Joystiq

Griffin McElroy

Resident Evil 5: Alternative Edition content coming as DLC

by Griffin McElroy { 51 minutes ago }

Remember when Capcom conducted a poll asking how we wanted to receive the additional content being offered in Resident Evil 5: Alternative Edition -- in a boxed version of the game or as a DLC expansion to the original? Turns out the questionnaire wasn't a pointless exercise. A majority of the participants answered that they'd rather receive the new features (including motion-control functionality) as a downloadable pack. After deliberating with the RE5 team in Osaka, Capcom has announced that the new content will come to the U.S., Europe and Australia as DLC for the core game.

Considering Alternative Edition is going to Japan in a retail box, this move is fairly surprising. Perhaps even a little upsetting, if you've gone ahead and traded your copy of the game in towards the cost of Horse Life Adventures. Even more upsetting if you did that today. Like, right before writing this post. Gah!

British MP Watson leading charge against Modern Warfare 2 media controversy

by Griffin McElroy { 4 hours ago }

Tom Watson, a member of British Parliament, has developed a sort of folk hero status among European gamers this morning. After his fellow MP, Keith Vaz, promised to decry the violence depicted in Modern Warfare 2 (specifically in that one scene) in the next session of Parliament, Watson publicly defended the game on Facebook and Twitter. He then kicked it up a notch and started a pressure group called Gamers' Voice on Facebook. The group's mission statement explains that its members will discuss "how UK video gamers can find their voice in newspapers and government."

It was a wise, pre-emptive move on Watson's part -- as promised, Vaz brought up the game during today's Parliament session, explaining that it's so violent that "even the manufacturers have put in warnings within the game telling people how they can skip particular scenes." He inquired how the government was planning on "protecting our children." Watson stepped in and dropped the timeless observation that the UK already has a game rating system which restricts the game's sale to minors, and that it's more important to protect the gaming industry than it is to "create moral panic" in the media.

If you want to stay informed of Watson's other heroic, industry-defending activities, you might want to join the Gamers' Voice group. (We hear that shortly after that Parliament session, he doused a burning orphanage, then ate an entire maple tree for breakfast. Seriously!)

EA acquires social network game dev Playfish for $300 million

by Griffin McElroy { 5 hours ago }

As a number of "industry sources" reported last month, Electronic Arts has elected to add a new studio to its already expansive roster: Playfish, a prolific developer of free-to-play casual games on social networking sites like Facebook. The studio was bought out for about $275 million with an additional $25 million set aside for equity retention arrangements. Playfish is also set to receive another $100 million, should it manage to reach unspecified "performance milestones" before 2012.

Not only is that sum of money much higher than the $250 million total teased by the aforementioned analysts in October, it's ... well, it just seems like a lot of money to spend on a studio which actually developed a game called Bowling Buddies. However, considering Playfish's ten titles register 60 million active users and one billion play sessions every month, we suppose EA's making a sound investment. The times, dear friends -- they are a-changin'.

Japanese hardware sales, Oct. 26 - Nov. 1: Away we Go edition

by Griffin McElroy { 19 hours ago }

It was almost one year ago to the day when we last added a participant to the Japanese sales charts, leading to a mathematical anomaly which 'sploded our living quarters. Luckily, we learned from our mistakes, and have remembered not to add today's newcomer to our Excel spreadsheet, preserving the integrity of our apartment and, more importantly, the space-time continuum.

Not that we require number-crunching software to accurately place the PSP Go into our weekly line-up. The system's one-day sales of 29,109 garnered it a somewhat disappointing fourth-place finish -- while simultaneously, the sales totals of every other console (save for the DSi) increased, reversing a recent downward trend for the region. Our theory on why this occurred is simple: Upon seeing the digital distribution-based future our world has in store, Japanese gamers began to hoard the tangible media-reading platforms, which will undoubtedly become priceless relics in the coming years.

Also, an action game featuring an attractive, gun-toting witch whose clothes frequently disappear was released. That might have contributed to the sales surge. Like, a little.

- DSi: 37,517

4,682 (11.10%)
- PS3: 36,061

6,084 (20.30%)
- PSP: 34,911

2,046 (6.23%)
- PSP Go: 29,109 (New Entry!)
- Wii: 28,888

2,971 (11.46%)
- DS Lite: 6,902

352 (5.37%)
- Xbox 360: 6,047

1,577 (35.28%)
- PS2: 1,966

15 (0.77%)

[Source: Media Create]

See: The attractive archives

Final Fantasy XIII announcement possibly due on Nov. 13

by Griffin McElroy { 21 hours ago }

"A Henchmen Inventor Tent Unto."

