New Games |
- Nintendo server hacked, no casualties
- E3 Rumor: Nintendo keeps it simple for Wii successor name
- E3: THQ and Adidas announce miCoach for Kinect, PS Move
- Forums, we have them: June 2011
- E3: The Force is strong with Kinect Stars Wars details
- E3: First impressions of Prototype 2
- E3: What I want for the NGP (or PS Vita), revisited
- E3: Nintendo's Project Cafe is RIGHT BEHIND THESE DOORS!
- E3: E3 badge holders are Catherine/Skyward Sword-tastic!
- The ten worst (best?) E3 disasters of all time
- Sell your old games on Destructoid, enter to win a 3DS
- Weekend Mobile roundup: pre-E3 edition
- WHISKE3Y: You're invited to Destructoid's Pre-E3 party
| Nintendo server hacked, no casualties Posted: 05 Jun 2011 03:40 PM PDT The Associated Press is reporting that hackers recently attacked a Nintendo server. Nintendo has confirmed to AP that no user data was compromised in the attack, which makes sense to me since they require that I enter all of my info every time I want to buy something from one of their marketplaces. This is probably the reason why. LulzSec, the same group behind the recent assault on seemingly every server that Sony has connected to the internet, has claimed responsibility for the attack. According to their Twitter feed, the hack for their own personal entertainment with no malice aimed toward the console-maker. LulzSec and Nintendo have both confirmed that the security vulnerability which gave access has since been closed. Nintendo server hacked [Gamespot] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| E3 Rumor: Nintendo keeps it simple for Wii successor name Posted: 05 Jun 2011 03:27 PM PDT We've been hearing a lot about the Nintendo's next console, which the company is set to reveal at E3 this week. HD graphics. Backwards Wii title compatibility. Screens on the controllers. Touch screens on the controllers. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| E3: THQ and Adidas announce miCoach for Kinect, PS Move Posted: 05 Jun 2011 03:16 PM PDT Tonight at a press conference THQ and Adidas revealed a new interactive athletic training program for the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 called miCoach. The title brings together training programs developed for sports like basketball, soccer, football, tennis and running with sports stars from each sport. Dwight Howard, Kaka, Tyson Gay, Jessica Ennis, Ana Ivanovic and Eric Berry have all signed on to appear in the fitness title as trainers.
miCoach lets players choose their fitness goals and then takes over to coach them through every step. Players are displayed inside the game via the camera on either Microsoft's Kinect sensor or Sony's PlayStation Move camera. Sports stars exercise alongside the player, while the game keeps track of progress, counts reps and more. THQ says that both proper training programs and motivation were goals in the development of this game. Players that have Adidas miCoach heart rate montiors will also get real-time feedback on their in-game performance. Beyond this, the miCoach mobile app will synchronize with the game to factor in data gathered away from the living room.
Orlando Magic basketball player Dwight Howard was at the event to promote the title. Howard and other sports stars were captured in hundreds of hours of video to appear in the game. Speaking on his recording session a few weeks back, Howard said, "When I finished I had to get like a three-hour massage. I was hurting." In a demonstration using Kinect, we saw that the player will appear on-screen alongside the actual coaching athlete. The game's technology pulls out the background, leaving only the player, making for a seamless presentation. Meters showing reps, heart rate and and other stats floated over the player's head. The scene would switch dynamically between a wide shot showing both player and athlete and a closer, more detailed shot on the athlete. We saw push-ups with arm lifts, crunches and curls with weights in this demonstration. THQ's miCoach will be released in early 2012.
