Joystiq

Capy posts ideas from its internal game jam, and they all sound pretty good

Mike Schramm — Mon, 30 Jan 2012 21:45:00 EST

Given the talent of the folks at Capy Software (who've made the excellent Critter Crunch, Might and Magic: Clash of Heroes, and most of the programming behind Sword and Sworcery), you'd expect them to prototype an interesting game in less time than it takes some to develop a full game. You're partially right -- they made seven.

All seven games from Capy's internal game jam are now listed over on the company blog, and to a title they all sound pretty good. The Final Act has the player acting on stage to win a battle, Ferret Wings features Captain Farris the Ferret fighting against Adolph Hamster, and Jetman Adventures (above) is described as "a kind of touch screen Panzer Dragoon/Defender hybrid with Fruit Ninja influence." Yes please!

Unfortunately, these are just prototypes developed over the two-day period of a game jam, so they're all unfinished (one turn-based tactical game, for example, didn't get any further than having just one unit), and most likely unplayable by the public. But one of these might plant a seed for Capy's next title, and when that flower blossoms we'll be happy to stick our noses right in it.

Capy posts ideas from its internal game jam, and they all sound pretty good originally appeared on Joystiq on Mon, 30 Jan 2012 21:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

Nintendo showing off prototype Wii U demos at E3 this week

Mike Schramm — Tue, 07 Jun 2011 13:20:00 EST

Nintendo just announced the Wii U on stage at its E3 press conference, and while the new controller is interesting, we're all wondering just how powerful this "HD" console is. Game Informer's seen the demos shown off on stage in person, and apparently it's about as nice as you'd imagine: Not quite as high quality as the other HD consoles, but definitely better than the standard Wii.

Nintendo doesn't have actual games to show yet, but there are a few interactive demos running. Chase Mii has Mario characters running around a maze and uses the Wii U controller's screen to track other players in the game. Battle Mii uses traditional Wii controllers as well as the Wii U controller, and GI says controls are a little tighter and quicker than the traditional Wii can handle (though the gyroscope in the new, presumably still a work in progress, controller is still a little awkward). Finally, Shield Pose has you moving the Wii controller around to try and block called shots coming in from a pirate ship, and is supposed to be fun in a sort of follow-the-leader way.

We'll look for all three demos on the show floor this week, so stay tuned for our own impressions on just what the Wii U can and can't do so far. There's not a lot of information available yet (the Wii U is due sometime in 2012, and there's no price listed at all), but already it looks like the Wii U will definitely shake up console gaming.

Update: The Guardian also got to play with the Wii U, and says the console will be HD via HDMI, and have internal Flash memory, along with SD and USB solutions for adding more. The system will be backwards-compatible with the Wii (which we heard at the press event), and play both discs and downloadable software.

Nintendo showing off prototype Wii U demos at E3 this week originally appeared on Joystiq on Tue, 07 Jun 2011 13:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

Alleged Legend of Zelda prototype released

Griffin McElroy — Tue, 28 Dec 2010 11:30:00 EST

Lost Levels, a website dedicated to pulling unreleased video games out of the void of obscurity, recently obtained a pretty epic find: An alleged prototype build of the original, Famicom version of The Legend of Zelda. What's different about this early build? Well, apparently, while the retail version of Zelda was responsible for crushing the spirits of many a lesser gamer, this prototype build was designed to be played by sweet, little babies.

The difficulty of the early version of the game appears to be fairly reduced, as the prototype features a much more liberal rate of rupee distribution and an easier palette of enemies compared to the retail release, as evidenced by the screenshot comparison above (prototype on the left). If you've got the right emulator, you can download and play the prototype right now -- or, if you're not in the dungeon-diving mood, you can check more details about the Zelda prototype on The Cutting Room Floor wiki.

Alleged Legend of Zelda prototype released originally appeared on Joystiq on Tue, 28 Dec 2010 11:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

See early prototypes of the PlayStation Motion Controller

Andrew Yoon — Tue, 08 Sep 2009 17:30:00 EST

The PlayStation Motion Controller has been in development for a long, long time. While many make fun of its unique ball and stick shape, the controller has clearly come a long way from the earliest prototypes, seen here in the hands of SCEA software engineer Anton Mikhailov. According to Mikhailov, the first controller designs were constructed from gear purchased at a Home Depot.

A new video from the PlayStation.Blog doesn't reveal new details about the controller. You can watch it after the break, and see Sony's Wii-competitor in action.

[Thanks, jeremy23j!]

Continue reading See early prototypes of the PlayStation Motion Controller

See early prototypes of the PlayStation Motion Controller originally appeared on Joystiq on Tue, 08 Sep 2009 17:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments