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Video game movies: while occasionally making every effort to cater to the fanbase, they typically don't end well for any party involved -- but god bless them, they try. Hopefully, such is not the fate of Shadow of the Colossus. After many delays, it seems that the upcoming film adaptation will indeed see the light of day, with "Chronicle" director Josh Trank at the helm. The aforementioned film has received mostly positive reviews (it currently stands at "85% Fresh" on Rotten Tomatoes), and Trank is reported to be in talks to help reboot the "Fantastic Four" franchise.
Nonetheless, bringing Shadow of the Colossus to the big screen is a difficult, and I fear, a rather doomed venture. Not to write the film off before we've seen anything of it, but the story of Shadow of the Colossus isn't exactly film-friendly - by which, I mean that to the "casual" gamer, the story was quite minimal. The thing that made SoTC fantastic was its ability to tell its tale, and convey its emotion, through the gameplay itself. Yes, there was a small cast of characters - Our brave hero Wander, the perpetually dozing Mono, the elusive Dormin, and everyone's favorite horse, Agro - but Shadow of the Colossus, unlike any game that comes to mind, was a story that depended on interactivity with the character- something that film, however beautifully shot or eloquently written it may be, is innately incapable of replicating. Nonetheless, I encourage Trank & Co. to prove us skeptics wrong, and if so, I will be more than happy to eat my own words - wrapped in a tortilla of humility, and drizzled liberally with shame sauce.
What do you think gamers? Does the thought of a Shadow of the Colossus movie appeal to you, or is this simply first-rate balderdash? Sound off in the comments section below!
via Digital Trends
The Diablo 3 saga continues with another set of highs and lows for Blizzard's sparkling new action RPG. First the bad news. After numerous players came forward in Blizzard's forums claiming missing items and hacked accounts, Blizzard countered yesterday that they have yet to deal with a case of hacking into a battle.net account with an attached authenticator. No outside IPs have linked back to vulnerable accounts, only addresses associated with the login.
That's right, as far as they can see right now, people are being scammed through "traditional means." This is 2012, people. By this point, the internet is almost able to drink legally in the US. We should know by now that unique passwords and any available extra security measures, like Blizzard's random number generating authenticator, are essential for online games. It might not always keep you secure, but it will definitely help.
But on the bright side for Blizzard, Diablo 3 has eviscerated sales records with an estimated 3.5 million copies sold within the first 24 hours of launch. Add in the 1.2 million people playing copies that came free with the World of Warcraft Annual Pass, and all the sales since then, and it comes out to around 6.7 million games.
"We're definitely thrilled that so many people around the world were excited to pick up their copy of Diablo 3 and jump in the moment it went live," said Mike Morhaime, CEO and cofounder of Blizzard Entertainment. "We recognize that setting a new launch record is a big achievement," Morhaime continued. "However, we're especially proud of the gameplay feedback we've received from players worldwide. We're pleased that Diablo 3 has lived up to players' high expectations, and we're looking forward to welcoming more players into Sanctuary in the days ahead."
And that doesn't even take into account the Korean Internet game rooms where Diablo 3 has earned an estimated 39% of play. Ignore the subtle stereotype that official stat implies about Korean lifestyles and sit in awe at Bizzard's power.
Of course, the state we're all really wondering about is how many left clicks 6.3 million games can generate. I'm guessing trillions.
With "next gen season" fast approaching, boys and girls of Gaia once again find themselves wondering, with improvements in hardware, what visual treats await those privileged enough to have what we proles call "money." Apparently, we cannot look to the Wii U for guidance, as despite its rather impressive tech demo, the system is reported to be less powerful than the PS3 and Xbox 360.
For many of us in the gamescape, Epic's "Samaritan" video - stunningly detailed, and peppered with visual whiz-bangs - seemed to be more of the jump one would expect from true next-gen graphics. There was only one problem: It was not the Unreal 4 engine. Rather the demo was made with a modified Unreal 3 engine which, while still an aesthetic feast, left us "holy f*ck, that's pretty" connoisseurs thoroughly and bitterly teased.
