Critical Reception: Bizarre Creations’ Geometry Wars: Retro Evolved 2
Gamasutra Columns :: Wednesday, August 13, 2008
This week’s edition of Critical Reception examines online reaction to Geometry Wars: Retro Evolved 2, an Xbox Live Arcade shooter sequel that critics say is a “superb sequel” that “bests the original in every respect.”
Xbox 360’s Dead Online Games
Xbox Scene :: Wednesday, August 13, 2008
From oxm.co.uk : <BR><I> We take a handful of older games in the office and give them a whirl online, to see what’s left of the original communities… * Case 1. SMACKDOWN VS RAW TIME PLAYED: 30 MINUTES TOTAL PLAYERS: 14 * Case 2. FIFA 06: ROAD TO THE WORLD CUP TIME PLAYED: 30 MINUTES TOTAL PLAYERS: 1 * Case 3. F.E.A.R. TIME PLAYED: 20 MINUTES TOTAL PLAYERS: 8 * Case 4. BRIAN LARA INTERNATIONAL CRICKET TIME PLAYED: 1 HOUR TOTAL PLAYERS: 1 * Case 5. TENCHU Z TIME PLAYED: 30 MINUTES TOTAL PLAYERS: 8 * Case 6. WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP POKER TIME PLAYED: 10 MINUTES TOTAL PLAYERS: 14 * Some games with no players at all: -BLITZ THE LEAGUE -DEAD OR ALIVE XTREME 2 -MARVEL ULTIMATE ALLIANCE -WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP SNOOKER 2007 </I><BR><BR> Full Story: oxm.co.uk
Release This: Madden NFL 09 Kicks Off in North America and UK
Gamasutra Columns :: Wednesday, August 13, 2008
Gamasutra’s latest “Release This!” explores a week that finds Madden NFL 09 debuting in the U.S. alongside Line Rider 2: Unbound and Bangai-O Spirits, as Summer Athletics and Table Football premiere in the UK.
Release This: Tales of Vesperia, Fire Emblem DS Launch in Japan
Gamasutra Columns :: Wednesday, August 13, 2008
Gamasutra’s latest “Release This!” explores a week that finds Tales of Vesperia and a Wii port of Imabikisou debuting alongside awaited portable offerings like Fire Emblem: Shin Ankoku Ryuu to Hikari no Ken and Summon Night 2 in Japan.
(Japan) Tales of Vesperia pushed Xbox 360 above PS3
Xbox Scene :: Wednesday, August 13, 2008
From news.vgchartz.com : <BR><I> Xbox 360 Software – Tales of Vesperia debuted for the Xbox 360 this week. The preliminary data puts the game at 113,000 units week one. Considering Blue Dragon is still the only Xbox 360 game to top 103,000 units in Japan, Microsoft and Namco have to be quite happy with how the game has done so far. From the Tales push, expect Xbox 360 hardware sales to hit 12,000 to 20,000 units this week. Expect PS3 hardware sales to remain in the 8,000 to 12,000 unit range this week. </I><BR><BR> Full Story: news.vgchartz.com
(US) Analysts July NPD Predictions: 360 to Outsell PS3
Xbox Scene :: Wednesday, August 13, 2008
From gamedaily.com : <BR><I> Pachter is predicting Wii sales of 650K, compared to PS3 sales of 250K and Xbox 360 sales of 275K. The DS is expected to sell 575K, while the PSP sells 250K and the PS2 sells 125K. EEDAR’s Jesse Divnich has issued a similar forecast, with software sales increasing 43 percent to $601 million. He expects Wii sales of over 612K compared to 360 sales of over 325K and PS3 sales of over 275K. </I><BR><BR> Full Story: gamedaily.com
Critical Reception: D3/Treasure’s Bangai-O Spirits
Gamasutra Columns :: Wednesday, August 13, 2008
This week’s edition of Critical Reception examines online reaction to Bangai-O Spirits, a Treasure-developed sequel that reviewers describe as “a shooter that celebrates shooters.”
Saling The World: Soulcalibur IV Debuts High in Worldwide Charts
Gamasutra Columns :: Wednesday, August 13, 2008
Gamasutra’s latest “Saling The World” charts see Soulcalibur IV top weekly Xbox 360 and PS3 software sales in the U.S. and Japan, while Phantasy Star Portable leads overall Japanese cross-platform results.
