Archive for April, 2010

No Doubt may be dissatisfied with their appearance in "Band Hero" to the point of filing a lawsuit against Activision, but they've green-lit a full release of their 1995 studio album Tragic Kingdom for use in "Rock Band" and it should be out next week for all major consoles.

"Don't Speak," "Spiderwebs," and the rest of Tragic Kingdom will be available for download on the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 and Wii beginning May 4, according a press release. The whole album with be priced at $19.99, including two other singles by Orianthi and Picture Me Broken. Alternatively, you can pick up the individual tracks for $1.99 apiece or pay $14.99 only the previously unreleased tracks. Here's what you'll be looking at:

• No Doubt – "Different People"
• No Doubt – "End It on This"
• No Doubt – "Happy Now?"
• No Doubt – "Hey You"
• No Doubt – "Sixteen"
• No Doubt – "The Climb"
• No Doubt – "Tragic Kingdom"
• No Doubt – "World Go 'Round"
• No Doubt – "You Can Do It"

• Orianthi – "According to You"
• Picture Me Broken – "Dearest (I’m So Sorry)"

As was the case with Green Day, the '90s were my favorite period for this band, and Tragic Kingdom's a real classic for the era. It should facilitate much pop-infused ska performing in the coming month.

Do you plan on downloading Tragic Kingdom? What other albums would you like to get on "Rock Band"? Share your hopes in the comment section below.

If it's possible to make a game in the traditions of "ICO," "Donkey Kong" and "Braid," Hudson appears to have done just that in their upcoming Wii title "Lost in Shadow." The premise of the project sounds like something that could have been developed by Team ICO, since it features a boy who's been the victim of a bizarre ritual of some kind and has his shadow severed from his body. The shadow has to climb up a crazy looking tower, and that's the process you're tasked with guiding him through, according to the trailer.

The precise date of arrival for "Lost in Shadow" in the U.S. still hangs up in the air, but the game should be available in Japan on July 22, according to Siliconera.

The level of craftsmanship and inspired game design is apparent just from the gameplay footage. If the interactive experience is anything comparable, this one's going to be up at the top of my Wii shopping list for the end of the year. Here's hoping it delivers.

What are your first impressions of "Lost in Shadow"? Do you think you'll give it a go when it hits shelves in the fall? Share your opinions in the comment section below.

As was the case when some "Red Faction"-related domain names came to light this week, Sony's newly-registered inFamous2TheGame.com does not denote the imminent arrival of an unannounced sequel. However, should Sony decide at some point in the near future to create a game called "inFamous 2," they are going to be in great shape for establishing its web presence.

SCEA's new purchase was spotted over at Superannuation, where it corroborated a withdrawn tweet from last year by voice actor David Sullivan. Sullivan claimed to be auditioning for the re-cast part of Cole, according to CVG. His post was removed from his feed, however, probably due to a polite request from Sony.

Officially, there is of course no "inFamous 2" game in works, but Sony and Sucker Punch should be fun to keep an eye on during E3, just in case that situtation changes. In the meantime, inFamous2TheGame.com should go really well with inFamousTheGame.com, which Sony already owns and maintains. It currently has a quite a bit more content than its recently-secured counterpart, though. I hope the lightning effects on the new site are at least half as cool as the tricks in use on the old one.

Would you like to play an "inFamous" sequel? Do you expect it to be announced at E3? Share your predictions in the comment section below.

Avi Arad spearheaded the current wave of blockbuster comic book-based films by executive producing "X-Men" and "Spider-Man." The former head of Marvel Studios gets a lot of attention in Hollywood when he speaks, and right now he's hoping that studios will listen to him when says that video game movies could be the next big thing.

"Very much like when we started with comics, we need one runaway success to make it very clear that this is a great source material," Arad said while speaking at the Milken Institute Global Conference, according to the Hollywood Reporter. He's already been attached to produced "Lost Planet" and "Mass Effect" films, so he has a vested business interest in getting his point across.

Legendary Pictures CEO, Thomas Tull, who was also in attendance supported Arad's position and much to the delight of many longtime gamers encouraged Hollywood to look toward good stories instead of only focusing on recognizable IP's.

"It's all about the storytelling. It's tough to make a movie about 'Pong,' " Tull said. "But some of the properties that have come out in the last couple of years are incredibly layered and complex."

And I'm not one to shoot down the dreams of those trying to create the "Citizen Kane" of "Pac-Man" movie adaptations. We all need to have goals in life. If anyone's capable of steering a proper "Mass Effect" film to theaters, though, it's Arad, so I wish him well.

Do you think Hollywood should be making more video game-based movies? What do you want to see adapted? Sound off in the comment section below.

We already know a handful of details about Steam for Mac based on the platform's closed beta and shortlist of confirmed titles that includes "Half-Life" and "Left 4 Dead" games. Valve's release date for Steam has been somewhat more elusive — or rather it was until the company sent out a quick announcement about May 12.

"Valve today announced the public release of Steam for the Mac is May 12," Valve stated in a press release. "Please stay tuned for more information."

It was kind of them not to want to overburden us with too much new information in that message, but whoever's writing the press releases over there missed a golden opportunity by not just sending out the first sentence as a haiku.