In a Wired article, the fabled next-gen engine is on its way - though whether next-gen hardware is capable of fully handling it is suspect. The Samaritan demo took "three high-end graphics cards to handle the demand;" realizing the goal that Epic's Tim Sweeny has in mind - creating visuals comparable to what the human eye can perceive - "will require hardware at least 2,000 times as powerful as today's highest-end graphics processors." He believes that such advances are two or three generations off.
Granted, this is so much speculation, and Epic design director Cliff Bleszinski's insistence that "It needs to be a quantum leap [...] They need to damn near render Avatar in real time" is terribly lofty, the above photo, as well as the gallery posted on Wired, gives gamers an idea of what the company has in store for the next generation of consoles. Moreover, the engine is reported to be not simply a vehicle for ultra-high-definition graphics, but a way of streamlining development, "allowing studios to do in 12 months what can take two years or more today."
So the full article (complete with a gallery) at Wired to learn more about Epic's latest efforts!
Amidst the clamour over whether or not violent video games turn innocent children into raging monsters, a pair of recent studies highlights the potentially positive effects that violent video games can have for our brains.
A study out of the University of Toronto, published in the Journal of Cognitive Neuroscience, has shown that playing a first-person shooter can improve people's spatial attention - which is a process by which your brain orients your cognitive abilities to different objects in space, such as an upcoming stop sign, a snake in the grass, or, in the case of an FPS, an enemy soldier. Basically, it's your brain's way of saying "Look at that! It might be important!" While other studies have shown that gamers may have better spatial attention than non-gamers, this is the first study to show that simply by playing an FPS, people's spatial attention can improve. Participants, who were not gamers, were asked to play ten hours of either Medal of Honor: Pacific Assault or puzzle-game Ballance over two weeks. The participants who played Medal of Honor showed an increase in their ability to tune out distractions in a test of spatial attention - e.g., they would be better able to pick out the enemy from the trees. Lead author Sijing Wu foresees benefits from this research such as helping older drivers improve their skills. But first, researchers have to sort out what elements of the game are creating the effect.
Read more, after the jump.
On Friday, Nintendo announced that it would start offering its in-house games as digital downloads starting with the upcoming 3DS title New Super Mario Bros. 2; in fact, Nintendo indicated that all titles it produces thereafter for both the 3DS and the Wii U will be available as a download from its online store the same day that they're available in retail outlets. Gamers will also be able to purchase codes from retailers that will allow them to download titles directly from Nintendo's eShop. This may be an olive-branch to electronics outlets that stand to lose revenue from Nintendo's move: Retailers could offer deals or bundles to buyers for going to a physical outlet to purchase a game as an incentive not to buy directly from Nintendo.
Console-based direct download services serving up AAA titles have been in the works for some time, as we have discussed on this site previously, but console makers have been slow to adopt the scheme. The scuttlebutt (some of it, anyway) is they don't want to risk the ire of physical retailers, who sell their games, consoles and accessories, and from whom much of their revenue currently comes (though some retailers are themselves beginning to jump on the digital distribution bandwagon). Regardless, cutting out the retailers could ultimately mean more profits for developers, and since Nintendo in particular makes so many games in-house, it stands to gain a great deal from an on-line purchasing system.
Microsoft, on the other hand, has pledged not to make its games available by digital means - at least, not until some time after they're released in stores, as they do with their current Games On Demand service. While it may seem odd that Microsoft would be more reluctant than Nintendo to embrace a digital future in any way, shape, or form, consider that Windows - as well as many other Microsoft products - is still sold (or pre-installed on virtually every computer sold) at the same retailers whose profit margins might be affected by Xbox games being made available online from day one.
One way or the other, the internet's inexorable decimation of physical media continues apace.
