Story here.

This is one of things that baffles me - why has Sony stayed so quiet on such an obvious feature for the PS3? While keeping your cards to your chest in order to maintain an advantage is one thing, this is something they (in my opinion) should've been trumpeting in order to hammer away at the 360's smaller drive in addition to Blu-Ray functionality (there are a lot more people using VOD in one form or another than HD movie formats since VOD doesn't require HDTV).

Well, its underway, at least. I'm looking forward to seeing who they partner up with in the US, since there's already a lot of compeition in that regard. Perhaps they can position themselves much like Microsoft is (allegedly) by offering the PS3 as the front-end/box for the service, bought at a reduced price by the customer with a service contract (much like a cell phone).

Looking good! Can't wait for the official announcements :D 

Now open to the public thanks to FRAPS and YouTube

This is a very small, modest base, I have to say, but it was relatively cheap to make and functional. Since the Liberty Alliance is a RP friendly SG, I decided to make it suitable for such. Functionally, we have:

• Medi-porter for when things go wrong.
• Inspiration storage
• Salvage storage
• Invention Salvage Vault
• Invention station
• Work table
• Enhancement storage

I tried to make something that looks both new and old, since the LA is a group that has a long history. Story-wise, the original base is gone, wiped out, but an old safehouse remained. When the LA reformed, the safehouse (the brick looking area) got expanded and upgraded (the tech looking areas).

Anyhow, thought I'd share this with everyone, not just my SG mates :)

Story here.

MS has done this before - I'm surprised this is even considered news. Nintendo is using firmware updates to try and stop importers/modders, and Sony's constant legal barrage closed down Lik-Sang. Standard business procedure for all the companies.

I know there are people who only do mods to play imports, but sadly the tech that allows for modding opens the system up for software pirates; both the morons who download games "cuz teh free" and the actual pirated-software industry (there are people who make big money off of piracy). Like it or not, Microsoft, Sony and Nintendo have to keep up with it (or at least try), lest their system get passed by publishers who are afraid that their games will end up being warezed far more than bought. The ease of pirating Dreamcast games was cited as a major strike against the platform that discouraged development for the system, after all.

Also, no sane person wants to go into an online game that's been hacked to death: I had friends who stopped playing Diabo, Diablo II and Startcraft on Battlenet because more often than not they ended up playing with h@xx0rz and other such cheating losers.

The homebrew community will have to wait until their platform of choice has hobbyist/amateur development tools put out for them to use: Microsoft has XNA out, and Sony has their plan on the way (can't remember the name). Wii fans can always use Flash and the internet browser as well. Importers will have to hope the games they want get released region free on the 360, and Wii owners will just have to get an import system (PS3 owners have the best deal of the bunch!). Stinks, I realize, but financial realities dictate that the companies look out for this crap :(

OpEd/Story here.

"In Akihabara's AsoBitCity store, for example, two vast racks of DS software face each other across the prime ground floor space. One of them is composed of traditional "gamers' games" - RPGs, shooters, adventure titles, platform games and their ilk. The other, however, is an even bigger rack, and is filled with the progeny of Brain Age. Puzzle games of all types, translation and language learning aids, city guides for travelers, simulated board games, kanji dictionaries and tests..."

A bit on the dry side, perhaps, but to be honest? Cool. Small, convenient, and a way to work the noggin. I know for me, I'd love to get back up to snuff on my Japanese again, and something like that on a portable system would be nice, especially for practicing hirigana, katakana and kanji (yes, the Japanese have three writing systems - they're insane, but I love them anyways). I don't know if the DS has enough horse-power to run basic voice software, but it would be neat if it could check pronunciation of words (should have - I've seen software that'll run on some really old stuff that could).

Its a pity the PSP doesn't have the touch screen functionality the DS has, as it would be great for this kind of stuff as well, especially if you could download new lessons and such onto a memory stick and plug them in as you're ready for them. Oh well; maybe the PSP2... 

