May 11, 2010 – Valve announced that Steam will launch on the Mac platform this Wednesday, May 12.

On subsequent Wednesdays, additional collections of Mac titles will become available, each designed to highlight specific functionalities of Steam on the Mac.

The first collection of Mac titles will demonstrate “Steam Play,” which allows customers to purchase a game once and play it on all Steam supported platforms.

Portal, in addition to supporting Steam Play, will be the first of Valve’s Source engine based games available on the Mac. Native OS/X support for the Source engine is also available immediately to licensees for use in their games.

Among the initial titles available on Wednesday will be Runic Games’ critically acclaimed Torchlight. “We’re very excited to be bringing Torchlight to the Mac,” said Max Schaefer, co-founder of Runic Games. “Having Steam for the Mac solves so many problems for us as a developer. We look forward to our future games coming out on the Mac as well.”

In addition to bringing the online functionality of Steam to the Mac, Valve will also make its Steamworks suite of publishing and development tools available on the Mac platform. These include product key authentication, copy protection, auto-updating, social networking, matchmaking, anti-cheat technology, and more. The features and services available in Steamworks are offered free of charge and may be used for both electronic and tangible versions of games.

For more information on Steam, please visit www.steamgames.com.

Source [ SteamPowered.com ]

As a Mac user and a gamer, I am very excited about the impending cross-platform release, as well as knowing that I will not have to re-purchase Mac versions of (most) games I already own.  My Steam library, when I was using BootCamp to run Windows and Steam for the past few years, includes games such as Torchlight, the Half Life series, Left4Dead, TeamFortress 2, Portal, Bioshock and many games from the Quake and Doom series.

While detractors will argue that Steam for Mac does not mean that PC game developers will flock to the platform, that is not necessarily a requirement at this time.  There are plenty of Mac game developers who will benefit from Steam as a platform for selling their software, pushing out updates to their users and track hardware statistics to better help optimize their games.

It has been awhile since I have logged into Steam, but I will soon be back.  Once Team Fortress 2 has been fully released for Mac, which I hope is soon, meet me up for a few rounds.

Bring that issue alongside Nintendo’s current handheld competition and you have a major problem. Apple is starting to dominate in that category. Wait a second, the iPhone/iPod Touch isn’t a handheld system! It’s not? It fits in your hand and you play any game that you can play on other systems. I should say it is.
Nintendo DS requires wi-fi to get into the shop or to download. The iPhone requires a cell phone signal and that’s all. Nintendo DS games cost between $10 and $40. iPhone games cost between $0.99 and $7.00. Even popular games like Command and Conquer and Civilization cost around $6.00.
Apple has a big advantage over Nintendo in the ease of getting your games, organizing your games and they are much more cost effective. Plus, the accessories needed and the price of the games are in Apple’s favor as well.
Nintendo long ago lost a good part of their core audience. They didn’t seem to care since the core audience stuck around for the DS. They moved to a new market with the Nintendo Wii, bringing in the family gaming system and allowed Microsoft and Sony to take their core console gamers.
Apple has moved in on their handheld market in a big way. Not only have they taken a large chunk of the core handheld audience, but they are also taking the casual audience as well. This isn’t the end for Nintendo. It isn’t time to scream doom and gloom or get ready to plan the funeral of Mario. It is time for Nintendo to start looking closer at their audience, the behavior of their audience and who is holding the market shares.

It’s come a long way since Rob and I started it as one of the first podcasts over at The Geek Media, and we’ve enjoyed every single episode so far. We’ve had a lot of special guests on with us as well, everyone from David from the Festival of Blood cast to Matt Hillyer from The Stealth Mac, and we hope as many of those guests as possible show up tonight to be with us for the cast.

It’s hard to think about it being over, for now. It really doesn’t fit too well with me because I’ve done R&D almost every week for nearly the last three years, and I want it to come back as soon as possible. With all things though, we must move on, and taking Rob and Dan’s place while we’re on hiatus is going to be CrossFaction with myself and Almighty Farseer, and Player One, a new video cast that’s finishing up development as we speak.

