Archive for March 9th, 2010

"Mega Man 10" finally arrives in Japan this month, and Capcom threw in a little surprise for Japanese PSN users -- randomly winnable copies of "Mega Man 3," which comes out there in April. The edition that appears will be the "Rockman Complete Works" port from the PS1, but North American Wii owners with access to the Virtual Console should be able to shrug off any inklings of jealousy with ease, as "Mega Man 3" has been available here for some time.

Capcom plans on giving away 50 copies of the April title to anyone who buys "Mega Man 10" in Japan between March 9th and 23rd, according to Siliconera.

"10" could be a nice round number to leave the 8-bit Mega Man renaissance at for a little while now. I'm in agreement with Keiji Inafune that a 16-bit foray might be nice to mix things up. And you never know. By then we may have a new generation of consoles out that means it will be time for a 64-bit renaissance with a brief stop at 32.

I think what I'm trying to say is that I wish I could win all of the "Mega Man X" games on WiiWare right now. That would be a contest I could get behind.

Do you wish you had PSN access in Japan? What Megan Man title would you like to win on a console? Share your thoughts in the comment section below.

Some games like "Bejeweled 2" already seem right at home on your console, computer and mobile device, and Microsoft now has plans to extend saved games across all three platforms, at least if you plan on running three Microsoft operating systems. During a recent keynote presentation at TechEd Middle East in Dubai, Microsoft's Eric Rudder showcased a concept that extend access to a single game across Windows Phone 7, the Xbox 360, and Windows 7.

"It remembers what level I'm on," Rudder explained in the demonstration posted on Engadget. After transitioning from his phone to an Xbox, the game resumed play from his phone-based save.

The platform adventure game on display demonstrated compatibility across interface schemes, using the accelerometer and touch controls on Rudder's phone and the 360's gamepad. Such possibilities should be welcome advancements for developers. It will be interesting to see if Apple has a response to this system and what kinds of games will take advantage.

Being able to continue on the same save file from a tower defense title like "Plants vs. Zombies" from the bus to your desktop or couch would be splendid. I can think of a few action/RPG games that would be nice fits as well. If you see a Microsoft developer running around GDC, be sure to ask them what to expect!

What game would you most like to open up from your phone, computer or console at your leisure? If Microsoft gets the system right, do you think it will influence your hardware-buying decisions? Sound off in the comment section below.

Some games like "Bejeweled 2" already seem right at home on your console, computer and mobile device, and Microsoft now has plans to extend saved games across all three platforms, at least if you plan on running three Microsoft operating systems. During a recent keynote presentation at TechEd Middle East in Dubai, Microsoft's Eric Rudder showcased a concept that extend access to a single game across Windows Phone 7, the Xbox 360, and Windows 7.

"It remembers what level I'm on," Rudder explained in the demonstration posted on Engadget. After transitioning from his phone to an Xbox, the game resumed play from his phone-based save.

The platform adventure game on display demonstrated compatibility across interface schemes, using the accelerometer and touch controls on Rudder's phone and the 360's gamepad. Such possibilities should be welcome advancements for developers. It will be interesting to see if Apple has a response to this system and what kinds of games will take advantage.

Being able to continue on the same save file from a tower defense title like "Plants vs. Zombies" from the bus to your desktop or couch would be splendid. I can think of a few action/RPG games that would be nice fits as well. If you see a Microsoft developer running around GDC, be sure to ask them what to expect!

What game would you most like to open up from your phone, computer or console at your leisure? If Microsoft gets the system right, do you think it will influence your hardware-buying decisions? Sound off in the comment section below.

Plenty of big names like Valve, Microsoft and Naught Dog will be showing off their accomplishments at GDC 2010 this week, but a collective of indie developers hopes to to grab some attention as well, both at the show and after. By pooling minds that have produced titles like "Braid," "Flower" and "World of Goo," the Indie Fund hopes to create alternatives for small-scale developers looking to get past investment barriers and put their game concepts into production.

"In broad strokes, when we approve a title we start making periodic payments to the developer," Indie Fund member and 2D Boy co-founder Ron Carmel told Ars Technica. "Once the game ships, the developer first repays the investment back into the fund, and then shares revenue with the fund for a limited time."

Carmel's presentation on Tuesday is slated to address current industry standards and propose solutions. Money is a huge part of that, but providing financial pathways for emerging developers to gain footholds is only the first step.

"Funding indie games is just a means to an end," Carmel said. "What we really hope to accomplish with this effort is to help games evolve as a medium of expression by funding the indie scene, where much of the innovation in video games is currently happening."

