www.gameinformer.com/b/news/archive/2011/11/13/rumor-wii-u-will-to-have-open-online-system-possibly-using-ea-origin.aspx

--------------------------------------------------------------------
Daily Recap:
1) Cloud saving will be included as a new feature for Xbox Live according to a Microsoft executive in charge of the upcoming Xbox Live dashboard update expected to arrive later this month.
http://www.screwattack.com/news/xbox-clouds-horizon

2) PETA is upset over the revival of the Tanooki suit in Mario games, specifically in Super Mario 3D Land, by saying it helps promote the idea of only killing animals for their fur and Mario being "evil."
http://www.1up.com/news/mario-3d-land-tanooki-suit-not-ok-with-peta

3) 343 Studios denies any rumors or concerns of Halo 4 arriving on the next Xbox system as they are currently developing the game to be exclusive to only the Xbox 360.
http://www.egmnow.com/articles/news/343-confirms-halo-4-not-coming-to-xbox-720/

[G]

The cloud saving is a bit annoying right now. Every time I start a game it asks me which save file location I want to use

[Kane Knight]

Be a dick, fine. See ya later.

Be a spazz who doesn't like his lack of comprehension pointed out, fine. See you later.

The point I was trying to make, albeit poorly, (We agree so far) is that Mirrors Edge was well received by the general populace. (A point never under contention) It seemed to me you are treating it as if Ubisoft is shoehorning in this failed gimmick that nobody likes. (Which I didn't, despite your butthurt)
I don't play the Assassin's Creed games, but reading the description for the missions in which you 'play through dream sequences of Desmond.' sounds pretty interesting to me. Personally, I don't think things like that are half as well received when played in a third person.

Because...

Game Informer is reporting a current rumor for the Wii U involves Nintendo and EA working out an agreement to make EA's Origin digital service become the basis for Nintendo's revamped online network set to launch with the Wii U.

The awesome thing about this for me is that it combines a system I don't care about with a service I don't want. It's win-win.

I'm betting the earlier reports that this is wishful thinking by EA (More appropriately, that EA's aggressively pursuing this, rather than it being a mutual thing) are accurate. EA needs this more than Nintendo does. Nintendo would be wise not to tie themselves to any one service, especially a service that is going up against STEEEEEEEEEAM.

It'd be nice to see Nintendo serious about online, though. I'm not a huge online gamer, but it's frustrating as fuck to use their recent services.

[Kane Knight]

I just figured I'd put this here, rather than its own thread, but this is what bugs me about the Arkham City/Catwoman deal.

Play as Catwoman with her own storyline in the main game which is seamlessly interwoven with Batman's story arc

People were like, "it's optional content!" "It's ot really part of the game!"

Except the product description really did say seamless. And interwoven. This was not advertised as bonus content. Or, at least, it was advertised as a selling point of the main game right up until a week or so (whatever) before it came out.

Timely commentary, I know. But since I had to go dig up the quote for a fuckwad, figured I'd go post it here, too.

[Emperor Smeat]

Some Xbox related news today with the Xbox brand celebrating its 10th anniversary, rumors of the next Xbox console to be shown at CES 2012, and the potential for it to revolve more on a performance leap than graphical leap.

In honor of today being the 10th anniversary of the launch of the original Xbox console and the Xbox brand itself, Microsoft is giving away a free avatar prop on the Xbox Live Marketplace to all Xbox 360 members. The avatar prop, a present box that shoots out confetti when opened, will only be available until Saturday, November 19 while the paid celebration avatar items will stay in the Avatar store.

Based on current rumors, the next generation Xbox console, codenamed "Infinity", will make its debut in January 2012 during the CES 2012 expo. The console itself is rumored to have 6 main processor cores to go along with 2 GPUs, 2 GB of RAM, and an AMD graphics chip.

The console itself could also be placing an emphasis more on performance as the next gen leap instead of the traditional graphical leap. This would be based on the suggestions from several gaming studios and personal, such as Rockstar Games and John Carmack, who have stated the focus for the future should revolve around improving A.I. and performance itself instead of just graphics which is starting to show its peak. Most likely the next console will once again be dependent on the suggestions from Epic Games who were influential in the Xbox 360 having more RAM and a stronger GPU than the PS3.

http://www.blogcdn.com/www.joystiq.com/media/2011/11/xbox-box-prop530.jpg
http://www.gamezone.com/news/don-t-expect-epic-leap-in-graphics-with-next-gen-consoles-predicts-dev
http://www.egmnow.com/articles/news/rumor-microsoft-to-announce-new-xbox-at-ces-in-january/
http://www.joystiq.com/2011/11/15/free-avatar-prop-for-xbox-10th-anniversary/

----------------------------------------------------------------
Daily Recap:
1) Ubisoft reveals the first DLC pack for the upcoming Assassin's Creed Revelations will be released on December 13 for $3.99 (320 MS Points) and is only a character pack for the game's multiplayer.
http://www.egmnow.com/articles/news/first-dlc-pack-for-assassins-creed-revelations-revealed/

2) Kevin Levine, co-founder of Irrational Games, states the gameplay for Bioshock Infinite will revolve a lot more towards the physics engine and player ingenuity than the previous games relying more on firepower to clear situations and puzzles.
http://www.screwattack.com/news/bioshock-infinite-rely-more-physics-weaponry-and-plasmids

3) God of War IV is currently rumored for a September 2012 release date for the PS3.
http://www.screwattack.com/news/rumor-god-war-iv-outed-september-2012

[Xero]

Any news on black Friday Steam sales?

[Tommy Gunn]

The console itself is rumored to have 6 main processor cores to go along with 2 GPUs, 2 GB of RAM, and an AMD graphics chip.

I was under the impression 2GB of RAM is average? My piece of shit PC from 5 years ago has 2 GB RAM and just about manages to play games on low-mid settings without lag.

[#BROKEN Hasney]

I was under the impression 2GB of RAM is average? My piece of shit PC from 5 years ago has 2 GB RAM and just about manages to play games on low-mid settings without lag.

Right, but a console has a lot lower overhead and doesn't need to multi-task so 2gb is a fairly large amount.

Both the PS3 and 360 have 512mb of RAM.

[#BROKEN Hasney]

Any news on black Friday Steam sales?

Very little is ever known of the Steam sales until they happen. Just know it's not normally as good as the Christmas sale.

[Emperor Smeat]

Gaming celebrates a very special birthday as Shigeru Miyamoto turned 59 years old today.

Considered as one of the most important and influential people in the video game industry either in terms of aspiration (ex. Cliffy B from Epic Games) or from his innovations with gaming (ex. Z-Targeting in Ocarina of Time and 3D platforming in Super Mario 64).

Some notable achievements include being credited with helping Nintendo's entrance into the console video game industry in 1983 with the NES (1984 in the US), the revival of the console video game industry from Atari's crash in 1983, and the resurgence of Nintendo's dominance with the Wii involving Wii Sports.

Along with creating the Donkey Kong series as one of his first creations, he is also credited as the father of the Mario, Zelda, Star Fox, and countless other video games series both new and old. While he wasn't the creator of the GameBoy series, he did have influence in the design and eventual success of both the Game Boy Advance and Nintendo DS handheld systems.

http://www.screwattack.com/sites/default/files/imagecache/620x186_Featured_Banner/miyamoto-is-gangsta-son1.jpg

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Daily Recap:
1) EA offering Burnout Paradise as a free game for their Origin services but the offer only includes just the UK at the moment but the game itself doesn't require Origin to be playable.
http://www.screwattack.com/news/ea-unleashes-paradise-origin-free

2) Ubisoft's Montreal is currently rumored to recently have aquired the actual dev kits and console for the next Xbox system along with EA who had them earlier and other studios expected to recieve them before the end of the year.
http://www.screwattack.com/news/rumor-has-it-nextbox-and-dev-kits-hit-ubisoft

3) Sony announces several pre-order bonuses for the upcoming PS Vita and similar to when the PSP was released, none of the pre-orders actually include any games nor will the system be bundled with a game for free.
http://www.gamezone.com/news/sony-announces-vita-pre-order-bonuses

[G]

worst bonus ever

http://www.gamestop.com/gs/weeklyad/current/111611/img/olfsi_111611-1.jpg

[D Mac]

-IGN


If you were planning on playing online or going on a digital shopping spree tomorrow with your PlayStation 3, think again. According to the PlayStation Blog, the PSN will be down for maintenance for most of Thursday, November 17th. The nature of the maintenance is unknown, though the post refers to it as "routine scheduled maintenance." Sony's Patrick Seybold outlines the maintenance, which is scheduled to last a 14 hour period on November 17th, from "approximately 8am until 10pm PST." During this time, the PlayStation Store, account management options and account registration options will be unavailable. Seybold does note that online gameplay may randomly work for some games, however.

