General gaming

General gaming

Sony Engineers Discuss the PSP Remaster Project

Posted: 27 Jul 2011 06:00 AM PDT


The PSP Remaster project, first announced in May and discussed in detail at a developer event in Tokyo last month, allows game makers to take PSP titles and emulate them on the PlayStation 3. They're free to add HD-level graphics, surround-sound, 3D visual support, save-game transferring between the PS3 and PSP, and even completely new features not seen in the PSP original. The project is hot news in Japan right now, chiefly because its first launch title -- due out August 25 over there -- is an HD-compatible version of Monster Hunter Portable 3rd, the PSP killer app that's sold nearly 4.5 million copies across Asia.

According to Teiji Yutaka, member of the Software Solutions division of Sony Computer Entertainment that headed the project, PSP Remaster got its start with the previous PSone Classics project and other PS3 emulation efforts. "We were developing this emulation platform," he told Famitsu magazine in this week's issue, "and through it we came to realize that we might be able to get the PSP running in realtime on the PS3 without much problem. It was our talented engineers that made it happen."

The software, called the PSP Engine, is a sort of emulator/operating-system hybrid that runs on the PS3 hardware and provides support for all the PSP's functionality, including ad-hoc network support. "We had things up and running on the PSP Engine around one and a half, two years ago," Yutaka said. "The HD rendering was in operation by then, too, and that's when we began to remold the project into a saleable product."

Japan Review Check: Kirby Mass Attack, Epic Mickey

Posted: 27 Jul 2011 04:12 AM PDT


A selection of the most interesting games due to hit Japan next week, courtesy the review pages of Famitsu magazine:

- Kirby Mass Attack (9/9/9/9, 36 points): The highest-scoring game of the week is the new DS Kirby game, which is perhaps less surprising than it'd seem at first glance. "The touch-based controls are simple, easy to get into, and feel perfectly natural," Famitsu wrote. "The game's collection aspect encourages repeat play, and there're enough tricks to gameplay to make the experience seem worth it."

"It's really not the sort of thing I'd normally get into," one reviewer admitted, "but the gameplay's really done up well, and the touch controls make it a really fun experience. The difficulty bar is set pretty low, but you can dive pretty deep into the game if you like."

Japan Gamers, Devs Excited But Hesitant On WiiU

Posted: 27 Jul 2011 03:36 AM PDT


Last week's Famitsu-sponsored survey of gamers and developers' response to the PS Vita made it clear that people are crazily excited about Sony's new portable. The Japanese magazine published a similar survey of responses to Nintendo's WiiU, and the response -- while overall very positive -- was noticeably more muted. (The fact that the PS Vita is coming quite a bit sooner to the market probably has much to do with that.)

According to Famitsu, 38.3 percent of gamers polled said they had a good impression of the system after its announcement at E3 last month. 33.7 percent said they did not have a great impression, while the remaining 28 percent haven't made up their mind. While readers dug the new potential of the WiiU, a lot of them said that they didn't like the name very much -- 22.5 percent said it lacked impact, and many commenters said that it made Nintendo's new console seem like a minor upgrade to the Wii.

The response from developers was a great deal more positive overall. "A lot of people say that it's a very Nintendo-like console, but I'm more focused on the basic specs, which are pretty high-end," said Capcom producer Jun Takeuchi. "I think the key is going to be how the controller and TV interact, as well as Nintendo's approach to online. I think there's every chance of it being another juggernaut if the system's priced strategically enough. It'll be up to developers to figure out how to use the controller without diverting the player's attention too much."

Quick! Get the Remaining Summer of Arcade Games Now

Posted: 26 Jul 2011 07:42 PM PDT

Insanely Twisted Shadow Planet

Through what seems to be a mistake on the part of the online Microsoft Store, the four remaining Summer of Arcade games can be purchased now.

Upon purchasing them, the store offers up a promo code that can be redeemed on either your Xbox 360 or Xbox.com. Fruit Ninja Kinect and Toy Soldiers: Cold War are reportedly no longer working, though both From Dust and Insanely Twisted Shadow Planet (the latter of which I've personally purchased and downloaded successfully) continue to be available.

As luck would have it, the Microsoft Store is currently running a promotion where you can get a free copy of The Maw on XBLA by purchasing any Summer of Arcade title. Separate from the Microsoft Store, buying all five titles will entitle you to a free copy of action-RPG Crimson Alliance once it's released in September.

Giving Credit Where it's Due is "Really F***ing Cheap," a "Common Courtesy"

Posted: 26 Jul 2011 07:14 PM PDT

L.A. Noire

It may not be as devastating as some developers make it out to be, but Epic Games President Mike Capps is no proponent of leaving names out of a game's credits because they weren't there when the game was completed. That's precisely what happened with L.A. Noire, a game that was in development for seven years and naturally saw many employees leave over the course of development. In Capps' mind, it isn't an expensive move to give credit where it's due, so why not do it?

"I think credit is really important, and it's really f***ing cheap -- pardon my French," Capps told IndustryGamers. "It doesn't cost you a thing to have a guy in the credits who worked for you for three years and had to move to Seattle because his mom got sick six months before the product shipped. Or even just say, he worked hard on this game but didn't finish it."

Capps explained that Epic will, at the very least, give a programmer who leaves credit under "additional programming." He said, "But we absolutely still credit them, because it's free to us and I want the guys here to know that if they ever left they would never be cut out of the credits. It's just common courtesy, really." Epic also makes sure to pass around a list of credits several times in order to ensure no one is inadvertantly left out.