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| Forums, we have them: June 2011 Posted: 05 Jun 2011 03:00 PM PDT This month in Forums, We Have Them: The Forums rules got updated, E3 is nearly upon us, NARPs are happening both virtually and in real life, Dtoiders get PHYSICAL PHYSICAL, and ZombiePlatypus made a lot of awesome artwork you can see in this very post. The Forum Rules have finally been given a long-overdue revision, and as a bonus we also threw in some tips for new members. If you haven't read over them yet, please take a few minutes so you're not confused when we start yelling at you. The Forums have also been reorganized to be more streamlined and easier to navigate. There's still a lot of threads in the archive that need to be moved around, so if you stumble across something that looks out of place please give one of the mods a heads up! E3 is almost here, and the speculation has been going strong in the Thread of the Day-winning E3 2011 Rumors, Hopes, Dreams, and Discussion thread. Only a few more days left before all is revealed! Personally, I'm hoping for the console wars to be resolved with a cage match between Reggie Fils-Amie, Steve Ballmer, and Jack Tretton. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| E3: The Force is strong with Kinect Stars Wars details Posted: 05 Jun 2011 02:23 PM PDT [Update: A French outlet has gotten a look at Kinect Stars Wars in action, along with a game called Disneyland Adventures. Check it out below.] Thanks to Entertainment Weekly, you don't have to wait until tomorrow's Microsoft press conference to get the first details on Kinect Star Wars. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| E3: First impressions of Prototype 2 Posted: 05 Jun 2011 11:01 AM PDT Main protagonist of Prototype 2, Sergeant James Heller, was given a second chance at life after being infected by the The Blacklight Virus. He now shares Alex Mercer's powerful abilities but unlike Alex, Heller embraces his powers from the start and uses them to seek revenge against Alex for having a hand in the death of his family. Heller is also on a mission to save New York City, now rebranded New York Zero due to the biological outbreak that has literally divided the state into three cordoned off sections. The Red Zone contains the worst of the infection while the Yellow Zone sees an overcrowded human population quarantined from everyone. The Green Zone sees the least amount of biological activity, but that doesn't mean it's all good. Prototype 2 (Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, PC) Black Watch, the powerful private military force hired by the government, rules the Green Zone with an iron fist and anyone that gets in their way is swiftly taken care of. It's in the Green Zone that developer Radical Entertainment ran a live demo of Prototype 2. Visually and gameplay wise, everything looked largely the same. It did seem like the fighting mechanics have been streamlined as I never saw a radial menu pop up when Heller switches abilities. There are new abilities, of course, and you can expect plenty of returning ones such as the wall running and the long distance jumping stuff. As for the some of the new abilities, one that was shown off was called the Bio Bomb. Heller infects a soldier and causes dozens of spikes to pop out of the poor sap a few seconds later. Another was a new passive ability called Sonar that sends out a wave that will highlight a target for Heller once it's bounced off them. Lastly we saw the Weaponization ability which has Heller ripping off a weapon from a vehicle -- in this case a missile launcher from an APC -- and using it against his targets. Heller will receive new mutations (perks) and we can expect a wide variety of them this time around. One that was shown off boosted Heller's air dash powers. The monsters are meaner and bigger than ever and there's plenty of them to go around. Heller will come across numerous lairs around the city which are underground areas full of baddies. You'll have to kill everything in order to clear the rooms; they reminded me of self contained "Horde"-like arenas. There was some more to the demo presentation, but nothing worth mentioning. Basically, Prototype 2 is looking a lot like the original but with more weapons and monsters. The presentation ends by teasing the gigantic, screen-filling monster you see in the image above throwing cars at Heller like they're children's toys. So far I'm not too sold on the game. I definitely want to see more of Prototype 2 and get some real hands on to see how well it handles this time around. I also want to see if anything has been done about the story structure. I liked the first Prototype, but found myself quickly moving on to the next game due to there being no reason to keep me pushing through. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| E3: What I want for the NGP (or PS Vita), revisited Posted: 05 Jun 2011 10:42 AM PDT My "What I want for the PSP2" article, written last October, was a list of daydreams for Sony's next portable. I thought it would be fun to revisit the article today, a day before Sony fully unveils this new portable to the world. Jim shared a similar list of wishes a few months later, though it was quite a bit more...lively than mine. He called Sony "sh*tting chimps" while I was dishing out boundless love for my favorite portable. Unlike his PSP, my PSP hasn't been "buried in a closet" all this time. I play it every day. I love the system dearly. I'm very excited for its successor. That said, I'm sure Jim and I are on the same page on several issues. I'm sure we both want better quality control, a better way to distribute games, a better online experience, and a more focused attitude towards portable gaming. Thankfully it sounds like Sony has learned from some of their missteps with the PSP. We've learned a lot about Sony's next portable since I wrote this piece. By now we've all