Joystiq http://www.joystiq.com Joystiq http://www.joystiq.com/media/feedlogo.gif Joystiq http://www.joystiq.com en-us Copyright 2008 Weblogs, Inc. The contents of this feed are available for non-commercial use only. Blogsmith http://www.blogsmith.com/Sting, Tool join Guitar Hero World Tour's lineuphttp://www.joystiq.com/2008/09/05/sting-tool-join-guitar-hero-world-tours-lineup/http://www.joystiq.com/2008/09/05/sting-tool-join-guitar-hero-world-tours-lineup/http://www.joystiq.com/2008/09/05/sting-tool-join-guitar-hero-world-tours-lineup/#commentsFiled under: , , , ,

Joining Hendrix, Ozzy and others, Sting will be walking around the virtual concert halls of Guitar Hero World Tour. According to the press release, you can play as Sting during the vocal career "or play alongside him" in the Police track, "Demolition Man." Additionally, three songs from Tool (who are not bringing their likenesses to the game) have been confirmed: Parabola, Schism, Vicarious.

We now know about 65 tracks of the reported "over 85" tracks. With about seven weeks to go before its October 26 North American launch, when do we get to learn the rest of the tracklist? More importantly, where's our virtual likeness of Lars Ulrich?

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]]>activisionguitar-heroguitar-hero-world-tourneversoftstingtoolRoss Miller2008-09-05T14:20:00+00:00Call of Duty: World at War confirmed to deploy Nov. 11http://www.joystiq.com/2008/09/04/call-of-duty-world-at-war-confirmed-to-deploy-nov-11/http://www.joystiq.com/2008/09/04/call-of-duty-world-at-war-confirmed-to-deploy-nov-11/http://www.joystiq.com/2008/09/04/call-of-duty-world-at-war-confirmed-to-deploy-nov-11/#commentsFiled under: , , , ,

A couple of weeks back during X08, we learned that the "fall" release time frame Activision had been giving for the latest Call of Duty installment actually meant "November." Today, the publisher narrowed it down even further to November 11. That's the date all console versions of Call of Duty: World at War will rumble into retail - except, of course, for the never-to-be PS2 version. Those hankering for an earlier taste of multiplayer flame thrower action should hit our post from earlier today on the upcoming October beta.

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]]>activisionbreakingnewscall-of-dutycall-of-duty-world-at-wartreyarchRandy Nelson2008-09-04T18:30:00+00:00Call of Duty 4 getting double XP Sept. 13-14http://www.joystiq.com/2008/09/04/call-of-duty-4-getting-double-xp-sept-13-14/http://www.joystiq.com/2008/09/04/call-of-duty-4-getting-double-xp-sept-13-14/http://www.joystiq.com/2008/09/04/call-of-duty-4-getting-double-xp-sept-13-14/#commentsFiled under: , ,


When the Joystiq staff goes back to Call of Duty 4, it's usually because we're tired of getting our asses handed to us on a little silver platter in practically every other first-person shooter. Before too long we pine for the one game we've played enough that we're not embarrassed to admit to our team that we write about video games professionally.

But, according to Infinity Ward spokesman Fourzerotwo, we'll have additional reason to go back Sept. 13-14, when CoD 4 will be offering up double XP on PSN and Xbox Live. Come, play with us, and tremble before our staggering (and doubly rewarding) moderate competence.

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]]>activisioncall-of-duty-4cod4double-xpfourzerotwoinfinity-wardpsnxbox-liveJustin McElroy2008-09-04T15:30:00+00:00Call of Duty: World at War beta hits 360, PC in Octoberhttp://www.joystiq.com/2008/09/04/call-of-duty-world-at-war-beta-hits-360-pc-in-october/http://www.joystiq.com/2008/09/04/call-of-duty-world-at-war-beta-hits-360-pc-in-october/http://www.joystiq.com/2008/09/04/call-of-duty-world-at-war-beta-hits-360-pc-in-october/#commentsFiled under: , , ,

In what has to be the most totally original pre-order bonus ever, Activision is going to let anyone who "reserves" Call of Duty: World at War into a multiplayer beta planned for sometime in October. Oh, that's everyone except PS3 owners. The beta will be available only on Xbox 360 and PC, giving lucky paying entrants a chance to try out the game's new perks and squad system.

In "no purchase necessary" style, those not feeling the pre-order itch can try their luck by registering for a beta token lottery on the official Call of Duty site - that is if they can navigate through the Web 2.0 minefield of way too much stuff on the page.