Double Dragon II 3D Remake Headed to XBLA

Posted: 26 Jul 2011 06:10 PM PDT

Double Dragon II: Wander of the Dragons

Double Dragon II: The Revenge, the old Technos Japan beat-em-up from 1988, is being revived for a 3D remake on Xbox Live Arcade. Now known as Double Dragon II: Wander of the Dragons, the game is based on the arcade version, not the reworked NES one, and is being developed by Barunson Interactive for release this September.

According to Co-Optimus, Wander of the Dragons will have entirely new art but still features the old brothers, Billy and Jimmy Lee, as well as many of the old enemies and weapons (those available include knives, grenades, and two-by-fours) fans will remember. A new combo system and diving knee kick move is joined by the return of the old cyclone kick, making it sound as if the game will offer a bit more nuance than a direct port would allow for.

It'll need that depth with a 1,200 Microsoft Point ($15) price tag. Besides a four-player Versus mode and Survival mode (where players fight off waves of enemies for as long as possible), the Story mode features two-player co-op support. However, Co-Optimus says online play has yet to be guaranteed, which could be a really damper on what otherwise sounds like an intriguing remake.

Supposed Valve Alternate Reality Game is a Hoax

Posted: 26 Jul 2011 03:29 PM PDT

Valve ARG hoax

Alternate reality games, or ARGs, have been used in the past to get users heavily invested in a game while also promoting it. Halo 2 had I Love Bees and, more recently, the lead up to Portal 2's release was filled with potatoes as part of a wide-ranging ARG that involved a number of indie games on Steam.

Reddit users have been piecing together something that is believed by some to be another Valve-run ARG, perhaps in connection with the ever elusive Half-Life 2: Episode 3 or Half-Life 3. 1UP has learned that it is not related to Valve, though that doesn't discount the impressive effort and coordination that's been poured into this ARG.

Battlefield 3 Levels Slightly Compacted on Consoles

Posted: 26 Jul 2011 02:35 PM PDT

Battlefield 3

There has been a great deal of complaining that the console versions of Battlefield 3 don't look quite as beautiful as the PC version. It's no coincidence that the PC version is what was shown for months, and given how far we are into this console cycle, it's expected that PC games will look better than their console counterparts. Besides the visual disparity, another difference is the decreased player limit -- up to 64 players can go at it online on PC, while only 24 can do the same on consoles. As a result, DICE says that levels have been somewhat compacted to make them play better. Ensuring the game is as fun as possible is the thinking behind all of these moves; it's not that DICE is "evil or stupid."

Speaking with German site GameZone (as translated by CVG), DICE Executive Producer Patrick Bach defended the choices that have been made regarding Battlefield 3 on consoles. He emphasized that the different versions are "more or less the same," as they run on the same engine and technology. The goal isn't to offer a dumbed-down game on consoles.

Bach said trying to make the games identical is "really, really hard," but it's a matter of finding compromises. "We tried to get more players in [to the console version] but then you need to scale down all the graphics, scale down all the destructibility, and sometimes you need to scale down all the map sizes."

From Dust Review

Posted: 26 Jul 2011 02:30 PM PDT

Playing god is a risky business; there are always unforeseen consequences. Case in point: my worshipers settle a new village upon an island -- only to find their homes washed away by regular tsunamis. I, as a godlike being known only as "The Breath," decide to help them out by creating a dam to save them from the unstoppable wall of aquatic disaster. So I grab a big pile of molten lava from a nearby volcano and dump it on the edge of my worshiper's island. Upon stepping back to admire my divine handiwork (it cools into a pretty nifty dam after all), I realize that my molten lava starts setting the foliage surrounding the village on fire before cooling. With my villagers screaming as the fire speeds towards their settlement, I suck up a huge pool of water from the ocean and douse the flames which by this point (and judging by the sudden silencing of their screams), has already ruined the day for several of my worshipers. But no need to worry -- it looks like my plan works... too well. The water put out the flames all right, but it also washes away the village. In my attempts to save my village from being washed away by a deadly tsunami, I in fact cut out the middleman and wash away the village myself.

So goes a typical five minutes in Ubisoft's From Dust, the second game in this year's Summer of Arcade for XBLA. It's like a cosmic video game version of If You Give a Mouse a Cookie. Here, players assume the role of the aforementioned Breath; you start off each level with a small pool of villagers and the goal of shaping the land to make it habitable enough for them to find villages at each (of up to four) totem location scattered across the map. Once they get settled, you guide your tribe to a mysterious mouth-shaped portal that leads them to the next level.

Kinectimals Adds Bears With an Appropriate Title

Posted: 26 Jul 2011 01:31 PM PDT

Kinectimals Now With Bears

One of the Kinect games Microsoft hoped to capture the attention of children with last year was Kinectimals. It was among several first-party titles that was launched alongside Kinect in November and featured a selection of four-legged animals that included the likes of tigers, lions, leopards, and jaguars. Microsoft is hoping bears are what you'd like to play with most, as it's re-releasing an enhanced version of the game -- bears being the big addition -- later this year.

If ever there were an appropriate name, it would be this: Kinectimals Now with Bears! is the title that the game will carry. ("Da Bearss" and "Dwight Schrute Edition" must have both been shot down.) Five types of bears -- black, grizzly, cinnamon, glacier, and polar -- will be added as an initial animal option alongside the lion, royal bengal tiger, cheetah, leopard, and panther. Ten additional animals await players, as does a new guide named Bumbilina.

Kinectimals Now with Bears is set for release this fall for $49.99. Thankfully, those who own Kinectimals won't be forced to buy another full-priced disc to upgrade -- all of this bear content will be available in the Bear Island DLC, which will cost $14.99 upon release.

Posted by Shri Krishna

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