Xbox launches its search for the UK’s definitive Gig organiser
Xbox Scene :: Wednesday, August 13, 2008
From the press release: <BR><I> Microsoft today announced a unique opportunity for one lucky music lover to help create the gig of their dreams for real with its incredible MyGig promotion. All budding promoters have to do is visit www.xboxmygig.co.uk and create a flyposter to promote their ultimate gig using the online poster creator. They’ll then promote their gig idea to their mates – if it rates higher than anyone else’s they’ll have the opportunity to help Xbox to promote a gig for real with a massive ?50,000 budget*. “After an incredibly successful summer of music-led activity, we felt it was right to put the crowning event in the hands of a music fan to help us develop the gig of their dreams” commented Alex Weller, Brand Experience Manager, Xbox 360. “The synergy between music and gaming has never been closer, and with all of the best music entertainment experiences available on Xbox 360, we want to leave it to the fans to decide how the most exciting event of the year should roll out”. Festival-goers will also get the chance to rock out with Xbox at Virgin V Festival (16th-17th August), Get Loaded In The Park (24th August) and the finale of the summer festival season, Bestival (5th-7th September) on board the Xbox MyGig Tour Bus – a complete musical experience boasting a full stage and DJ booth, with sofas and demo stations inside for consumers to get their hands on the very latest music, entertainment and games that Xbox 360 offers. After pioneering some groundbreaking music activity over the summer, including an exclusive gig at Fabric headlined by Pendulum, the Xbox May Days, Xbox 360 Presents Rock Band Live, The Xbox Weekenders at Ibiza Rocks Hotel and unique activity at the Stag and Dagger, Great Escape and T in The Park festivals, Xbox 360 is entrusting the design and artist billing of the spectacular closing gig of the summer into the hands of one lucky consumer. Xbox and Xbox LIVE deliver not only the best music experiences, but the best entertainment experiences that you love, be it movies, games or connecting to your friends via LIVE Vision cam or MSN Messenger. For a chance to take part in this once in a lifetime opportunity, simply visit www.xboxmygig.co.uk or keep an eye out for the Xbox MyGig Tour Bus at Virgin V Festival, Get Loaded In The Park, and Bestival. The “Xbox Presents: MyGig” promotion ends at 23.59, 15th September 2008. </I><BR><BR>
Microsoft: ‘The Wii third party game story is not a pretty one’
Xbox Scene :: Wednesday, August 13, 2008
From gamesindustry.biz : <BR><I> Last week, Nintendo of America’s vice president of corporate affairs, Denise Kai(info )gler, defended the Wii’s third party sales saying, “We are selling third party games and they are doing very well, and better than our competitors.” But according to NPD information obtained from Microsoft by GamesIndustry.biz, that Nintendo claim appears to be wrong: * Total third party sales for the Xbox 360 since launch is currently 67,929,999 units, followed by the Wii at 33,394,311 units and the PlayStation 3 at 19,976,325 units. * Third party sales for the Xbox 360 since the launch of the Wii and PS3 is 54,065,728 units, still almost double the Wii’s 33,394,311 units. * If you take the total number of units sold and divide that by the number of titles released since November 2006, the Xbox 360 and the PS3 are selling more units per title on average than the Wii. This puts the Xbox 360 at 217,252 units per title, the PS3 at 156,065 units and the Wii at 132,517 units. </I><BR><BR> Full Story: gamesindustry.biz
Sumo Sac Gamer Review
Icrontic :: Monday, August 11, 2008
“We took our big, hard, $800 sofa out of our media/game room at ICHQ and replaced it with the Sac and three Omnis. The end result: more room, more comfort, and the ability to open up the room and rearrange things on a whim. Is it worth $199? It depends on whether or not you have room for it. If you do, then I say a resounding “YES”, it’s worth it.”
ASUS Republic of Gamers Convention: Part 1
Techgage :: Monday, August 11, 2008
There’s an exciting event happening in Dallas that comes in the form of a LAN party. Not any usual LAN though, as it’s sponsored by some of the biggest companies in the business, including the event leader, ASUS. While the Dallas heat sure isn’t fun to deal with, the event more than makes up for it so far.