Last week, I wrote an article regarding Michael Abrash, a Valve employee whose blog post divulged the company's interest in wearable hardware, while detailing the unique culture of Newell & Co.'s HQ. Declaring that "Valve is different," Abrash painted a picture in which there were no bosses - in fact, no rigid hierarchy of any sort - a prevailing culture of creativity (including the freedom to take on or abandon projects at will), and a workforce comprised of members that were accountable directly to one another, rather than a permanent superior. Newell elaborated on this during an interview with Bloomberg, influenced by id Software's success with Doom. During his time with Microsoft, Newell discovered that the shareware version was the most popular piece of software on PC, more so even than Windows. Inspired by the notion that a company outside of the normal, corporate architecture could achieve such success, he sought to pursue a less rigid, more collaborative kind of company than was the status quo.
More interesting is the release of Valve's employee handbook, which gives a rather lengthy overview of the company's environment, strategy, and general philosophy about cooperative work. Its release found itself through an unlikely source: After Newell mentioned the handbook on a podcast, Valve was contacted by a listener, who requested a copy. Valve designer Greg Coomer obliged, and soon the document was posted online. Some of this will be familiar for those who have read Abash's post (or yours truly's article on said post), but for those curious about the full story, find out more after the jump!
One of gaygamer.net's faves, Adam Sessler, has left G4.
Our friends at Kotaku reached out to Sessler's representative and received the following response:
Television personality Adam Sessler and TV network G4 are parting ways, with Adam's last episode as host of G4′s "X-Play" airing on the network today, Wednesday, April 25. Adam has been hosting the show since it first aired as ZDTV's "Gamespot TV" in July 1998 and he also served as Editor In Chief of games content at G4. His current projects include starring as himself in the Summer 2012 movie "noobz" and consulting with a film production company on theatrical feature adaptations of video games. Adam intends to stay in front of the camera and continue as a key voice within the games industry. He also sings and is available for weddings and bar mitzvahs.
Adam later confirmed his departure via twitter:
Thank you to everyone with your exceedingly kind wishes and thoughts. I think I'll finally take a nap....
Sessler leaves behind X-Play co-host Morgan Webb and Attack of the Show co-host Kevin Perreira as the channel's only remaining personalities from the G4TechTV merger. Webb is now the sole remaining personality from the original TechTV.
In addition to his hosting and editing duties with G4, Mr. Sessler has long been a vocal supporter of LGBT issues in the gaming industry. Last year chimed in on all of that Dragon Age 2 controversy we couldn't stop talking about. He has proved himself time and time and time again as one of the gayming community's most valuable allies. And one of our best friends.
We here at gaygamer.net wish Adam all the best in his future endeavors!
As the 3DS, PS Vita, and smartphones have shown us, augmented reality is a rather interesting prospect, casting aside the dull veil of reality and peppering our visual field with software-added loveliness. Google Glasses has sought to advance this trend, proposing wearable hardware that, integrated with Google Voice, provides features found in the Android OS - amongst which is photo/video, text messaging, and navigation. Now, it seems that Valve wishes to join the fold, as its new project does indeed look to be wearable computing.
Read more (much more indeed) after the jump!
Today Microsoft announced that Halo 4 will be released for the Xbox 360 on November 6 of this year, beginning, according to Microsoft Studio VP Phil Spencer, "a journey that will encompass the next decade of Halo games and experiences." Halo 4's story will begin four years after the events of Halo 3, continuing to put Master Chief in harm's way.
Microsoft states that Master Chief will "confront his destiny and face an ancient evil that threatens the fate of the entire universe" in the new trilogy. Since Bungie Studios, who brought us the first three numbered Halo games as well as ODST and Reach, split from Microsoft in 2007 to pursue its own IPs, 343 Industries (which, unsurprisingly, has been doing a lot of hiring) will be overseeing the future of the Halo series; indeed, 343 Industries was created by Microsoft for the sole purpose of producing Halo content. No doubt the pressure's on to make sure the company's first major outing lives up to Bungie's efforts.
