Source

Download audio file (quiksave22.mp3)

Download audio file (quiksave21.mp3)

Right now, the site exists as an incredibly adorable news dump on the game. A cute lil’ sackboy hangs out in the corner, giving you the ability to customize the background of the site with stickers. Apparently this place will eventually be the home of important community information after the game’s launch this October. My guess is it’ll display the best custom stages made by the players, as well as the usual tournaments and contests and such. I’ll take any crumb of LBP I can get my mitts on.

Source

What I Like

One of the reason Quake Wars and its predecessors are so successful is their diverse Class System. Classes differ from each other by not only weapon types, overall gameplay style and (to a certain extend) required skills from the player. For example, the Medic’s job is to heal/revive players, the Engineer’s to repair/build structures, and the Field Ops’ to provide support fire and resupply the team. Those unfamiliar with Quake Wars won’t find themselves too far out of their comfort zone, and the seasoned veterans can really take advantages of the Class System to complete missions efficiently.

Besides its complex Class System, Quake Wars is a very straightforward FPS with classic controls: W-S-A-D to move, space to jump, and so forth. There are class and vehicle specific controls to handle special actions like deploying structures and flying planes, but they’re pretty simple, reasonably defaulted, and can be customized easily.

Building on top of Wolfenstein: Enemy Territories’ objective driven missions, Quake Wars takes it to the next level with larger maps, more variety in the objectives, and side-missions. Also, thanks to the introduction of pilotable vehicles, battles in Quake Wars can now be fought on so many different levels, it really puts you in the game. Check it, this is you:

LIFE IS CHAOS! I’m in the middle of a very large battle, and there are so many things that’re out of my control and are none of my business. I MISS MY FAMILY! I should just go ahead and complete my objectives. WHAT’S THE POINT OF ALL THIS DEATH!?

What I Don’t Like

One of the things I don’t like about Quake Wars—and I’ll admit I can’t really blame them for—is the lack of a single player mode. Wolfenstein: Enemy Territories didn’t have a campaign, so I guess it’s okay… but ET was about WWII so I kinda know what’s going on. Sometimes when I played too much Quake Wars in one sitting, I’d start to wonder: “Why am I doing this again?”. I know Quake Wars sort of follows the story of the original Quake, but I’d still like to have a single player mode so I can get the story’s delivery better (that’s probably just me).

One other thing I can blame Aspyr for is the unbelievably sloppy performance of the Mac version on my MacBook Pro (2.2GHz Core 2 Duo, 128MB GeForce 8600M GT, and 4GB of RAM). To avoid the threat of constant murder and slowdown I have to play at 800×600 with almost every setting turned to its lowest level. I understand this is a very complex game with very, very large maps and tons of stuff going on, but I’d expect my MBP to be able to do better than that.

Final Thoughts

I would very much like to see this series grow to a level of popularity as high as Counter Srike’s, kicking off a thriving community of ladders and tournaments. The advantage Quake Wars has over Counter Strike is it’s scale of battle. It would be absolutely epic to watch 32 players battle over a huge map. Will it happen? Who knows, but I remain ever hopeful.

The demo has apparently been downloaded by over 900,000 different Xbox Live users, making it the “most downloaded action demo in its first week.” That’s certainly a huge base for the game to have hit before a release, and though the demo’s free where the game is $60, I think we can count out Denis Dyack wetting himself with embarrassment come the launch party.

Download audio file (quiksave20.mp3)

I am still (aside from hand-helds) of the previous generation. While I’ll immerse myself deeply into SCIV today (though not as deep as Tom’s penis into the blood the conquered), I’m content with my overripe pile of ps2 shame. This week? Final Fantasy XII.

What I’d been playing last week was Final Fantasy Tactics Advance 2, which I will henceforth and forever refer to as FiFan T to-the A D 2. It really does take the franchise in an interesting direction. Clan privileges try to trick you into feeling a little less fucked by the judge laws, which is a lot like a psychopath making you watch micro bikini oil dancing while he twists your ballsack around a knife as if he’s twirling spaghetti, but it’s still an improvement. And the world, my god, is finally whole.

FFTA’s Ivalice really felt incomplete next to FFXII, but now both games are on par with each other, and the result is this delicious continuity. And it’s funny how all of a sudden the inferior story being told in T to-the A D 2 is helped and made less shitty by this other story that just happens to be occurring on the other side of my living room.

Also, I hear tell that the PAX schedule will be appearing shortly. I eagerly await it. And I eagerly await the brainstorming session that is fast approaching. Expect coverage–but more importantly, expect unique, considerate coverage. By people with gorgeous genitals.

This is exactly the kind of game we needed around the Quiksave community to keep spirits up until summer’s end gaming-wise. Everyone’ll get their feet wet, and eventually land on their new favourite character, busily studying away to find the perfect leg-sweeping technique that will spell unconditional victory time and time again. There are, however, just as many who will continue to perfect the ancient art of the button-mash; though they should be hated, they should also be feared.

