Mark down March 17th because that’s when one of the best first-person shooters of-all-time is making a return. Microsoft has announced that Perfect Dark, the classic title for the Nintendo 64, is getting its re-released on that day for 800 Microsoft Points. Microsoft has also revealed that from March 3-30 is when Xbox Live House Party will take place.
According to them, House Party is playing host to some of the most anticipated titles for Xbox Live, which obviously includes the spiritual successor to Goldeneye. Including Perfect Dark — three games will be part of the ‘House Party’ and if gamers buy all, they be refunded 400 Microsoft Points. If they are already a Gold subscriber, they’ll get one month free to Xbox Live.
The two other games are Toy Soldiers; which comes out on March 3rd and Scrap Metal; which has a release date March 10th. While I’m sure the other games will be fun, I’m craploads more excited for Perfect Dark. During the PSX and N64 generation, Perfect Dark was, and in many ways still is \, one of the best games to play with friends. But thanks to Xbox Live, I’ll be able to play with the same people as I did almost ten years ago, over the online service. I get the feeling Rare is about to take a lot of my time once again…
After the jump, check out a description for each game. (more…)
Summer is universally known as a slow time for gamers. Most of the anticipated titles skip the warm season and generally come out when the weather gets colder, just in time for the holidays. However this year, Electronic Arts has decided to change up the theory “when games should be released.”
Barring no major setbacks or delays, EA is set to release both the reboot of the Medal of Honor game, which is set in modern times and Realtime World’s ambitious title APB (All Points Bulletin) will be released this summer. The publisher expects to release both games between July through September; however no exact date was announced.
The company also announced vague dates for a couple other important games as well. From October to December, Crysis 2, Criterion’s (Burnout) first take on Need for Speed and EA’s MMA game will all be launched. Following December and ending in March, Dead Space 2, a sequel to Dragon Age, an unnamed Epic Games shooter, along with a unannounced action title, are all scheduled to ship.
If you haven’t heard yet, Microsoft plans on shutting off the servers for all the original Xbox Live games. This means iconic games like Halo 2 will no longer be playable over the online service, which will officially end the era of an important idea introduced to the console industry.
In response, Bungie has left a note on their website which told their fans to mark down April 14th because they plan on sending Halo 2 off in style.
“That said, mark your calendars now – on April 14th let’s all rally to go online for one last hoorah. One final farewell and one final opportunity for all of you to kick our asses at Halo 2.”
They promised full details of what to expect besides just playing with some of the developers and that information will be forthcoming in the upcoming weeks, so will be checking back for you. Although, I have the feeling the company has something up their sleeve, which should be worth booting up the 5-year-old game. Halo 2 and Xbox Live both played a part in helping the studio grow into one of the biggest in the world.
Just a side note, April 14th falls on a Wednesday, in case any of you were wondering.
I love videogames, I love them to death. But honestly, I could never spend what I considered an insane amount of money on a object that is not real. But apparently there are people out there, that are willing to shell out huge sums of money to pixelated objects. Don’t believe me? Well, just take “Buzz Eric Lightyear” for example. The guy plays a free MMORPG game called Entropia Universe, where players are supposed to colonize a untamed planet named Calypso. While the game is free to download, the title uses its own currency called Project Entropia Dollars, or PED for short.
One way people get PEDs is by actually using their own money, and one $1 USD equals to $10 PED. While you might think the title sounds like a snore, and you believe there is no way the developer, MindArk, makes any kind of cash off the title — you would be wrong. So far, according to them, the turnover has been $3.6 Billion PEDs, or $360 Million USD — aka real money.
Because there is a lot of cash being made off the MMO, some players have to be spending a crap-load, which brings me back to this “Buzz Eric Lightyear” guy. According to reports, he recently just dropped $330,000 of real money to purchase his own virtual space station, that orbits Planet Calypso.
Now before you make fun of him, which I already have and I’m sure you will too, make sure you understand that his newly acquired space station will actually be a virtual business, and he’ll even make real money in the end. Apparently, anyone can hang out in this station and while they are there, they can hunt and shop. Since”Lightyear” owns the business, he has the ability to set the tax rates of everything, which in the end turns into REAL cash in his REAL pocket.
Everyone says you should make money off of something you enjoy, so I guess you could say he just took the phrase to the extreme.
The MAG beta has been available for a few months now. Some of you either got it by reserving the game, filled out a questionnaire or by other means, but many of you didn’t get your hands on a key code. Thankfully that is about to change. Today, Sony has just announced that anyone who owns a PlayStation 3 and has a PSN ID, can now download the beta. That’s right, the MAG beta is officially open to the public, but make sure you download it quick because it will only be running until January 10th. So after that date, you’ll have to wait until the 29th to play the full retail version.