Stay tuned as more details about Halo 4 drop. With E3 fast approaching, the wait shouldn't be too long.
"THQ won't be around in six months." So spake Strauss Zelnick, CEO of Take-Two. THQ is known in large part for licensed properties, such as film, WWE and UFC titles. Licensing properties means you have to pay for them, which consequently cuts into your bottom line, and that is the core of Zelnick's criticism of THQ's business model. But he doesn't stop there:
"The most important difference is quality. Take-Two has the highest quality ratings among third-party publishers, according to Metacritic and most people in the industry. Quality really, really, really matters. THQ has had some good games, but their quality levels aren't even remotely ... the quality hasn't measured up."
Regardless of the smack-talk, THQ has been in trouble for some time now. Reports show that in 2007 the company was worth $2 billion USD, whereas today it's worth $35 million. The company has blamed many of its woes on it's under-performing uDraw and children's gaming division. THQ has also closed six of its eleven development studios - surely a sign that something's amiss.
Yesterday, THQ's VP of corporate communications responded to the statements from Take-Two:
"Obviously, Mr. Zelnick's perception of THQ is outdated and inaccurate. His comments are irresponsible and false. Perhaps he would be better off commenting on his own business."
We'll have more for you as it comes.
Indeed, sure as night follows day, concerned citizens (it sound so much nicer than "homophobes") have taken to the internet to voice their collective displeasure at EA. Letters have been written complaining about the inclusion of LGBT content in their games, outcry that their contributions to "discussion" about homosexuality have been deleted, and as always, sending a skyward prayer for "the children." Partly responsible was the Family Research Council: Tony Perkins, leader of the organization, had previously stated that "In a new Star Wars game, the biggest threat to the empire may be homosexual activists," apparently unaware that when it comes to the Star Wars universe, the Empire represents the forces of evil. But I digress.
Things get back on track after the jump!
Fans of high-concept science fiction rejoice! Reports are hitting the interwebs that infamous Minecraft mastermind Markus "Notch" Persson is in the early stages of launching a new game titled 0x10c. The game will be launched à la Minecraft, an early beta with lots of opportunity for feedback from players to the game's creators. According to the man himself, it will also be a "hard science fiction" game (keep your minds out of the gutters, guys), meaning that it'll hew as closely to real science as it can. To wit, a description of 0x10c's background from the game's website:
In a parallel universe where the space race never ended, space travel was gaining popularity amongst corporations and rich individuals.
In 1988, a brand new deep sleep cell was released, compatible with all popular 16 bit computers. Unfortunately, it used big endian, whereas the DCPU-16 specifications called for little endian. This led to a severe bug in the included drivers, causing a requested sleep of 0x0000 0000 0000 0001 years to last for 0x0001 0000 0000 0000 years.
It's now the year 281 474 976 712 644 AD, and the first lost people are starting to wake up to a universe on the brink of extinction, with all remote galaxies forever lost to red shift, star formation long since ended, and massive black holes dominating the galaxy.
From the site's description of the game, it appears that players will be based on these ships, each of which will have a limited amount of power. This means you will have to think seriously about what functions you have up-and-running on your ship - a fancy cloaking device may eat up so much wattage that you have to shut off other functions to turn it on. Gameplay will include space battles, mining, trading, and "seamlessly" landing on and taking off from planets (I don't know about you, but that idea makes me geek out more than a little). Further, the computer on your ship will be a "fully functioning emulated 16 bit CPU" that you'll use to control your ship and/or play games in-game.
The game will take place in an MMO multiverse, and while the single-player game will have a one-time cost only, playing in the multiverse will involve some sort of recurring fee.
We'll have more about the game as it's announced.
And girls who like girls who like rumble packs!
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