Entertaining as a good Soul Calibur party can be, we’ve also got a chunk of the crew who’ve resigned themselves to watching Sport Centre and maintaining a 75% erection until Madden ‘09 launches, at which point they will disappear into the blackness until Roger Goodell blows his silver horn to signal the season’s beginning. Exciting times indeed, Maddenites. I’m sure the extra 20 tackle animations and a new voice on the play-by-play warrants the $80 collector’s edition. In all seriousness, I will destroy all comers with my ferocious 100% shotgun strategy led by the fearless Tony Romo.

Also, we’re starting to get plenty excited for PAX, now a short 31 days away. Myself, along with Luke, Simon and Marri will be providing some delicious coverage come August 28th, and with the freshly announced Exhibitor Hall Floor Plan, we know we’re in for a treat. They’re also slowly starting to roll out the titles that’ll be in playable form at the convention, and you better believe we’re going to do our best to hit every single one.

I was fully on board with the popular idea of hating this game. The more I see, the more interested I become. It looks like it can really function, and if nothing else, the DC characters are going to provide a new feel to characters in a fighting game. It is worth mentioning, however, that it’s still totally dumb that any of these jerks can hurt Superman.

Source

* July 30: “Geometry Wars: Retro Evolved 2” – The latest version of the wildly popular retro shooter offers screen-melting intensity and insane new features, including six action-packed gameplay modes, new enemies, scoring strategies and a diverse list of exciting Achievements. “Geometry Wars: Retro Evolved 2” is rated E for Everyone by the ESRB and will be available at 800 Microsoft Points.

* August 6: “Braid” – From acclaimed developer Jonathan Blow, “Braid” is a mind-bending and artistic puzzle-platformer where the player manipulates the flow of time in strange and unusual ways. “Braid”is rated E10+ for Everyone 10+ by the ESRB.

* August 13: “Bionic Commando: Rearmed” – The classic 8-bit side-scroller reports back for duty in a stunning remake, complete with all-new HD graphics and features that put 2D gaming back on the map! “Bionic Commando: Rearmed” is rated M for Mature by the ESRB

* August 20: “Galaga Legions” – The legend lives on with “Galaga Legions,” a reimagining of the classic arcade shooter. Featuring table-turning game dynamics and updated graphics, the game was created by the team behind the bestselling “PAC-MAN Championship Edition” from Namco Bandai Games. “Galaga Legions” is rated E for Everyone by the ESRB.

* August 27: “Castle Crashers” – Award-winning studio The Behemoth brings red hot arcade adventure to Xbox LIVE Arcade with “Castle Crashers,” featuring hand-drawn characters and an array of weapons to choose from as you defend your kingdom and save the princess. “Castle Crashers” is rated T for Teen by the ESRB.

Pretty good, no? And all the fun kicks off in a couple of days with Geometry Wars 2. Lord have mercy, thassa lotta Micrsoft points. I think it’s safe to assume that Bionic Command: Rearmed will hit the PSN for the Thursday update of the 14th.

Announced alongside the now beloved clown-villain was the Green Lantern, another fanboy-fave, who could tear Joker’s ass apart without breaking a sweat. Again, just sayin’. For any of you Mortal Kombat fans, (Are there any of you out there? Can you hear me!?) Jax and Kitana will also be returning for the Green Lantern to make short work of.

Source

Download audio file (quiksave19.mp3)

The demo will apparently feature full coop play, and as we all know the full game’s release a week from now will finally bring a new package of trophies to the mix. Chances are you’re all a little sick of Stardust HD by now, so a new backdrop to look at on a mad quest for gamerscore trophies is a happy thing.

Source

Let’s start with Buffalo’s second year back Marshawn Lynch. Lynch ran for 1115 yards, averaged 4.0 yards/carry and had 7 touchdowns. He missed 3 games with injuries, so those numbers are slightly less than what they could have been. They are, however, still extremely mediocre. His 90 rating in Madden 09 isn’t so mediocre. This is a relatively unproven kid, who although did well, only broke 100 yards rushing 3 times, and had only 18 catches all year long. Ryan Grant broke 100 yards on the ground 5 times, had 8 touchdowns, and averaged a astounding 5.1 yards/carry in only starting the last 10 games. He has an 86 rating, which is one I agree with, because he’s only had 1 year in the NFL, and still needs to prove he can replicate that success even after defences have prepared for him.

Edgerrin James is a 92. Gross. I feel dirty just typing it. He was good at one time, but that time is over. He is now 30 and his skills are diminishing. I don’t even want to talk about it. I’m getting upset. Let me move on…

LT is a 99. I think I’m okay with that.

