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Interview: Microsoft Game Studios' Phil Spencer

by Ludwig Kietzmann { Oct 14th 2009 at 12:15PM }

If given the choice of becoming a (presumably) anthropomorphic vegetable, Phil Spencer would opt for an eggplant. Sure, we spoke to the confident head of Microsoft Game Studios about other things -- Halo, Project Natal, Fable, Crackdown, the Xbox 360's successor, blah blah blah -- but with that profound scoop out of the way, there's barely any reason to read this interview.

Mind you, the part where Spencer suggests that alternate forms of input (whether in addition to or in substitute of traditional controllers) might become a common expectation is pretty interesting. You should definitely read that.

Joystiq: We just came out of the Tokyo Game Show panel discussion for Project Natal ...

Phil Spencer: The creators panel.

Yes, the creators panel. Hideo Kojima was there; they brainstormed about all these games. How much focus is Microsoft Game Studios placing on Natal development internally in comparison to other projects?

It's a big focus for us in first party. As a first party, I think it's our duty, it's our responsibility to look at the new technologies that we bring to our platform. We did this with Live. We did at launch of 360. When we look at Project Natal as an opportunity for first party to truly innovate on our platform, creating new experiences, new intellectual property, we're very focused. A large percentage of the studio right now is thinking about Natal as part of what they're doing.

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PlayStation & Xbox hardware gets the Body Worlds treatment at Japanese museum

by Ben Gilbert { Sep 29th 2009 at 1:15AM }

For some people, the sight of a gaming console broken open, exposing its parts to the world, can be something of utter agony. Not for the Museum of Game Science in Tokyo, where you can find the entire line of PlayStation and Xbox consoles disassembled and dissected for all to see.

Seen in Engadget's video above, one thin layer of glass is all that prevents the intrepid cameraman from reaching into the displays and pulling bits from here, bobs from there to assemble the world's first supermega-gen console: XStation 720. Knowing better, he chooses instead to give us a piece-by-piece visual rundown of what the museum offered for display at this year's Tokyo Game Show. We appreciate your self-control, kind sir.

Tokyo Game Show 2009 attendance down slightly

by Alexander Sliwinski { Sep 28th 2009 at 8:00PM }

The Tokyo Game Show maintained a relatively steady attendance this year, with the exception of the first public day of the show, which saw a 10,000 attendee decrease from the prior year. The business days maintained almost the exact same figures as 2008, which had seen a dramatic drop from 2007 -- but, with the global economy in shambles, that's not shocking.

Thursday (Business): 27,435 ('08 - 27,305; '07 - 29,783)
Friday (Business): 24,605 ('08 - 24,178; '07 - 32,390)
Saturday (Public): 61,138 ('08 - 71,639; '07 - 64,795)
Sunday (Public): 71,852 ('08 - 71,166; '07 - 66,072)

In total, the show had 185,030 attendees, which is still nothing to sneeze at -- unlike [tasteless gaming conference Swine Flu joke goes here].

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TGS 2009: Hands-on: Metal Gear Solid Peace Walker (co-op)

by Ludwig Kietzmann { Sep 28th 2009 at 8:57AM }

Sharing a flimsy, cardboard box with another soldier is sure to be an inexhaustible supply of awkward discomfort. Aside from the clear violation of personal space, there are two major concerns for the occupants of Metal Gear Solid's iconic camouflage: (1) Who's driving this thing? And (2) that better be your gun poking me in the back, I swear.

Thankfully, Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker has an elegant solution for the former problem. Holding up on the PSP's d-pad will "sync" you with your sneaking partner(s) and, as long as the button remains held down, you'll stay in automatic lockstep with the leader. Remaining a cohesive group is an essential strategy for a silent approach, though splitting up offers its own advantages as well.

Gallery: Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker (TGS 2009)

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Keiji Inafune says Japanese game industry is over, man

by Ben Gilbert { Sep 27th 2009 at 4:30PM }

Giving Tokyo Game Show attendees a chance to get some hands-on time with Western-developed Dead Rising 2 at a party this week, Capcom's Keiji Inafune stated, "Japan is over. We're done. Our game industry is finished." Bionic Commando producer Ben Judd translated the Mega Man creator's claims to the crowd (that Destructoid captured on video, found after the break), explaining the eulogy as Inafune's reaction to the show floor at this year's TGS.

Unsurprisingly, his words were less harsh about his Japanese company's upcoming titles. "Just so that you all don't think that the game industry is finished, Capcom is doing our best," he said. Next year's Dark Void and Dead Rising 2 -- both Western developed games, mind you -- can't hurt Inafune's confidence, eh?