So, if you were going to purchase something on the PS Store tomorrow, or took the day off to get lost in a little Modern Warfare 3 or Battlefield 3, you may want to reconsider.

[G]

who the fuck goes on a "digital shopping spree" on psn

[Verbose Minch]

Just so everyone knows, don't buy the Batman controller. It is horrendous.

[Emperor Smeat]

After earlier trying to reduce the growing resentment involving Gears of War 3 having a lot more content locked away on the disc itself than what Epic Games promised only skins would be locked, Rod Fergusson once again tries to defend the idea of pre-launch or DLC from the disc as not a "rip-off" but this time as a fight against used game sales.

Earlier he tried to defend the right of Epic Games and other companies doing the same stuff by either trying to place blame on other companies saying his company wasn't the first to lock content or by trying to argue his company has the right to lock away stuff regardless if the DLC is found on the disc. He also tried to make an excuse of since Gears of War 3 was already "packed with content", then it would be fair to lock some stuff since nobody would really complain about the lack of stuff to do in the game.

Today, Fergusson shifted the blame to used game sales as the reason why DLC can be a "Day 1" or found on the disc. He said the industry has to fight more against used sales than have people worried about if a map or some content was on the disc but now requires payment to unlock.

Saying that the industry has matured with its approach to DLC, he continued, "It's less about shipping what's left over. It's not about, 'Oh, we had this map left over'... it's keeping the disc in the tray. In a used game culture that you have to actively fight against, I think DLC is one of the ways that you do that."

He also defended the idea of "Day 1" DLC by saying it takes a lot of planning to decide what is DLC and isn't just ripping out content to withhold but also requires time to develop which is why DLC isn't just developed after a game is released.

Epic Games, developers of Gears of War 3, say otherwise. In an interview with Game Informer, Epic's Rod Fergusson said, "What people need to understand is that extra content is something that you have to plan," his colleague Cliff Bleszinki adding "You don't just lift up a rock and say, 'oh shit, there's new levels!'"

"There are people who think that the first day of DLC development is the day after you launched. That's not the way it works," Fergusson said. "A lot of it is that you have to prepare and plan and manage your resources and your people and everything to allow for that."

http://fastcache.gawkerassets.com/assets/images/9/2011/11/xlarge_1104fbfb013187ae4a2eeebabdc92a18.jpg
http://kotaku.com/5860403/dlc-isnt-a-rip+off-its-a-fight-against-used-games-says-epic

---------------------------------------------------------------------
Daily Recap:
1) Capcom announces Darkstalkers will join the PSOne Classics lineup on PSN by the end of November with the potential of the game also coming at a later date to Xbox Live Arcade.
http://kotaku.com/5860508/capcoms-bringing-darkstalkers-to-psn-later-this-month

2) Square-Enix is currently rumored to have purchased the license and dev kits for Epic's Unreal Engine with the rumors of the engine being used on the next Final Fantasy game instead of their own Crystal engine.
http://www.egmnow.com/articles/news/square-enix-licenses-unreal-engine-3/

3) In an interview with the Official Playstation Magazine, Hideo Kojima confirms Metal Gear Solid 5 is in development but won't reveal any other details until a later date.
http://www.giantbomb.com/news/metal-gear-solid-5-is-apparently-happening/3811/

[Verbose Minch]

I love how they're complaining about used game sales, acting like they're making no money. Didn't they sell 3 million copies of Gears in the first week?

[Kalyx triaD]

Used game sells don't make them money.

[FearedSanctity]

Don't think that's the point he was making though

[Verbose Minch]

Used game sells don't make them money.

That's not what I was saying.

Each Gears of War release has sold more than the last, and at a quicker pace no less. They've made over 1 billion dollars off the franchise, and they're still pumping out over priced DLC.

I mean, there's over 40$ worth of gun skins. Those should be worth at most, like 25 cents. Instead, they're what, four or five bucks?

If they have a problem, they should've done what everyone else did and put in an online pass. They didn't and they're bitching anyways.

[Kalyx triaD]

Companies are never satisfied, especially ones with overrated trash like Gears. The more hype surrounding a game like the more likely they'll pull stunts like 15$ map packs charging high for gun skins. Blame other gamers for that really.

Still, who gives a shit. It's DLC, we don't need it. Gun skins are for the gays.

[Verbose Minch]

Companies are never satisfied, especially ones with overrated trash like Gears. The more hype surrounding a game like the more likely they'll pull stunts like 15$ map packs charging high for gun skins. Blame other gamers for that really.

Still, who gives a shit. It's DLC, we don't need it. Gun skins are for the gays.

I know, and that's the problem. They'll never be happy. They just keep exploiting the stupid. Lord knows how many people spent the forty of fifty bucks to buy all those gun skins.

[Kalyx triaD]

We didn't learn from horse armor, it just became a pre-order bonus.

[Verbose Minch]

We didn't learn from horse armor, it just became a pre-order bonus.

Skyrim pre-order bonus: Dragons! Get them exclusively at EB Games. Become a true Dragon Born and unlock the ability to fight these massive creatures!

[Drakul]

New Line Cinema is making a movie about Rampage, according to Kotaku. I'm hoping they don't screw it up.

[Funky Fly]

We didn't learn from horse armor, it just became a pre-order bonus.
At least the horse aromor did something. These gun skins are a pretty horrendous concept. They do nothing unless they're animated. Even then, it's not like you're going to have time to look at them when the battles are under way.
New Line Cinema is making a movie about Rampage, according to Kotaku. I'm hoping they don't screw it up.

They will. I have a hard time believing a decent script is possible considering the paper thin aspect of the game series' plot.

[Emperor Smeat]

Nintendo, Sony, and Microsoft officially join the US Copyright Office to endorse the Hollywood-backed SOPA (Stop Online Piracy Act) anti-piracy bill.

Also joining them is the entire ESA which has about 34 gaming companies as members.

If you haven’t heard of SOPA, it’s essentially a bill that aims to curb piracy by allowing the US government to censor sites with any links that they deem questionable via a number of methods.

In terms of the effects on gaming, the bill will make it illegal to stream any type of game content without the permission of the owners of the game while also possibly attaching stricter fines and/or jail terms. This would make the popular "Let's Play" and parody/comedic series which use in-game footage to become illegal streams even though recent online stats for Youtube and other video services revealed gaming-related media as the #1 popular topic both in terms of content uploaded and viewed.

This would be done due to a "questionable" links clause giving power to companies to shut down any website or content if they feel it doesn't benefit them either financially or intellectually. It would also give the companies more power to go after individuals than just primarily relying on threats or requests to Youtube and other media sites to remove the content.

In terms of overall effects, the bill itself contains a lot of provisions making general censorship easier for companies regardless of the actual intent of the content or individual and could end up becoming the stepping stone to get rid of Net Neutrality.

SOPA, which was introduced last month in the House to the applause of lobbyists for Hollywood and other large content holders, is designed to make allegedly copyright-infringing Web sites, sometimes called "rogue" Web sites, virtually disappear from the Internet.

http://www.screwattack.com/sites/default/files/imagecache/620x186_Featured_Banner/piracy01_0.png
http://news.cnet.com/8301-31921_3-57325554-281/copyright-office-will-endorse-sopa-anti-piracy-bill/
http://geek.pikimal.com/2011/11/18/nintendo-sony-throw-support-behind-censorship-bill/

--------------------------------------------------------------
Daily Recap:
1) The upcoming firmware update for the 3DS will allow DLC content to be available in the eShop although Nintendo is still concerned developers will keep taking stuff out of games and not provide a "complete" experience.
http://www.screwattack.com/news/nintendo-allow-dlc-3ds

2) Dan Houser, Vice President Of Rockstar, hints the company might be making a sequel to Bully in the near future but also hints no actual decision will be revealed until after Max Payne 3 is finished.
http://www.egmnow.com/articles/news/rockstar-hints-at-bully-sequel/

3) Another Motral Kombat game or something related could be on the way after Ed Boon hints on Twitter an "unexpected surprise" is on its way soon.
http://www.egmnow.com/articles/news/netherrelam-studios-teases-unexpected-surprise/

4) The Nintendo Gamecube celebrates its 10th anniversary today.
http://kotaku.com/5860977/nintendo-gamecube-still-slightly-older-than-nintendos-newest-good-character

[Kane Knight]

SOPA's effects are overhyped.

