All Topics Gaming older than one year ago

#clips Why do epic quests to save the world always have to begin with someone breaking into your house and rifling through your valuables? More »

We don’t know what tech Nintendo is using in the 3ds to get the 3d effect without glasses, but many are saying that the Big N is going to be using Sharp’s bit of kit. If that is true, you can see how that technology will work via the diagrams below. Thanks to BestTech for [...]

#nintendo Nintendo's fifth generation version of its wildly popular Nintendo DS hardware, the Nintendo 3DS, comes with more than just the power to display 3D images. It also comes with a new joystick and force feedback, according to one report. More »

A portion of an ONM review… It’s not perfect, but it’s a highly enjoyable, unique twist on first person action gaming.

Greetings! Mat from UFG, back again to talk about all the split-screen goodness in ModNation Racers for PS3!

There are two multiplayer experiences that we were keen to deliver in ModNation Racers. First, there was the online race experience (up to 12 players), while the second was the couch racing experience. It is hard to beat the multiplayer experience on the couch against friends – I think we can all remember this experience from other games we have enjoyed, and we were keen to make sure we delivered the same frantic experience for ModNation Racers.

We wanted to make sure we delivered two-player split-screen. From the start, we wanted our two-player split-screen to work online. ModNation Racers enables you and a friend to go online and play the game together. This makes for intense competition and a lot of fun! Do you play together, helping each other out or do you take your friend out at every available opportunity? You can play action races and pure races together. More importantly, two players can play together on any tracks developed by United Front Games or anyone online. It makes for an almost endless experience that two players can enjoy together.

Finally, we decided to deliver the four-player couch experience. This was a lot of work, but we have managed to create a great experience where four friends can settle down for some great kart racing. What we have delivered is a fantastic local multiplayer experience reminiscent of some of our best local multiplayer play sessions from years gone by. Sit down with friends and family and battle each other to see who the best is! Again, you can play action or pure race, as well as race on any tracks in the game created by United Front Games or other players.

Overall, our multiplayer experience has been created to cater to all different players, and we feel that when people play the game they will be able to get the experience they desire. Here in the office, we all play it on a daily basis with each other, whether it be online or at someone’s desk in split-screen. The game is so much fun to play and with us nearing completion of the title, we can’t wait for all our fans to join the ModNation in May! And be sure to head over to GameTrailers to catch the first four official behind-the-scenes videos! See you all then!

How fitting is it that this video comes out today, just as Nintendo announces the 3ds? Hopefully Nintendo’s new system doesn’t meet the same fate as the Virtual Boy!

Lazard Capital Markets analyst Colin Sebastian has said in a new report that the Nintendo 3DS system will not only increase unit sales for the DS platform (obviously), it will satisfy demands of consumers now excited about 3D technology, and help differentiate Nintendo's offerings from iPhone software. He notes that cheap iPhone games are cutting into the DS business. "However," he suggests, "with a differentiated 3D display, high quality games, and profitable business model for publishers, we believe the 3DS could help reduce the competitive threat from smartphones."

Wedbush Morgan analyst Michael Pachter, however, doesn't believe 3D on its own is enough -- because if that's all it is, Apple will simply copy it. "It seems that if 3D on portable devices was easy," he told CVG, "Apple would have beat them to it. If they truly pioneer a technology, my guess is that Apple will mimic the technology." That's a pretty pessimistic outlook. We're going to have to play a lot of Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars on our touchscreen-based handheld game console to cheer ourselves up after reading that.

Check out more screens in our Flickr set San Mateo, Calif. – March 23, 2010 – Players everywhere are preparing to answer the door for Rooms: The Main Building, as the game is now available for Wii™ and Nintendo DS™. Published by Hudson Entertainment, the North and South American subsidiary of HUDSON SOFT, Rooms: The [...]

#screengrab On this, the day Nintendo outed the Virtual Boy 2, let us never forget. [image] More »

This blue screen of death is supposedly cropping up in the European version of Pokemon HeartGold. This issue is leading to a delay of Pokemon HeartGold in Europe, so the rumor says. If this screen is the real deal, than Nintendo is going to have a pretty big snafu on their hands. [...]

Major Nelson has dropped a new Xbox Live Marketplace schedule for the remainder of March and beginning of April and, while we knew about most of the major releases already, there's still some surprises to be found. First, the next two weeks will see some nice Deal of the Week promotions, with Virtual On: Oratorio Tangram falling to 800 ($10) and Geometry Wars 2 dropping to a paltry 400 ($5).

Beyond that, Xbox Live Silver members will also be able to enjoy free Xbox Live Gold -- including online multiplayer, Netflix, last.fm, Facebook and Twitter -- from noon ET on April 1 through noon ET on April 5. And, as if all that wasn't enough, Major announced that ten Xbox Live Arcade games will go on sale from April 1 through April 7. The full list of games hasn't been announced, though it will include Super Street Fighter II Turbo HD Remix, South Park and Defense Grid. Check out the full Xbox Live schedule after the break.