seen the Next Generation Portable system, which is rumored to be named the PlayStation Vita. We've seen screenshots of some of the first games, we know much of the feature set, and we're getting a full reveal tomorrow at Sony's E3 press conference. What better time to compare our list of what we wanted with what it looks like we're going to get? And while we're at it, let's add a few new things to the list. Hardware We know there's still much to be learned about the NGP, but we have had a good look at some test hardware for Sony's next portable. This hardware we've seen is not final, but we know it's a good representation of what to expect, and between this and what Sony has revealed so far, we have a good picture of what the NGP will be like on the hardware side. Dual Analog Sticks: Check. Sticks, even. To leave off dual analog sticks on their next portable would have been the most facepalm-y mistake in the history of gaming. It would have said, loud and clear, that Sony has not been listening to their user base. I'm glad they've heard at least this. The sticks look great. I'm so glad that they're not nubs! A Big, Beautiful Screen It's never been an issue with Sony portables, so I wasn't too worried about this. The PSP's screen wasn't the greatest at first, but the later iterations had great screens that were more than sufficient for delivering console-like experiences on-the-go. I've always preferred the PSP's screen over the smaller, lower resolution screens of Nintendo's portables. It looks like they've went above and beyond with the NGP's display. We know to expect a huge, high-resolution 5-inch OLED screen. That's a big screen, and that's also cutting-edge display technology. It looks incredible. I couldn't have asked for more on this front. Non-optical Media Yes. YES. I want to high-five someone at Sony for this. We are getting exactly what I asked for in my original wish list for games media: Removable, non-optical media. We're getting something closer to what Nintendo has been using all this time. No rattly discs or slow load times. Small size, instant access -- this is how you do portable games. Graphical Power From what little we've seen of the first batch of NGP games, it looks like Sony has fully delivered in the graphical horsepower department. The NGP appears to have enough muscle under the hood to take full advantage of that sexy OLED screen, and then some. From the looks of it we'll be getting games that come close to matching the visual quality of current games on the PS3 or Xbox 360. Things I Didn't Ask For But Will Gladly Take Most of what I was looking for in the next Sony portable had more to do with its technical ability, software support and compatibility. All of the new interface features are a bonus. The large rear touchpad is an innovative idea that could lead to some cool new ways to interact with portable games. I see the touchscreen as Sony's move to keep up with the Jonses. It will also allow for easy ports of games made for mobile platforms. I'll gladly take both. I Like 'Em Round And Big I just can't help myself -- I'm actin' like an animal! Kudos to Sony for not being afraid to make a portable machine of a decent size. I hope we're done with these too-small portable devices. In this day and age of people toting around smaller notebooks and tablet computers, I think a larger gaming portable will fit right in. I've always wanted comfort over portability. I can put a game system in a bag if its too big to pocket, but I can't stop my eyes from straining or hands from cramping if the system is too small. Well, I can, but that means not playing it. The NGP looks like it was fashioned to be held for a long time. That's exactly what I plan to do if the battery life supports that. Battery Life I hope they didn't mess this up. The NGP looks like a highly capable game system, and it has a massive feature set. I hope all of the cool things they've packed on-board don't take away from its battery life. Power Switch You better had moved that power switch to a better place, Sony. Look at me. This is my serious face. This will be the first thing I check when I get my hands on the final hardware.
Software Sony has left us hanging on what to expect on the software front. We know of a few launch games, but the jury's still out on big issues like backwards compatibility, digital games distribution and online functionality. I expect that Sony will answer all of these questions tomorrow. For now, let's lay out what we're wanting on the software side. The New Games: It's a launch line-up, so I'm not expecting amazing things. But what we've seen so far looks really nice, and certainly more interesting than the PS3's launch line-up. There's Uncharted: Golden Abyss, Killzone, Wipeout 2048, Super StarDust Delta, and Hot Shots Golf in the mix for some very strong franchise representation. Games like Hustle Kings and Sound Shapes look like good showcases of the NGP's technology. I'm certain Sony has much more up their sleeves, and I know that they have their third-party partners sitting on some good news for E3. I just wanted a good RPG and a Hot Shots Golf game out of the gate. Maybe a new Parappa the Rapper or Unjammer Lammy 2? No? Backwards Compatibility Digital games distribution is here to stay. I don't think we're ready for a digital download-only system just yet. I feel like the NGP was designed to fit right in during this time of transition. It has a slot for games, but it's safe to say that there will also be an option to download NGP games. it supposedly also has the online connectivity and compatibility to play our old PSP games. Apparently there's internal features that can upscale old PSP games to take advantage of the higher resolution screen. There's also remapping that lets older games take advantage of the second analog stick. This is all great news for the millions of PSP owners that have a solid library of games already. I'm