Sega has decided it will not attend Europe's massively successful GamesCom in Cologne, Germany this year. The publisher told VG247 in a statement that the show "continues to be the most important European event in the calendar," but that it was a "commercial decision" not to attend in 2010.
It would appear that Sega is trying to save some of the cash it made in its last fiscal year. That means Vanquish, Sonic 4 and Valkyria Chronicles 2 (which could really use all the promotion it can get) will not be working the goods when the convention takes place August 18-22.
#pc
OnLive, a streaming service that hopes to replace both PCs and consoles as the gaming setup of the future, has its sceptics, who say it's too laggy to work. Why listen to them, when you can listen to science? More »
#screengrab
So Activision would ruin Team Fortress 2. Flip that around, though, and Valve could make amends for Modern Warfare 2 (click for full version). By Mustkunstn1k @ DeviantART. More »
if Valve made Modern Warfare 2, it might actually be worth playing
#wii
We toil each month to show you which Wii games get played the most by Wii owners. But which games do people buy or rent and then... ignore? We've got some winners (losers) for you here. More »
Looking to intimidate all of the other figurines on your toy shelf? You may want to check out Hot Toys' 1/6th scale recreation of Assassin's Creed 2 protagonist, Ezio Audisomethingorother -- which comes complete with a set of interchangeable hands, knives, swords and even a ponytail.
There's no word on price right now, but the figure is planned to launch in Q3. Considering its 30 points of articulation, 30cm height, real metal weapons and complex uniform -- not to mention the going rate on some of Hot Toys' other figures -- you'll probably want to start saving your Florins right now.
#pc
The people who publish Age of Empires and Halo Wars have a secret real-time strategy title in the works for Games For Windows Live, which Microsoft Games Studios is calling "Project S." Other people are alpha testing it now. More »
Coming up with names for Castlevania games isn’t all that hard. Just thing of a music related word, and then pair some rather esoteric word with it. You know, a wordy title that often can be boiled down in to much simpler terms. I love the Castlevania series, but the naming has [...]
Jim Brown, nine-season running back for the Cleveland Browns and NFL Hall of Fame inductee, filed a lawsuit against Electronic Arts in 2008 for using his likeness in Madden '09 without first obtaining his permission. Last September, U.S. District Judge Florence-Marie Cooper (who passed away in January from lymphoma) ruled that EA was protected by First Amendment rights -- a decision which Brown is now attempting to overturn in a San Francisco appellate court.
Brown requested the review earlier this week at the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. According to the Associated Press, EA representative Jeff Brown emailed the New York Times, saying the industry juggernaut is "confident" the ruling won't change. So, for those of you keeping score: EA's Jeff Brown says Jim Brown from the Browns won't win.
Ai Kobayashi
- voice actress for Deunan Knute in Appleseed
- did voice work in other anime features such as Kino’s Journey and Detective Conan
- first foray into video games
Thanks to KillerHeroes for the heads up!
#coverstory
This morning, NBA 2K11 revealed its box art featuring Michael Jordan, billed as "the greatest cover of all time." But there are many other athletes, also the greatest in their respective sports, who've graced a game's cover. Here's a sampling. More »
InstantAction, which provides the neat embeddable player for games like The Secret of Monkey Island: Special Edition, has teamed up with Greenhouse, Penny-Arcade's indie digital distribution store.
The good news is that Greenhouse will employ InstantAction's streaming technology on its site, allowing you immediate access to selections from its catalog. "Indie devs think the same way we think about it," Penny-Arcade's Robert Khoo told Big Download, "which is that since they have the option to embed the games into pretty much anywhere, it's a win-win for everyone involved."
The bad news is that you'll have to ... wait for that immediate access. The Greenhouse site is currently down while the new InstantAction stuff is being implemented. Khoo said that it would be back up before PAX, which starts September 3.
Are you and your globe-conquering friends losing that competitive edge over Settlers 7: Paths to a Kingdom's catalog of expansive multiplayer arenas? Today, Ubisoft added three new competitive maps for the game to its online storefront: Tempest Taiga, Fiery Chasm and the Battle of Tanholm.
For those of you who have to keep your Spartan dressed in the latest styles, GameStop is offering exclusive armor and helmet configurations with pre-orders of Halo: Reach. Those who reserve the game will receive tokens for a Spartan Recon Helmet with Visor/Blast Shield and a UA Multi-Threat Mjolnir Mark V(B) Armor, which features a unique chestplate design and a grenade belt. Can't you hear it? "Hey, (your name here)! Looking good in that UAMTMMVBA!" You and your Multi-Threat, Blast Shield-sporting friends can mock the Spartans who dare to show up wearing default armor.
Of course, you also receive a $20 coupon, just like those offered by Walmart and Amazon.
#madden
An EA Sports spokesman has said that a week from tomorrow, through an unnamed media outlet, the final word on the Madden NFL 11 demo's release date will be given. The smart money has it arriving July 23. More »
If you need money to bring your indie game concept to life, and you don't want to enter Activision's design contest, you now have another alternative: The Indie Fund, created by a team of established indie devs, is soliciting applications. To apply, you need a playable prototype, a video and, you know, a cool game.
The fund, "established as a serious alternative to the traditional publisher funding model," invests in games by small teams, in order to allow those teams to remain independent of publishers. "World of Goo cost $120K to develop," the application page notes. "Braid cost $180K. That's about the right size project for Indie Fund right now, and it necessitates doing things on the cheap." So, if your game concept is a realistic first-person shooter with MMO elements, get right out of there.
An Apache, Spartan, Pirate, Ninja, Samurai, Viking, Knight and Roman Centurion walk into a bar -- and then murder each other. That's not a joke. It's Deadliest Warrior: The Game on XBLA next Wednesday, July 14 for $10. (Head past the break for a complete XBLA release schedule.)
A portion of Aeropause’s review:
It’s a different experience from the other major fighters on Wii (Super Smash Bros Brawl, Tatsunoko vs Capcom) but with fewer selectable fighters than either of those games and none of the familiar faces, it may or may not appeal. It’s technically very impressive and a lot of fun, and definitely [...]
#dlc
Among many criticisms of Crackdown 2 was the game's duller color palette, which swapped out the bright hues of the 2007 hit for duller, grittier tones. The developer said while this was intentional, it will be remedied with DLC. More »
