Nintendo 'hasn't committed' to new Zelda for Wii in 2010
by Griffin McElroy 
{ 3 days ago } 
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.
Xbox 360 port of 3D Dot Game Heroes 'possible'
by David Hinkle { 3 days ago } 
My Game News Flash recently stopped by Silicon Studios to chat up producer Hiroyuki Misawa, who offered that a port is "possible," but that it's really "up to From [Software]." He added, "We're a developer, so if there's a call to make it, I believe we can do it." Hardly confirmation that a port is in the works, but should that be a future move for From Software, Silicon Studios sounds like it's willing.
Gallery: 3D Dot Game Heroes (PS3)
[Via andriasang]
Select GameStops in NY, OH and PA selling Modern Warfare 2 already [update: Activision responds]
by Griffin McElroy { 3 days ago } 
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 { 4 days ago }
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)
Left 4 Dead 2 pre-loading now available through Steam
by Griffin McElroy { 4 days ago }
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 { 4 days 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)
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 { 4 days ago }
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 { 4 days ago }
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.
iPhone dev accused of harvesting player phone numbers
by Justin McElroy { 4 days ago } 
The company acknowledged the number harvesting in August, calling it a "bug," though the suit claims only specific code could have recorded and transmitted the numbers. So ... apparently that's a thing that happens. Have a great Saturday!
Dhani Harrison: Rock Band 3 will make you better at actual rocking
by Griffin McElroy { 4 days ago }
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 { 4 days ago }
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!)
MMO Roundup: Massively's week in review
by Shawn Schuster { 5 days ago }
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Funcom receives grant to create extreme sports MMO In between navigating the sometimes-choppy waters of Age of Conan and working toward the launch of The Secret World, Funcom is having a busy year, but it looks like they are adding one more project to the pile as well. |
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Exclusive interview with Linden Lab CEO Mark Kingdon Mark Kingdon, Linden Lab's CEO, has been a bit of a mystery figure since his appointment about a year and a half ago. While he has not been uncommunicative, it's been hard to get a very good sense of the man at the helm of Linden Lab, his passions, interests and direction. |
LGJ: Read the fine print!
by Mark Methenitis { 5 days ago } 
Each week Mark Methenitis contributes Law of the Game on Joystiq ("LGJ"), a column on legal issues as they relate to video games:
Well, after the incident with Courtney Love and Kurt, it looks like the whole issue of famous musicians in games is back in the press with No Doubt suing Activision over Band Hero. A one time event is an anomaly, but twice in just a few months suggests something else. Of course, both of these all tie back to the contract, and since I'm a transactional attorney who spends the majority of most days negotiating and drafting agreements like these, I'm hoping I can shed a little light on what might be causing the problems. Since I wasn't involved in these particular negotiations nor have I read these contracts, all of what I'm presenting is speculation.
But before I begin, I suppose I should answer the simple question, "What is a contract?" I assume that most people reading this have at least some idea, but just in case, it's worth describing in detail. A contract is a legally binding agreement between two parties to perform certain promises in the future. In theory, to form a contract there are five elements: Offer and acceptance, consideration, intent, capacity, and formalities. In reality, it's fairly simple. The parties must have a meeting of the minds, that is agree to the same terms, which is often viewed as an offer by one party and acceptance by the other. Each party must put up something of value, called consideration, for the contract to be valid. The parties must intend to enter into a contract, and be of the appropriate mental capacity to enter into the agreement. And then the agreement is generally recorded in writing, as most jurisdictions have rules that require written agreements, which is then signed by the parties. And that is how a contract is born, in theory anyway.
Well, after the incident with Courtney Love and Kurt, it looks like the whole issue of famous musicians in games is back in the press with No Doubt suing Activision over Band Hero. A one time event is an anomaly, but twice in just a few months suggests something else. Of course, both of these all tie back to the contract, and since I'm a transactional attorney who spends the majority of most days negotiating and drafting agreements like these, I'm hoping I can shed a little light on what might be causing the problems. Since I wasn't involved in these particular negotiations nor have I read these contracts, all of what I'm presenting is speculation.
But before I begin, I suppose I should answer the simple question, "What is a contract?" I assume that most people reading this have at least some idea, but just in case, it's worth describing in detail. A contract is a legally binding agreement between two parties to perform certain promises in the future. In theory, to form a contract there are five elements: Offer and acceptance, consideration, intent, capacity, and formalities. In reality, it's fairly simple. The parties must have a meeting of the minds, that is agree to the same terms, which is often viewed as an offer by one party and acceptance by the other. Each party must put up something of value, called consideration, for the contract to be valid. The parties must intend to enter into a contract, and be of the appropriate mental capacity to enter into the agreement. And then the agreement is generally recorded in writing, as most jurisdictions have rules that require written agreements, which is then signed by the parties. And that is how a contract is born, in theory anyway.
Readers pick best webcomic: Babicide
by Griffin McElroy { 5 days ago }
Second and third place went to Brawl in the Family's "Zombie Attack" and Hiimdaisy's "Big Long Persona 4 Comic Part Two," respectively. If you've got a favorite strip you'd like to see in tomorrow's poll, it's not too late to send it in! Just leave a link in the comments section of this post, or shoot us a tip!
Demon's Souls director talks difficulty, sequel possibility
by Richard Mitchell { 5 days ago }
According to Miyazaki, "If the Souls could be recovered anytime, there would be no suspense or sense of accomplishment." He added that he wants players to feel like, "I did it! I made it to my bloodstain!" Of course, Miyazaki fails to mention the sense of utter, despairing failure one feels when they don't make it back to their bloodstain (a frequent occurrence).
Regarding the possibility of a sequel, Miyazaki said he couldn't give a direct answer, but noted that the team learned a great deal on Demon's Souls and there were several things that didn't make it into the game. Given the opportunity, Miyazaki said he would "welcome the chance to create an even better game in the same style." Gluttons for punishment that we are, we'll take it.
