General gaming

General gaming

The 1UP Community Raises its Voice Against GameStop's Removal of Deus Ex OnLive Codes

Posted: 24 Aug 2011 05:58 PM PDT

Deus Ex Human Revolution

GameStop has definitely incurred the rage of the masses with its latest stunt. It admittedly opened brand-new copies of the PC version of Deus Ex: Human Revolution in order to remove the OnLive codes that were placed within the packaging. Not only is the practice of selling previously opened items as 'brand new' unethical, the legality of doing so has been called into question. GameStop is now reportedly pulling PC copies from its shelves so that they can be recalled.

The 1UP Community, comprised of both GameStop customers and former employees, were eager to shed some light on the retail chain's questionable practices, as well as share their feelings concerning its recent actions.

A thread on the 1UP Board is ongoing, which you can find here. Read on for some highlights from both that thread and the comments section from today's news story.

Check Out the Retro Game Master Guy's Commentary Track on Scott Pilgrim vs. The World

Posted: 24 Aug 2011 05:22 PM PDT


If you know Japanese, or you just like hearing the humble, slightly desperate tone of Shinya Arino's voice, you may want to track down the Japan Blu-ray special release of Scott Pilgrim vs. The World, the advertisement for which is appearing in assorted game magazines over there right now.

The Blu-ray release of the film -- whose Japanese title translates to "Scott Pilgrim vs. the Evil Ex Army" -- includes a commentary track that features director Edgar Wright and Arino, whose humorous attempts at finishing old NES games are chronicled in the series Retro Game Master (now available in streaming English at Kotaku).

The so-called "Ultimate Japan Version" package also includes footage of Wright and lead actor Michael Cera's publicity tour through Japan and a roundtable discussion with Tomohiro Machiyama, a well-known Japanese film critic and the supervisor of the film's Japanese-language subtitle package.

GameStop Pulls Deus Ex PC Copies Over OnLive Codes

Posted: 24 Aug 2011 05:15 PM PDT

Deus Ex Human Revolution

Upon learning that PC copies of Deus Ex: Human Revolution include a code that can be redeemed for a free OnLive copy of the game, GameStop instructed employees to open and remove the code. Customers weren't told this was happening and that they were buying a new, already opened game. Instead of continuing to do that, GameStop is instead pulling all regular edition PC copies from store shelves so they can be recalled.

This is according to a memo sent out to employees that was acquired by Giant Bomb. The reason for this is identified as the included OnLive codes, with the memo reading in part, "As GameStop is developing a streaming service in our Spawn Labs Cloud Gaming Division, the coupon that was included is for a competitive service. We are returning all copies of the PC regular edition to the vendor in agreement with Square Enix."

Employees are directed to use these pulled copies to fill any pre-orders that might remain, but it looks like the remainder -- with the OnLive codes presumably already removed -- will be going back to publisher Square Enix.

Japan Review Check: Grand Knights History

Posted: 24 Aug 2011 05:06 PM PDT


Not very much coming out in this pre-TGS season, but here's a selection of the most interesting games due to hit Japan next week, courtesy the review pages of Famitsu magazine:

- Grand Knights History (10/9/9/8, 36 points): Very high marks for Vanillaware's new PSP game, one that comes closer to being a traditional RPG than anything else they've produced. "The traditionally-Vanillaware graphics, along with all the little animations mid-battle, are just amazing," one writer said. "The easy entry into online play is just as great, and raising characters to send to the battlefield is both innovative and very smooth in action. This game gets top marks in fun."

"The intricately-drawn graphics and well-designed interface are both great," another added, "making this game a feast for the eyes. Even though it's a standard RPG, all the little touches make it seem fresh all over again."

Skullgirls: The Best Fighting Game You Haven't Heard of (But Should)

Posted: 24 Aug 2011 04:25 PM PDT

After years of silence, fighting games are back on the crest of the wave. Sagas like Street Fighter, KOF or Marvel vs. Capcom are once again spawning sequels and extended editions, but everyone seems scared of moving in uncharted waters, while fans of the genre are slowly starting to feel the urge to fight on unknown terrain. The thirst for new IP or remakes of obscure ones, blatantly ignored by big-shot software houses, is about to be quenched by Autumn Games and Reverge Labs with Skullgirls, a digital delivery fighting game made by fans for fans. Skullgirls, which has a tentative US release of Q4 2011 and is headed to PS3 and 360, will initially feature eight characters. More fighters (including boys, contrary to the title!) will be later available via DLC.

Thanks to tight community interaction and the team's personal passion for the project, Skullgirls is developing quite a bit of attention amongst fighting game enthusiasts. Following its development can be a rewarding experience: Reverge Labs' blog, official website, and Twitter account all get constant updates including news, fanart, movies and other interesting material for fans to feast upon; amongst which are beautiful pieces from the OST scored by none other than Michiru Yamane of Castlevania fame.

Capcom Devs Discuss Steel Battalion: Heavy Armor

Posted: 24 Aug 2011 04:21 PM PDT


Nearly a year after making its first debut at the 2010 Tokyo Game Show, Capcom's Steel Battalion: Heavy Armor has finally been shown off in public again, this time at Gamescom.

"It's been a while since the initial announcement at TGS 2010, but we're finally at the point where we can start showing it off to people," commented producer Tetsuya Kitabayashi in an interview with Famitsu magazine. "At this point, it's basically just a race to see how much content we can cram in. Trying to figure out what works for a hardcore game like this one on the Kinect has required a trial-and-error process. That's the biggest mission for this game, and it's also the hardest. A lot of casual Kinect games have come out, but they mostly just have your body serving as the controller. There's no way you can make a Steel Battalion game with that approach. For this game, the Kinect's used as a device to help players get into the game world more, a way to connect to the game. It lets you experience the war zone for yourself."

