Archive for March 31st, 2010

DICE and EA continued their march to take on "Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2" with a direct response to Infinity Ward and Activision's $15 Stimulus Package that launched this week. Now, in addition to lampooning their competition's marketing and pledging not to block party chat, DICE has gone on record to say that map packs for their titles will remain free.

"We don't ever want to charge for our maps and insisted to EA that this attitude was crucial when it came to keeping our community happy and playing together," DICE senior producer Patrick Bach told Xbox World 360 magazine, according to CVG.

Ever is a powerful word, so take that with a grain of salt, but it sounds like EA is content with that decision for the foreseeable future. 1200 Microsoft Points is a significant investment for the new "MW2" content, and Bach's promise directly challenges the Infinity Ward/Activision strategy. Nearly a month after the game's release, they haven't eclipsed the record-breaking profits "MW2" brought in last fall, though.

In the meantime, smack talk will always be fun to listen too, so I applaud such bold public assertions and hope DICE sticks to their guns on this issue.

What do you think of the price point on the "MW2" Stimulus Package? Do you think DICE is wise to keep their map packs free? Sound off in the comment section below.

"Spider-Man: Shattered Dimensions" unmasked its title earlier this month on a GamePro cover, but all kinds of details became official this week, including the game's September 2010 release date and the role of "Amazing Spider-Man" comics writer Dan Slott, who'll be leveraging David Hine's 2008-2009 "Spider-Man Noir" mini-series to show off an edgier version of the iconic hero.

"'Spider-Man: Shattered Dimensions' delivers an original storyline that bridges four unique worlds," Activision's head of marketing Rob Kostich said in a press release. "Each action-packed universe will have its own detailed art design and thrilling missions, challenging gamers to use new skill sets to defeat enemies as they unlock powerful new moves and progress through the game."

Slott's story will chase the Tablet of Order and Chaos, which causes some reality and time and space problems that give way to the multiple Spider-Man universes, including that of "Spider-Man Noir," slated to appear. As a longtime Spider-Man comics follower, I can only hope that Peter Porker, the swinish Spider-Ham, the aging Spider-Man of "Spider-Man: Reign" and the cosmically super-charged Captain Universe incarnation of Spidey show up in the other worlds. Whatever direction the game takes, Slott should prove to be a great pick. His comics work on "The Thing" and "She-Hulk" comprised some of my favorite Marvel material of the last decade, so I expect great things.

What do you think of the premise for "Spider-Man: Shattered Dimensions"? Will Dan Slott be a good fit? Share your expectations in the comment section below.

You probably already know that there's a new "NBA Jam" coming for the Wii. If you don't, hit that link for some hands-on impressions of the game.

It seems that a lot of effort is being focused on bringing "old school" gamers back to the franchise, and, in order to do that, you'll need old school players. Enter Magic Johnson and Larry Bird.

In an interview with the "NBA Jam" creative director, Trey Smith, I asked about some of the modes in the game. In describing one such mode, Classic Campaign, Smith let slip that the tournament-style mode will culminate with a legendary game against two of the NBA's greats: Johnson and Bird.

"Whoever wins the [2010 NBA] championship, they'll be the second-to-last team, and then we'll have a legendary battle. Right now it's slated: Magic and Bird."

I continued pegging Smith with questions about additional secret characters (George Clinton? Air Dog? President Obama?), but he wouldn't budge, apart from the Magic and Bird reveal.

Here's the clip of Smith discussing some of the game's modes in more depth:

"FarmVille" addiction is officially recognized by Dr. Phil, and a new browser toolbar now makes that addiction accessible as frequently as you open your web browser. The toolbar's developer, Conduit Ltd., created a customizable platform that allows publishers and users on "Farmville," as well as other games, to create tailored feeds about how long they have to get back to their crops or whatever their gaming labor of choice involves.

"It's been very popular within the game space because companies have been able to build tools which have helped them make their games more easily accessible or interact with their game-related content more easily within the browser," Conduit president Adam Boyden told Kotaku. "It gives game publishers, developers, and community sites a constant engagement potential with end users."

If "FarmVille" wasn't hurting office productivity across the world enough already, this seems like just the weapon of mass procrastination enabling the game needed. Thinking through what the toolbar arrival really means, though, you have contemplate how many "FarmVille" players over the age of 50 had absolutely no idea idea what a browser toolbar was until they saw that this existed. I suspect such number may be high enough that Mozilla should consider Zynga and Conduit some kind of award for consumer recruitment.

Are you going to install a toolbar to keep track of your farm? Do you know someone who will? Share your thoughts in the comment section below.

After some technical difficulties with the Stimulus Package map pack for "Modern Warfare 2," players were finally able to hop online yesterday and experience what their $15 got them. Players interested in just playing the new maps on a variety of playlists will get just that later today, as Robert Bowling, creative strategist for Infinity Ward, tweeted that Stimulus Package-specific playlists are on the way:

"We'll be updating all Modern Warfare 2 playlists on Xbox Live with the new DLC maps & double XP later today. I'll keep you updated on when."