one of those. It has also been reported that PlayStation Minis will work on the NGP. I have 3 of those, though. But What About My UMDs? While the reports of strong support for backwards compatibility of digital titles has me sort of excited, the mental image of my shelves packed full of UMD PSP games holds me back from fully being elated. We all got our hopes up around the time the PSPgo launched when we heard rumors that there might be a way to somehow turn our UMD games into digital ones. That rumor never panned out, and that made the PSPgo a tough sell to those with existing libraries. What will happen to the many gamers like myself that fully supported the PSP all these years, buying hundreds (or thousands!) of dollars worth of UMD PSP games? Are we just going to have to hang on to our PSPs? PS1 games. Hell, PS2 games. What's the hold-up on this, Sony? Were you just waiting for the NGP to surprise us and tell us that all of the PS1 library is available now? With the PS3, PSP, the recently launched Xperia Play phone and now the NGP, you'd think that digging up these old classics would be a top priority. And now that the NGP has this second analog nub, I see it as fully compatible with that old, massive library. And while your at it, I'm thinking of hundreds of PS2 games that would wonderful portable titles. The NGP would never leave my side if it had full PS2 library compatibility. Please don't mess this up. Mobile Compatibility Here's another feature I didn't ask for, but am glad to have. With the NGP's network/internet connectivity and its touchscreen, it would seen that mobile games could easily be delivered and played on the system. While this wouldn't have been a feature to get excited about back in the days when the PSP launched, it definitely is now. Mobile gaming has grown into something so huge that it would be silly to not work some kind of compatibility into a portable game system. There's so many good offerings out there these days. It's great to know that your entry price for this system gets you not only NGP and PSP gaming, but also the possibility of other types. As Android gaming grows, this seemingly small feature will become increasingly attractive. Online It sounds like Sony is gearing up to surprise us with how they'll support online gaming with the NGP. They have yet to surprise us, so it's high time. We can be sure we'll see full PlayStation Network support, and that's great. But Xbox Live has spoiled us with its robust social features. Will Sony use the NGP to catch up in the online space? I hope so. I'd love to see a portable have the full ability to support team-based multiplayer shooters, MMOs, racing games, Japanese games of hunting and all the other stuff we expect in a full console experience. Sure, PSP games do support some online features, but the experience feels gimped when compared to what we get in consoles. Here's hoping that Sony is dreaming big for this. Let's get over this idea that a portable game has to be a lesser experience. A big, shiny, fully online portable could be a game changer. Non-gaming Features What else does this thing do? We'll find out tomorrow. I'm sure it plays music, and it probably plays downloaded and/or streamed movies and television shows from more than one provider. Mobile apps beyond games could also be a possibility. As I said in my original feature, I am really just looking for a portable beast of a game machine. All that other stuff is just gravy on top. I like gravy, but it's nothing with out buttery mashed potatoes. Here's The Shortlist Now that the system is final, it's too late to ask for hardware changes. At least for now. It's not too late to ask for software and support, though. I'd love to imagine that Sony execs read everything I write for them. I wrote this just for you, guys. Here's the shortlist of what we all want from Sony for the NGP: * Bring the AAA blockbusters, hard and fast * Don't fudge up PSP backwards compatibility * Give us those PS1 games already, and throw in some PS2 ones * Give your full, committed support to a robust online experience * Focus on games first, worry about multimedia features later * Fully support your third party developers * Don't kill us with the price of the system and games! My Plea To Sony, Revisited My original plea to Sony for their next portable asked that they look back at the PSP and see what worked and what didn't. It also asked that they listen to their customer base to see what they really want in a new portable game system. I don't have any insight into the development process for the NGP, but it sure seems like they looked, learned and listened. I'm so pleased already, and I know that a lot more surprises are in store. I asked for a capable, powerful beast with a big sexy screen, and it looks like that's what I'm getting. As a gamer that lives for on-the-go gaming, the new Sony portable seems like a dream system. I'm hoping that Sony follows through with this strong start.
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| E3: Nintendo's Project Cafe is RIGHT BEHIND THESE DOORS! Posted: 05 Jun 2011 10:30 AM PDT Well, maybe not yet. But it will be on Tuesday when the E3 show floor officially opens. You are not allowed to take pictures in the Convention Center today, but I used all my journalist/ninja abilities to hide behind a sign for Saint's Row: The Third and snap a quick picture of the South Hall entrance to the E3 show floor. Construction is still being finished on some of the massive structures just behind the entrance doors, but if you look closely you can see the edge of Sony's booth on the left and Nintendo's on the right. JOURNALISM! Once these doors open up on Tuesday the world will finally be able to play Nintendo's next console. Yeah, I know this post is a little bit pointless. But I got really excited just knowing this is where the Project Cafe is going to be playable that I couldn't help but share my enthusiasm