For Kitabayashi, who's done work for Capcom on everything from Monster Hunter to the Mega Man X series, Kinect and Steel Battalion was a natural match. "When I heard about the Kinect device for the first time, I thought it'd be pretty neat if we made a Steel Battalion game for it," he said. "I also wanted to develop it alongside From Software because they're so good with robot and mecha games. Capcom's expertise is more along the lines of making characters seem really human, so I figured putting those two together would be nice."

Steve Jobs Resigns as CEO of Apple

Posted: 24 Aug 2011 04:18 PM PDT

Steve Jobs

Steve Jobs tendered his resignation as the chief executive officer of Apple today, bringing an end to his more than 14 years in the role.

"I have always said if there ever came a day when I could no longer meet my duties and expectations as Apple's CEO, I would be the first to let you know. Unfortunately, that day has come," he wrote in a letter to Apple's board of directors today. "I hereby resign as CEO of Apple. I would like to serve, if the Board sees fit, as Chairman of the Board, director and Apple employee."

He recommended that Tim Cook, Apple's COO, be promoted to take over him, as was previously planned. Apple has taken the advice, naming him the company's new CEO.

Privacy Concerns Emerge Over Origin's EULA

Posted: 24 Aug 2011 03:40 PM PDT

Star Wars: The Old Republic

Typically, most people don't bother to read any EULAs, or End User License Agreements. That's the document that often pops up whenever installing a new game or any piece of software on your computer. It's hard to blame anyone for not reading them, as they're very long, filled with technical terms and phrasing that can be difficult to understand, and are essentially the exact same thing almost every time. So why bother? As it turns out, there's a very good reason to inspect the EULA for Electronic Arts's Steam competitor, Origin.

As noted by a member of the Escapist forums, Origin's EULA gives EA the right to do any number of things that arguably border on being spyware. Namely, under the clause titled "Consent to Collection and Use of Data," installing Origin means you "agree that EA may collect, use, store and transmit technical and related information that identifies your computer." It's important to note that this isn't the first time this has come up in a EULA for an EA product, but it doesn't make it any more comforting.

The clause in full, as pulled by Rock, Paper, Shotgun:

You agree that EA may collect, use, store and transmit technical and related information that identifies your computer (including the Internet Protocol Address), operating system, Application usage (including but not limited to successful installation and/or removal), software, software usage and peripheral hardware, that may be gathered periodically to facilitate the provision of software updates, dynamically served content, product support and other services to you, including online services. EA may also use this information combined with personal information for marketing purposes and to improve our products and services. We may also share that data with our third party service providers in a form that does not personally identify you. IF YOU DO NOT WANT EA TO COLLECT, USE, STORE, TRANSMIT OR DISPLAY THE DATA DESCRIBED IN THIS SECTION, PLEASE DO NOT INSTALL OR USE THE APPLICATION. This and all other data provided to EA and/or collected by EA in connection with your installation and use of this Application is collected, used, stored and transmitted in accordance with EA's Privacy Policy located at www.ea.com. To the extent that anything in this section conflicts with the terms of EA's Privacy Policy, the terms of the Privacy Policy shall control.
In other words, EA has the right to collect all sorts of information on your computer, regardless of its relation to Origin and the games installed through it, and use it for things like marketing to you. And, as it says in caps -- as if that matters when it's buried in the EULA that almost no one reads -- the only way to avoid sending this data to EA is to simply not install Origin. There's no way to opt-out, which seems like the simple, reasonable way to handle this.

Steal with Style in Sega's Latest

Posted: 24 Aug 2011 03:34 PM PDT


Rounding out this week's spate of new game announcements from Japan is Rhythm Kaitou R, a new Nintendo 3DS title that mixes adventure elements with Elite Beat Agents-style rhythm action.

The "R" of the game's title is a master thief who targets all the big-name sites in Paris, from the Louvre (above) to Notre Dame Cathedral -- but, strangely, he returns the stuff he steals to its original location several days after each heist. It turns out that R is a young man searching for leads and trying to figure out where his father is, but in the meantime, he's got pretty much everyone in French law enforcement on his tail.

The game unfolds as a series of musically-injected rhythm minigames, with gamers being asked to press buttons and tilt the 3DS console in time with the sound and onscreen prompts. Every aspect of a robbery, from breaking into a location to running from the cops afterward, has a rhythm minigame of its own to master. It'll all unfold with an original soundtrack from a known (non-game-industry) musician, too, although Sega isn't revealing whom until later.

From Dust's DRM Removal Not Enough? Steam Will Give You a Refund

Posted: 24 Aug 2011 02:50 PM PDT

From Dust

Those who purchased From Dust from Steam are eligible to receive a refund.

This decision comes just a day after Ubisoft said it would remove all online authentication DRM from the game. It had previously claimed PC gamers would only have to be online when they first install it. That turned out to be untrue, as it actually requires you to be online each time the game starts. Combined with what's overall a pretty poor PC port, gamers are understandably upset with Ubisoft.

The DRM's removal will be happening in about two weeks with the release of a patch. Ubisoft recently decided to ease up on the DRM it planned to use in Driver: San Francisco on PC. It will go from requiring a constant Internet connection to only requiring a connection at start-up, much like From Dust currently has. The always-on DRM has been described by Ubisoft as being successful at stopping piracy, but this kind of DRM hurts legitimate customers, and that's simply not right.

Posted by Shri Krishna

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