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]]>activisionbetabreakingnewscall-of-dutycall-of-duty-world-at-warpre-ordertreyarchRandy Nelson2008-09-04T14:30:00+00:00Four more GH World Tour tracks leak, Aussie release date revealedhttp://www.joystiq.com/2008/09/04/four-more-gh-wt-tracks-leak-aussie-release-date-revealed/http://www.joystiq.com/2008/09/04/four-more-gh-wt-tracks-leak-aussie-release-date-revealed/http://www.joystiq.com/2008/09/04/four-more-gh-wt-tracks-leak-aussie-release-date-revealed/#commentsFiled under: , , , ,

It may seem odd that we're still talking about leaking Guitar Hero World Tour tracks, especially when we've had a full set list for the competing Rock Band 2 for months now (heck, we've had the whole thing ranked by difficulty for a week). Nonetheless, four more included tracks were revealed at an Activision press conference in New Zealand. The newly revealed songs (as reported by Gamespot) are:
In addition, the event revealed a Nov. 12 release date for the game in Australia. With 64 tracks already confirmed by various sources, we have to wonder when the rest of the reported "over 85" tracks will finally be revealed.

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]]>activisionghwtguitar-heroguitar-hero-world-tourred-octaneKyle Orland2008-09-04T01:00:00+00:00Classic rockers re-record tracks for Guitar Hero World Tourhttp://www.joystiq.com/2008/09/03/classic-rockers-re-record-tracks-for-guitar-hero-world-tour/http://www.joystiq.com/2008/09/03/classic-rockers-re-record-tracks-for-guitar-hero-world-tour/http://www.joystiq.com/2008/09/03/classic-rockers-re-record-tracks-for-guitar-hero-world-tour/#commentsFiled under: , , , ,

Who says you can't teach old bands new tracks? (Insert groans from audience). Activision sent word today that the Guitar Hero World Tour track list will include three classic songs that have been re-recorded just recently. First off, MC5's 40-year-old classic "Kick Out the Jams" has been "updated and modernized" by MC5's Wayne Kramer, with help from Alice in Chains' Jerry Cantrell and Guns 'N' Roses Gilby Clark. The Sex Pistols will be offering up a newly recorded version of 1969's "Pretty Vacant" and Motörhead came back to the studio to re-record their 1979 hit "Overkill" for the game.

Activision is casting these re-recorded classics as a way for fans to get "a unique experience of old yet new legendary sounds." Still, we have to wonder if the decision might have had more to do with missing or incomplete master recordings, a problem that afflicted the "Who's Next" DLC that was planned for Rock Band. Either way, it's nice to see some classic rock stars coming together to support a thoroughly modern interpretation of their songs. If only they all felt that way.

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]]>activisionghwtguitar-heroguitar-hero-world-tourred-octaneKyle Orland2008-09-03T19:30:00+00:00Smashing Pumpkins single to debut as GH: World Tour DLChttp://www.joystiq.com/2008/09/02/smashing-pumpkins-single-to-debut-as-gh-world-tour-dlc/http://www.joystiq.com/2008/09/02/smashing-pumpkins-single-to-debut-as-gh-world-tour-dlc/http://www.joystiq.com/2008/09/02/smashing-pumpkins-single-to-debut-as-gh-world-tour-dlc/#commentsFiled under: , , , ,


Aural squash annihilation news now, with Activision already promoting Guitar Hero: World Tour DLC in the form of a Smashing Pumpkins track pack. In addition to the hits "1979" and "The Everlasting Gaze," the downloadable pack will feature the exclusive debut of a new single dubbed "G.L.O.W." Unsurprisingly, you can expect the content to become available for download sometime after the game's launch later this year.

Those hoping to find lead singer Billy Corgan on the game's disc won't be disappointed either as, well, he's actually on there. Corgan will appear as an in-game and undoubtedly creepy character, singing and gyrating (probably) through the band's "Today," or whatever other career song you choose to fling at him. Be gentle.

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]]>ActivisionDLCGuitar-HeroGuitar-Hero-World-TourPSNXbox-LiveLudwig Kietzmann2008-09-02T17:00:00+00:00Michael Phelps gets CoD: World at War early, but not reallyhttp://www.joystiq.com/2008/09/01/michael-phelps-gets-cod-world-at-war-early-but-not-really/http://www.joystiq.com/2008/09/01/michael-phelps-gets-cod-world-at-war-early-but-not-really/http://www.joystiq.com/2008/09/01/michael-phelps-gets-cod-world-at-war-early-but-not-really/#commentsFiled under: , , ,

As if winning eighteen thousand gold medals at the Beijing Olympics wasn't enough, swimmer Michael Phelps got a further reward for his awesomeness on last Thursday's CBS Early Show -- an early copy of Call of Duty: World at War provided by publisher Activision. But all was not as it seemed. As developer Treyarch revealed on its blog, the box Phelps was handed on live TV actually contained an I.O.U. card for the final version of the game, which is still in production. It's not all smoke and mirrors, though -- Phelps has been promised "the first disc off the production line ... later this year." We suppose that's understandable. Michael Phelps may be amazing, but it seems even he can't change the laws of time and space (or can he?) (no he can't).