As Bowling mentioned, the planned double XP weekend will kick off later today (earlier than what was originally reported) and will run through April 5th.

Linkin Park joins the ranks of REO Speedwagon's "Find Your Own Way Home" and Aerosmith's "Revolution X" with their upcoming iPhone release "Linkin Park 8-Bit Rebellion." Judging from the trailer, I don't see too much visually that's demonstrably 8-bit per se, but if you've been looking for "the only iPhone app game that turns Linkin Park's world into your gaming reality" as you "do your part to help some stop Pixxelkorp's evil HD empire from taking over Linkin Park's old school 8-bit world," this game will be for you. The new title from Artificial Life also contains an exclusive track called "Blackbirds," which should sweeten the deal for fans.

"The collaborative process with Artificial Life was exceptional," Linkin Park vocalist Mike Shinoda said in a press release. "They were able to turn my sketches and our creative ideas into a living, breathing world that we think gamers will thoroughly enjoy."

According to the trailer, the 8-bit thing comes into play musically, because the game "features original and 8-bit versions of some of their greatest hits." It also references the band's gaming roots, which include a lot of standards, according to Shinoda.

"My bandmates and I grew up playing games like 'Metroid,' 'Donkey Kong,' 'Zelda,' 'Space Invaders,' 'Mega Man' and 'Rygar,'" he said. "We wanted this game to have the feel of a vintage game, and a big part of it was the music."

I don't know how this rebellion will stack up against "Revolution X," but the payload it comes with ought to get the attention of Linkin Park listeners. I guess we'll find out when it lands in the App Store.

Are you a Linkin Park fan? What do you think of their new iPhone game? Share your reactions in the comment section below.

Amid busily acting out Ultra Combos, stuffing items into the "Super Street Fighter 4" Dojo Edition and stitching together some new costumes, the game's team at Capcom still found time to redesign their box art. Cammy got Tiger Uppercutted out of the picture for the final edition which instead features the series' British boxer Dudley. Juri and Chun-Li, meanwhile, traded sides on the top half, leaving Ryu in his rightful place of prominence.

"We brought in color and texture to the background, swapped the placement of Juri and Chun-Li, and dropped out Cammy for the awesome Dudley," the announcement on Capcom-Unity.com explained. "We did this because we know you guys love you some Dudley! But the other reason was that we now have three series represented with those three characters. Adon = Alpha / Dudley = 3rd Strike / Dee Jay = Super SFII."

The fiery swirl in the background definitely makes the composition pop a bit more than the purple shadow-fog that was there before. It looks like Capcom may have wanted shoppers to notice Chun-Li at first glance instead of their new Korean fighter, who's now over on the right side.

It's too bad they couldn't have found room for their new Turkish wrestler Hakan on there, though. I like to think that in a store room somewhere there's a collector's edition of this game adorned with gold-embossed oil drips on the cover. That's some premium packaging I would pay for.

What do you think of the "SSF4" box art changes? Did Capcom make the right call? Share your opinions in the comment section below.

Wario has been around in the Nintendo universe for just about 18 years now, and has his own mini-game series for the last seven. It's safe to say that he's a star in his own right, even if he is a big fan of garlic and passing gas, but apparently he's important enough to be the face of one of this year's most innovative titles, "WarioWario D.I.Y." Like the other games in the series this "D.I.Y." revolves around mini-games, but not in the way that you may be thinking.

The Basics

"WarioWare D.I.Y." may pass itself off as another release in the series that proved that minigame compilations could be successful, but it's actually a fully featured game design tool. In addition to the over 90 mini-games that are included which feature some of the series' favorite characters, like Ashley and 9-Volt, you can also create your own mini-games from scratch, or by using the already existing ones as templates. In addition to that, even more games can be downloaded and shared via the game's WiiWare counterpart "WarioWare D.I.Y. Showcase."

The Highs

You Are The Game Designer
Obviously the main selling point of "D.I.Y." is just that, it's one of the first games that really give users the tools to use their own imaginations to create and play whatever they want. Everything is possible in "D.I.Y." as long as you have the patience to get everything just right, and there is a lengthy tutorial to make sure that you understand each facet of designing a mini-game. Whether you're creating or tweaking a game's imagery, animation, music or rules you're only limited by your time and creativity. You might not be designing the next "Super Mario Galaxy" but dipping your toe in the water of game design should expose players to the rudimentary ideas that are in place for all of the games that they play.

Minigames Forever
"D.I.Y." could really be the game that never ends. When you mix the capability of making your own games with the option to download more from the WiiWare channel, you should almost always have something new to play. Even if your creations aren't that amazing, Nintendo has promised to continue to offer mini-games designed by some big name developers over the next few months, like the ones that are already available from Yoshio Sakamoto and Masahiro Sakurai. In addition all the DLC, "D.I.Y." also offers a variety of modes to help familiarize yourself with individual aspects of the creation tools, as well teach you tips and tricks to help make game creation fast and easy.