[Kane Knight]

At least the horse aromor did something. These gun skins are a pretty horrendous concept. They do nothing unless they're animated. Even then, it's not like you're going to have time to look at them when the battles are under way.


They will. I have a hard time believing a decent script is possible considering the paper thin aspect of the game series' plot.

Gun skins are one of the dumbest ideas I've ever seen.

Worse, they're probably going to give Rampage a serious plot, a romantic subplot, and Michael Bay as a director.

[Blitz]

Oh no, not Michael Bay. We need someone who can handle the subtle intricacies of a movie about monsters destroying multiple cities.

[Drakul]

John Rickard is set to direct. When I said "screw up", crowbarring a romantic story into the game, likely between Lizzie and one of the guys, was what I had in mind.

If they borrow from Universal Tour, they have the basis for a story. I'm not a pro writer and this is just bullet points but this is all I could come up with as far as story goes.

Keep it comical. Parody monster and invasion movies.
Have George, Lizzie and Ralph expiremented on and turned into monsters.
Have them escape and rampage around the US.
They eventually get captured and seperated to be tourist attractions. George to New York, Lizzie to Tokyo and Ralph to London.
Time passes, cities are rebuilt and Scumlabs has another blunder which creates Boris the Rhino. Give him some connection to the 3 main guys at the start of the movie before they become monsters.
Boris trashes his way through to New York and saves George. It would look cool if they had him gore through skyscrapers.
They go on to save Ralph and Lizzie.
Alien invasion (this happened in Universal Tour, though we don't need the monsters visiting other planets in the movie.). Boris is killed for the sake of motivation.
Monsters are our only hope. They save us while getting revenge for Boris.
End the movie with them being rewarded for saving the entire planet by being freed and turned back into humans.


I wonder how dialogue will be handled. The monsters don't talk so either they do a WALL-E and have most of the film without it, which I don't think they could get away with, or they have the monsters talk which wouldn't seem right.
I guess they could have the monsters and rampaging be a very small part of the film but that would suck.

[Kane Knight]

Oh no, not Michael Bay. We need someone who can handle the subtle intricacies of a movie about monsters destroying multiple cities.

Bay can't even handle that. Have you actually watched Transformers? He turned the big stompy robots into tertiary characters.

[Kane Knight]

Oh, sorry, you were being "clever."

[James Diesel]

So with this bullshit SOPA thing, won't that basically kill off a lot of successful things like all of YouTube, and companies that streamline all their shit through it, such as Rooster Teeth?

[Kane Knight]

Only if you're an illiterate retard or prone to scares.

[Kalyx triaD]

Bungie supports Rooster Teeth so they're safe. Capcom will likely allow all the major tourny streams for their fighting games. Honestly, the only companies that will actually exercise this thing is EA and Acti-Blizzard - and even then it'll probably be for things like leaked games and protecting spoilers if any of those. This will probably change very little.

[Kane Knight]

<div style='width:650px;font-size: 12px;'><embed src="http://cdn2.themis-media.com/media/global/movies/player/flowplayer.commercial-3.2.7.swf" flashvars="config=http://www.themis-media.com/videos/config/4993-3325ff880b6b94f82e030e8a61979139.js%3Fplayer_version%3D2.5%26embed%3D1" allowfullscreen="true" allowscriptaccess="always" quality="high" bgcolor="#000000" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" pluginspage="http://www.adobe.com/go/getflashplayer" width="650" height="391" wmode="opaque"></embed><div><a href='http://www.escapistmagazine.com'>The Escapist</a> : <a href='http://www.escapistmagazine.com/videos/view/jimquisition'>Jimquisition</a> : <a href='http://www.escapistmagazine.com/videos/view/jimquisition/4993-Sony-Nintendo-EA-and-SOPA'>Sony, Nintendo, EA and SOPA</a></div></div>

AHHHH! THE SKY IS FALLING! RUN CHICKEN LITTLE!

[Emperor Smeat]

Publishers "war" against the used games market now targets rental places as Blockbuster is reporting publishers have pushed them to end their recent trade-in services in return for better financial and supply support from gaming companies.

The goal appears to boost the declining rental market as a way to combat the used game market. As well as, strengthen the once relatively strong revenue stream gaming rentals provided to the publishers before DLC became a standard revenue stream this generation.

There are some concerns gaming companies might end up doing something similar to what Hollywood companies did with Redbox by having rental copies of films missing certain features or content as a way to help push the sales of retail DVDs and Blu-ray discs.

"We have ramped up the rental side of our business and we have got an awful lot of support from publishers." Blockbuster said, with the idea that boosting rentals will take a chunk out of the trade-in market. "Publishers like renting as it takes away from trade-ins. The problem with trade-ins is the publisher doesn't get any money. The advantage of renting is that they get quite a lot of money."

Blockbuster did admit even with the new support, they still have to provide the rental service in a way which would be cost-effective for potential customers while also guaranteeing a steady supply of games to keep the rental side of the company profitable.

http://www.screwattack.com/sites/default/files/imagecache/620x186_Featured_Banner/blockbuster_0.jpg
http://www.screwattack.com/news/blockbuster-bring-end-trade-ins

----------------------------------------------------------------
Daily Recap:
1) According to Edge magazine, another game in the Killzone series is currently in development along with a brand new series to be announced soon by Guerrilla Games.
http://www.screwattack.com/news/guerrilla-games-working-new-killzone-and-something-else

2) Namco announces it has dissolved their publicly owned Namco Tales Studio but will not cancel the series and instead move development to a different internal studio.
http://www.talesunion.com/news/namco-bandai-dissolving-namco-tales-studio--1931.html

3) Microsoft is holding a public contest involving creating new and existing ideas for their Kinect device with the finalists receiving a monetary grant, dev kits, and other stuff to create their idea into an actual product for the company.
http://www.screwattack.com/news/microsoft-wants-your-kinect-ideas

[Kane Knight]

Maybe they should have thought of positive reinforcement before dicking the consumer.

[Emperor Smeat]

Microsoft is currently defending their Xbox Live services after The Sun newspaper claimed Xbox Live was recently hacked in the UK. Microsoft has responded saying their databases were not actually hacked externally like Sony but instead it was another internal "phishing" attack which only targets emails and gamertags.

However, Microsoft did not deny the Sun's claim of the latest attacks resulting in losses of £100-£200 on average per account compromised.

"Xbox Live has not been hacked. Microsoft can confirm that there has been no breach to the security of our Xbox Live service,” said a company spokesperson.

"In this case, a number of Xbox Live members appear to have recently been victim of malicious 'phishing' scams (ie. online attempts to acquire personal information such as passwords, user names and credit card details by purporting to be a legitimate company or person). As a result, we are currently:

* Working closely with affected members who have been in touch with us to investigate and/or resolve any unauthorized changes to their accounts resulting from phishing scams;
* Warning people against opening unsolicited e-mails which may contain spyware and other malware that can access personal information contained on their computer without their knowledge or permission.
* Reminding all customers that they should be very careful to keep all personal information secure whenever online and never supply e-mail addresses, passwords or credit card information to strangers.”


Another claim by The Sun was Microsoft's eagerness to refund any account compromised as long as victims can prove they did not give away their passwords willingly. Eurogamer has debunked these claims saying neither the refund nor the stipulations are true.

According to Eurogamer, Microsoft is only currently working closely with compromised users to resolve the situation and have not placed any restrictions to filing a claim nor the promise of instant refunds to any account claimed to have been attacked.

http://www.screwattack.com/sites/default/files/imagecache/620x186_Featured_Banner/tumblr_luytcgVIL41qk39t8o1_500_0.gif
http://www.screwattack.com/news/microsoft-xbox-live-phished-not-hacked

-------------------------------------------------------------
Daily Recap:
1) The Fall update for the Xbox 360 dashboard will arrive on December 6 which will contain the ability for cloud-saving and improved Kinect navigational controls.

2) It appears Ubisoft is finally going ahead with a Beyond Good & Evil 2 game after new concept art was leaked from the industry-only "Montpellier in Game" 2011 conference.
http://www.screwattack.com/news/concept-art-beyond-good-evil-2-hits-internet

3) While Nintendo announced earlier more 3rd party games will join Club Nintendo to help boost sales, Sonic Generations for the 3DS has been confirmed to be the first 3rd party game to join the program.
http://www.screwattack.com/news/sonic-generations-3ds-club-nintendo-eligible-game

4) Update to Metal Gear Solid 5 currently being in development ended up being a false alarm by OPM magazine as Kojima was only thinking of what a potential MGS 5 could be while Konami wasn't aware the game was even in development.
http://www.giantbomb.com/news/turns-out-metal-gear-solid-5-talk-was-a-false-alarm/3819/

[Kane Knight]

http://www.spike.com/events/video-game-awards-2011/world-premiere-trailers/xmcja6

Three seconds of Tanks involved.