Check out a video of the "giveaway" after the break (jump to 3:28 for the moment of falsehood).

[Via MTV Multiplayer]



Watch CBS Videos Online

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]]>activisioncall-of-dutycall-of-duty-world-at-warCBSearly showEarlyShowtreyarchworld-at-warKyle Orland2008-09-01T20:30:00+00:00Guitar Hero director knocks Rock Band 2 cymbalshttp://www.joystiq.com/2008/08/30/guitar-hero-director-knocks-rock-band-2-cymbals/http://www.joystiq.com/2008/08/30/guitar-hero-director-knocks-rock-band-2-cymbals/http://www.joystiq.com/2008/08/30/guitar-hero-director-knocks-rock-band-2-cymbals/#commentsFiled under: , , , ,


We knew that as we came closer to the games' respective release dates, the feud between Harmonix/EA's Rock Band 2 and Neversoft/Activision's Guitar Hero: World Tour would reach critical mass. In the quarrel's latest smack talk salvo, Guitar Hero director Brian Bright discussed rival Harmonix's cymbal attachments for their sequel's drum kit peripheral with Eurogamer, providing some highly quotable zingers -- and buddy, we don't mean snack cakes.

Bright condemns Rock Band 2's cymbals for being "dual-mapped", meaning they'll share the functions of one of the pads of the standard kit, making the attachments somewhat unneccessary. He also dismisses them for being a panicked copycat reaction to World Tour's cymbal-equipped kit -- based on the familiar gameplay we've seen from the latest installment in the Guitar Hero franchise, we assume Neversoft would be the unparalleled experts on matters duplicative.

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]]>activisioncymbalseaguitar-hero-world-tourharmonixneversoftrock-band-2Griffin McElroy2008-08-30T14:00:00+00:00Ratner: 'I would love to do a Guitar Hero movie'http://www.joystiq.com/2008/08/28/ratner-i-would-love-to-do-a-guitar-hero-movie/http://www.joystiq.com/2008/08/28/ratner-i-would-love-to-do-a-guitar-hero-movie/http://www.joystiq.com/2008/08/28/ratner-i-would-love-to-do-a-guitar-hero-movie/#commentsFiled under:


What's more upsetting: that rumored God of War director Brett Ratner thinks the Guitar Hero brand is good movie material or that someone actually pays this guy to consult on their brands? In an interview with the movie mangler, MTV managed to get Ratner to say (ostensibly with a straight face), "I would love to do a Guitar Hero movie, if Activision would ever let me. I'm trying to convince them, but why would you have a movie screw up such a huge franchise? Not that I would make a bad movie." Oh no, what could be bad about a movie based on a video game that tasks players with hitting colored dots in time with rock music? Wait, don't answer that. Joystiq spies report that Ratner is also considering adaptations of video game classics Pong and Tetris.

So there's that. Then there's this: Brett Ratner was paid real money to "come up with a name" for the latest Guitar Hero. Ratner says, "I did, and it became Guitar Hero: World Tour." In other words, the geniuses at Activision couldn't figure out a name on their own, so who better than the guy who directed Rush Hour? In other news, we're apparently in the wrong line of work.

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]]>ActivisionBreakingnewsBrett-RatnerGuitar-HeromoviesChristopher Grant2008-08-28T18:14:00+00:00Joystiq interview: Quantum of Solace's Adam Gascoinehttp://www.joystiq.com/2008/08/28/joystiq-interview-quantum-of-solaces-adam-gascoine/http://www.joystiq.com/2008/08/28/joystiq-interview-quantum-of-solaces-adam-gascoine/http://www.joystiq.com/2008/08/28/joystiq-interview-quantum-of-solaces-adam-gascoine/#commentsFiled under: , , ,

It's so easy to assume that Quantum of Solace is going to be just another rushed license game (even Daniel Craig did!). But after having sat down with a couple of the game's levels (full hands-on coming later), it's easy to see that this is one of Activision's strongest games of the 2008 lineup. We had a chat with the co-design director, Adam Gascoine, about the game and its development.

