It's hard to say just how good The Behemoth's newly announced BattleBlock Theater will be when it launches (no release date yet!). Even with all the clips and screens we've seen and all the time we've spent with the title (previously codenamed Game 3), we still don't have a deep understanding of what, exactly, is going on. But the team's got a pretty good track record with Castle Crashers and Alien Hominid, so we're willing to give them the benefit of the doubt.
None of that matters, however, because what we do know is that what follows after the jump is probably our favorite trailer so far this year. It's actually -- and don't tell any advertisers or con-men this -- a little sad and scary just how easily we can be manipulated.
Matt Hazard: Blood Bath & Beyond was in the unfortunate position of being a not-so-bad follow-up to a pretty darn bad game. As if we needed to feel even worse for it, Gamasutra has released one of its all-too-humanizing postmortems centered on the PSN and XBLA release.
Developer Vicious Cycle's revelations about underestimating the work a downloadable game would take are interesting, but we're kind of disappointed that the "What went wrong" section isn't just "The first Matt Hazard game" in big letters.
It's likely your computer already hates you, what with all those Clay Aiken tracks and Joanie Loves Chachi episodes you store on the thing's hard drive. So why not allow the outside to properly convey the hatred it has for you on the inside? One individual has done just that -- while simultaneously paying homage to Sony's God of War franchise -- all with the Kratos case mod you see above. We'd comment further, but we think the mod is disturbingly close to being a sentient, living Kratos and would you want to piss him slash it off? Yeah, didn't think so.
Jump past the break for a brief video showing off the mod.
[Thanks, Regis]
There are a couple of interesting games hidden in an unusually crowded lineup of new Nintendo downloads. The Tales of Monkey Island series concludes, Alex Kidd appears in a weird crossover game, and DSiWare features a game that uses the camera for motion controls. And somehow, Digital Leisure released the same game twice! Find out how that happened (and what all the other new games are) after the break.
Jeopardy! and Wheel of Fortune.
What are the two Sony Pictures Television game shows that THQ has licensed for video games?
The publisher announced that it has acquired multi-year licenses for the two venerable game shows, specifically for the Wii and DS/DSi, with options for other platforms. The first games will be out later this year.
A statement from THQ Kids, Family, and Casual Games Executive VP Doug Clemmer suggests that THQ has online play in mind for its adaptations: "The opportunity to implement new features such as Wii Speak will re-imagine how these games are played and engage fans with a whole new level of interactivity," he said. No longer will it be shameful to leave the show with naught but the home game!
An aside: We find it extremely odd that there's a sudden uptick in Wii Speak use a year-and-a-half after the accessory was released.
Auction here
Yoshi’s Island 2 DS demo
Mario Vs. Donkey Kong 2 DS demo
Mario and Luigi: Partners in Time DS demo
Anime Expo 1996 AX96 Collectible Poster Signed Limited with proceeds going to charity (thanks Michael!)
Sounds like there might be another piece of art coming out tomorrow. I’m guessing it’ll connect to this piece as well! Thanks to Travis for the heads up!
Irrational Games continues to empty out its vault of memories and secrets over on its newly commissioned blog -- Ken Levine and the crew are revealing so much old insider information over there you have to wonder how long they'll keep it up. Today, it's "what might have been" on System Shock 2, as Levine relates what they would have liked to do with the SHODAN showdown game, given more time and resources. The game was originally designed as an Apocalypse Now-style assassination in space, and it included some zero-G gameplay ideas (that sound pretty similar to what Dead Space pulled off years later). The ending also had to be rewritten, as the cinematic that Levine got back didn't have much to do with the script that he had originally put together.
And perhaps the most disturbing factoid is that the entire game was created in just 900 square feet of office space, full of overworked (and smelly) game developers. Wandering around the Von Braun was scary and all, but spending 11 months in a tiny room full of developers on crunch? No wonder Levine sounds ecstatic he survived.
LAFAYETTE, IN USA (February 1, 2010) Omega Music Technology has brought real drums and cymbals to the popular Rock Band and Guitar Hero music games with the release of the GM-1 System.
“I just wasn’t satisfied with the plastic drums on the market,” said Tom Baker, president, Omega Music Technology. “After the stunning success of the [...]
First reaction: lolwhut? Of course casual gamerz haven't hurt the hardcore. Hardcore have mad skillz.
Second, more thoughtful reaction: Oh -- Cowen and Company's Doug Creutz was speaking in terms of business. That makes a little more sense. Speaking to Edge, Creutz espoused his belief that "non-traditional" formats like the iPhone and social gaming have not hurt the core gaming market. Rather, said Creutz, "We believe that these newer gaming media represent a distinct and non-competitive market segment from console gaming, which is dominated by the core gamer." He elaborated that while casual titles didn't fare as well in 2009, the sales of core titles were still strong (a reasonable belief).
According to Creutz, the "difficulties" faced by the industry are the result of the "relatively slow uptake" of the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360, thanks in large part to their high price points. However, now that both the PS3 and 360 have reached mass market prices, the console cycle will "reaccelerate to the benefit of the publishers that are positioned to take advantage."
Creutz sentiments seem to be in line with many of the major game publishers, as both Capcom and EA have expressed dissatisfaction with the Wii market, with a Capcom spokesperson outright declaring, "If you're not Nintendo, it does seem harder to make money on the Wii today compared to the PS3 and the Xbox 360". Meanwhile, Ubisoft has announced that it plans to "refocus" its efforts on the Xbox 360 and PS3 in 2010.
These weapons are going to be made available through special Event Quests, which you will have to tackle if you want the item. Capcom really does go the extra mile with their fans!
“Congrats Unity members! You’ve survived the social networking challenges and have unlocked this brand new Mega Man 10 art. What’s so special about this? Well…here’s a hint. There’s a third. A third what? Tune in tomorrow to find out!!” - Capcom unity
I think the secret of the art is how fantastic it is on its [...]