SANTA MONICA - March 23, 2010 — Activision Publishing (Nasdaq: ATVI), GameMill Publishing, Inc., and Cepia LLC today announced the release of Zhu Zhu Pets™ for Nintendo DS, based off of the cuddly “Toy of the Year”-winning hamsters. The initial shipment of the game includes a Collectors’ Edition baby hamster named Baxter and is available [...]

A game as dull as its title.

You have to promise me you won't play Just Cause 2.

Now, don't misunderstand me, because you should absolutely buy Just Cause 2. It's got a lush, almost dauntingly large world to explore (and destroy); it's got a combination of grappling hook and parachute travel that lets you swoop through the world in a way that's just as, if not more thrilling than anything the Spider-Man series has ever cooked up; and it's got a lot of explosions.

But the moment you play as intended, helping CIA agent Rico Rodriguez as he attempts to eject dictator "Baby" Panay from the island of Panau, you'll discover the sad truth: The tools at Rico's disposal are a hell of a lot more fun than what he's asked to use them on.

120GB now available "while supplies last."

#countdownclock A mysterious countdown timer has appeared on BioWare's home page, as well as the pages for Dragon Age: Origins and Mass Effect 2. What is BioWare revealing on Monday? More »

#virtualeconomy The billion dollar business of selling virtual goods in free-to-play games is more than just a financial windfall for companies like Playfish. A controlled economy with millions of active participants gives economists an entirely new way to model consumer behavior. More »

As a safe haven for all the world's thinking people, we'd like to happily announce that though this post is about a new look for Portal protagonist Chell in the upcoming Portal 2, you'll find no sly, winking references to the original game anywhere in sight. We're fresh out of good ones, and we just respect you too much to toss up dreck. With that now behind us, you may read on in confidence.

Game Informer has some concept art for Portal 2 and it appears that Chell is undergoing a makeover. We guess her old outfit was a lie ... uh, we mean, a lie-ttle bit too comfortable. Yeah, that's the ticket. Nice save, huh? In fact, we'd say it was a trium-- No! A triumvirate. Yep, that's it -- a political regime dominated by three powerful individuals. Think about it.

Now, let us never speak of this again.

Newspapers hint at rumble, analogue control stick and more for upcoming hardware.

#iphone In the past 24 hours or so Apple added the ability to give iPod Touch and iPhone applications and games to other people via an email or a printed certificate. More »

Slash and burn, return...

Playrix's hit hidden-object game Gardenscapes available for Apple Macintosh line of personal computers.

#review A skeptical world might not see video games as essential. But we can point to many games that feel worthy of this planet. Games about eating mushrooms, arranging falling blocks, saving the world. However: A first-person shooter with motion-based swordplay? More »

As if news of a new handheld device coming from Nintendo in the middle of the night wasn't enough, Engadget today spotted two reports out of Japanese newspapers Asahi and Nikkei, detailing the 3DS' known hardware so far. Asahi claims that the handheld's 3D output (remember, sans silly glasses) comes via a "parallax barrier LCD" from Sharp, while Nikkei backs this up and adds that the device's screens will measure roughly four inches diagonally across (each).

Nikkei also claims the device will feature a "3D control stick," though this could presumably be an analog control stick (or some other plastic variant of a built-in sausage stylus). In speaking with a representative from Nintendo of America, the New York Times confirmed that we'll get our first hands-on with the 3DS at E3 2010, so we'll get our chance to find out exactly what that 3D control stick is soon enough.

Source 1 - Asahi
Source 2 - Nikkei
Source 3 - The New York Times

[Via Engadget]

XS Games today announced the availability of The Red Star for the PSPgo exclusively on the PlayStation Network. The game, originally released in 2007 on PlayStation 2, is based on the sci-fi/fantasy graphic novel of the same name by Christian Gossett. Featuring fully polished and improved controls, The Red Star skillfully blends together side-scrolling fast paced retro beat 'em up gameplay with the blasting power of top-down action packed shooters.

Once more into the bathysphere.

Click to enlarge I'm not going to sugar coat it: Red Steel 2 isn't a hardcore first-person shooter. In fact, it's not actually an FPS per se, unless you take the acronym to mean "First-Person Sword-er." What Ubisoft Paris has made here is an arcade-style game that most closely resembles a good old-fashioned hack-'n-slash side-scroller -- only viewed through the eyes of its protagonist.

There's some light exploration -- even some hidden areas and items to be found -- but Red Steel 2 is, at its heart, a brawler that relies heavily on combos, special moves and finishers. There's some shooting, but it plays only the slightest supporting role to the main attraction: Swinging the Wiimote around like a sword and looking cool (on-screen, at least) in a stylized, sci-fi western world.