Story here.

I don't think anybody should be surprised at this. That being said, I would like to say Sony probably expected it, and while a big, nasty pill to have to swallow, its the long run that matters. SCEA President Jack Tretton commented that the PS3 is over a decade long commitment, and in all honesty Sony (as a whole) has a lot of ways to make money off of it: Blu-Ray royalties, game royalties, accessories royalties, selling you a new HDTV, surround setup, etc.

Honestly, do you think they would've even bothered making the PS3 so expensive if they only had games to rely on for a revenue stream? Sony has more ways to potentially benefit financial from their system than Microsoft (primarily a software and services company) and Nintendo (game company). While certain things are common between the three (spin-offs, merchandising, partnering with other companies, etc), Sony is the only company that can boast non-game hardware (tv's, a/v equipment, etc), a media format (Blu Ray) and content (movies, tv shows, music, etc). Could Microsoft or Nintendo have tried doing a similar feat? No; it wouldn't honestly doesn't make sense for them (keep in mind, Sony is the primary force behind BR, whereas MS is merely a HD-DVD supporter because of the BD+ Fox forced onto the BR format).

Anyhow; just putting my $.02 in before the doomsayers start chanting "Sony's going bankrupt!" or similar nonsense (and its a safe bet that if they EVER were going to do so, the Japanese government would help bail them out in the interests of their national economy). Its going to be quite some time before the PS3 is profitable by itself (last Sony given estimates I saw were 2010), but when everything is said and done, the PS3 should prove to be a worthwhile investment for Sony.

Story here.

Many, many moons ago SNK released my much loved Neo Geo Pocket Color. It was a great little handheld aimed at old-school gamers and not their kid brothers. Well, SNK discontinued it and closed up shop in the US (rather unexpectedly, at that). When they did that, they purchased back all the systems from retailers in hopes that they would be welcomed back by retailers and distributors upon their eventual return.

Then SNK folded. Bloody Aruze.

Anyhow, long (and damn complicated story) SNK came back, and has just released an update to one of my favorite NGPC games, Card Fighter's Clash. Aaaand... it had a "show-stopping" bug. In the same vein of good vibes, SNK will be replacing the buggy game soon. Bravo to SNK, and ouch to the hit it'll be on their (relatively small) pocket-book. Granted, they should be able to write it off, but that still has to sting both financially and in the ego.

Will Gamespot redo their review? No telling. I was quite thrilled about it until I read the review, especially when you consider how well the original did. But still, its good to see them doing "the right thing" once again, even if it hurts in the meantime.

Costco had a bundle for $329. Wii, extra controller, Zelda. I picked up an extra 'chuck at Wal-Mart.

Fun part? My brother tipped me off (he works at Costco), then he and my dear ol' ma are pitching in a 1/3 of the cost. They were selling pretty well - I was the fourth person the cashier had run up buying the Wii combo, and I'm sure they're gone by now.

!

Anyhow, I'm now part of the current generation on consoles. While I don't see any VC purchases being made (thanks mostly to my Gametap subscription), this should be amusing. Be neat if my dad actually tried playing too :P

I bought KOF94 for my Neo Geo AES home system eons ago, brand new from a place called Visual Rush? Virtual Rush? Something like that... It cost me $180 plus shipping and handling; a pretty penny for an 18 year old arcade junkie.

The Geo is long gone; I had to sell it for car insurance in 96.

Heh... I just finished downloading the game. I look forward to playing an old favorite, including the incredibly cheap Heidern in his "weakest" form. I look forward to refacing the original Rugal in all his team-killing glory.

:D

Between now and July, Gametap will be releasing ALL of the Neo Geo King of Fighters games (no Neowave or XI). I am in heaven, and hope that the KOF games will be among the titles that Gametap has for sale in the near future.

Story here.

I'll admit to bing a little surprised, but such is life. Sort of like Dead Rising and Lost Planet not going to the PS3, but their (eventual) sequels being possibilities; why put all that work into an old game?