with you. What do you think? Are you super pumped about the reveal of the Project Cafe? Only less than two days! | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| E3: E3 badge holders are Catherine/Skyward Sword-tastic! Posted: 05 Jun 2011 10:00 AM PDT Hamza Aziz and I just picked up our E3 media badges from the Los Angeles Convention Center and were pleasantly surprised to see two of our most anticipated games plastered on the badge holders. Every year, one game receives the honor buys the rights to display a cardboard advertisement inside the plastic holder containing the official E3 badge. This year, Catherine is that game. It's a sexy design featuring the titular (hehehe) main character and a bunch of demonic-looking sheep. In addition, the laynards supplied for the badges are adorned with images of The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword and text that reads "The Legend of Zelda 25th Anniversary". We all figured the game would be shown here at E3, but how close to finished is it? And will it still remain a Wii-exclusive, or also be released for the new Project Cafe? We will know the answers to all these questions in LESS THAN 48 HOURS at the Nintendo Press Conference. SO EXCITED! What do you think about Catherine and Skyward Sword? Excited to see more on these games, or did you wish two other games were displayed on the E3 badge holders? Check out the gallery for some Pulitzer Prize-quality photos of the E3 2011 badges. This week is going to be awesome. Stick with Destructoid for all the latest E3 updates! | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| The ten worst (best?) E3 disasters of all time Posted: 05 Jun 2011 09:00 AM PDT The worst is always the best at E3. Cutting edge technology becomes dated. Memorable demos are quickly forgotten. An impressive trailer means nothing when the game attached comes out and bombs. But CEOs talking about "hot chicks" and “RIIIIIDGE RACER!” live on forever. We love to see E3 disasters – the more ridiculous, the better. Press conference embarrassments and PR nightmares conjure a much-needed laugh among a week of endless caffeine, alcohol, and writing. As long as no one gets hurt, it’s all in good fun. These infamous E3 mistakes have been seen and ridiculed by many. They remind us why we love this gigantic and gigantically silly conference: for every great press conference reveal, there is always a memorable and unintentional screw-up to follow. 10. “BAM! There it is!” It’s odd to think back to the days when people were skeptical about Kinect. Okay, so we are still skeptical that the hardware will have any worthwhile games in 2011-2012, but back in the summer of 2009 many doubted if the Kinect (then called Natal) would work at all. Microsoft’s E3 2009 press conference was its proving ground for the device. After Steven Spielberg waxed ecstatic about the hardware and a flashy video was shown, our attention was captured. Then, Kinect creative director Kudo Tsunoda takes the stage and gives a demonstration of the device’s ability to match body movement with his on-screen avatar. It looked pretty damn great, until Kudo got cocky. “You ever wonder what the bottom of an avatar’s shoe looks like?” Kudo turns around for dramatic effect and suddenly kicks out his leg. “BAM! There it is!”
Virtual Kudo suddenly flips out, bending backward, throwing his arms crosswise and contorting his legs in a way one can only imagine would elicit an unbearable amount of pain. Someone must have hit the “OH SHIT!” button backstage, because the avatar suddenly suffered a spell of narcolepsy – the unexpected shift to the avatar standing, hunched over in a sleep-state only added to the hilarity. Or, perhaps, Virtual Kudo was some sort of soothsayer, predicting gamers’ collective apathy toward Kinect’s showing at E3 2009. 9. Sega Saturn’s announcement and imminent failure During Sega’s 1995 E3 conference – the first E3 ever – the company’s president dropped a bomb on retailers, developers and consumers: he announced the Saturn is out in U.S. store shelves the day of the presentation, four months before the scheduled U.S. release. It hurts to put this here, because, in all honesty, Saturn’s U.S. stealth launch was kind of awesome – at least, in theory. It’s a classic E3 moment. It’s the moment everyone waits for: The sort of huge announcement that takes everyone by surprise and gets everyone talking. The problem is that Sega didn’t think things through. There were only six launch games, since most developers were depending on having four more months before sending their games out to retailers. Not to mention most retailers were out of the loop and had trouble stocking the systems. The lack of games along with a high price tag ($399) made the console unpopular with consumers who instead chose the graphically superior and $100 cheaper PlayStation the following September. The real shame is that the Dreamcast’s 1999 launch got everything right, but it was too late for Sega. 8. Rock Revolution: It’s the notes that you don’t play, man!
During Konami’s demonstration of Rock Revolution, its uninspired Rock Band clone, the on-stage (virtual) bassist failed so hard that the game canceled out of the song. Maybe it was due to on-stage jitters or faulty hardware -- although, she said it was her fault afterward. A YouTube commenter said it best: “There's nothing worse than being booed by a real crowd and a virtual crowd at the same time.” Watching this virtual bassist miss nearly every note to the most basic song (The Ramones’ “Blitzkrieg Bop”), as her drummer companion nailed is it, is incredibly awkward and hilarious. At least it got everyone’s attention on the game, if for only a short while and for all the wrong reasons. 7. Battle Tag: the future of overpriced crap Despite the naysayers who said Ubisoft would never be able to outdo their 2009 snorefest, featuring Pelé and James Cameron, the publisher came out swinging in 2010. After presenting Child of Eden and Assassin’s Creed: Brotherhood, the audience was loosened up and expectations were lowered. “Oh, more video games. Whatever,” we all thought. Then, things got real. All of a sudden girls ran through the auditorium, doing cartwheels and firing infrared laser weapons of the future. What is this bizarre technology that was totally never on sale at Walmart six years ago for $40? Why, it’s Battle Tag of course and you can experience the game that “gamers have been waiting for” at the insanely reasonable price of $130! Even Innergy, Ubisoft’s state-of-the-art breathing simulator couldn’t get the audience excited afterward. Then again, maybe they were still baffled from what they just witnessed prior. 6. Mortal Kombat steps up 2 the streets