Quantum of Solace is the first Bond game to be released alongside its movie counterpart. Has this impacted development? Were you rushed?

We were worried about being rushed when we started the project, but thankfully we have a very solid relationship with the movie team. We were one of the first to see the script for the movie, plus we've been able to visit the sets and watch some filming several times now. All this made it a lot easier. We've been developing really since Casino Royale, about two and a half years in total, so we've had plenty of time to develop the game.

Parts of the game are reminiscent of Uncharted. Was this a particular inspiration during the development of Quantum of Solace?

Any good game is definitely an inspiration. I loved Uncharted. I played it twice. Parts of that game may well have influenced design decisions we made during development, just like any of the great 2007 titles. In particular, though, the quality of animation in Uncharted was definitely an inspiration.

Gallery: Quantum of Solace: The Game

Have you had any uncanny valley moments?

The worst thing about the uncanny valley is that you don't know how you've got into it. One of the most important things to us is that Bond looked right. We have people outside the studio who look at all of the characters and make sure they look great. We've taken 3D scanner data from all of the main characters that are in Quantum of Solace, to make sure they look correct. Bond has seven texture layers and 71 bones in his face. The uncanny valley is something we've been avoiding.

Does the game follow the story of the film? Are there any extra scenes in there?

Quantum of Solace will follow the story of the film. In fact, one of the reasons we went and visited the sets was so that we could take reference photos so that our environments can look as identical to the film as possible. We've also got some scenes from Casino Royale in here, which play out as flashbacks throughout the game. The game is called Quantum of Solace, so we wanted you to get straight into the new stuff from the first level. There are also some levels that show scenes that are not from either films, but are part of their stories.

Will you be supporting trophies on PS3?

Yes, we have a deep achievement system that will be the same on PS3 and Xbox 360. These aren't just simple progression achievements for completing each level, we've also got a lot of specific challenge achievements in there as well.

Did any of the actors perform motion capture for the game?

No, we had a very talented motion capture artist named Ray Park do most of our capture. [Ed note: That's Darth Maul to you Star Wars nerds out there.]

How did the film actors react to the idea of being in a game?

At first there were some who were a bit cautious, but by the end everyone was really into it. I think there's a lot more respect for video games nowadays. Those that had never done it before, like Judi Dench, got very excited about seeing themselves in the game.

Daniel Craig was actually the most reluctant. He's a big gamer himself and didn't want to be in a poorly made licensed game, so we sat him down and let him play an early build. He loved it and came back to us to say "Okay, I'll do it." Since then he's been a very important part of making the game what it is. We try to get him to give us feedback as much as possible, but he is obviously a very busy man. We'll send script drafts to him to check over, so he's been been involved with that aspect too.

Is there a mode in the game to make Bond look a little happier? He seems very stern.

No, there's no "Happy Mode." Bond's a pretty serious guy. He's had a hard time, as you've seen in Casino Royale. I think that's the last we'll see of any humor in this Bond, but who knows, it could come back.

Is the November release date worldwide?

The release date in all territories corresponds to the film release. We felt it was very important that people can go to see the film and immediately come out of the cinema to buy the game.

Were there any series limitations you had to adhere to? Can you show Bond badly hurt?

Yeah, there were definitely series limitations. When we started the project we were given what's called the "Bond Bible." This document details exactly who Bond is and lays out all of his character traits. At first this felt a little restrictive, but you quickly get into the right mindset. This character has been refined for forty-plus years, so they know what they're doing with him. We never wanted to redefine him. We want as genuine a Bond experience as possible. Also, we're a "T"een game. We didn't want the game to be supremely violent or dark, so we were limited in that respect, too.

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]]>ActivisionJames-Bondjoystiqfeaturesleipzig-08lgc08Quantum-of-SolaceJem Alexander2008-08-28T14:00:00+00:00Guitar Hero World Tour features lots of brands (except Gibson!)http://www.joystiq.com/2008/08/28/guitar-hero-world-tour-features-lots-of-brands-except-gibson/http://www.joystiq.com/2008/08/28/guitar-hero-world-tour-features-lots-of-brands-except-gibson/http://www.joystiq.com/2008/08/28/guitar-hero-world-tour-features-lots-of-brands-except-gibson/#commentsFiled under: , ,


An Activision press release that just landed in our inbox breathlessly details every single promotional tie-in that Guitar Hero World Tour's packing. Really, it's a huge list! Here it is, straight from the release: "Ampeg, Audio-Technica, EMG Pickups, Ernie Ball, Evans Drumheads, Guitar Center, Krank Amplification, Mackie, Marshall, Orange County Drum & Percussion, Pork Pie Percussion, Regal Tip, Sabian cymbals, Vox and Zildjian drumsticks."