On a side note, if you happen to check it out today, you might run into trouble. Sony has confirmed some connection issues because of the amount of gamers logging on. So before you smash your TV in a fit of rage, give it a day before it runs smoother.
Up top were supposed leaked pictures from the PlayStation website, but were removed quickly, though the website Scrawl caught them before they were taken down. As you can tell, the images depict what looks like a Facebook application for the Sony PlayStation 3, something the Xbox 360 was announced to have at E3 2009.
A source “close” to Sony, told the site Eurogamer that these pictures were indeed real and were posted by mistake and this insider confirmed that the PlayStation will offer its customers access to the popular social online community. Even an official Sony PR spokesperson said that more information about PlayStation 3 getting Facebook will be revealed “very shortly.”
Oddly enough, it has been almost half-a-year since Microsoft announced Facebook would be coming to the Xbox 360; however, the application to use it has yet to be released publicly. Could PlayStation 3 owners get Facebook around the same time as the 360? Sounds like it could be a real possibility.
Videogame developer Croteam announced awhile back that their retro cult first-person shooter hit, Serious Sam, is being remade for high-definition televisions. The exclusive Xbox-Live title won’t just be supporting HD resolution, but also take advantage of the company’s Series Engine 3, which will update the graphics and make S.S. run even smoother then it did before.
For those who are too young to have experienced the craziness of what Series Sam offered in the early part of the decade, it was known for its fast-paced and violent gameplay. Although it wouldn’t be considered a deep FPS title, its brainless action is what kept it still fun today.
The studio has now released a new trailer which features the same action, but with a little love added. Apparently their going to have a feature in the game which is called “Super Happy Fun Time Mode.” Basically the mode swaps the gallons of blood your enemies will turn into after their shot dead, with Sunshine and Lollipops. Stupid? Maybe. But it should certainly make you smile.
During the Game Developers Conference in San Francisco earlier in the year, Steve Perlman revealed to the world an ambitious videogame project called OnLive. In a nut shell, the service is a new way for gamers to play their favorite videogame, but not actually own any hardware. All they would need in theory is a computer, even an inexpensive one at that, hooked up to the Internet and they could play pretty much any advance game using just a web browser. Basically, the games players would be playing, are being streamed from a sever hundreds of miles away to their computer or television.
The service was with met with a bunch of speculation from all sides of the spectrum. Some people thought it was the future of the industry. While others thought the technology would be too imperfect and the problems customers would face, would ultimately kill the idea. No one knows exactly what kind of impact OnLive is going to make, but it certainly has made an impression to the videogame universe.
Today marked an important day for OnLive because the “cloud” gaming service has entered into its first closed beta stage. The announcement was just posted on Steve Perlman blog. “I’m very excited to say that we are now opening the OnLive Beta to outside gamers who signed up on our website,” wrote Perlman. “It’s not too late to sign up if you haven’t already. We are very much looking forward to hearing from gamers all about their experience with the OnLive Service.” “[The] beta is an AWESOME milestone for OnLive, capping many years of work. We’re really looking forward to hearing what you think,” he later wrote.
I for one am excited about the possibility of OnLive. While it’s hard to argue to think there won’t be any issues with trying to stream a videogame using the Internet, it’s also hard to believe this couldn’t be the future. The idea of playing the most advance videogames in my home but not have to worry about spending money on hardware, is intriguing.
We all knew Shadow Complex was going to sell great; the question was, how many downloads would there be. Well, today we finally know. Microsoft has announced that the exclusive side-scroller has sold over 200,000 copies, which is a single week record for any Xbox Live Arcade game.
“Congratulations to Chair Entertainment and Epic Games for creating an outstanding game,” said Microsoft’s Scott Austin. “As the capstone title of the second annual Summer of Arcade program, Shadow Complex has raised the bar for downloadable games. We’re proud to offer such high-quality content on Xbox LIVE Arcade.”
It’s great to see such an ambitious project, which is a 2D side-scroller utilizing the Unreal Engine, sell so well — especially for a downloadable only title. It also makes Epic look like a genius, considering they decided to purchase the developers of Shadow Complex after they first saw what Chair Entertainment was doing with their beloved and profitable engine.