Making Design Easy
The fact that "D.I.Y." contains the tools to create is one thing, but the fact that the game's designers have gone out of their way to make them easy to use is definitely another. You can automatically generate music, copy and paste object's A.I., and even borrow graphics from already unlocked or downloaded games, making doing it yourself accessible for just about anyone, no matter what their specialty or design preference is.

Look At What Wii Can Do
There's nothing Nintendo fans like better than when two of their devices play nice with each other, and "D.I.Y." is the perfect example of what a fully featured Nintendo game can do. If owners of the DS game download the "WarioWare D.I.Y. Showcase" WiiWare game they'll be able to unlock another 72 mini-games that can be transferred to the DS and played on the go as well as on the big screen. In addition to the mini-games, players also unlock all of the assets that were used to create them, which means those features can be taken and used in future creations, so you can think of "Showcase" as an 800 Point expansion pack. Additionally, if you think you've made the best mini-game on the block you can use your Wii to upload and share your creation with the whole "D.I.Y." community, possibly making you the next big game design rock star.

The Laughs Keep Coming
One of the biggest traits of the "WarioWare" series is its signature humor that can be found in every one of its games, and "D.I.Y." is no exception. For example, at one point during the tutorial, which is co-instructed by Dr. Crygor's granddaughter Penny along side Wario, Penny uses the concept of Wario's clothes to describe the abstract idea of layering the objects when creating a game. While that may seem all well and good, the number of times the phrase "naked Wario" is used is not only very amusing, but also a little nauseating if you start to actually visualize it at all. In addition to the witty banter, the game also makes use of (and pokes fun at) things like forums and reporting game sales numbers to help give the designers advice as to how to make better games.

The Lows

So Much To Learn

Since "WarioWare D.I.Y." is such a robust title that allows you to produce as well as consume, it's understandable that there needs to be a tutorial included. However, the length of "D.I.Y."'s tutorial surpasses "Okami"'s hour long instructional, and rivals that of any "Shin Megami Tensei" title, as it ends up well into the multiple hour range. It's extremely in-depth, and at the end you will have a solid understanding of most of the features that the game offers, but it's just so amazingly long that some gamers might lose interest. People may go to school for years to learn how to design games, but that doesn't mean that it should take three hours to figure out how to attach a present to a balloon.

Only If You're Going To Do It Yourself
"D.I.Y." is anything but light on content, however, if you're looking for a package packed full of minigames you may want to look somewhere else for the time being. Yes, there are 90 games on the cartridge, but they aren't packaged as well as the mini-games in the other titles in the series. There is very little development in the way of any kind of a story for each of the characters, and of the 90 that are included, all of them were created using the tools found in the game. While that is a pretty remarkable feat, there won't be many of these games making the cut if Nintendo ever puts out a "Best of WarioWare" compilation.

The Verdict

Games that allow you to create your own levels have made the rounds before, but "WarioWare D.I.Y." takes a more technical look at user created designs, asking the "player" to decide not just where the rock goes on the screen, but also what that rock should do. "LittleBigPlanet" is often credited as the game that opened the doors for putting user generated content into the general gamer consciousness, but "D.I.Y." takes it a bit further giving them the tools to orchestrate and distribute their own games. Creative gamers should take to this game like a fish to water, so much so that teachers may want to consider using this title to demonstrate the very basic of game design to classes.

On the flip-side, if you don't fancy yourself a game designer in training "D.I.Y." won't have as much to offer you as other titles in the series, especially Wario's DS alternative, "Touched!," but that doesn't mean there aren't at least a few hours of solid enjoyment here either. Overall, it's an impressive title that any wanna-be game developer should spend at least a little time tinkering with.

THQ's fighting game agreements already encompass an eight-year agreement with WWE and a successful annual franchise in the UFC Undisputed games. That family will grow when they announce a new game from a "major developer" at E3 this year, though the title and property have not yet been divulged.

"The fighting group is actually taking on the management of another game that we're going to announce at E3 that has a certain amount of melee combat in it but it's... we'll announce it at E3," THQ core games VP Danny Bilson told CVG. "It's a major developer and you'll get exactly what I'm talking about when I'm able to talk about it. It's really cool, it's another one of the things I'm doing to rebuild everything around the core division of THQ."

Bilson cautioned that it may "two, three years to build an awesome game," but he's setting a high bar for the new reveal, whatever it may be. If the new game doesn't belong to the WWE or UFC brands, the list of other possibilities can't be too long. My personal wish is that THQ understands how mainstream oil-soaked Turkish Yagli Gures wrestling is about to become now that Hakan is in "Super Street Fighter 4." If that's the case, they could be the first game publisher on the block to have franchise waiting for all those new fans.

What do you think THQ's new fighting game announcement will be? Would you play a Yagli Gures game? Share your predictions in the comment section below.