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TGS 2009: Hands-on with Dante's Inferno in the Land of the Lust

by Ross Miller { Sep 25th 2009 at 5:45PM }

We've talked up Dante's Inferno and its similarities to God of War before -- and not much has changed in that regard in the game's latest build. So, instead of going deep into the gameplay here, we'll focus on the content we saw in the new level, based on the sin of "Lust." It's quite the hellish journey, especially for the folks at the ESRB.

(Just a warning: despite our best efforts, given the subject matter, some of the content described might be considered NSFW. Read on at your own risk.)

Gallery: Dante's Inferno

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TGS 2009: Hands-on: Tatsunoko vs. Capcom vs. that guy from Dead Rising

by JC Fletcher { Sep 25th 2009 at 11:30AM }

My usual delight in playing Tatsunoko vs. Capcom: Ultimate All-Stars was tempered by a note of skepticism at TGS. I knew that the build being offered would include Frank West. He's an admirable character, to be sure, and skilled at using retail goods to fend off hordes of zombies, but I wasn't sure his improvisational violence would translate well to the hand-to-hand, superhero-vs-superhero combat in Tatsunoko vs. Capcom.

Let's face it, the cel-shaded Frank in this game doesn't look great. All the other characters look like excellent 2D sprites, but Frank looks like a weird 3D model. However, Capcom has made a respectable fighting-game character out of Frank; one that borrows from an obvious source in Capcom fighting game crossover history: Marvel vs. Capcom 2's Jill Valentine. Frank shares Jill's ability to summon a zombie from either side of the screen, which will grapple with the opponent (or Frank) upon contact.

Gallery: Tatsunoko vs Capcom (TGS 2009)

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TGS 2009: Watch a Crackdown 2 deathmatch

by Xav de Matos { Sep 25th 2009 at 10:29AM }

One of the biggest surprises to come out of TGS 2009 is the presence of Crackdown 2 -- and it's playable! While the Ruffian Games developed sequel was only just announced at E3, Microsoft decided to let press in Tokyo step into an early build of the new Pacific City. Some textures were missing, and a few glitches popped up, but it was to be expected in what we were told was a game "roughly at 60 percent" complete.

Stay tuned, we'll post our impressions soon, along with an interview with Ruffian lead designer Steve Iannetta. (Oh, and just in case you were wondering: we mopped the floor with the competition.)

Gallery: Crackdown 2 (TGS 2009 #2)

TGS 2009: Body-on: Project Natal (with Space Invaders Extreme!)

by Ludwig Kietzmann { Sep 25th 2009 at 10:01AM }

Explaining Project Natal's mantra of fun and accessibility can't be the easiest task in the world, especially since it has to be done while ricocheting about in front of a motion-detecting camera. And despite that, creative director Kudo Tsunoda makes it look easy, calmly elaborating on Natal's goals and features while he dances about in a room full of journalists.

We've heard it before: Natal is Microsoft's sledgehammer, swung straight into the walls that years of button pressing and circle strafing have slowly erected around traditional gaming. We've seen similar attacks from Nintendo's Wii, as well as from the massive genre of the Instrument Protagonist, but Microsoft is hoping for much more than a dent. In the wall. Do you get it? It's like a metaphor and stuff.

The bizarre problem with Natal in its early state is that it, um, works. The technology is clearly functional -- heck, it's vaguely magical -- which makes the absence of truly compelling software almost immediately disappointing. Anyone can simply hop in front of the camera, which never seems to stop and ask, "Who are you and where did you come from -- and why are you so fat compared to the last person?" You're recognized within seconds and can start playing a moment later. And then you slap flying balls.

It's a bit of an unfair demand considering the product's not due until 2010, but the impatience is testament to the convincing nature of the technology itself. In the meantime, Microsoft is exploring Natal's tricks in two existing games: Beautiful Katamari and Space Invaders Extreme.

Gallery: Space Invaders Extreme (XBLA)

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TGS 2009: Hands-on: Dead Rising 2's 'Terror is Reality'

by Andrew Yoon { Sep 25th 2009 at 9:30AM }

Terror. Is. Reality. Don't believe us? Check out the new trailer, which we just witnessed (and caught on camera) at Capcom's Dead Rising 2 event in Tokyo. You don't want to miss Keiji Inafune's posh yellow jacket as he introduces the clip.

The event is a junket unlike any other at Tokyo Game Show this year. Capcom (with the help of Microsoft) took over a restaurant/bar in Ebisu, promising free food and drinks to all attendees -- with the promise of a two-of-a-kind yellow jacket at stake for the person who wins tonight's Dead Rising 2 mutliplayer tournament.