I'm guessing this is the linear shooter Bioware's been dreaming of making since at least ME2.

[Emperor Smeat]

In an interview with Kotaku, Nintendo reveals another piece of the thinking behind their development process with this time how the role of the player is like an actor in a film.

When asked a question about the relationship between a developer and the player, Yoshiaki Koizumi, producer of Super Mario 3D Land, explains the role of the player is similar to an actor who is used to create all the actual moments in a film.

Instead of forcing the player to only experience what the developer wants or only have scripted pieces become the memorable moments, Nintendo instead has the player provide all the experiences while the game is only a template to create them.

"Unlike a movie, which moves forward with the progress of time, a game cannot move forward without the actions of the player, so in a sense, a game is an incomplete story. Because we want players to complete the story by playing the game, we do our best to build an emotional bridge between ourselves and the players while trying to ensure that we can finish the game together. For example, we prepare enemies that look like they should be jumped on, mountains that are begging to be conquered, and princesses that look like they should be saved, but it's the players who actually do these things. In that sense, perhaps our relationship is like the relationship between a lead actor and a director."

http://cache.gawkerassets.com/assets/images/9/2011/11/0b5e706cd8811ca92a0147c7c9625bf0.jpg
http://kotaku.com/5862365/what-nintendos-game-creators-think-of-you

--------------------------------------------------------------------------
Daily Recap:
1) Ubisoft announces Rayman 3 will be getting the HD treatment and will be a downloadable title for PSN and XBLA.
http://www.screwattack.com/news/rayman-3-hoodlum-havoc-hd-announced-xbla-and-psn

2) Recent survey involving World of Warcraft players shows a second large exodus of players could occur as between 900,000 to 1.6 million players would quit their WoW subscriptions in favor of the upcoming Star Wars Old Republic MMO game.
http://kotaku.com/5862136/16-million-wow-players-to-switch-to-old-republic

3) According to the boss of Sony's European division, the company's current plans is to launch the PS4 before the next Xbox arrives to prevent Microsoft having another head start instead of only launching the PS4 when they wanted regardless when the other systems were released.
http://www.gamezone.com/news/sony-looks-to-launch-playstation-4-before-next-gen-xbox

[Kane Knight]

http://www.rockpapershotgun.com/2011/11/23/i-am-alive-dev-dismisses-bitching-pc-users/

These troubling musings come from an interview with Inc Gamers (http://www.incgamers.com/News/29694/despite-the-bitching-piracy-means-i-am-alive-is-not-likely-on-pc), via Eurogamer (http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/2011-11-23-why-i-am-alive-is-unlikely-to-launch-on-pc), in which Mettra so delightfully describes the PC gamers who want to play his game as “bitching”, before dismissing the potential cash.

How dare people want to play your game!

[Kalyx triaD]

It's a business decision. The only weird thing is he communicated his stance in the way people talk online all the time. You want terrible PR, look up how Ninja Theory is handling fans over their rendition of Devil May Cry. That's some fucked up press.

This is a guy who probably didn't take interview class at game maker high.

[Kane Knight]

Wow...You're actually apologising for him.

[RoXer]

Video game creator apologists

[Kane Knight]

Roxer strikes again, with wit as sharp as a bowling ball.

[Kalyx triaD]

Bowling balls can be lethal.

[Kane Knight]

Bowling balls can be lethal.

I said "as sharp as," not "with the weight and substance of."

Kal once again fails to understand basic language!

[Kalyx triaD]

I know what you meant. Bowling balls aren't sharp, hence RoXer was not sharp just then. Clever. Cute.

I tried to 'lay it on' what with you being the usual snippy you and randomly jabbing at Joey who was just siding with you. Instead of pointing that out I figure I have fun with all of ya.

But no.

I wonder, again, what your point is in constantly vilifying people over nothing. And it's been pointed out a lot lately and I was gonna enter the fray on your side since I believed a lot of the recent back-n-forths were misunderstandings at best. People misreading you and shit. But... I don't know. Something something blah blah. Good luck with that. Later.

[Kane Knight]

You tried to be a tard who doesn't understand what's being said. Like usual.

Hey, if I can't be joking, as you always bitch about, then neither can you. Don't be a hypocrite, and don't be surprised when you shit on jocularity that people don't want to assume it from you.

[Kalyx triaD]

Sure.

[Kane Knight]

Caught in your own hypocrisy.

[Kalyx triaD]

Yeah.

[Kane Knight]

I noticed you keep replying despite your whole "I'm done" tantrum.

Good one.

[Kalyx triaD]

Interesting.

[Kane Knight]

k. Ya got nothing.

[Kalyx triaD]

I see.

[alvarado52]

Lmao

[Emperor Smeat]

Based on a few sources, Microsoft will be using the same multiple model/SKU strategy for their upcoming next generation Xbox system with the same goal of the cheaper model missing a lot of features and the expensive model being considered the premium or ideal choice.

In terms of backwards compatibility, it appears Microsoft might only be offering limited compatibility once again due to the cheaper model rumored to be missing the disc drive and being created more as a set-up type box. The cheaper model would focus more on multimedia aspects of the next Xbox system (ex. Netflix) while the premium model could offer either the same patch type of support the Xbox 360 did for original Xbox games or include an Xbox 360 chip to play Xbox 360 games.

In terms of Kinect, the company might be downplaying the role of the device for the next system from being the main focal point to being limited to just the cheaper model version. It is also assumed the cheaper model will only be able to play Xbox Live Arcade titles while the premium model will play both disc and downloadable games while also allowing installing of games on the hard drive.

"It's...believed that Microsoft will continue its successful two SKU strategy", the story claimed, "and indeed take it much further with its new platform: a pared down machine is to be released as cheaply as possible, and positioned more along the lines of a set-top box (the use of 360 as a Netflix viewing platform in the US is colossal) and perhaps as a Kinect-themed gaming portal, while a more fully-featured machine with optical drive, hard disk and backward compatibility aimed at the hardcore would be released at a higher price-point."

http://cache.gawkerassets.com/assets/images/9/2011/11/994f443afec1f236410446179bcef0e3.jpg
http://kotaku.com/5862439/next-xbox-will-have-two-models-just-like-the-current-xbox

---------------------------------------------------------------
Daily Recap:
1) The teaser trailer Bioware will show next month during Spike TV's VGA award show is currently rumored to be a brand new or potential reboot Command & Conquer game.
http://www.screwattack.com/news/new-bioware-game-could-be-command-conquer

2) A sequel to EA's Dante's Inferno game could be under development after it was revealed Visceral Games hired the writer for Assassin's Creed 2 to work on the script for an upcoming "unannounced sequel" project.
http://www.screwattack.com/news/dantes-inferno-sequel-teased

3) Based on a leaked internal memo sent, Gamestop (or at least just the Canadian branches) could be in the process of merging their used game sections with their new games section involving the use of new game labels for used games and mixing the used games with the new games on store shelves.
http://kotaku.com/5862094/eb-gamesgamestop-gets-rid-of-used-games-section

[Verbose Minch]

3) Based on a leaked internal memo sent, Gamestop (or at least just the Canadian branches) could be in the process of merging their used game sections with their new games section involving the use of new game labels for used games and mixing the used games with the new games on store shelves.

New games are still separate. The only difference now is that used games have a white sticker instead of a yellow one. It still says ''New'' or ''Used'' on the sticker.

My source is that I work there.

[DaveBrawl]

If anyone wants to try it out and hasn't bought a subscription Xbox Live Gold is free to everyone this weekend through Sunday.

[Funky Fly]

New games are still separate. The only difference now is that used games have a white sticker instead of a yellow one. It still says ''New'' or ''Used'' on the sticker.

My source is that I work there.

What's the deal with some games that have clearly been opened being sold as new?

[Verbose Minch]

What's the deal with some games that have clearly been opened being sold as new?

It's Eb Games being idiots.

The term is ''gutting''. What they've decided is that rather than having xbox cases with a printout of the cover of the game (Like they do with the coming soon boxes), they felt it was better to rip open brand new games and then try to pawn them off as new anyways.

Whenever somebody brings me up one of the gutted copies, I try my damnedest to find an unopened copy for them.

[#BROKEN Hasney]

What's the deal with some games that have clearly been opened being sold as new?

That's not standard practice? It is in every game shop and supermarket here.

[Emperor Smeat]

Does the game shops in the UK have glass displays holding the new games or just out in the open?