Another Store Inventory Listing Indicates Price Drop on Sept 7th
Xbox Scene :: Wednesday, August 06, 2008
Another leaked store inventory screenshot (1st one here if you missed it) found on imageshack.us suggests there will be a pricedrop of the Xbox 360 Arcade SKU to 199USD in the United States on September 7th. Earlier rumors said that not only will the ARCADE SKU drop to 199USD, but we’ll also see the ‘Pro’ 60GB at 299USD and the Elite at 399USD.
‘We Make The Bullets’ – EA Chief Talks Console War
Xbox Scene :: Wednesday, August 06, 2008
From multiplayerblog.mtv.com : <BR><I> * Multiplayer: When they’re following E3 a lot of people get worked up about “How did Sony do?” “How did Microsoft do?” From EA’s perspective how do you view the fact that there are three strong players in the video game console market? Is that one too many? Would you prefer there to be two? What do you make of the competition? * John Riccitiello, CEO of Electronic Arts: The way I look at it is, first off, is having three strong platforms creators is spectacular for us. The metaphor I’ve used before is this: They make the war. We make the bullets. We’ll sell to any of them. We’re really pleased with that. And as long as that level of innovation comes about as a consequence of that competition, that’s good for us. Remember, last year we were the leading third-party developer for the Wii. We’re one of the leading developers on virtually every platform. Their battle is good for us and the consumer, because the level of innovation there is spectacular. And I wouldn’t limit it to the three. Remember things like the Nintendo DS. Remember the iPhone. Remember the PSP. Note that last year one of the top-selling platforms was the PS2. What’s happening is there’s more platforms and more choices. And as there’s more platforms and choices, there’s consumers involved in our industry. And that’s really what’s best, all that innovation. Don’t forget the PC. The PC is one of the fastest growing platforms for games – full stop. Not the packaged good at retail, but businesses like Pogo Online — go to Pogo.com and you’ll see it — advertising models, subscription models like we’ve got right out the door here with “Warhammer.” It’s just a dynamic exciting time for the industry. </I><BR><BR> Full Story: multiplayerblog.mtv.com
Mole attack: 360 price cuts on all hardware in September?
Xbox Scene :: Wednesday, August 06, 2008
A ‘trusty’ mole over at arstechnica.com told ’em Microsoft will introduce a price drop for all Xbox360 SKUs in September: <BR><I> Early Sept price reduction on X360 hardware: * Arcade (no hard drive) to $199 * Pro (60GB) to $299 * Elite (120GB) to $399 We should also expect hardware and game bundles for all hardware versions coming in the fourth quarter, just in time for the holidays. The last time the mole talked to me, before he became a super-villain, he told me the 60GB model of the hardware was coming, and he was right on the money with that one. Those prices should be considered rumors, but I’d be very surprised if this wasn’t accurate information. Very sexy pricing. </I><BR><BR> Full Story: arstechnica.com
Square Enix: 360 FFXIII development hasn’t begun
Xbox Scene :: Wednesday, August 06, 2008
From gamespot.com : <BR><I> Today at its DK Sigma3173 Event, Square Enix made a series of announcements. Director Motomu Toriyama didn’t beat around the bush when Nomura asked him questions about the 360 FFXIII. Starting off, he reconfirmed that, “We haven’t changed the direction of the development. We’re making the PS3 version first, and then porting to the 360 later.” That means that since the game will be released simultaneously on both platforms in North America and Europe, the PS3 release will be held back in those territories until the 360 version is complete. Furthermore, Toriyama also revealed that, as of July 29, his team hasn’t yet received the tools needed to begin work on the Xbox 360 version of FFXIII. “I’m telling them to not think about the Xbox 360 right now,” he said. “We can think about it after the development kits arrive.” The designer also reassured PS3 owners that the game’s quality would not suffer due to the 360 port. “We aren’t going to change any specifications [of FFXIII] because of the multi-platform announcement,” he declared. “Right now, we’re fully concentrating on the PS3 version.” </I><BR><BR> Full Story: gamespot.com
Hitachi v79 unlock tool
Xbox Scene :: Wednesday, August 06, 2008