Yeah, multiplayer. Long hinted at, we finally had a chance to play the game's competitive multiplayer mode. It certainly wasn't what we were expecting. You take control of one of four participants in a zombie-ridden game show called "Terror Is Reality." Players will compete in four different minigames, each of which takes a different spin on Dead Rising's zombie-smashing gameplay.

Gallery: Dead Rising 2

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Overheard@TGS: At least someone's happy ...

by Xav de Matos { Sep 25th 2009 at 8:00AM }

While rushing to make an appointment to get hands-on time with Crackdown 2, we overheard two Microsoft exhibitors discussing the reception of the recently released Forza Motorsport 3 demo.

Microsoft Rep #1: "Seems like a lot of people like the demo."
Microsoft Rep #2: "Yeah, well we really like that GT5 release date!"

With Gran Turismo 5 launching in 2010, it looks like Forza Motorsport 3 won't have much traffic to contend with when it launches this October. And boy, is Microsoft happy about it.

TGS 2009: Capcom bringing Sengoku Basara Samurai Heroes and Ghost Trick to NA, Europe

by Ben Gilbert { Sep 25th 2009 at 3:00AM }

A deluge of Capcom media arrived from the Tokyo Game Show today -- so much, in fact, that we nearly forgot to tell you the Japanese publisher announced intentions to bring Sengoku Basara Samurai Heroes and Ghost Trick to North America and Europe in 2010. Traditionally, the Sengoku Basara series (think Dynasty Warriors, but from Capcom) hasn't been published outside of Japan, but with the game's third installment Capcom has decided to bring the game worldwide for the PlayStation 3 and Nintendo Wii (thrilling trailer above).

While we don't have any video for Ghost Trick (there are screens below), we know it comes from the same folks who worked on Capcom's Ace Attorney series. Apparently players will be controlling the ghost of a recently passed gentleman, piecing together clues to solve his own murder. That's some trick, you crazy ghost! Sorry, we're done channeling Brian Fellows now.

Gallery: Ghost Trick (TGS 2009)

Gallery: Sengoku Basara Samurai Heroes (TGS 2009)

TGS 2009: Impressions: Toy Soldiers (XBLA)

by Xav de Matos { Sep 25th 2009 at 2:00AM }

While it has become an extremely popular style of game over the last few years, tower defense titles have always struck me as a boring concept, personally. Perhaps it's my penchant for firing weapons at moving targets in first-person, but I can't really articulate my lack of enthusiasm for the strategy-style gameplay.

My initial reaction to Toy Soldiers -- a tower defense game in a World War I setting -- in a behind-closed-doors Microsoft demo? Snore. Imagine my surprise, then, that I soon got genuinely excited to play the game when it lands sometime next year.

Gallery: Toy Soldiers (XBLA)

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New Crackdown 2 screens -- zombies included [updated]

by Ben Gilbert { Sep 24th 2009 at 6:00PM }

Click to embiggen

Is it still kosher to assume zombies are what's being featured in these Crackdown 2 screens? We saw a glimpse of the ... let's call them "mutated" enemies in the trailer released back at E3, but we'd yet to see them being punched, kicked, and exploded so vociferously before. With any luck, we'll nab some new gameplay video -- or maybe just impressions of new gameplay video -- when we check out the game this week at the Tokyo Game Show.

Update: After spotting 10 unlisted Crackdown 2 images on Ruffian's Flickr page, we were asked by Microsoft to remove the screens due to an exclusivity agreement with Game Informer magazine. In the interest of playing nice, we've complied with the request. We'll have the images back on Joystiq as soon as possible, we assure you ... though a Google Images search might net you results a bit sooner.

Gallery: Crackdown 2 (TGS 2009 #2)

Square Enix & PopCap team for puzzle RPG 'Gyromancer'

by Alexander Sliwinski { Sep 24th 2009 at 1:41PM }

Square Enix is teaming up with the "broadly appealing" e-crack peddling masters at PopCap Games on Gyromancer, a new puzzle RPG for XBLA and PC. At its core, Gyromancer is a re-skinned version of PopCap's Bejeweled Twist with Square Enix delivering the ... um, big hair? Maybe some writing -- or 20-minute cutscenes? We have no idea.

There's currently no scheduled release date for Gyromancer, but we've definitely had our fill of Puzzle Quest clones recently. Give it some time and, you know, something different. Then again, PopCap has a nasty habit of turning tired casual-gaming genres into gold.