The Gamestops here likes to just place a couple of copies of new games behind the glass case and gut the rest unlike stores such as a Walmart or Bestbuy that either place all the games in a glass case or have the security latches placed on games to prevent them from being opened.

[El Fangel]

Here they keep the last three or four releases behind the counter in a glass case.

Logical really.

[Xero]

I remember when I was little going to Toys R Us and having to get a slip then take it to a little cage in the front of the store to pick up the game, after it was paid for.

[Xero]

Just a walk down memory lane, don't mind me.

[Kalyx triaD]

I used to take those TrU game slips home as an early, ghetto form of 'pre-ordering'. Worked wonderfully.

[FearedSanctity]

<iframe width="560" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/-_IKqjb9TRY" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

[DAMN iNATOR]

UGH...GameInformer site won't display articles, reviews, features, anything right now...“http://www.tpww.net/forums/images/icons/icon8.gif”.

[OssMan]

UGH...GameInformer site won't display articles, reviews, features, anything right now...“http://www.tpww.net/forums/images/icons/icon8.gif”.

[Kane Knight]

UGH...GameInformer site won't display articles, reviews, features, anything right now...“http://www.tpww.net/forums/images/icons/icon8.gif”.

It's Gameinformer. Can't imagine anyone being too torn up about this.

[Emperor Smeat]

During an interview with The Cambridge Student Online, Gabe Newell, the co-founder of Valve, feels the issue with piracy on the PC goes beyond just the usual complaints about prices and more about the services themselves.

By comparing the 24/7 services a pirate can offer in comparison to a publisher limiting access to their games either by region locking or DRM restrictions, the pirate's services would be more favorable regardless of the actual retail price of the product.

His main issues involves the various types of DRM being more of a hassle to legitimate customers than to pirates and games being restricted only to certain retail stores well after their initial release on the PC.

"For example, if a pirate offers a product anywhere in the world, 24/7, purchasable from the convenience of your personal computer, and the legal provider says the product is region-locked, will come to your country three months after the U.S. release and can only be purchased at a brick and mortar store, then the pirate's service is more valuable. Most DRM solutions diminish the value of the product by either directly restricting a customer's use or by creating uncertainty."

He compared those services with Steam's ability to provide both the 24/7 service and affordable prices customers wanted. This ended up leading to both the service's massive rise in popularity and a way to fight piracy on the platform due to those same customers continued satisfaction with the service.

"Our success comes from making sure that both customers and partners feel like they get a lot of value from those services. They can trust us not to take advantage of the relationship that we have with them."

http://www.screwattack.com/sites/default/files/imagecache/620x186_Featured_Banner/left-4-dead-2.jpg
http://www.screwattack.com/news/gabe-newell-says-piracy-about-service-not-price

-------------------------------------------------------------------
Daily Recap:
1) The official US prices for the PS Vita memory sticks will range from $30 for the 4GB stick to $120 for the 32GB stick.
http://www.screwattack.com/news/ps-vita-memory-card-pricing

2) According to leaked documents, Sony is currently working on their own version of a "Super Smash Bros" fighting game.
http://kotaku.com/5862755/is-sony-working-on-its-own-smash-bros-game

3) Nintendo is facing another lawsuit as Impulse Technology is currently suing the company and other 3rd party developers involving the Wii Balance Board claiming it infringes on their patent rights and is too similar to their own Trazer Interactive Fitness machine.
http://www.joystiq.com/2011/11/25/impulse-technology-suing-nintendo-for-patent-infringement/

4) Based on a few rumors, Microsoft is currently negotiating a deal to add Kinect into Sony built televisions while the next generation Kinect device is strong enough to both track and read lip movements.

[Captain of Fun]

jesus that cryengine

[Kane Knight]

"Our success comes from making sure that both customers and partners feel like they get a lot of value from those services. They can trust us not to take advantage of the relationship that we have with them."

Which is why you have an F with the BBB. Oh, right.

Other bits:

-Proprietary memory cards are going to come with a proprietary price. That's not a surprise. It's still bullshit.

-I hope Parappa really is in the fighting game.

-Kinect in Sony products? But the two are bitter rivals!

[Verbose Minch]

Which is why you have an F with the BBB. Oh, right.

http://www.bbb.org/western-washington/business-reviews/computer-software-publishers-and-developers/valve-corporation-in-bellevue-wa-27030704

:wtf:

[Vietnamese Crippler]

B+ is an Asian F

[Emperor Smeat]

According to a recent "Iwata Asks" interview by Nintendo, the company was willing to sacrifice its normal slow development policy on games to ensure Mario Kart 7 was rushed out before Christmas of this year.

The decision was originally made in March before the US debut of the 3DS but once the 3DS started to struggle selling in terms of both hardware sales and a steady supply of software, the company went into full panic mode.

To help speed up the process, Nintendo pooled the other 3DS development teams together and even brought in Retro Studios to take care of the work on the classic courses.

During the latest "Iwata Asks," Nintendo president Satoru Iwata said that the game almost didn't make the desired Christmas time deadline, so Nintendo treated it as an emergency situation and put the development team in full panic mode and even called in Retro Studios (the team behind Donkey Country Returns) to lend a hand, all in effort to get the game finished in time.

* Konno explains that with several production designers joining to finish Nintendogs+Cats for launch, and other "developments at Nintendo taking up other staff" there was "an act of emergency" to have Mario Kart finished by the end of the year. Konno needed more people to get this done.
* Designers from Retro Studios Inc who worked on Donkey Kong Country were called to help design and model some courses.
* Retro concentrated on redoing the classic courses while EAD Group No. 1 concentrated on the new courses.


Nintendo was expecting Mario Kart 7 to be the last big chance at having a true killer app had Super Mario 3D Land failed to sell hardware while also ensuring the company would have a big title available for the Christmas shopping period.

http://www.screwattack.com/sites/default/files/imagecache/620x186_Featured_Banner/mario-kart-3ds_0.jpg
http://www.screwattack.com/news/nintendo-was-desperate-release-mario-kart-7-christmas

-----------------------------------------------------------------
Daily Recap:
1) Black Friday results were revealed by Microsoft and Nintendo with Microsoft selling 800,000 Xbox 360s on Friday (960,000 overall for the week) and Nintendo selling about 500,000 Wiis on Friday but haven't released the total amount for the week yet for both the Wii and 3DS (expected in the 350,000+ range).
http://www.egmnow.com/articles/news/black-friday-brings-xbox-360s-biggest-week-of-sales-ever/

2) Nintendo announces the 3DS firmware update which includes 3D recording ability has been delayed from its original end of November release to now a December 8 release due to the company needing more time to prepare both the update itself and the new services for the 3DS.
http://www.egmnow.com/articles/news/%E2%80%8Enintendo-3ds-video-firmware-delayed/

3) The next set of games in the Gears of War series are currently rumored to be a prequel to the main series (Pendulum Wars) and would be developed by People Can Fly (Bulletstorm, Painkiller).
http://www.screwattack.com/news/rumor-people-can-fly-might-be-working-pendulum-wars

[Kane Knight]

http://www.bbb.org/western-washington/business-reviews/computer-software-publishers-and-developers/valve-corporation-in-bellevue-wa-27030704

:wtf:

B+ is an Asian F

There is more than one BBB review.

Of course, a cached google view of the same page from like three days ago shows NO rating, but whatever.

[Kane Knight]

3) The next set of games in the Gears of War series are currently rumored to be a prequel to the main series (Pendulum Wars) and would be developed by People Can Fly (Bulletstorm, Painkiller).
http://www.screwattack.com/news/rumor-people-can-fly-might-be-working-pendulum-wars

Yay! We need more games like Bulletstorm!

(cue Minch bitching about me for some arbitrary reason)

[Kane Knight]

http://www.pcgamer.com/2011/11/29/interview-cd-projekts-ceo-on-witcher-2-piracy-why-drms-still-not-worth-it/

[Verbose Minch]

There is more than one BBB review.

Of course, a cached google view of the same page from like three days ago shows NO rating, but whatever.

So NO rating=F rating? That makes sense.

[Kane Knight]

So NO rating=F rating? That makes sense.

I see you're having that "I can't read" problem again.

Or you're still digging, like you claimed you weren't. I'm sure even if that's the case, you'll be back with "THIS WAS ALL A MISUNDERSTANDING" in a few minutes.

[Verbose Minch]

I see you're having that "I can't read" problem again.

Or you're still digging, like you claimed you weren't. I'm sure even if that's the case, you'll be back with "THIS WAS ALL A MISUNDERSTANDING" in a few minutes.

I'm just confused as to where you're getting this wondrous F rating from.

I'd love to see a link, or some kind of proof.

[Emperor Smeat]

According to a source who leaked the news to Kotaku, EA is planning another 4 more games in the Dead Space series with at least 2 of them being considered spin-offs or gameplay "reboots."

The source states EA was happy with how Dead Space Extraction turned out and now wants the series to involve multiple genres with each new game covering a specific genre.

One of the games is confirmed to be Dead Space 3 which still is going towards the outdoors icy planet as the main setting and gameplay changes in favor of an escort style for both the story and gameplay experience. While the game itself will still be done in the series traditional 3rd person perspective, it will also include the addition of a co-op mode for the campaign/story.

The other games are rumored to involve a game switching from the series 3rd person perspective in favor of a first person shooter, another focusing solely on just combat flying for gameplay, and the third to be an adventure game done in an Uncharted-like style but in space.

http://www.screwattack.com/sites/default/files/imagecache/620x186_Featured_Banner/Dead_Space_7x1_0.jpg
http://www.screwattack.com/news/rumor-there-are-four-dead-space-games-our-future

-------------------------------------------------------------
Daily Recap:
1) GamePro announces on December 5th of this year they will cease production of their magazines in the US and their own website but will continue to publish articles as part of a sub-domain on PCWorld's website.
http://kotaku.com/5863927/rip-gamepro

2) Google and Apple announce they have refused to join and support the ESRB's push for a separate ratings system involving only mobile games which the organization hopes to have ready by the start of 2012.
http://www.screwattack.com/news/apple-and-google-pass-new-mobile-rating-system

3) According to current rumors, the next Dragon Age will revamp the series multiplayer modes in favor of arena-based multiplayer matches (PvP, PvE) while also allowing dragons to be playable characters in either mode.
http://www.egmnow.com/articles/news/rumor-dragon-age-multiplayer-in-the-works-lets-you-play-as-a-dragon/

[Tommy Gunn]

Well gee, you sure can't spell success without saturation. :)

[Emperor Smeat]

Sony's UMD Passport system which allows PSP games to be played on the PS Vita officially starts today in Japan with both good and bad news regarding the service.

The good news is the service does have PSP games and covers most of the smaller companies who helped keep the system healthy in Japan such as Atlus, Nippon Ichi, Acquire, Kaga Create, Alchemist, Tecmo Koei, and SNK.

The bad news is none of the actual big publishers who were directly responsible for keeping the system alive in both hardware sales and software sales have any of their games available for the program at the moment. This includes companies such as Capcom, Konami, Sega, Namco Bandai, and Square Enix who were the main providers for the PSP. Sony vaguely mentions those studios will eventually supply their games to the Passport system but gave no guarantees on the bigger games being available nor any dates on when those games would arrive.

More bad news for the service is while there are about 262 games available at launch from the total Japanese PSP library, this amount is only 1/3 of the overall PSP titles available (606 games) with the bigger games found only on the PSN Store but at their regular prices. Sony confirms as of now the Passport system is only available in Japan with no details on if or when the service would arrive in other regions even though Japan was the only hotbed for the handheld in comparison to the Nintendo DS.

To take advantage of UMD Passport, users must download a “UMD Passport” application to their PSP, insert a compatible UMD, and Sony somehow verifies that UMD (the exact process isn't known). Once that’s done, you gain access to a digital version--for a cost, anyway.

Also revealed was the reason for the wide ranges in prices for the UMD Passport system is due to Sony refusing to apply a standard in prices to cover the cost of bandwidth to host the games on PSN and allowed publishers to determine the prices for the games. Sony themselves felt certain games were more valuable than others and used the "conversion" excuse to why certain games (mostly Sony and bigger titles) had higher prices.

http://www.screwattack.com/sites/default/files/imagecache/620x186_Featured_Banner/16825_4d430eb596cbe.sgsf_.jpg
http://www.screwattack.com/news/umd-passport-list-goes-live-many-publishers-mia
http://www.giantbomb.com/news/you-should-demand-more-from-sonys-umd-passport-program/3828/

------------------------------------------------------------------------
Daily Recap:
1) Ed Boon hints if Sony's rumored Smash Bros game is really in development, his studio wouldn't mind lending Scorpion or other MK characters as 3rd party fighters for the game.
http://www.examiner.com/video-game-news-in-national/ed-boon-comments-on-title-fight-and-killer-instinct-rumors

2) The next game in the "Army of Two" series is rumored to be called "Army of Four" and would have 4-player co-op along with using the Frostbite 2.0 engine to power the game.
http://www.egmnow.com/articles/news/rumor-ea-working-on-army-of-four/

3) Nintendo announces the 10 free GameBoy Advance games for 3DS users in the Ambassador Program will arrive before the end of December with an official date to be announced once the final 5 unannounced games and the updates for the GBA games are ready.
http://www.screwattack.com/news/3ds-game-boy-advance-ambassador-games-still-coming-year

[Emperor Smeat]

A bill severely impacting internet usage could finally become a reality according to an analyst familiar with the intentions of cable internet providers in the growing internet service market. In terms of gaming, online gaming and digital distribution would be affected the most due to those fees relying on the internet to be useable.

While some internet providers do have plans that feature usage caps, they only start to charge additional usage fees once the cap is passed. This potential bill would give cable providers the power to start charging at the start of the billing month or every time data is used while also securing a lot more control away from consumers in the market.

It's a concept that has been hinted at in the past by service providers, only to be quickly swept under the rug for fear of the angry mobs that would surely follow. So could it really be inevitable in the New Year? Craig Moffett of Sanford C. Bernstein & Co. in New York says yes.

"As more video shifts to the Web, the cable operators will inevitably align their pricing models," said Moffett. "With the right usage-based pricing plan, they can embrace the transition instead of resisting it.
"In the end, it will be the best thing that ever happened to the cable industry," Moffett said.

The main reason for his argument is due to a recent FCC ruling which allowed cable internet providers the power to charge usage-based billing at any rate they determine.

Netflix and Hulu are currently against this plan as it would affect them the most with the spokesperson from Netflix stating "is not in the consumer's best interest as consumers deserve unfettered access to a robust Internet at reasonable rates."

http://www.screwattack.com/sites/default/files/imagecache/620x186_Featured_Banner/76a3011e-c70f-4f3f-9197-229eb9bc3c5a_0.jpg
http://www.screwattack.com/news/usage-based-cable-billing-could-happen-2012

-----------------------------------------------
Daily Recap:
1) The recent Mortal Kombat game will be getting a 2nd collector's edition called the "Mortal Kombat Komplete Edition" which will include the game, all the DLC, and all the updates on February 12, 2012.
http://www.screwattack.com/news/community-showcase-mortal-kombat-komplete-edition-confirmed

2) Nintendo of America confirms Xenoblade: Chronicles, one of the 3 games petitioned in Operation Rainfall, will be arriving on April 2012 although Gamestop is rumored to have exclusive status to sell the game.
http://www.giantbomb.com/news/your-letter-writing-campaign-paid-off-xenoblade-chronicles-is-coming-to-america-updated/3833/

3) Valve could be pulling another practical joke concerning Half-Life 3 after a new shirt displayed by the company was leaked on Twitter showing off the Half-Life 3 logo.
http://www.egmnow.com/articles/news/half-life-3-logo-spotted-on-valve-employees-t-shirt/

4) EA reveals their recently released Tetris game for iOS will be having a separate subscription plan called the "T-Club" which allows exclusive content and special discounts for the price of $2.99 per month and $29.99 per year.
http://www.giantbomb.com/news/tetris-finally-gains-a-subscription-fee/3832/

[Kalyx triaD]

There's so many ways to get and play a full version of Tetris for free I wonder why they bother.

[LoDownM]

<iframe width="640" height="360" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/AEUULIs_UWE" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

[#BROKEN Hasney]

http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?t=454078

Long story short, online passes (or at least EA's) expire. Guy buys new version of Hot Pursuit from Amazon and the online pass doesn't work. Multiplayer has to be paid for extra.

That's fucked up, yet not surprising.

[Emperor Smeat]

Wouldn't those passes expire anyways once the game gets put on the yearly server shutdown list?

Usually its 2 years but some EA games have been shut down a year after release.

[#BROKEN Hasney]

Not all of them do. Burnout Paradise is still up and fine. The fact is though, you can still play Hot Pursuit online but yet if you buy new right now, you have to pay extra for the online.

[Kane Knight]

http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?t=454078

Long story short, online passes (or at least EA's) expire. Guy buys new version of Hot Pursuit from Amazon and the online pass doesn't work. Multiplayer has to be paid for extra.

That's fucked up, yet not surprising.

We knew this, though.