I’m a little wary of Larry Johnson’s 94, but at the same time: when has any player not completely rebounded after a season plagued by injuries and poor performances? (see Shaun Alexander)

Jacksonville has two very good backs, and I’m glad the stat guys at EA recognized this. Fred Taylor is a 94 (maybe a little high) and Maurice Jones-Drew a 91. Hopefully their running attack works as well in the game as it does in real life.

Willie Parker is an enigma wrapped in a riddle. This guy has skill, yet managed only 2 touchdowns all year in 2007. I like the 93 rating, because he really can be that good, but I think it’s better to start him lower and bring him up in roster updates.

Adrian Peterson’s 95 is just right.

Darren McFadden is an 85. Rating rookies is one of the hardest things to do in the entire world (I’m totally not even exaggerating, those doctors curing cancer have no idea), but I think they got this one right. 85 is a little low for a starter, but still very good for someone who has never played a down in the NFL. I have a feeling that McFadden will have a similar year to JaMarcus Russell; they will both have their moments, but the growing pains will be tough in Oakland.

Madden 09 is set to be released on August 12^th in North America. NFL Head Coach 09 can also be bought in a bundle with Madden 09 on the 12^th, but won’t be sold alone until September.

From SportsGamer

“What we’re trying to do with LittleBigPlanet is almost iTunes meets eBay in the sense that once an individual or a developer has qualified by producing certain levels or certain add-ons, they will then be able in the future to exchange these and make money out of them,” Reeves notes. “Eventually, it’s feasible that you might well see the first LittleBigPlanet millionaire!”

Looks like you’ll also be able to decide what to charge for your masterpiece. “Even if you charge less than one Euro, it doesn’t take many downloads if you’ve got a really strong LittleBigPlanet level for people to be able to make money. It’s a great way for people to show others what they can do.” A cool concept, definitely. I would hope that there’ll be enough free content out there that no one will be forced to pay for additional levels, but the best of the creative can make a few bucks doing what they do best.

Source

Download audio file (quiksave18.mp3)

For three years now we’ve been without a competent Star Wars MMO–I’VE been without one! Ever since the combat upgrade mass exodus of Star Wars Galaxies in 2005. Patience has payed off. A game that Star Wars fans actually want is in production and supposedly scheduled for a 2011 release.

I remember those summer days in 2004 when my life was beautiful. I had a moisture farm. I sold moisture for credits. People today don’t know the potential of MMOs anymore! It was entirely possible to play SWG nonviolently, to literally exist as one would in the volatile Star Wars universe. Obviously KOTOROL will fall in line with the MMOs of the day, but even so. If I can be an Ithorian again? It’s all over.

N. Evan Van Zelfden, the man with many names, broke the story on his blog at portfolio.com in an interview with Riccitiello: “We’ve got two of the most compelling MMOs in the industry in development.”

The first is Warhammer Online, which comes out soon. Hopefully EA will use WO as a learning experience; Star Wars fans are fragile, and may not be able to handle another janky MMO release.

When Zelfden asked if the second was the rumoured KOTOR MMO, Riccitiello replied “Yes.” And the sweet bell chime–the sugary, hopeful note lit the sky, and a sparkle reflected in the eye of every poor, unsuspecting son of a bitch that’s been waiting so long for some god damn satisfaction.

Just three more years.

Source.

This new game will essentially be the tech-demo for Wii Motion Plus, the accessory that attaches to the Wii Remote and makes it “more precise, more responsive, and more INTENSE.” The game will be sold as a bundle with Wii Motion Plus built in, and everyone in the world will buy four of them.

I’ve gotta say, the games they showed off looked extremely responsive. When everyone first heard about the Wii and dreamed about using it as a precise representation of a sword or lightsaber. Wii Sports Resort showed off a sword-fighting duel as one of the games, and man did it look precise. They also showed off a disc-tossing game and a jet-ski racer, each one using the Wiimote/nunchuck as representations of the players hands gripping the disc/throttle. Not bad, Nintendo. The game is set to launch in Spring ‘09.

Also dropped were a few features enhanced character customization, a new shopping system, the ability to use your Mii in your town, and of course the Animal Crossing essentials of room and home design. It’s here!

Future followup discussions in the coming hours will, I’m sure, bring into focus just how massive this potential MMO truly is. Can’t wait!

Rage, of course, is ID’s new ip and promised mac-friendly post apocalyptic first person racing, junk castle, and tavern game. Its E3 presence consisted of this trailer and an announced partnership with EA games.

See the goonie-esque baddie for yourselves, sirs!

Update:
After the it was revealed that XIII would not be an exclusive on the PS3, journalists at Square Enix’s keynote simply would not let the matter go. Further digging revealed two important facts: There is not Xbox 360 version of FFXIII planned for release in Japan, and as of this point FF Versus XIII is still planned as a PS3 exclusive.