Mortal Kombat and Killer Instinct always had a grudge. Which game had the best combos? Which one had the best promotional dance soundtrack? At E3 1995, the games settled the score once for all with their floor show unveils that involved … choreographed dance? To be fair, Mortal Kombat’s showing was more of a sexy ninja fight between Jax, Sonya and Kung Lao. If you, distinguished reader, can appreciate tight-latex pants and bad 80's hair like I do, then you will find much to love in this clip. What really makes this a contender is the press representative who gives the most ridiculous speech, laden with embarrassing buzz words and marketing nonsense. “To make sure this MEGA event is also a MEGA success for retailers, Williams is tagging up this product release with the most comprehensive, fully integrated marketing program in the industry’s history.” She then runs through the goods: Mortal Kombat movie, cartoon series, live tour (!) action figures, and the Mortal Kombat: SUPER book (!!!!) That’s MEGA impressive but … 5. Killer Instinct beats it
With double the tight, latex pants and one of the most killer dance routines to ever hit E3’s floor, how could Killer Instinct not win? Gamers and press waited all day to see Rare’s arcade fighter demoed on the Ultra 64, but that wouldn’t come to fruition until a year later. Nevertheless, minds were blown and asses were shook as six bodacious dancers got down to a Killer Cut. Behind the dancers, screens displayed the game’s characters dancing, while a giant animatronic tiger, between the screens, hypnotized anyone watching the debacle. Its red eyes glaring, a voice echoed in the mind of everyone standing before it: “Best E3 presentation ever. Must buy Killer Cuts.” 4. Wii Music drum solo
Nintendo’s presentation of Wii Music was a low point during its uneventful 2008 E3 presentation, for several reasons. The game sounded terrible. It was as if Nintendo recycled midi sounds from Mario Paint’s music composer. It was bad enough seeing Miyamoto play virtual sax, but things sunk to new lows when DJ Ravi Drums (actual name) performed a minute long drum solo that left the audience dumbfounded. The game’s lifeless, emulated drum sounds paired with Ravi’s gestures and faux-hawk lent an unprecedented air of douchebagginess at Nintendo press conferences. Attendees looked on in horror, as Ravi soldiered forward and put on his “Slyvster-Stalone-pre-ejaculation” face. Those outside the auditorium, fretted something awful must have happened. “Perhaps, someone is having a seizure on a bargain bin drum machine and there is no one around to help,” they may have thought. 3. Sony’s historically accurate crab battle
The best jokes are all about perfect timing. While many walked away from Sony’s E3 2006 conference snickering over Kazuo Hirai’s “RIIIIIDGE RACER!” or in disbelief of the PS3’s $599 introductory price, it’s the Giant Enemy Crab spotting that pops up the most Google results, five years later. During a demonstration of PS3 launch title Genji: Days of the Blade, a timeless internet meme was born. Producer Bill Ritch, demoing the game on stage, introduced it as being historically accurate. Before the level loads up, he says the battles in the game “actually took place in Ancient Japan.” “Sure, dude,” we thought, impressed enough with a HD Dynasty Warriors look-a-like. Without missing a beat, the level starts up and a giant crustacean fucker leaps across the screen, toward the player. “So, here is this giant enemy crab,” the producer says nonchalantly. He then goes on to talk about flipping over the crab in order to “attack its weak point for massive damage.” Text doesn’t do the clip justice, as so much of the hilarity comes from Ritch’s oblivious, dead-pan delivery. In 2006, he carried the promise of being the next Bill Murray. 2. Jamie Kennedy’s E3 meltdown
Many doubted whether Jamie Kennedy would ever be able to top his flawless, incendiary performances in Son of the Mask and Malibu’s Most Wanted, but in 2007 Kennedy made his comeback in a way no one expected: drunk and high as hell, hosting Activision’s E3 press conference. It’s amazing to think Activision would let Kennedy emcee the event. Rather than focusing on Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare and Tony Hawk’s Proving Ground, the attention was put on Kennedy himself and his drunken banter. His jokes weren’t as much jokes as they were half-assed musings that focused on three topics: sex, drugs and not having sex. Maybe this would appeal to Call of Duty’s demographic, but the fact remains that this was supposed to be a press conference. Not only does Kennedy embarrass the developers on stage and Tony Hawk, he starts calling the audience a bunch of virgins: “There are so many virgins in here that Richard Branson is doing this event.” The amount of awkwardness on display makes the clip hard to watch, yet it’s impossible to look away. At this time, Activision has neither confirmed nor denied whether Jamie Kennedy will be able to get out of jail in time to host its conference this week. Keep up with our E3 coverage for updates! 1. Konami's 2010 press conference: All of it!