Somewhat related, why do all that work for an old product when you've got a successor on the way? Its a drain of resources. That's the route Adobe took with the Universal Binary versions of their products; instead of making a UB version of the existing software (which would be, as they said, basically remaking everything anyway), they just rolled the work into their next project.

Makes sense there, makes sense here.

So, sadly PS3 owners won't get a chance to try Saints Row anytime soon, but they will get the sequel, hopefully a simultaneous release, and hopefully improved over the relatively well recieved original. 

Very good article here, presented by Next Gen.

1. It had been mentioned a few times in the past few years that there's a point of diminishing returns when it comes to hardware and brute force power. I think the movement towards providing a stable foundation of software and services is a much better investment of time and money as it can be carried over to the next generation. Hardware improvements are a given, especially when you consider that all three consoles are sporting IBM processors, two of them ATI graphics and one from Nvidia; all hardware companies who are actively researching and designing new things as part of their core business. This frees up (in theory) the console makers to focus on what's most important; designing on differntiating features that actually matter, which is now, undeniably, a software issue.

2. I've been saying the core, 15-25 year old male market (aka, the "hardcore") isn't in control of things anymore for quite some time. We don't direct the market; we now launch systems (early adopters) and are a marketing tool, generating hype, FUD, and act as voluntary software/hardware evangelists. I'm prematurely in some regards, but its obvious that the market is preparing to tip into a whole new direction, like it or not. We're simply not where the big money is (or is going to be). Props to Nintendo for being the only company truly going after the future market.

3. Hard to comment on this other than I look forward to having developer created tools to make toys with. Yet another software issue, and one I like. Taking the ability to make things out of the realm of the die-hard and into the hands of the creative but maybe not as technically proficient is a good thing all around. If nothing else, having a greater sense of ownership and identity in a game NEVER hurts; as a City of Heroes player, I love the fact that I can be identified from across a room by sight - no need to see my character's name to be sure its me.

4. Games for people who only have so much time on their hands... I love it. This ties in very well with 2, methinks. Not everyone (including the "hardcore") has time for a game that plays like a career, after all; life gets in the way a lot, and sometimes all you really want is something fun with no real commitment.

5. Very good, very smart, and in all honesty, about time. I'm tired of people looking at gams as a problem in need of a solution; "smart games" look at games as a solution to a problem, and I couldn't be happier at this shift in thinking. Bravo to the BBC for starting down this road, I might add.

6.  As the gaming pool widens, so does the opportunities for independants. This is a good thing. Large companies like EA and Ubisoft could be considered to be cruise liners - large, beautiful, but slow and slow to turn. Independants are speed boats - maybe no frills and nowhere nearly as luxurious, but they can go fast and change quickly (yes, I realize this is an over-generalization), and can go some places the big boats can't, affording them opportunities to find hidden beaches or secluded fishing spots. Very exciting prospects, and I think the healthy future of game is going to need luxury ocean liners, insane crotch rocket jet-skis, and everything inbetween.

7. See 6. I love electronic distribution. Make no mistake; these are still the nacent years of console downloads, so hopefully what we see now will grow and mature very nicely in terms of selection, pricing, etc. Indie and niche games that aren't viable in retail will hopefully flourish, as well as old games that people still want but don't want to go to eGouge to find. I look forward to the day when the phrase "out of print" is no longer in a gamer's vocabulary.

8.  I think this is a good note to close on, and in many ways ties to their second point. Gaming is no longer the geeky hobby it once was, after all. As a result, we're going to be under greater scrutiny than we've even been, and as the cliche goes, "a bad apple ruins the bunch." The industry has been working on its image, presentation, and educating the public; perhaps its time for gamers to start doing the same. One good way to start is to start looking at places like ECA and Video Game Voters Network. I'm sure taking a bath and doing laundry on a regular basis would help to (just kidding! sorta).

Well, read up and let me know what you think!