From Joystiq

We are not worthy.

The duo now have a stranglehold on the music game kingdom; new peripherals aren’t what’s going to win this battle, but rather the songs that will be included, if any of the names on the list provide any indication. I can hear Activision taking a crap in its pants.

The selection is more diverse in terms of the genre than the previous iteration. Just listing off a few of the band names: Disturbed, AC/DC, Beck, Tenacious D, and yes… Bob freakin Dylan! Oh yea, and regulars like Kansas, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Rush, and Journey (as well as a few lukewarm ones like Linking Park and Jimmy Eat World). And to cap it all off, a single by the name of “Shacklers Revenge,” off of Gun’s and Roses’ much anticipated forthcoming album “Chinese Democracy”! Is that the sound of a tap out bell I hear? Here’s the knock-out punch:

They then went on to announce that all the original tracks form Rock Band 1, as well as your DLC, can be transfered over to Rock Band 2. And to put the icing on the cake, they wanted to include 100 total songs on the disc, but couldn’t fit them on. So coming up this fall, MTV will be releasing 20 master tracks to download, for free. So lets say that leaves us with a approximate total of 500. Ok, just tap out now!

All in all, this is a huge announcement for MTV and Harmonix–just when it looked like Guitar Hero was gaining ground, they get slapped down once again. It’s yet to be seen if there will be changes made to the Band World Tour Mode (maybe online?!?), or any other significant changes to the gameplay. Yet, while us music junkies hold our breath, we wait to see what the retaliatory blow from Acitivision will be.

From IGN

Wait no more! You don’t even need to keep up with the slew of info streaming out of the press conferences in a few short hours, we’ve got all the info here. We at Quiksave have seen the future, and lawd, it pretty. Some predictions for you:

MattWriter, Podcaster

Link makes a triumphant return to the Wii.

It could happen! To be serious, I think that in all likelihood this has as much of a chance of being announced as we have of seeing Reggie coming on the stage in green tights during the Nintendo press conference. So yes, there is a chance, right? There have been rumours that a Zelda Wii game has been in development for the past two years, so that means there is a better chance of seeing it announced this year than there was last year. It may be too early in development for an official announcement, but nothing is ever 100% written in stone. Even a tease would be nice. You know how awesome it would be, at the end of the press conference, to see Reggie leave under the faint glow of the Tri-Force, as the trademark theme whispers through the air and the words “Coming Soon” flash across the screen. What if a guy dressed as link came out and comically snuck around Reggie while he’s rambling about the new Animal crossing, dancing and mocking him? A man can dream, can’t he?

LukeWriter, Podcaster, Tech Support

After closely examining gaming news for the last few years, it is my professional opinion that Nintendo, Microsoft, and Sony will have make the following announcements, respectively. Nintendo: nothing of interest to me, new wiimote colours, new nintendo published wiiware titles (likely nostalgia-wanks), Wii Music. Microsoft: the heavily anticipated $50 price drop, Halo Wars release date, Fallout 3 release date, and Bioshock 2 (w/ exclusivity window for xbox). Sony: Home Demo release date, Home release date, Little Big Planet demo date, and PSP 2 sneak peek.

SimonWriter, Podcaster

Killzone 2: will disappoint! My guess is that a janky, broken multiplayer hands-on will result in sour, sour tears. Bungie will announce their new Halo game, whatever that is. Maybe it’ll just be the release date for ‘Wars. And so sure are the Nintendo fanboys and girls that the big Nintendo first party announcement will be some kind of sick, boring Animal Crossing venture. I have, and will continue to, hope for something a little more interesting! And before you throw that rotten fruit at me, let’s examine what a current-gen Kid Icarus game might mean! Picture a totally ripped angel on fire, shooting arrows of pure light through the stone skull of a red demon from hell–yes! Angels vs. Demons, set to… I don’t know, a Nightwish soundtrack! Something metal! Why does the emphasis in Kid Icarus have to be on the ‘kid’ part? There’ll be a hands-on Moon demo (that DS fps) and everyone will realize that it’s the most amazing game ever. Four months later, Simon Frankson will wake up to a copy of Moon perched on his plump little belly. He’ll smile as the sun moves through his bedroom.

BenWriter, Podcaster

Sony does not announce price drop - It would make sense that Sony would counter Microsoft’s latest $50 price drop with one of their own. Unfortunately, Sony has been hemorrhaging money through the PS3 and with losses totaling over $3 billion, I don’t see them slashing prices anytime soon. With Xbox price drop all but confirmed, it might be a little tougher to compete with the big M as the Arcade SKU of the Xbox will retail for a little less than the cost of a Wii.

Nintendo’s BIG Announcement won’t be a Zelda title - I’m not sure what the folk at Nintendo have in store for us with their huge announcements. Reggie is on record saying that this game will make gamers excited as well as the expanded audience excited. Zelda seems to be a lock right? I really don’t think so. Nintendo has other properties which could be used, Kirby, Star Fox, Animal Crossing, heck it could even be a console Pokemon game. Who knows right? If I hear they are announcing a Zelda title for the holiday lineup, my jaw will drop that they were able to keep the specs of the project quiet until now.

Bioshock 2 Trailer Revealed - This may be a long shot, but 2K should be using the same engine, so it is not unrealistic to think that at least a teaser trailer could be revealed. Look for this trailer to reveal very little though and fans will be left wondering what time frame the game takes place and who the protagonist will be. That being said, a teaser trailer would blow our shit away.

TomEIC, Writer, Podcaster

Okay, check this out. White Knight Chronicles, the elusive PS3 exclusive that everyone forgot about, will finally get a release date. I think Sony’s gonna drop some hints about dropping the PS3 down a bit price-wise, or at least show a new SKU. Also, they’re gonna surprise everyone with not just a God of War 3 teaser, but a full on trailer. It’s farther along than people think. Microsoft’s gonna be Gears, Gears, Gears. 4-player co-op’s coming. Also, we all know at this point that they’ve got a new SKU and a price drop in the works. Surprise? A Bioshock 2 teaser could steal this whole show. As for Nintendo, Animal Crossing will 100% be there. It will not, however, be the fully online experience the hardcore crave. We’re gonna see some first party WiiWare action, and we WILL have a new Zelda game teased. Who cares about Kid Icarus, really?

MarriWriter

I don’t think I dare make hard and fast predictions about what will and will not happen at E3. Such auguries are likely to fly in my face like so much ape-flung poo in the next few days, so I will instead posit my tentative predictions in the form of anxious prayers and angry threats.

Square-Enix had better tell us what’s happening with FFXIII and FFXIII Versus.

I would like Nintendo to reveal something to actually pique my interest, like an English translation of Duel Love. Barring that unforseen glory, I anticipate the usual franchise-fellating lineup of party/pet/sequel games.

BioWare has been busy. They’ve opened shop in Texas, and their list of games in development is not only considerable, but also very, very juicy. I fear that their hinted-at Star Wars MMO is yet too embryonic to endure the flash of sunlight and air that is E3, but one can hope we might get a ballpark release date or a pixel of concept art. More promising is our chances of getting more dirt on Dragon Age: Origins beyond the shitty debut trailer.

The Rock Band 2 demo will be mildly exciting, but not out-of-this-world exciting. (This is something the stars and/or whispering voices have told me which I would be willing to bet money on.)

Ubisoft will hopefully delight me by discussing Rune Factory 2, Avatar, and/or Harvest Moon Online. If they fail in this, I will cry fat tears.

If it knows what’s good for it, the new, industry-only streamlined specificity of E3 ‘08 will cotton no flogging of dead horses: no politicians, mergers, or ‘is sex/violence in games acceptable?’ poppycock will taint the air. That air is for release dates, demos, screenshots, and sweet promises.

Upcoming titles may or may not be touted as proof of video games as “art.”

Now, why on earth would anyone not pony up an extra $20 bucks to get a hard drive rather than the skimpy Arcade version? Also, with this news now out the Microsoft door and in the lap of the happy public, will we be hearing anything from Sony regarding a cheaper PS3? Now’s the time, with E3 one day away.

Starting with Athens 2004 and now Beijing 2008, the graphics are quite decent on these new games, but for some reason the athletes still look weak and stiff; this does not portray the beauty, technique, or power involved in any of these athletic competitions. I was excited when I heard that Sega was working with the heptathlon and decathlon Commonwealth Games champions, but sadly, the animations don’t look to be much of an improvement over those of Athens 2004. In fact, Beijing 2008 looks like Athens 2004 was just repackaged in a new fancy box with a few world champions on the front and a small graphics upgrade; however, from IGN’s preview of the game, it appears that finally some more complex joy stick twiddling and button pressing/releasing has been used to make the game more challenging and interactive. The real reason I will buy this game though is for its online support. I want to see if I have the best button mashing skills in the world!