Konami’s 2010 press conference, when dissected part by part, could fill in a top ten list of its own. Traditionally, Konami’s press conferences are rather dry, focusing on Hideo Kojima’s latest Metal Gear Solid projects and running through trailers of upcoming titles. My guess is that Konami was tired of being overlooked at E3 – due to their time spot that takes place during show floor hours – so they decided to make the show more eventful, in the hope that people would talk about it. Mission accomplished, Konami. Between Dance Masters producer Naoki Maeda and Ninety-Nine Nights II producer Tak Fujii, there is an abundance of quotes that came from this conference. Fujii even has his own soundboard! My favorite Maeda quote:“Now you can move your fat body freely." My favorite Fujii quote: “If you just continue to press the same button like the X, X, X, and Y, Y, Y, and X, X, and Y, Y, Y again, you will be sucked." If only it were that easy, Tak Fujii … ----- Are there any E3 disasters I left out that you would have included? Since Konami's press conference this year was pretty tame -- beyond the bizarre "transferring" segment -- which press conference do you think will hold the most talked-about embarrassment? Post your prediction of who will have this year's biggest E3 disaster, along with how you think it will happen. Whoever posts the best reply will be sent an utterly useless, to-be-announced item of E3 swag. E3 unofficially starts tomorrow. Let's hope for the best ... er ... worst? | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Sell your old games on Destructoid, enter to win a 3DS Posted: 05 Jun 2011 08:45 AM PDT Destructoid is proud to bring you the laziest way possible to buy and sell games. We've partnered with Glyde and created The Destructoid BUY AND SELL GAMES THING. Why you should try it: you'll get way more money selling with us than trading in your games at retail stores. Unless Jim's coming over you can turn those seven copies of Dynasty Warriors into cash, people!
Selling is easy Unlike eBay, selling doesn't take 30 steps and photography. It works kind of like Netflix: Buy or sell something and the pre-paid mailers (pictured above) do all the work. Its almost too easy. Try it!
Our used game prices may surprise you Dare to compare! We're usually cheaper or the same price as the big guys. Plus, when you buy a game on Dtoid you might be helping another community member buy their next game. Try listing a game and see.
BONUS: Try it and you're entered in a drawing to win a Nintendo 3DS We're so confident you'll like our shop that we're giving away a virtual raffle ticket each time you list and sell a game (or) purchase a new or used game between now and July 30th. Destructoid earns a small commission for each transaction, which helps us pay for prizes and tacos. Plus, you make more dough for your games than at those strip-mall pawn shops. You know what I'm talking about.
Nintendo 3DS Contest rules: 1) You must either complete a purchase (buy something!) or list and complete a sale (sell something!) 2) You must be in the United States (sorry, we're working on this. Caramba.) 3) Winners will be selected by our partner at random and announced on our contest page and contacted over email with the address you have on file. If you do not respond within 10 days the contest resets and you forfeit your prize. You'd be surprised how often this happens. Its amazing. Good luck!
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| Weekend Mobile roundup: pre-E3 edition Posted: 05 Jun 2011 07:00 AM PDT
E3 is happening next week! Are you excited yet, or already sick of all the pre-E3 announcements? Right off the bat I can tell you there's not a single mention of an Android game this week, so feel free to go straight to the comments to lament the state of Android gaming. In fact this week has slim pickings in general, but there were a few decent games worth highlighting. If you are going to be watching a lot of E3 streams by yourself, without a friend to go "OMG!" or "Haha are they serious?" over with, there are a few iOS games that make for great games to play while listening to something like a stream or a boring filler episode of your favorite TV show. Speaking of TV shows, go have some Pingu. Because if it is a bad day for Pingu, it is a bad day for everyone. Weekend highlights:
This is a pretty fun game. It's vaguely reminiscent of Tiny Wings, but even that is a stretch. You're a fish who goes down in the water if you tap and hold the screen. Release, and it goes up in the same amount as it went down. Throughout a fair amount of levels you use this mechanic to collect points both under and above the water, while evading hazards. Every point item you pick up counts towards a multiplier that you need to keep going, so before long you find yourself jumping up and down throught paths of points to get that precious gold medal and highscore. The simple touch mechanic is not as deep as that in Tiny Wings, and the points you collect pretty much spell out the best path for you, but it's still very enjoyable and addictive to go after those highscores You can unlock new "outfits" for your fish as well, giving it a top hat and monocle and the like. This is one of those $1 games you shouldn't really think too long about before grabbing it, especially if you like these kind of games.