When I first went to E3, I saw the title but I’ll be honest — I didn’t play it until the last day of the show. Of course I knew it was going to be a stellar action title. During the show, I heard so many people talk about what a great experience they had with Shadow Complex. It just took me three days head to actually get my hands on a Xbox 360 controller and demo the game myself. I was amazed when I played it and like so many people, I felt like I was playing a new type of Metroid, which is okay by my standards. When I was all done playing it, I thought the title could easily be one of the better overall games of the convention. I’m thrilled so many other people agree with me and were willing to purchase Shadow Complex. If you haven’t, you should probably do so.
Konami has released their Gamescom trailer of Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker for the PSP. This isn’t your ordinary two-minute clip which features some gameplay elements. No, the publisher edited a nine-minute trailer for your viewing pleasure.
The trailer also unveiled how much the game will focus on the cooperative mode, where up to four players can play at once. Actually, the whole clip features nothing but how you must work together in-order to accomplish a mission — and boy am I excited for it. Not only is the game visually incredible for a handheld, but adding a four-player cooperative mode could be revolutionary for the series.
Seeing little things like one Snake holding a door which is trying to slam shut, while the other player tries to get under, works perfect for a stealth title like Metal Gear.
The series has always been about sneaking around an specific area and trying to infiltrate the place, but doing it with a friend makes more sense. And I can’t wait to try.
Apparently, Sony sent out the first batch of MAG beta keys. While checking out my email a littler earlier, I noticed the company sent me one. While I was excited to see the invite in my inbox, I was a tad disappointed to find out how Sony and Zipper plan to run it.
According the same email, beta participants can only play the game during specific times. It reads, “The MAG Beta is only available during a limited hours. Please log in during the times listed below to participate.” Players will only be allowed to play Monday through Friday10:00 AM-1:00 PM and 5:00 PM-8:00 PM, all times a Pacific Standard Time. Not only do the times really suck, but not having it for the weekend is extremely inconvenient for the lucky users.
Thankfully, the message also said they need beta invitees to really help with Sony’s showing at Gamescom. The hours have been expended for this week only. Starting this Wednesday, gamers who have the beta will be allowed to play against attendees of the expo on the showfloor in Germany.
Hopefully overtime, Sony will indefinitely expand the hours as time passes.
A few months back, it was announced by Croteam that the original 2001 hit Serious Sam was headed to Xbox Live Arcade. It was promised to include HD visuals along with updated graphics, thanks to the Serious Engine 3 but at the same time, keep the insane amount of action the first game featured. When the original came out, games like Halo, Fry Cry among others took elements from the first-person shooter, which shows how influential Sam was and still is.
Thanks to the advancement of the Internet, we embedded the trailer of the remake of the classic FPS and no doubt, its looking incredible. When the game finally hits Marketplace this fall, it should please fans of the original and newcomers alike. After viewing it, I’m once again ready to be serious.
Kudos to whomever edited the trailer together and decided to use the Requiem for a Dream soundtrack.
If you were hoping to see Zipper Interactive’s ship its 256-online shooter before the Christmas season, you can stop doing that. MAG is officially dated for January 26, 2010, thanks to a quick blurb over at the official PlayStation blog. Originally, Sony said MAG would see the light of day sometime in the fall of this year. But thanks the endless amount of first-person shooters and the art of perfecting a game, it looks like the company thought a little delay wouldn’t hurt the game.
This isn’t necessarily a bad thing for FPS fans of the PS3. Even if you were looking forward to MAG, chances are you can’t wait for Modern Warfare 2. Now, with the minor push back, you can play the hell out of Infinity Ward’s epic sequel and when you’re sick of that — move over to MAG.
Eidos is giving PlayStation 3 owners a lot of love with their highly anticipated Batman: Arkham Asylum game. First we hear the Joker will be a playable character, which is exclusive for the PS3. Now, the publisher, along with Sony, have announced that customers who buy the Batman title for the PS3 will get the Batcave for the Home service. “It’s safe to say that hardcore Batman fans are going to seriously spazz out when they unlock Bruce Wayne’s secondary lair under Arkham,” said a Sony representative.
As you can already tell by the screenshot, not only can you have your Home avatar roam the headquarters of the dark knight, but you can check out the famous Batmobile as well. Although, if I were to choose which exclusive content I like more, it would be hands down playing as the Joker. But I guess it really doesn’t matter because PS3 owners are getting both, while the 360 is getting shafted.
One of the cool things about going to E3, is getting some of the cool exclusive swag. Microsoft was running a cool promotion during the event. If you headed towards the Xbox booth, they had a computer setup, where you would enter in your name and Xbox Live Gamertag. From there, the company promised to send you a trophy that you could download for your Xbox Live Avatar. The add-on was bragging rights to prove others on the Live network that you went to E3.
Although its nothing really special, up top is that trophy.