Now for a little history, to learn how track games have evolved - or lack of - into Beijing 2008:

Over the years there have been two exceptions to the basic rule I mentioned above. These games are last winter’s Sonic & Mario at the Olympic Games, and International Track and Field for the GBC (apparantly the rarest of the Sydney 2000 games as I can’t find any screen shots from the game). Sonic and Mario was revolutionary because it was the first game to bring the two icons of gaming together, but sadly it just replaced the old button tapping for Wii mote waggling. I enjoyed it for about a week, and instead of having sore fingers, I had sore arms - especially from that 4×100 swimming relay! On the other hand, International Track and Field was quite a good game! It oddly has Maurice Greene on the front cover, even though the game is a decathlon game. I will forgive this small slip-up for the fact that Daley Thompson appears in the game! Anyways, the game has the basic practice and competition modes, but where it shines is in its story mode, unique from any other track game that I have played. You are a student athlete at a university and throughout the season you have to schedule your training for either speed, jumping technique, throwing technique, stamina, or weightlifting for power; however, if you train to much without resting or hitting the town on a Sunday, you can suffer varying injuries, resulting in a possible hospital trip, or even have a nervous breakdown! It is very addictive to train as hard as you can, but not slip over the edge and get injured. During the year you can meet new people and learn special skills for your events - you can only hold three skills and these skills make those three events more interactive, and also make your character a lot better at these events - and even get one of two possible girlfriends - or play it cool with both! So as your year goes along, you compete at the all-comers meet where you are introduced to your rival, Thorpe, a total douche bag, who usually smashes you at this meet. You get your revenge though, if you trained well, at the state championships later in the season. If you win there, it’s onto the big stage at the world championships!

I thought now, eight years after ITF for the GBC, that there would be an improvement on this fantastic storyline idea for a console track game, so I’m hoping that Beijing 2008 offers something new to the world of track and field games, and not just the same old and worn out junk again. If not Beijing 2008, how about New International Track and Field, scheduled to come out later this year for the DS? I can see a DS track game either being quite fun and addictive or horribly gimmicky and disappointing.

Silicon Knight head Denis Dyack has been in the spotlight recently defending his game, under heavy scrutiny for… some reason. A demo will at least give us a chance to get a feel for the universe he’s been trying to explain for the last 10+ years.

As for Microsoft’s campaign strategy surrounding this year’s E3, the general consensus seems to be that big M is trying to drown out a lack of big flashy announcements with a heavy stream of this sort of content. That’s not a bad thing by any means, but does that mean their offering up of a demo platter should be looked at as an appeasement strategy, trying to compensate for a lack of exciting news?

Source

It also seems like we won’t be starved for the Blue Bomber anytime soon, as Mega Man 1 & 2 will be coming to the North American Virtual Console “very soon.”

Source.

It’s a strange thing, to experience a dynamic element of gameplay promised by a developer. Some crazy, pie in the sky dream of a mechanic, actually implemented in its full glory. “Destructible environments” have existed in games of all shapes and sizes through the last two generations, right? Breaking a crate here, kicking a board and watching it disappear in a puff of smoke… wasn’t that as interactive as things could get? Fully destroying walls, breaking glass, making craters in the ground and blowing out roofs of unsuspecting Russian homesteads are a few of the surprisingly present features of Battlefield: BC. Besides being beautiful to behold, this wonderful mechanic creates a new playstyle for an FPS, one where cover can never be trusted.

Keeping this new style in mind with regard to level design, the single player campaign delivers a fairly standard experience in a with a shiny new coat of paint. The characters are stereotyped, yes, but they go beyond the usual cast in an FPS by actually having a personality. Your three AI-controlled allies have a very believable chemistry about them, and though they’re completely useless in helping you reach your objectives, the fantastic voice acting and quirky storyline makes the whole experience feel special. The only snag in the entire campaign would be the enemy AI, which could definitely use a tune-up. Enemies have nothing in their battle-repertoire beyond “stand in doorway and shoot,” making potentially intense firefights feel a little like a shooting gallery, at points. They also always know where you are, and while its cool to have a tank blow away walls to get a shot at you, it can take you out of the experience when he kerplodes you from three miles out. Besides being expertly designed, the campaign is also loaded with an absolutely insane amount of collectable weapons to unlock. 50 of these suckers can be found at drop points labeled on the mini-map, and at the feet of fallen enemies. Gold bars are also hidden on every stage, and though finding them doesn’t actually do anything, it gives perfectionists something to do.

The campaign alone warrants a purchase, but the multiplayer is what’ll keep you coming back. Ahem, CALL OF DUTY 4. The system in place is very similar, with few new features added to pretty the community up a bit. The same character customization exists, with players meeting certain conditions to gain XP, and the XP is in turn used to purchase new weapons and perks. The same satisfaction of a delicious “+10″ appearing after the kill is present, and made extra delicious by bonus conditions adding experience to many of the kills. Headshots, revenge kills, avenging kills… they all net you a tasty bonus. Another cool little feature in place is the dog tag system. Whenever you get a kill with your trusty knife, you automatically take the dog tags off of your prey, and they’re stored on your statistics page. There’s a huge support system in place for stat tracking at the Battlefield website where you can view all of the players you’ve knifed, and see how they’re doing now compared to back in the day when you put your knife inside them.