Notice anything missing? Considering it's busy trying to sue everyone but Activision, even retailers, it's unsurprising that guitar-maker (and patent-claimer) Gibson is nowhere to be seen. Of course, the total absence of any Gibson branding on Guitar Hero World Tour's Genericasters was our first clue but it would appear that lack of cooperation extends to the in-game experience as well. So, while you trick out your virtual drum kit with gear from the above purveyors, your axe will remain hopelessly generic. Isn't there any game in town besides Gibson and Rock Band BFF's Fender?

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]]>ActivisionGibsonGuitar-HeroGuitar-Hero-World-TourNeversoftChristopher Grant2008-08-28T02:00:00+00:00Joystiq hands-on: Guitar Hero World Tourhttp://www.joystiq.com/2008/08/27/joystiq-hands-on-guitar-hero-world-tour/http://www.joystiq.com/2008/08/27/joystiq-hands-on-guitar-hero-world-tour/http://www.joystiq.com/2008/08/27/joystiq-hands-on-guitar-hero-world-tour/#commentsFiled under: , , , , ,

"Hang on a minute," I thought as I played Guitar Hero: World Tour at Activision's booth at the Leipzig Games Convention, "Isn't this Rock Band?" The layout on the World Tour screen is almost identical to Harmonix's series, with the guitars on either side, the drums scrolling down the middle (with the same horizontal bars displaying bass notes, except in World Tour they're purple, not orange) and the vocals on top. The star power meter, along with the rock meter, is kept in the top left, which means that if you're playing drums or bass guitar, it's not very easy to see.

It took a little while to get used to the drums. The two-tier structure with the cymbals feels great, but can be slightly confusing at first. The drums are a lot bouncier than the Rock Band ones, making them not only quieter, but more fun to play. With Rock Band, the bounce seems to come more from the way the sticks are held, rather than out of the structural nature of the pads. Not hearing the constant thok, thok is definitely preferable too, as anyone who has bought silencing pads for their Rock Band drums will know. [Editor's note: Rock Band 2 also features quieter, bouncier drums.]

Gallery: Guitar Hero: World Tour


Having five drums, rather than four, also takes some getting used to. It wasn't until midway through the first song that a blue (middle of the lower tier) note appeared, but it spun me for a loop. The one issue I faced continuously was my sticks getting stuck underneath the cymbals at times, but this is no doubt fixable by adjusting the heights of the pads. World Tour's drum set is definitely preferable to Rock Band's overall, though this is only in comparison to the original set, not the forthcoming model -- and certainly not the premium ION set.

As for the guitar, if you have Guitar Hero III, then you already know how the instrument plays. It's the same design and feels almost identical. The new guitar has a few extra features, like the touch panel strip. Hammer-on fans will love this. On certain note sequences you can slide your finger along the strip, making it feel more like sliding up and down a guitar string. A pretty decent idea, but in practice it suffers from the same problems that the Rock Band's guitar does with its solo buttons. Moving your hand into position at such short notice is guaranteed to put you off.

Another new addition is the star power button, which is long and thin and is activated with your palm, in case you're feeling to lazy to tilt your controller. A pretty pointless addition, unless you're using it to palm-mute notes in the song creator. The World Tour guitar's whammy bar has also been improved, making it far more resistant. I may be in the minority here, but I still prefer the Rock Band guitar. Between the buttons being flush with the fretboard, the feel of the strum bar and the overall design, it's still my number one choice.


I didn't get to play around with the create-a-track mode but, from what I saw at the press conference and heard from Brian Bright, this was probably for the best. The idea is sound, but the implementation looks horrifically complicated and technical. As someone who's experience with creating music is very limited (read: none), the thought of using the create-a-track mode is almost tortuous.

Again, it sounds like an interesting idea, letting you change the pitch by tilting the guitar or customizing your chord list; even using your guitar to lay down a keyboard track or a drum beat, using the built in drum machine. From what we could tell, however, you're only going to be able to create something good if you have real world knowledge of writing and performing music. In which case, why not just do it in real life?

In the end, the create-a-track mode seems perfect for indie bands who are looking to get their music into the game. As for the casual family audience, or even the non-musical hardcore audience, this is one bullet point on the back of the box that is going to be played with once or twice, then completely ignored.