Not all of them do. Burnout Paradise is still up and fine.

mostly because they have no incentive to shift you to a new Burnout.

[Kane Knight]

Wouldn't those passes expire anyways once the game gets put on the yearly server shutdown list?

Usually its 2 years but some EA games have been shut down a year after release.

It's not about them expiring in that sense, though. People buying new copies can't play online, even though the community is still up, and this is kind of a problem.

However, if you read the fine print, you know about it already.

[Emperor Smeat]

Some good and bad news was revealed concerning the PS Vita with the major stuff being potentially cheap digital versions of Vita games possible and accounts being limited to just 1 per device.

While Adobe has cancelled their development of flash support for mobile devices, they are currently working with Sony to enable a custom flash player for the PS Vita in order to provide flash capabilities for the handheld's web browser.

Based on a rumored leak from a third party company working with Sony, digital versions of PS Vita games on the PSN store will be around 40% cheaper than their retail versions. This was only confirmed so far to be in Japan although Sony didn't state if the discounts will carry over to other regions when the device is launched there.

For the bad news, unlike the Nintendo 3DS, the PS Vita will not allow for web browsing during gaming and will disable everything except Twitter.

As part of the recent changes for game sharing, the PS Vita will only allow 1 account per device and will be locked to a region once an account has been activated. Unlike the PSP which allowed changing regions either by logging out of an account or just restarting the device, the PS Vita requires the device to be formatted back to factory defaults in order to change regions or have a different account.

Sony has also stated the official reason for the high prices of the PS Vita memory cards is due to security issues and the cards being able to hold non-game save data.

During an interview with Watch Impress, Sony's Muneki Shimada said Sony decided to only make the Vita compatible with its brand of memory cards in effort to not only make the Vita experience even for everyone, but to also make things more secure.

...

Muneki also tried to make Sony's brand of memory cards more impressive by saying that they can not just be used to save game progress but also patches, DLC and game data.

http://www.screwattack.com/sites/default/files/imagecache/620x186_Featured_Banner/vita-1_0.jpg
http://www.screwattack.com/news/rumor-vita-digital-titles-are-almost-40-cheaper-retail
http://www.screwattack.com/news/vita-cannot-support-japanese-doppelgangers
http://www.screwattack.com/news/high-price-ps-vita-memory-cards-matter-security

---------------------------------------------------------------------
Daily Recap:
1) The upcoming Animal Crossing game for the 3DS will allow players to start off the game as the mayor of their town to go along with a deeper player and design customization than previous games in the series.
http://www.gamezone.com/news/dev-roundtable-gives-insight-on-animal-crossing-3ds

2) Namco announces the previous Japan-only arcade game of Tekken Tag Tournament 2 will have a limited release in the arcades in the US as a chance for players to try out the game early before its official release in stores.
http://www.screwattack.com/news/tekken-tag-tournament-2-coming-us-arcades

3) According to Spike TV's VGA show, the upcoming downloadable Alan Wake game for Xbox Live Arcade is being treated as a full game by Microsoft which could mean a higher price than usual for XBLA games.
http://www.egmnow.com/articles/news/alan-wake-xbla-is-highly-ambitious-basically-alan-wake-2/

4) Based on recent domain purchases by EA, the next Command & Conquer game will have the subtitle of "Alliances" although EA is still unsure of the actual title of the game (15 different domains purchased).
http://www.screwattack.com/news/next-command-and-conquer-bound-have-alliances-somewhere-title

[Kane Knight]

Muneki also tried to make Sony's brand of memory cards more impressive by saying that they can not just be used to save game progress but also patches, DLC and game data.

You mean, unlike SD cards...Somehow?

[Funky Fly]

Sony being Sony. I'm almost surprised the PS3 can connect more than 2 controllers at once without a multi tap.

[Kane Knight]

Sony being Sony. I'm almost surprised the PS3 can connect more than 2 controllers at once without a multi tap.

"Why not just have a USB splitter?"

"With our multitap, you can connect FOUR devices at once!"

[Emperor Smeat]

A computer glitch in the pre-order servers from Walmart almost caused a potentially huge problem in people believing their pre-orders from the company had been erased.

Neither Walmart nor Bioware were aware of the potential problem until customers recently complained of their pre-orders not appearing when checking the status of their orders. The email system meant to warn customers when their pre-orders were cancelled did not work nor were any messages sent to warn customers beforehand of their potentially lost pre-orders.

The initial fear was the pre-orders had been completely erased from the servers but Walmart confirms the data is still stored safely on the servers and a computer glitch had caused the information to not show up during searches done by customers.

Both Bioware and Walmart have stated had the pre-orders been erased, they would still have honored them as long as a receipt was presented.

Bioware’s Online Community Manager Stephen Reid reached out to forum users to address the issue:
“Hello everyone,
We will investigate this issue ASAP, although we may not have further details to share before Monday.
I obviously cannot speak on behalf of any retailer, however I would like to let people know who have pre-ordered and redeemed their pre-order code, that their Early Game Access is still secured. You may apply any Game Code from any edition of The Old Republic to your account.
As of right now, it seems that Walmart is the only retailer to cancel The Old Republic preorders. With the story breaking over Saturday night and into Sunday morning, it’s likely that an official explanation / mea culpa is impending.
Star Wars: The Old Republic is slated to release for the PC on December 20, so any preorder disruptions at this juncture are a major issue for all involved. Let us know if you’re experiencing the same issue and what the response has been so far from Walmart in the comments or in our forums.”“It’s Ravi from Walmart’s media relations team – I want to clarify and hopefully ease any confusion about this. Please rest assured, no orders or pre-orders have been canceled due to this issue. We did have a technical error that unfortunately caused some customers’ order statuses to show their pre-order had been canceled, but that is not the case. Customers who previously pre-ordered Star Wars: The Old Republic will still get their game when it launches later this month and we’re in the process of emailing all customers within the next 24 hours to let them know. In the meantime, they’re invited to contact us if they have questions. We apologize for any confusion or disturbance in The Force this created.”

http://www.screwattack.com/sites/default/files/imagecache/620x186_Featured_Banner/star-wars-the-old-republic_0.jpg
http://www.screwattack.com/news/swtor-walmart-goofs-preorders-okay

------------------------------------------------------------------
Daily Recap:
1) EA's record with transactions in mobile games continues to sour as it was discovered Theme Park's cheapest DLC track costs $60.
http://www.egmnow.com/articles/news/theme-park-ios-has-a-60-dlc-rollercoaster/

2) Update to Online Passes expiring as EA has stated as long as the game servers are still available, they will work with people affected to ensure their passes will be fixed to enable them to play online.
http://www.giantbomb.com/news/if-your-ea-online-pass-code-expired-youre-covered/3839/

3) The Darkness II will contain a Left4Dead-like multiplayer mode called "Vendettas" which allows up to 4 player possible for co-op from the choice of 4 characters who each have their own unique attributes in the game.
http://www.screwattack.com/news/darkness-ii-wants-you-bring-your-friends

[Kalyx triaD]

http://www.creativeuncut.com/gallery-19/art/sm3dl-mario-flag-pole.jpg

[RoXer]

Is Orcs Must Die any good? It's $4 on Steam

[Kane Knight]

I thought it was pretty lame, but play the demo.

[G]

Is Orcs Must Die any good? It's $4 on Steam

you won't like it. you demand nothing but the best, and this isn't it.

[Emperor Smeat]

The future for the Legend of Zelda series could involve funademntal changes according to the current producer for the series, Eiji Aonuma.

He hinted the series has reached a point where it must begin to move away from Miyamoto's current direction into a newer direction for the future of the series to stay strong.

"I started working on the series not at the beginning but part-way through its history" ... "I think because of that, early on I was more looking objectively at the series and how we could change small, individual elements within it, rather than looking at how the series should evolve.

"As time has passed—particularly in the last few years—I've started to think a lot more about how I can take the series and really make it my own Zelda and evolve it further. As [Nintendo's head of game development] Mr. Miyamoto has allowed me to take the reins of the Zelda series, ultimately that's what I need to do. Perhaps some people will think it's a little bit late for me to start thinking about that, but as time goes by, that's becoming more of a theme in how I'm approaching the series."

Aonuma did mention the idea of a full cast for voice acting in the series isn't a plan Miyamoto nor himself has any real desire to implement with the issues revolving around the idea of Link having a voice. Both have mentioned the special connection Link has with the player and are worried of the bond potentially being lost (or ruined) should the character end up having his own voice in a game.