In a multiplayer community with so much depth on the customization side, I was surprised to see what I thought was a cop-out on the play side with the inclusion of only one game mode, “Gold Rush.” Two teams, one attacking and one defending, battling it out over strategically placed crates, I assume filled with gold. After playing a few rounds you realize that within this one mode exists a plethora of content and strategy. The teams are large, (though not by traditional Battlefield standards) and the maps are enormous, but handled perfectly. Once the first base/crates are destroyed by the attacking team, the map expands to include the new base in the field of play. The frontline of the battle continues to push forward (if the defending team sucks) until the climactic showdown at the largest base of the map. It might sound like some pretty standard multiplayer, but when you factor in the dynamic levels, destructible terrain, and huge selection of vehicles you’re left with an amazingly deep and compelling experience. More game modes are arriving in the coming weeks, but I don’t think they’ll get much attention with Gold Rush on the table.

A new gameplay concept executed perfectly, a thrilling, clever and genuinely fun storyline, and a multiplayer system designed around player rewards and community. This is the way video games are supposed to be.

Download audio file (quiksave17.mp3)

Elephants and giant Ostrich? My prayers are answered! Naval battles are rumored, but the top image is an unconfirmed one, to be sure. The scan does, however, reveal some sweet, sweet multiplayer action on the way. Four-player, nonetheless.

Patapon was a unique and endearing experience, but do we really want more of the same with a shinier coat? I can hear the overwhelming “YES!” all the way from the other side of the internet, but I’m hoping that Pyramid has some surprises in store.

Source

From Joystiq

Anyways, some of the members over at Starmen have started a project called PK Call’N. The basic outline of the project is: call NOA and tell them that you want to see Earthbound and Mother 1 on the virtual console, or Mother 3 and Mother 1 + 2 for the DS released in NA. Along with calling into NOA, you can also vote for Earthbound and Mother 1 in Nintendo Power’s virtual console pole (email vcpoll@futureus.com with your future virtual console hopefuls). For the past three months these two games have been in the top spots. I can only wonder why NOA likes to tease Mother fans so much? Finally, Earthbound was rated by the ESRB, on May 2nd, for its release onto the virtual console; however, it has still not been released. Myself, a huge Mother fan - I have played all three games in the series, including Mother 3 in Japanese - will buy this game on the virtual console the first day that it comes out and will relive the magic of this truly original game.

On a side note: I told you that NOA likes to tease Mother fans… Could this be about a NA release of Mother 3? Most likely not. I have a feeling it is Kingdom Hearts news.

Here’s another little info dump on the other bosses:

Galaxy Man: level consists of portals that fling Mega Man all around the level, maintaining his momentum with each fling (a lot like Portal, actually), plus enemies that divide into multiple copies of themselves.

Plug Man: home to the required “disappearing block” puzzle

Hornet Man: bees, lots of bees

Jewel Man: there are swings here that you have to move with built-up momentum - we had to try it several times before we could make the jumps

Magma Man: lava and plenty of one-hit-kill beams

Concrete Man: the Guts Man of Mega Man 9

Tornado Man: scourge of the Midwest has one of the hardest levels with tons of mid-air leaps and spinning platforms

Oh yes, it’s also worth mentioning that while there has been rampant speculation that it will appear on XBLA and PSN at some point, the only platform confirmed to harbor Mega Man 9 is the Wii, distributed through WiiWare. A recent Famitsu scan revealed that the game has been slated with a September release for Japan, but with the minimal (I assume) amount of text to be translated, a Western release shouldn’t be too far behind. We’ll find out at E3!

Source

Download audio file (quiksave16.mp3)

Back when we had Renegade Kid’s Jools Watsham, co-founder and Lead Beard, do his video blog preview Moon’s gameplay, I was its biggest fan. What we saw then evoked moments from System Shock, moments from 2001: A Space Odyssey. It hinted at moon-buggyery, and maybe gameplay in varying levels of gravity.

Wellsir, a new wave of more official preview vids have hit the blue marble. The enemies are doom-like; banal, hovering, more or less innanimate. What does seem at first to be a dynamic enemy eventually shows this horrifying on-rails AI (or lack thereof), like a homeless man pulling his sack out in an elevator after promising not to with his eyes. And the audio, well, I just don’t know any more.

Hey, kids! Explore the moon for yourself, with Google Moon!

As WWI approaches, Blizzard decided to suddenly change the rating of the event to M, for mature, which is odd because Diablo is their only series with that rating. Can things get any better you may ask yourself? Well beginning on Sunday, Blizzard has set up a teaser on their homepage. It is a block of ice that melts and cracks each day, and also a new symbol, or rune, appears on the ice each day. Now if I remember correctly, the 1.11 patch teaser proclaimed that Hell had frozen over. Is Hell about to be unleashed this weekend? Additionally, there are many odd things hidden in the image’s source code and some appear to point towards Diablo. As of Wednesday, there is one symbol for each of Blizzard’s three big franchises. Day two’s hel rune represents the Diablo series. As the week progresses and WWI starts, we can only hope that the heavens open and Tyreal presents us with a beautiful new gift: two free skill points! Wait, I mean Diablo 3!