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]]>activisionguitar-heroguitar-hero-world-tourjoystiqfeaturesleipzig-08lgc08neversoftJem Alexander2008-08-27T19:50:00+00:00Joystiq hands-on: Quantum of Solacehttp://www.joystiq.com/2008/08/27/joystiq-hands-on-quantum-of-solace/http://www.joystiq.com/2008/08/27/joystiq-hands-on-quantum-of-solace/http://www.joystiq.com/2008/08/27/joystiq-hands-on-quantum-of-solace/#commentsFiled under: , , ,

This hands-on report is based on the Xbox 360 version of the game, though the developers assure us that the PS3 version will be almost completely identical.

While I may not be the biggest Bond fan, and only watched Casino Royale because the Blu-ray came free with my PS3, Quantum of Solace was probably the most interesting game in Activision's Leipzig lineup. Going in with very few expectations and, to be honest, little interest in the title, I was impressed and intrigued with what I saw. It's easy to dismiss QoS as just another licensed movie game that will inevitably suck, but that's certainly not the case here.

The first section of the game that I played was set in the sewers of Sienna, where I'm chasing someone (the developers weren't allowed to say who). The first thing you notice about the game is that the environments are gorgeous. For the most part these have been lovingly recreated from reference photos taken on the set of the movie, so they'll look identical to the film. As a result they're incredibly detailed and, in parts, colorful.

The controls are both solid and fluid (if that's even possible!), leaving you to worry about what's going on on-screen, and not in your hands. Thanks to various set pieces throughout the level, you feel like you're interacting with the environment, rather than restricted by it. Everything feels a little less static and rigid when you're jumping over railings, falling through rotting wood and clambering over mounds of earth. Even if they are sometimes scripted.

Gallery: Quantum of Solace: The Game


The cover system feels very functional, allowing you to place yourself against a wall and pull away with ease. While in a covered position you're able to blind-fire and peek out and shoot just as you would imagine, and it all feels very natural. In these instances the camera shifts to a third person viewpoint, showing you a strikingly accurate representation of Daniel Craig. For the most part the character model looks great, if not at times a bit bored, as he doesn't always react to what's going on. Even Bond can't keep this cool while bullets are raining around him.

Cinematic moments are included in the game, to give QoS movie-like flair from time to time. Generally, this involves Bond in slow motion, such as Bond jumping from one roof to another during a rooftop chase or Bond shooting out some explosives near a group of enemies. You'll find explosives all over the place, in the form of oil drums, fire extinguishers or just boxes full of fire (how convenient). They're easy to spot because they'll glint at you invitingly.

Obviously, with this being a Bond game, there are gadgets. Your cell phone shows you a map of the area, including patrol routes for guards and any enemies that are nearby. It also has the ability to patch into security and traffic cameras, to show you interesting parts of the level. These can indicate your next objective, or show you the location of a secret weapon or collectible. This system was inspired by Duke Nukem, but the development team wanted the cameras to actually do something, rather than exist for no reason.


QoS tells the story of the movie but, as development of the game has been taking place since Casino Royale, there are also flashbacks to playable scenes from that movie too. Gameplay is mixed up throughout the game by allowing you to run-and-gun or take a stealth route through a level. Your silenced weapon will still make a slight noise which the enemies, who have apparently excellent hearing, will react to. So if you're aiming for the silent headshot, you'd better hope you don't miss.

So those are a few reasons why Quantum of Solace grabbed my attention. It has the look of a strong shooter with the emphasis squarely on the single player campaign, which is something that we're seeing less and less nowadays. After almost two and a half years in development, this is one licensed game that hasn't been rushed, and it shows.

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]]>ActivisionJames-BondjoystiqfeaturesLeipzig08lgc08Quantum-of-SolaceJem Alexander2008-08-27T17:50:00+00:00Rumorong: New Guitar Hero peripheral not a keyboardhttp://www.joystiq.com/2008/08/26/rumorong-new-guitar-hero-peripheral-not-a-keyboard/http://www.joystiq.com/2008/08/26/rumorong-new-guitar-hero-peripheral-not-a-keyboard/http://www.joystiq.com/2008/08/26/rumorong-new-guitar-hero-peripheral-not-a-keyboard/#commentsFiled under: ,


Remember when Neversoft's Brian Bright allegedly told G4 that a new peripheral was coming to Guitar Hero World Tour, and G4 speculated it would, in fact, be a keyboard? We had a chance to talk to the very same Brian Bright who told us that "a keyboard controller deserves to be introduced with its own game. This is something we're thinking about." B-b-b-but what about all the keyboard section in the song creator? Bright says, "there are reasons why we haven't included a keyboard controller." He elaborates that not all of the songs have keyboard parts so, "adding a keyboard controller would either have limited our choices, or the players."