Skyward Sword was meant to be the first game where Aonuma held most of the power over the direction of the game and series unlike past games that followed Miyamoto's plans or visions.

http://www.screwattack.com/sites/default/files/imagecache/620x186_Featured_Banner/Zelda-WiiU.jpg
http://kotaku.com/5866075/nintendo-is-ready-to-re+think-zelda

-----------------------------------------------------------------------
Daily Recap:
1) Tony Hawk hints a new game in the Tony Hawk skating series will be revealed on the same day as the Spike TV VGA show which could also contain the debut trailer for the new game.
http://www.screwattack.com/news/tony-hawk-will-announce-new-game-vgas

2) Just Add Water studio announces the HD remake of the original Xbox's Oddworld: Stranger's Wrath will be arriving on PSN on December 27 for the price of $14.99 and includes support for the PS Move controller.
http://www.screwattack.com/news/oddworld-strangers-wrath-hd-releases-month

3) A rumored list of achievemnets for the Steam version of Half-life 3 was suppossedly leaked on Steam but Valve has neither denied nor confirmed the list as being real or fake.
http://stickskills.com/2011/12/07/rumor-half-life-3-steam-achievements-surface/

[Kalyx triaD]

"If enough of you fine men have purchased ________, I offer gentleman's contest between factions. It would be a private match between _______ and ______. I will be back for your reply later in the day. I hope, with curious glee, that your answer is most pleasing to my expectations. Perhaps if this fine contest is most acceptable we can continue these bouts between our competitive bands in other ventures. Though I do not aim to wish you away with my final revelation, I must admit my brothers in arms are most effective in the subjectively stimulating art of fucking people up. I hope in the darkest recesses of my heart and soul that you find this particularly motivational. I leave you fine men to your internal counsel."

[Drakul]

Anytime the words "Zelda" and "voice acting" are mentioned in the same sentence, I get nervous.

It's been fine with just text and grunting noises for the past 25 years. If it doesn't need VA by now, it never will and I hope they never give it VA.

Mostly, I'm worried that they'd cast everyone with either American or Upper Class English accents. American to "appeal to more people" or English because those in media seems to think England was the only place that ever had swords, castles and princesses.
I've said it a few thousand times already but, if they did do voices, it would make more sense to have them be Scottish because a lot of the enemies, characters and ideas are found in Scottish myth. I've not seen as much from other cultures in the game.
They'd never do Scottish if they did have to do VA.

I'm glad VA isn't something they plan to do. I hope it stays that way. I'm curious as to what the changes to the series would be.

Skyward Sword hasn't felt very "open" so far so, if that's any indications to what the future will be like, I'm guessing we'll get a more linear game (by Zelda standards).

[Kane Knight]

It's been fine with just text and grunting noises for the past 25 years. If it doesn't need VA by now, it never will and I hope they never give it VA.

But it's more immersive!

[Miotch]

Feel like Drakul didn't really read that article.

[Emperor Smeat]

A new game in the Dead Rising series is in development based on a teaser post Capcom published on the series Facebook page.

Based on what was posted Frank West will be returning either as the main character or be part of the story similar to Dead Rising 2.

The game will also be taking place in a new location with the hint of it being a "paradise" or summer vacation-like setting.

Mr West posted on the game's Facebook saying "I'm getting packing for my new adventure-- camera, notebook and baseball bat. What else would i need for a break in paradise? - Frank"

http://www.screwattack.com/sites/default/files/imagecache/620x186_Featured_Banner/frank-west-beach_0.jpg
http://www.screwattack.com/news/frank-west-and-his-baseball-bat-head-paradise

------------------------------------------------------
Daily Recap:
1) Nintendo denies reports from Wired.com stating Miyamoto has retired and stepped down as lead supervisor of the company but did mention he will be taking on a tutorial role for the young developers in the company. The mix up by Wired caused Nintendo's stock to drop by around 2%.
http://www.destructoid.com/miyamoto-not-retiring-role-at-nintendo-isn-t-changing-217409.phtml
Stock Graph: http://cache.gawker.com/assets/images/comment/9/2011/12/6e92f9762eb20468e025e78de20c6d45/original.png

2) Microsoft mandates all future apps and features for the Xbox 360 must have Kinect-enabled support in order to be added to the Dashboard starting with the recent dashboard update released.
http://kotaku.com/5866279/wave-hello-microsofts-requiring-kinect-functionality-for-all-future-apps-built-for-xbox-360

3) Epic Games teases their new game they will debut during the Spike TV VGA show will be "radically different" from Gears of War or any other game the company has produced in the past.
http://www.gamezone.com/news/epic-games-new-title-radically-different-from-gears-of-war

[Kane Knight]

I'd laugh if he got eaten in the first five minutes of the game after speculation.

Miyamoto evidently said he was going to retire, but didn't have any set point at which he was going to do it. Kind of like you might say "I may go for a walk later." And it got picked up as "MIYAMOTO IS LEAVING NOW!"

I'm not really surprised by a Kinect mandate. What does surprise me is that party functionality for Netflix is gone. That's literally the only reason I'd use the Xbox version over the PS version, short of my PS3 blowing up.

[Xero]

Don't know if it's been mentioned, but Steam is doing specials on one game a day. Today is Oblivion for $5.

[Emperor Smeat]

Only a day after Capcom officially teased Dead Rising 3 is in development, more rumored details about the new game are rumored to have been leaked.

The game is rumored to have a brand new character named Rick as the lead character for the game. Also rumored was the story takes place in a fictional town called Los Perdidos located in California that has been taken over by zombies.

The plot itself was described as a take on the US's illegal immigration problem with some of the infected survivors ending up being illegal immigrants who are lead by another central character named Red. As well as, the total destruction of the city due to the government's plan to just bomb it similar to Racoon City in the Resident Evil series.

According to Siliconera the game will take place in the fictional Californian town of Los Perdidos. After the Zombies shuffle in, the town is locked down with any survivors left trapped inside. A mechanic named Rick will be the game’s main protagonist, his main aim will be to fix a plane in order to escape the city before a bomb detonates destroying everything and everyone. The source also mentions that “Dead Rising 3 has an undercurrent of themes about illegal immigration. Another character called Red leads an underground group of “illegals,” which are infected people that aren’t registered by the government. Annie, Red’s girlfriend is a runaway that’s sympathetic to the infected.”

While Capcom posted the teaser on Facebook using the Frank West character account, no leaks reveal any details Frank West might or might not have with the game.

http://www.screwattack.com/sites/default/files/image/images/News/2011/1209/dr3ca.jpg
http://www.egmnow.com/articles/news/rumor-dead-rising-3-details/

----------------------------------------------------------------------
Daily Recap:
1) Sony clarifies reports of the PS Vita only allowing 1 account by stating multiple accounts can be made due to each memory card for the PS Vita allows for an extra account to be made along with the system's account.
http://www.screwattack.com/news/vita-will-support-multiple-psn-ids-after-all

2) According to the UK's Official Xbox Magazine, the recording for voice acting for Half0Life 3 is rumored to be underway based on a leak from one of the suppossed voice actors for the game.
http://www.egmnow.com/articles/news/rumor-voice-acting-being-recorded-for-next-half-life-game/

3) Nintendo announces the next update for Club Nintendo will be adding selected downloadable games for the Wii, DS, and 3DS with Super Mario Kart and 3 other games joining the list of rewards for the program.
http://gonintendo.com/?mode=viewstory&id=168050

4) THQ announces they have dropped their holiday quarter expectations by 31% after the end result of moving the uDraw series away from the Wii in favor of the Xbox 360 and PS3 lead to dismal sales on the HD platforms and no uDraw games for the Wii this holiday season.
http://www.businessweek.com/ap/financialnews/D9RGGEQ82.htm

[#BROKEN Hasney]

Don't know if it's been mentioned, but Steam is doing specials on one game a day. Today is Oblivion for $5.

They've had the daily deal for about a year now, but they have ramped up the name value for this month I think.

Got King Arthur, the Role Playing Wargame. Can't wait for it to download.

[LoDownM]

Bioware. C&C Generals 2. Need to change my pants.

[#BROKEN Hasney]

Tony Hawk HD is only going to take from the first 2 games, be digitally released and priced under $20.

How a remake should be done, not paying close to full price to for some bullshit collection of games I've already played.

[#BROKEN Hasney]

Bioware. C&C Generals 2. Need to change my pants.

It will have nothing to do with the guys who made Mass Effect. EA have turned Bioware into a brand. Victory Games were recently formed by EA and were renamed Bioware, they'll be making this game.

[LoDownM]

Why you always gotta try and bring people down Hasney :'(

[#BROKEN Hasney]

On the plus side, Victory Games were set up in February as a dedicated RTS studio. I'd probably have more faith in them to do C&C rather than Bioware if I'm honest.