Oh, and did I mention that the closing day of WWI is the same day that Diablo 2 and its expansion, Lord of Destruction, were released on? Very interesting.

Download audio file (quiksave15.mp3)

If we run down the WWII-Shooter checklist, they’ve hit all the main requirements. Explosions, old planes, American heroes, barbed-wire fences… it’s all there. Treyarch’s getting a vote of no-confidence from the internet lately, but how could you mess up a straight-forward WWII shooter when the graphic side of things is already done up all pretty like?

From Kotaku

Legend/God Tetsuya Nomura has come out and said that Final Fantasy Versus XIII is currently “on hold” so that the development team can go give the regular FF XIII team some help getting their shit in gear. Not that we should’ve expected it any earlier, but it looks like we’ll be getting FFXIII in late ‘09 (at the earliest) and Versus XIII just before the world ends, if the Maya are to be believed.

Versus XIII is apparently going to be a more action-oriented adventure with a Kingdom Hearts feel to it, whereas FF XIII classic will have more conventional Final Fantasy battle system, though the early trailers suggest that fluidity between adventuring and battling will be a big advancement.

UPDATE:
Square Enix, in response to this story, told Eurogamer that “Reports that development for Final Fantasy Versus XIII is on hold are false. The truth of the situation is that when free, some staff from the Versus team have been helping with the XIII team on development of Final Fantasy XIII. Development for both titles is continuing as originally scheduled.”

Sounds like the guys on the Versus XIII team aren’t going to be getting much sleep between now and 2010.

From Kotaku

As a kid who sat around doodling creatures of my own imagining and then fitting them into ecosystems on nonexistent worlds, you can imagine I was pretty excited about the release of this little taste test, especially since I’ve had to watch Robin Williams and others have all the fun already. The creature creator, just one part of the game experience Spore promises, isn’t exactly breaking news - but this is the first time you get to hop behind the wheel yourself.

The creature creator’s menu and interface is very user-friendly, and fits the deceptively cartoony aesthetic of the creatures themselves. This friendly aesthetic is deceptive because despite the creatures’ propensity to look like Saturday morning critters rendered in Playdough by a child savant, you can also utilize this tool to make eldritch monstrosities that should not see the light of day.

Yes, I’m talking about those people who have seen fit to use this device for evil. Namely by making penis monsters. (You can easily find footage of these pitiful beings on YouTube, if that’s your bag. There’s too many to link to just one.)

That’s another feature I immediately noticed about the creature creator: it makes sharing your monsters incredibly simple. The option to take snapshots and capture video and upload it direct to YouTube is right there. It’s easy to see that sharing and community is going to be a huge part of this big “single-player MMO,” as it has been called.

Presumably the full version of Spore will continue this trend of user-friendliness, and perhaps expand upon it.

I was disappointed that the demo only offered insectoid and carnivorous mouths, but I suppose I can forgive Maxis for coveting their omnivore and herbivore maws. Even the few body parts that come with the demo are more than enough for you to satisfy your twisted fantasies of being Dr. Moreau’s apprentice.

Creating a creature is quite easy, though I was disheartened by the limitation on spine length. Even the longest spine wasn’t long enough to satisfy me. Here’s hoping “limitless spine” is a feature reserved for the full version.

Body parts each have a cost associated with them, which stops you from creating a creature entirely studded with mouths and/or antennae at the demo level, where earning money is impossible.

Once you realize that the game allows all sorts of logic-defying, sordid physiognomies even despite the cost limit, your inevitable descent into cruelty and perversion will begin. I started out with “shashifras”, a relatively innocuous, presentable little carnivore:

I wound up with “spiny podunk”, the forbidden love-child of a grasshopper and a tyrannosaur, with eyestalks on its obscenely elevated knees:

And this is why I’m more excited about Spore than ever. With just this morsel of the game - nay, this crumb, when you consider everything else Spore has promised - it has threatened my hours of free time. I’ve already lost one friend to its depths, and this is only a limited demo. (Dave, please come back to us.)

Once you’ve created your obscenity, you can go to the “test run” arena and watch the animator at work. That this game renders all sorts of modes of locomotion is impressive, though I did notice that my Terrorcow’s legs liked to phantasmally pass through one another, especially when it danced.

You can make your creature emote, dance, and even give it up to three little offspring to interact with within the limited walkabout space.

The demo is just enough to make me crave more. If I’d been sitting on the fence about Spore before, the amount of fun I’ve had just dinking around in the character creator would tip the scales in favor of a purchase. But don’t take my word for it. Give it a go yourself, so long as you don’t have any important deadlines coming up.

Spore i