Yep, it's a Shaun the Sheep game and a BAFTA nominated one at that. And it's not bad really. You control the big and heavy Shirley, regular old Shaun and little lamb Timmy in a series of physics based puzzles. Shirley can move big objects, Timmy can get through small openings, etc. Home Sheep Hope has a nice hand-drawn aesthetic to it, which works well with the series' animation style and doesn't look out of place. Unfortunately, the game only has 15 levels which you can blow through in about an hour if you want. Every time you die or retry a level, hints pop up in the level to help you out if you are stuck, which is nice for younger players. It's about as good and creative a Shaun the Sheep game as you can expect for a small game, but this really should've been a free game used to promote the series. If your kids are really into Shaun, it's worth it to keep them off your back for an hour or so. Alternatively, play the Flash version for free here.
The original Save Toshi (first 20 levels free on iOS) saw you do physics-based puzzles in order to get a Japanese pop star on a dance floor. Because a demon had made her forget how to walk, but not how to dance! Right. The sequel sees you do the same stuff, except this time you have to get rid of zombie Toshi clones using the same physics puzzling. It's a bit harder than the first game right off the bat, mostly because you have multiple zombies to get rid of. Nothing mindblowing here, just think "free Angry Birds in 3D" and you've got the gist of it.
The classic Speedball 2 has been on iOS for a while, but it was free for most of this week and is still free today at the time of writing. You should grab it because it's free, but it's not as good on the small screen as it was on the old TV or monitor. The controls don't quite work as well as with the old keyboard or one button joystick, but you should just see for yourself. I think I'll wait for the iOS remake of Bitmap Brothers' Z instead. Coming Up: Techno Kitten Adventure (iPhone, June 7th)
The iOS and XBLIG revamped version of Techno Kitten Adventure is out this week, during E3, so ehm... don't forget about it? I've been playing a preview build, and it's about what you would expect. More kittens to unlock, a free level with the game and extra levels available through in-app purchases, and more of the oontz. One of the new levels even has Styles & Breeze music, who normally do a lot of remixes of songs that were already remixed before. Like this remix of Cascada's version of Jan Wayne's version of Bruce Springsteen's Because The Night. Jan Wayne's version is the superior one by the way, because he is gonna move ya! We'll have more on Techno Kitten Adventure next week, but it offers more than the old XBLIG one ever did and adds things like dolphins all over your face and a pterodectyl with... a bow tie? Hey, the Doctor says they are cool so why not?
Chrono Trigger anyone? No? What about if we add in some Seiken Densetsu 3 for the real-time combat? Fantastic Knight looks like it might deliver on the demands for more new games that are like the old games we loved, without them being a remake, and a glance at this trailer left me pretty excited. Info is pretty scarce, although if you are not sold by the concept of a 16-bit era RPG with realtime combat, nothing else is going to sell you on it.
Is this what the future of tablet gaming will be like? If so, sign me up. Saw this on Touch Arcade this week, and the game already runs and looks stunning when running on a Tegra 2 tablet. Watch the devs hook it up to TV-out and play a console game in another video. Using a tablet. Now if only we could find a way to get rid of those required HDMI cables to stream directly to our screens, right Nintendo? Not every game is great to play while watching something on a screen. Too many games take too much concentration, which makes you zone out on the audio and miss key things. In most movies or TV series, you can use the music as a cue for when to pay attention, but some games just take you out of it far too much to still pay attention. Which is great for the game, but not so great if the main idea is to not get bored while watching a conference. Angry Birds is a no-brainer of course. It offers lightweight puzzling that can take many retries to perfect, but it never asks you to think too hard. The same holds true for Tiny Wings, which lets you easily track anything that goes on in the background while you try to beat a highscore for two hours straight. In a similar vein, this week's Mighty Fin offers the same type of gameplay although focusing on points to grab does take a bit more attention than it does in Tiny Wings. The space tower defense game Starbase Command does require some attention at first, but after about half an hour it just becomes a time grind to get to the top scores -- some of which run up to 6 hours or survival. It's still fun to check an asteroid field and replace turrets once you've built everything, so it's great for filling time without having to pay much attention. Finally, Hook Worlds is always a good go-to game whenever you are bored for only a few minutes. Tap to swing a hook, use it to gain momentum, and swing again. Some great and simple gameplay fun which can last you pretty long to get proper scores. Best thing of all: you don't have to think about it while playing it!
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| WHISKE3Y: You're invited to Destructoid's Pre-E3 party Posted: 05 Jun 2011 06:30 AM PDT Will you be in Los Angeles early for E3? Come have drinks on us before the madness begins! Space is limited so *come early* or arrive late on stilts and/or elbow spikes. The party is located near the convention center, so you can definitely cab it or park in the two nearby monoliths. See you there! |
Mighty Fin (iPhone, 
Home Sheep Home (iPhone, 
Popstar Physics (Save Toshi 2) (iPhone & iPad, 
Speedball 2 Evolution (iPhone & iPad, 
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