Nevertheless, Mac owners with Mac OS X 10.5 or higher and an Intel machine are about to see a big world of gaming opened up in a couple of weeks. The interconnectivity between Macs and PC's could even herald a new era in brand-cult enthusiast relations, the likes of which the gaming community rarely sees. Who knows? Come May 12, Valve may place itself in the running for a Nobel Peace Prize.

Are you anxious to check out Steam for Mac on May 12? What's the first thing you want to with it after downloading? Share your expectations in the comment section below.

Earlier today, Activision revealed the title of the next "Call of Duty" game. "Call of Duty: Black Ops" is coming on November 9, 2010, but further information was not exactly forthcoming, so we had to look to other sources.

An online retailer in the UK, Game.co.uk, has a product page up for "Call of Duty: Black Ops" which actually gives more information about the game, including some of the locations you'll be visiting.

"Call of Duty Black Ops is the next instalment [sic] in the thrilling Call of Duty franchise. Packing an amazing singleplayer story that will see you fight across the globe in locations such as Cuba, Vietnam and the Arctic."

The site went on to detail the focus of the game:

"Now you will witness the birth of the Elite Special Forces and take part in off-the-record missions using unconventional weaponry to get the job done!"

Looks like a Vietnam War-era time line seems more and more likely. Stay tuned as more information dribbles out.

It could be a coincidence that someone found registered domain names for two new "Red Faction" projects the same week that "Red Faction" the SyFy made-for-TV movie was announced. Without any solid evidence, though, these events belong to you the reader to figure out. URL's for various spellings and misspellings of "Red Faction: Armageddon" and "Red Faction: Origins" now belong to the fine folks at THQ, which probably means that they're game-related rather than movie related, but that's not a given.

RedFactionArmagedon.com, RedFactionArmageddon.com, RedFactionArmegeddon.com, RedFactionOrigins.com and RedFactionOrigin.com were all registered by THQ Inc. on February 22, 2010, according to Superannuation. THQ said back in February that would make another "Red Faction" title in the next couple of years, so the timing on their domain grabs looks like it relates more to that decision than it does to their new relationship with SyFy.

The two distinct names could mean that one or both are games. Alternatively, one could be a console title and the other destined for a portable platform. And anything's possible; either could be an accompanying novel or comic book set to coincide with a game. I'm sure such questions will come up for THQ at E3.

What would you like to see happen in THQ's next "Red Faction" game? Does "Armageddon" sound like a serviceable title to you? Share your thoughts in the comment section below.

After the "FarmVille" Fuel For Coins image was leaked earlier this week, speculation as to whether it was legitimate has been rife across the internet's social gaming scene. Thankfully, this confusion has now been cleared up, as this new way of purchasing fuel has appeared in the game as a limited time offer.

Players above level 20 who earn a new co-op farming medal will be able to utilize this promotion. The main boost comes from purchasing fuel using coins. This is restricted to once a day, as they're two fuel for coins options to choose from. Farmers can buy one fuel refill for 10K coins or opt to refill five times for 50K depending on preference. Although the value from coins to fuel is the same, this decision rewards those who're willing to invest in as much fuel as possible while the offer runs.

In order to purchase the fuel, get yourself to the "FarmVille" market, click on the "Vehicles" tab and then buy away (making sure you meet the level and medal requirements first). As this offer will be available for a limited time only, players have been suggested to get the goods while they're hot in order to combat the tractor's gas-gulping appetite.

After yesterday's Bungie announcement, Activision is continuing to own the news cycle this week, as they've gone and announced details for the next "Call of Duty" installment. "Call of Duty: Black Ops" is being developed by Treyarch and will release on November 9, 2010.

Information on "Call of Duty: Black Ops" has been leaking out steadily since the release of "Modern Warfare 2." Editorially we've been referring to it as "Call of Duty 7," since we haven't been able to call it anything else, but now that we know the official title at least we can be a little more specific.

In the announcement, Mark Lamia, the studio head of Treyarch, had this to say:

"We can't wait for our community to experience 'Call of Duty: Black Ops'...We have focused our entire studio on this game, with dedicated multiplayer, single-player and co-op teams creating the most intense, gripping and riveting experience possible for our fans on all fronts."

There have been rumors of the game being set in Vietnam, but the more likely scenario is that the game will be set during the time frame of Vietnam, but take place in different locations all over the world (as was the case in "Modern Warfare 2").

The first glimpse of the game will be shown on tonight's episode of GameTrailers TV, so be sure to tune in and check it out.

The App Store is jam-packed with thousands of apps (natch), and Apple has finally decided to reward those who rank among the very best. The company will be searching high to find the apps that have excelled in terms of technology adoption, design and user experience, innovation and performance. With the hardware coming into its own as a portable gaming, social networking and all-round super device, this task may be extremely difficult to whittle down.

The Apple Design Awards are set to be handed out at WWDC 2010, with all registered iPhone Developer Program members being eligible to pick up a prize, and can also submit their own apps for nomination. Apple have oddly stated an app doesn't need to be nominated to win- if it stands out to them and hasn't been mentioned, it may still be considered.

As far as prizes go, the mega-firm have stated an Apple Design Award trophy will be up for grabs, as well as "other exciting prizes". More details on this should be released soon.

Nominations need to be made by 14 May. Who do you think should be up for an award? Does huge sale numbers guarantee success? One thing's for sure, the winners will have fought off insanely tough competition to gain recognition.