... so Keyboard Hero: Billy Joel confirmed? Check out the full interview for more on World Tour's song creation system.

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]]>ActivisionBreakingNewsBrian-BrightGuitar-HeroGuitar-Hero-World-TourKeyboardKeyboard-Hero-Billy-JoelNeversoftRumorangChristopher Grant2008-08-26T10:45:00+00:00Joystiq interview: Guitar Hero World Tour's Brian Brighthttp://www.joystiq.com/2008/08/26/joystiq-interview-guitar-hero-world-tours-brian-bright/http://www.joystiq.com/2008/08/26/joystiq-interview-guitar-hero-world-tours-brian-bright/http://www.joystiq.com/2008/08/26/joystiq-interview-guitar-hero-world-tours-brian-bright/#commentsFiled under: , , , , ,

We spent almost at an entire day at the Activision booth at Leipzig, playing and chatting with developers. They had a decent bunch of games to show to us, though the big attraction was Guitar Hero: World Tour. Before getting a go on the drums and guitar (check back later for our full hands-on) we had a natter with project director Brian Bright to learn more about some of the game's more web 2.0 features.

So I noticed when you were going through the track maker during the press conference that it didn't look like you could record vocals. Is it possible to do that?

You can record vocals while you're playing, so that you can create real songs, voice and all. If you also add a keyboard track to the song, this will act as the vocal melody. Obviously, it won't read what words you're saying, you'll just be able to hum along. But you can do the same with any singing game available now.

Gallery: Guitar Hero: World Tour

Is there a limit to how long a song can be?

Yeah, I think it's either three or four minutes for songs made in the track maker.

How are these songs going to be distributed? Are you planning on a LittleBigPlanet sharing and rating system?

It's called "GHTunes". It's an online community for music. When people download tracks, they'll rate them. We took inspiration from YouTube for the rating system, so you can rate each song up to five stars in half-a-star increments. GHTunes features extensive tracking of stats, like which is the most downloaded, what's the best rated, etc. You can instantly preview tracks in GHTunes and you can even create custom album covers for your songs.

Can the album covers be made outside of the game and be imported?

No, album covers are only able to be made in-game.

How will you respond to people making well known songs in the song creator?

We don't condone copyrighted content being put on GHTunes, but it's going to be a community moderated site. If the copyright holder complains, then we'll take it down. Otherwise, we'll probably leave it up unless it's offensive.

Aren't you afraid of this eating into your downloadable content sales?

No, definitely not. If someone's a fan of a band, then they'll want the master recording, which we'll have. All our songs are master recordings and that's worth paying for over a create-a-track cover, right?

Will GHTunes tracks be available cross-platform?

Not this year, no. It's something that we're looking into, because we're interested in making GHTunes completely universal.

There's no precedent set for cross-platform communication, but it's possible we could be the first to do it. But what happens when you download a song on your 360 from someone and want to check out their gamercard? What if they're a PS3 owner? That's the sort of stuff we need to sort out. We're also planning to bring songs out of the game and onto the web.

On some sort of Facebook-style GHTunes page?

Not through GHTunes, no. We already have a community site for Guitar Hero. We launched it with Guitar Hero III and have been refining it through the release of Aerosmith. We're building up to a full site redesign, with new features, this Fall.

Why have you included a drum machine in the guitar controller, when you have a separate drum controller?

There are several reasons. Imagine you're sitting on the couch, working on a tune. Do you really want to keep getting up and switching instruments, just to set up a decent drum beat?

Also, the drum machine has a few extra features. For example, it allows for drum loops, which can be modified via the guitar's touch strip. The drum machine is more powerful than the drum set.

The drums themselves have 20 available drum sets, each with a unique percussion set. They're also pressure sensitive. Basically, it's a midi drum set. It has no looping features, unlike the guitar drum machine.

You allow people to add keyboard sections to their songs. Were you not tempted to create a keyboard controller?

No, there are reasons why we haven't included a keyboard controller. Not all of our songs have keyboard parts, so we didn't want someone to come into a game, pick up the keyboard controller, and then have nothing to do in any of the songs that are selected. We wanted a big mix of music in World Tour and adding a keyboard controller would either have limited our choices, or the players'.

A keyboard controller deserves to be introduced with its own game. This is something we're thinking about.