A method is released from one of our members on how to unlock the Hitachi v79 in order to dump and flash with fwtoolbox… Turorial: 1. Unrar the file 2. Burn the CD Image, I used ImgBurn…. 3. Put 79 in Mode B 3. Insert the CD in the 79 and play the track, wait for it to finish… 4. Then press play again and straight away pause it, you should hear some noise 5. Eject the disk, using the eject button not the PC ( it does something different) 6. Run the the command in a command window 79Unlock h // where h is the drive letter of the 79 7. If all went well bit 4 of (0x5BD) should be set and the drive should be unlocked 8. Drive will dump and flash with Toolbox… 9. This is a tempory unlock, (0x5BD) is in RAM and would need to be done each time you power the drive, although I’ve posted how to by pass this with the drive unlocked with a passkey….. 10. Has not been extensively tested but worked on 6 drives to day so far… Thanks to OggyUK, mp3boy, Antman1 with the testing…. Also RKO Pheonix needs a mention as he unwittingly leant his 360 to Oggy today…. and Seventhson for the help early on and his fabulous blog Let me say a big thank you, and great job! Official Site: n/a (by podger) Download: here News-Source: forums.xbox-scene.com
Edge’s Don Mattrick Interview
Xbox Scene :: Wednesday, August 06, 2008
From edge-online.com : <BR><I> * Lips, You’re In The Movies and Scene It? Box Office Smash are also aimed at expanding Xbox’s reach but they’re game types that have already shown considerable success on other formats. Does this show you’re not taking too many risks on the software side? * Don Mattrick: When you say not taking too many risks, I think there’s kind of a natural evolution of packaged goods, products and experiences coming to the market – this coming year we estimate there will be about 150 titles on Xbox 360, and the majority will be E-rated. And if you’re into M-rated content there will be some spectacular games. I think that breadth of titles naturally expands an audience, and I also think that we’re all finding our own sense of identity inside the market. We’re leading in terms of hours played – a recent study showed that 18-26-year-olds are roughly spending 75 hours a week with our box, which is pretty amazing. That audience tends to be the leader, it tends to influence younger siblings in a household in terms of what’s cool and what’s hot in the consumer electronics space. * What have you taken from the hardware problems Xbox 360 has faced? * Don Mattrick: Well, I think we built a pretty amazing box. It was unfortunate that we had some hardware challenges but I totally applaud the way the company dealt with that in being up-front and implementing the warranty. It’s unfortunate when anything you create fails, but consumers have appreciated the fact we’ve said: ‘This is a mistake, and this is how we’re going to fix it’. People continue to use and evangelize about the product even when faced with this challenge, and I think our team’s done an amazing job with fixing it. </I><BR><BR> Note: 75h a week, really? And I’m Bill Gates. Oh wait … ;) Full Interview: edge-online.com
VGC Source Also Confirms Xbox360 September 7th Price Drop
Xbox Scene :: Wednesday, August 06, 2008
From vgchartz.com : <BR><I> Thanks to an amazing VGChartz member, we have strong reason to believe the Ars Technica price drop rumor is indeed true, with a photo to prove it. This picture is confirmation of the earlier Ars Technica article from an informant stating that the Xbox 360 would drop it’s price in September to $199.99 for the Core, $299.99 for the 60GB model, and $399.99 for the 120GB Elite model. This picture shows nearly irrefutable proof that those rumors are substantiated, and are set to happen in just over a month. </I><BR><BR> Full Story: vgchartz.com
Id’s Carmack: ‘360’s the better platform’ for contemporary games
Xbox Scene :: Wednesday, August 06, 2008
From eurogamer.net : <BR><I> Id Software technical director John Carmack has said that it’s easier to realise the potential of the Xbox 360 hardware but that the PS3 has certain theoretical advantages, and he speculates that Blu-ray could play a decisive role in the console war in future. “What you can say really quite clearly and not get into too much argument about it is that the 360 is much easier to develop for, it’s easier to get the performance out of it that it can deliver, and the rasterizer, the GPU side is generally faster than what the PS3 has,” Carmack told Eurogamer at QuakeCon. “You could design a game where the PS3 would be the superior platform, but you’d have to go out of your way to do it. If you’re doing a game like people just want to do games now, the 360’s the better platform.” </I><BR><BR> Full Story: eurogamer.net