If you're at GDC this week and you have game, but you don't have a studio or a publisher, Carmel's speech may be worth listening to. The Indie Fund's website says that they aren't currently taking submissions, but even if you can't get them to cover your start-up costs, you may be able to glean some wisdom.

Do you agree with the Carmel's analysis of the game industry for indie developers? Do you have a game that you're trying to get funding to produce? Share your thoughts in the comment section below.

Plenty of big names like Valve, Microsoft and Naught Dog will be showing off their accomplishments at GDC 2010 this week, but a collective of indie developers hopes to to grab some attention as well, both at the show and after. By pooling minds that have produced titles like "Braid," "Flower" and "World of Goo," the Indie Fund hopes to create alternatives for small-scale developers looking to get past investment barriers and put their game concepts into production.

"In broad strokes, when we approve a title we start making periodic payments to the developer," Indie Fund member and 2D Boy co-founder Ron Carmel told Ars Technica. "Once the game ships, the developer first repays the investment back into the fund, and then shares revenue with the fund for a limited time."

Carmel's presentation on Tuesday is slated to address current industry standards and propose solutions. Money is a huge part of that, but providing financial pathways for emerging developers to gain footholds is only the first step.

"Funding indie games is just a means to an end," Carmel said. "What we really hope to accomplish with this effort is to help games evolve as a medium of expression by funding the indie scene, where much of the innovation in video games is currently happening."

If you're at GDC this week and you have game, but you don't have a studio or a publisher, Carmel's speech may be worth listening to. The Indie Fund's website says that they aren't currently taking submissions, but even if you can't get them to cover your start-up costs, you may be able to glean some wisdom.

Do you agree with the Carmel's analysis of the game industry for indie developers? Do you have a game that you're trying to get funding to produce? Share your thoughts in the comment section below.

Ubisoft servers used to authenticate "Assassin's Creed 2" and "Silent Hunter 5" players went offline for a time on Sunday, and the outage reignited controversy surrounding the company's new DRM protection. Their response primarily downplayed the number of users affected by the crippled service and clearly identified the incident as an 'attack,' but it also apologized for the interruption.

"Servers were attacked and while the servers did not go down, service was limited from 2.30pm to 9pm Paris time [1.30pm - 8pm GMT]," Ubisoft told Eurogamer in an official statement. "95 per cent of players were not affected, but a small group of players attempting to open a game session did receive denial of service errors."

Since Ubisoft now requires games to check in periodically with its servers to continue functioning, the six-hour incident resulted in new players being unable to log on and play. Initializing new game sessions became a non-option, though the statement denied that players who were already logged on got booted.

"All players with an open session during the attack were not affected," Ubisoft said. "We also confirm that, at this time, no valid cracked version of either 'Silent Hunter 5' or 'Assassin’s Creed 2' are available."

PC gamers are a resourceful bunch, and their reaction to this new DRM isn't unlike the backlash "Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2" saw when it moved away from dedicated servers. They also know how to get the attention of publishers and fellow players alike with moves like this -- whether or not they change policies in the end.

Were you affected by the server outage on Sunday? Do you think Ubisoft should rethink their DRM system? Sound off in the comment section below.

Ubisoft servers used to authenticate "Assassin's Creed 2" and "Silent Hunter 5" players went offline for a time on Sunday, and the outage reignited controversy surrounding the company's new DRM protection. Their response primarily downplayed the number of users affected by the crippled service and clearly identified the incident as an 'attack,' but it also apologized for the interruption.

"Servers were attacked and while the servers did not go down, service was limited from 2.30pm to 9pm Paris time [1.30pm - 8pm GMT]," Ubisoft told Eurogamer in an official statement. "95 per cent of players were not affected, but a small group of players attempting to open a game session did receive denial of service errors."

Since Ubisoft now requires games to check in periodically with its servers to continue functioning, the six-hour incident resulted in new players being unable to log on and play. Initializing new game sessions became a non-option, though the statement denied that players who were already logged on got booted.

"All players with an open session during the attack were not affected," Ubisoft said. "We also confirm that, at this time, no valid cracked version of either 'Silent Hunter 5' or 'Assassin’s Creed 2' are available."

PC gamers are a resourceful bunch, and their reaction to this new DRM isn't unlike the backlash "Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2" saw when it moved away from dedicated servers. They also know how to get the attention of publishers and fellow players alike with moves like this -- whether or not they change policies in the end.

Were you affected by the server outage on Sunday? Do you think Ubisoft should rethink their DRM system? Sound off in the comment section below.