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]]>activisionguitar-heroguitar-hero-world-tourjoystiqfeaturesleipzig-08lgc08neversoftJem Alexander2008-08-26T09:58:00+00:00Only the Games: Call of Duty: World at War coming in Novemberhttp://www.joystiq.com/2008/08/22/only-the-games-call-of-duty-world-at-war-coming-in-november/http://www.joystiq.com/2008/08/22/only-the-games-call-of-duty-world-at-war-coming-in-november/http://www.joystiq.com/2008/08/22/only-the-games-call-of-duty-world-at-war-coming-in-november/#commentsFiled under: , , , ,


Usually PR reps aren't so cavalier about dropping big news, so we're going to go ahead and posit that the team at Only the Games must be exceptionally attractive and/or cunning, because they managed to get an Activision rep to tell them during the X08 event in Toronto that Treyarch's Call of Duty: World at War would be arriving in November. Way to go guys!

Though we are rarely described as attractive or cunning ourselves, we tried to get more specific info from Activision, which told us, "wWe haven't made any announcement about date other than Fall of 2008." Before you whip out a calendar you should know that Joystiq can officially confirm that November falls within the autumnal season, so they could both be dead on. We'll keep an ear out.

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]]>activisioncall-of-dutycall-of-duty-5call-of-duty-world-at-warx08-torontoJustin McElroy2008-08-22T09:30:00+00:00Who put 'Wii Music' in my Guitar Hero?http://www.joystiq.com/2008/08/21/who-put-wii-music-in-my-guitar-hero/http://www.joystiq.com/2008/08/21/who-put-wii-music-in-my-guitar-hero/http://www.joystiq.com/2008/08/21/who-put-wii-music-in-my-guitar-hero/#commentsFiled under: ,


Hoping to somehow diminish our aversion to the sight of Miis playing musical instruments, Vicarious Visions is working the user-created, er ... "avatars" into the Wii version of Guitar Hero World Tour in a so-called unique way. In an interview with IGN, the developer explained how the recently revealed Mii mode, known as "Mii Freestyle," will work.

Using the guitar or drumkit peripherals (or, if you're crazy so inclined, the Wiimote and Nunchuck for "air drumming") the mode lets you and a friend jam in a variety of music genres, laying down single notes, chords, and beats as you wish. According to Vicarious Visions, it'll all sound good because, well, it's programmed to clean up what you do. Take that, years of practice!

[Via Wii Fanboy]

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]]>activisionguitar-hero-world-tourmiimii-freestylevicarious-visionsRandy Nelson2008-08-21T19:59:00+00:00Rumor: Another Guitar Hero World Tour peripheralhttp://www.joystiq.com/2008/08/21/rumor-another-guitar-hero-world-tour-peripheral/http://www.joystiq.com/2008/08/21/rumor-another-guitar-hero-world-tour-peripheral/http://www.joystiq.com/2008/08/21/rumor-another-guitar-hero-world-tour-peripheral/#commentsFiled under: ,


G4 claims to have gotten "the hot word" on a new Guitar Hero World Tour peripheral from Neversoft's Brian Bright who "wouldn't go into detail about what it will be," though he apparently said the new peripheral was "specifically for the game's Studio mode."

We've reached out to Activision for some kind of comment or confirmation; however, until then, speculation seems to be the name of the game. G4 is guessing keyboard, which is all well and good. And who knows, it may well be a keyboard. We're not oracles here. But as long as we're just guessing, why not guess a little bigger, y'know? That's why we're happy to announce Joystiq's official guess for the rumored new Guitar Hero World Tour peripherpal: keytar.

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]]>ActivisionGuitar-HeroGuitar-Hero-World-TourRed-OctaneRumorChristopher Grant2008-08-21T16:27:00+00:00Craig, Dench on board for Quantum of Solace gamehttp://www.joystiq.com/2008/08/21/craig-dench-on-board-for-quantum-of-solace-game/http://www.joystiq.com/2008/08/21/craig-dench-on-board-for-quantum-of-solace-game/http://www.joystiq.com/2008/08/21/craig-dench-on-board-for-quantum-of-solace-game/#commentsFiled under: , , , , ,


We're happy to report that when James Bond returns to video games this fall with Quantum of Solace he'll be voiced by our new favorite 007, Daniel Craig. But we're a little worried about how we're going to focus on the game when our undies continue to spontaneously drop to the ground, coaxed off by Bond's baritone brogue! The game will also feature Judi Dench as M and new additions Mathieu Amalric and Ukrainian actress Olga Kurylenko.

... Listen, did we type that part about our undies dropping out loud? No? OK, thank goodness.

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]]>007activisionjames-bondquantum-of-solacetreyarchJustin McElroy2008-08-21T09:50:00+00:00