Before reading on, why not try to solve that puzzle for yourself? It's an anagram, which means you can mess the letters about to spell a secret message. Here's a hint: It was posted by Square Enix as a tease for Final Fantasy XIII, meaning it probably has something to do with that game. What's that? "A Chevron Non-nineteenth Mutt?" We suppose that's a pretty good guess, but unfortunately, it's the wrongest thing ever. A Final Fan-site recently had better luck uncovering the message's true meaning: "Announcement Nov Thirteenth."

The nature of this "announcement" is still up in the air, though our money's on an official North American release date for the super-anticipated RPG. Though, considering the speed at which the series is growing now, we wouldn't be surprised if Squeenix went ahead and dropped the Final Fantasy XV bomb on us.

EA Sports MMA gameplay footage revealed during Strikeforce match

by Griffin McElroy { 23 hours ago }

Man, we have got to get into watching Mixed Martial Arts. Not only do the sport's leagues have like, the coolest names ever, but the televised bouts also occasionally contain sneak peeks into upcoming video games. For instance, on last night's Strikeforce (so, so cool) match, the first-ever gameplay footage from EA Sports MMA was revealed. You can find it posted just after the jump.

How does it look? We have no idea. There's plenty of punching and kicking, sure, and one might say these two techniques are used intermittently -- or rather, that they are mixed. Therefore, our initial, amateur analysis of the video concludes that it reeks of authenticity.

[Thanks to everyone who sent this in!]

Continued →

Nintendo 'hasn't committed' to new Zelda for Wii in 2010

by Griffin McElroy { 1 day ago }

We all know that home console Zelda games take longer to develop than most small, fledgling nations -- still, we'd secretly hoped that Nintendo would pull a hat trick next year, releasing new Wii installments in the Metroid, Mario and the aforementioned Triforce-centric series. Sadly, a recent quote from Reggie Fils-Aime has made us doubtful that this scenario will be realized -- speaking on GameTrailers TV, Fils-Aime explained that Nintendo hasn't "committed to Zelda for 2010."

So, feel free to keep that hope in your heart that you'll be Ganon-thwarting once more within the next 365 days -- but don't get too upset if it doesn't happen. Much like a college-aged Lothario, Nintendo's remaining non-committal. You might say the company's as free as a bird, darling -- and this bird, you cannot change.

Select GameStops in NY, OH and PA selling Modern Warfare 2 already [Update: Activision responds]

by Griffin McElroy { 1 day ago }

Update: Activision shot us an email to point out that "Activision has not given any retailer permission to sell Modern Warfare 2 prior to the Nov. 10 street date. The company fully supports the Nov.10 street date." It seems that a whole mess of folks are breaking street date and selling the game early. If you snagged a copy already, enjoy!

Poor, poor GameStop. As the gaming public's anticipation for Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 approached critical mass, they faltered in their loyalty, and took their business to small "mom and pop" game retailers who had broken the game's street date. Fortunately for the retail juggernaut, Activision showed compassion for its plight, and agreed to let certain GameStops in a few Northeast states start selling the game before Tuesday in order to help combat these vicious local businesses.

We've been receiving tips all morning from folks living in New York and Pennsylvania (and Kotaku reports Ohio as well) stating that they were able to find the game on sale at their local GameStop. If you live in one of those Northeastern states, you might want to go ahead and call your local 'Stop to see if it's one of the stores which was granted special permission. If it is, then you can go straight to hell, you lucky jerk.

Weekly Webcomic Wrapup is preparing to enter the fray

by Griffin McElroy { 1 day ago }

Camelbak hydration pack? Check. Bear mace? Check. Economy-sized package of adult diapers? Check. No, we're not planning an excursion into the Alaskan wilderness -- we're preparing to wade into the tumultuous warzone known as the holiday shopping season. It's a six-week-long test of will and endurance, punctuated by intense capitalistic bloodbaths such as Black Friday, Cyber Monday and Fuschia Wednesday. Oh, man, you don't know about Fuschia Wednesday? We'd tell you all about it, but we'd hate to add to the competition. Fine, we'll give you a hint: Pottery Barn. Oh, no! We've said too much!

As we attempt to figure out how to finance these euphoria-inducing shopping sprees, check out our seven favorite gaming-related webcomics of this past week, which we've posted below. You can vote for your favorite in the poll after the jump, then tell us what strips we might have missed out on in the comments section!

The Price of Loyalty (Penny Arcade)
The Bomb (Digital Unrest)
Poke Graph (The Ninja Ken)
Powers of Ten (2P Start)
Stealth (Brawl in the Family)
Short Fuse (Monday Night Crew)
Stained (Dipswitch)

Continued →

Left 4 Dead 2 pre-loading now available through Steam

by Griffin McElroy { 1 day ago }

It was bad enough when Valve enabled pre-loading of the Left 4 Dead 2 demo, forcing potential zombicidal maniacs to stare at the game they have and yet don't for an entire madness-inspiring weekend. Now, the developer has begun allowing pre-loading of the full version of Left 4 Dead 2 through Steam. If you've pre-purchased the game through Valve's digital distribution platform (which still nets you a 10 percent discount off the price of the title), you can now put it on your computer, and just ... let it sit there until it finally unlocks on November 17.

In the immortal words of Tom Petty, the waiting truly is the hardest part. Except for the zombie apocalypse. We suppose that part is pretty difficult as well.

[Via Big Download]

Dragon Age: Origins gets patched, tool set released

by Griffin McElroy { 1 day ago }

The still-fresh PC version of Dragon Age: Origins recently got a huge booster shot in two delicious flavors. The first came in the form of Patch v1.01a, which, in addition to fixing a few character corruption issues and display glitches, makes the game easier as a whole. The second, much beefier improvement came with the release of the Dragon Age: Origins tool set, which allows users to create their own adventures using the game's extremely adaptable (and powerful!) engine.

Check out the tool set's capabilities in the trailer posted above. To acquire these modding tools -- or the difficulty-reducing patch -- check out the links below.

Download Dragon Age: Origins v1.01a Patch (13 MB)
Download the Dragon Age: Origins Toolset (472 MB)
Download the EclipseRay Lightmapper Source Code (6 MB)

Tales of Vesperia voice actor says game is coming to Wii [Update: Oops! He meant Tales of Graces!]

by Griffin McElroy { 1 day ago }

[Update: Abyssal Chronicles has updated their story, reporting that Mr. Koyama has updated his original blog post with the following clarification: "When I mentioned being on sale for the Wii, I meant Tales of Graces, and not Tales of Vesperia! I truly apologize to everyone for the misunderstanding!!!!" Well, we can see how that would be confusing. You'll find our original post below.]

Lock the doors and board up the windows, folks. Considering the seismic backlash to the announcement that the (formerly) 360-exclusive Tales of Vesperia would be coming to the PS3, we fear for what might happen when this story gets out. Japanese voice actor Rikiya Koyama, who provided the voice for Vesperia's pseudo-antagonist Duke, recently mentioned on his blog that, "Tales of Vesperia is coming out on one thing after another: Xbox 360, then PS3, and now upcoming, goes on sale even on the Wii."

While this may deeply excite RPG-loving Wii owners, keep in mind that it's entirely possible Koyama meant to say Tales of Graces, the franchise's next installment which is, in fact, coming to the Wii. Just think about that before you start snapping the pieces of your already-snapped 360 Vesperia disc in protest. Those edges can get pretty sharp.

[Via Kotaku]

Trials developer put its own game on torrent sites for marketing

by Griffin McElroy { 2 days ago }

We all know the timeless adage: "If you can't beat them, then think of cleverer ways to entice them, then break down their spirits, showing them the error of their ways, which will ultimately lead to you beating them." Developer RedLynx employed this strategy when trying to make a foothold in the piracy-riddled PC gaming market when it released its motorbike platformer, Trials, last year. However, the method of this "release" were unconventional, to say the least: The studio actually beat PC pirates to the punch, and uploaded its own game to a number of popular torrent sites.

The version the developer distributed was missing one key feature, however: Leaderboard support. According to RedLynx CEO Tero Virtala, who spoke on the bizarre distribution model at the Develop Liverpool conference, "leaderboards are the soul of the game." He hoped that pirates would fall in love with the leaderboard-less version of the game, then purchase the full version so they could compete with their law-abiding friends.

Virtala admitted that he has no way of knowing how successful that strategy was, but we applaud the studio's unbridled chutzpah nonetheless.

Dhani Harrison: Rock Band 3 will make you better at actual rocking

by Griffin McElroy { 2 days ago }

In a recent interview with the Chicago Tribune, Dhani Harrison, The Beatles: Rock Band contributor (and son of the late, great George Harrison), spoke about his involvement in future iterations of the popular rhythm franchise. "I'm working on Rock Band 3 and making the controllers more real so people can actually learn how to play music while playing the game," Harrison explained toward the end of the interview. "Give me a couple years, it's going to happen."

We wish Harrison and the entire Harmonix crew the best of luck in this endeavor, if only so they can finally stymie the infinitely deplorable "why don't you learn how to play a real instrument" contingency. Man, we hate those guys.

Mass Effect price dropped to $10 on Steam this weekend

by Griffin McElroy { 2 days ago }

Were you one of the seven people on the planet who managed to resist Mass Effect's "possible alien nudity" siren call? Prepare for your steely resolve to buckle: The game's only $9.99 this weekend on Steam. Despite any qualms we may have had with the game's completely broken inventory system, or the frequent appearance of three-toed sloth-powered elevators, we find it hard not to suggest dropping a Hammy to add this to your collection.

It might even help you decide whether you want to drop six Hammies on the upcoming sequel. Or a Grant and a Hammy, we guess, though that sounds like Denny's menu item. (Great, now we want some Denny's. Thanks for nothing, Valve!)