I would implore everyone to go over to http://www.macharbor.com/rnd/podcast.xml and listen to all the old episodes of R&D to experience the goodness that we’ve had over the past couple years.

Tonight will start EARLY, be around the irc and watching your twitter early tonight, I’m probably going to do an impromptu Player One on my livestream page at http://www.livestream.com/letonator and we’ll have some fun with that before we get to R&D tonight. Have fun tonight guys!

I wonder if Duke Nukem will finally come out? Sure. Right.

For E3 this year, I have a couple of predictions of my own. I am hoping that Nintendo redeems themselves and announces a new Legend of Zelda game. I see the game releasing during the 4th quarter of 2010. Gears of War 3 is another prediction. I don’t see it releasing in the 4th quarter of 2010. I see an announcement at E3 with the possibility of release in 2nd or 3rd quarter of 2011.

I asked on Twitter what your predictions for E3 are from The Geek Media’s Twitter and my personal Twitter. The answers after the jump.

@MemBirdman : “I predict a combined 137 minutes of stage time for Natal & Touch during the press conferences. That might be conservative. :/”

@Mifio: “APB launch date announcement, Uncharted 3… And thats all I really care about.”

@DCSilverwing: “ok, my official prediction (based on nothing) Elder Scrolls, and SOME kind of TRON game…”

@Leto: “I don’t have a lot of expectations, after a few flops in March. Hoping that more of The Old Republic is shown off though.”

@MemBirdman: “I predict that Shigeru Miyamoto will do something during the Nintendo press conference totally awesome and mildly pedophilic.” (Wait…what?)

What are your predictions for E3?

Go over to OMFG.FM tonight to hear the fun!

Please keep in mind that with the Wii’s maximum resolution of 480P wide-screen, the Wii-Netflix service may not be capable of properly displaying 720P HD content.  Although it is unknown at this time, chances are the HD videos will be downscaled to 480P.

To reserve your Wii Netflix disc today, click on the image below.

I’m very interested to see where this ends up leading us to.

Tecmo will be redefining the word “handheld” with its latest announcement, Dead or Alive Paradise, which promises to bring everyone’s favorite batch of barely clothed busty babes to Sony PSP owners in Japan this coming Spring 2010.

Paradise is what you might call a stripped down (pun intended) version of the Dead or Alive Xtreme Beach Volleyball (DOAX) series. DOAX is a game that revolves around the lovely ladies of the DOA series prancing around in sometimes barely-existent bikinis on a beautiful private beach doing anything but fighting.

In fact, they take their competitive spirits to the sandy shores for games of volleyball and the glistening waves for relaxing jet ski races. An integral part of the game includes wooing the various girls vacationing on the beach by buying them an assortment of gifts including skimpy swimwear. Thrown into the mix were a slew of quirky but sexy mini-games including butt bouncing and water sliding.

Paradise is based on a cell phone port of DOAX that only featured the mini-games and, of course, showcase your beloved beauties in their best buxom beach suit.

Unfortunately, Tecmo hasn’t said anything about a new installment to the DOA fighting series but, with this new game, there are sure to be a slew of fans who’d rather make love instead of war.

Site [Dead or Alive Paradise] Read [Joystiq]

Full Story ? | Written by Janine Dong for Gamertell. | Comment on this Article ?

Extraction’s gameplay is set apart from the original in a number of respects. Dead Space was a third person shooter where the main character, Isaac Clarke, was nearly always in view and rarely talked except to say “ouch” if you were playing badly. Extraction is a First-Person “On-Rails” shooter where you play the role of a number of different characters through the course of the storyline. On-Rails shooters, much like House of the Dead Overkill, seem to be right at home on the Wii. With the advent of HDTVs and the mass exodus from CRT televisions, light-gun games have nearly become of thing of the past due to technological limitations. The Wii, however, facilitates this genre of game perfectly due to the combination of the Wiimote’s built in IR-camera and the Sensor bar.

The best parts of Dead Space make their return. Each weapon has an alternate fire mode, activated by tilting the Wiimote 90 degrees, aka “Gangsta Style”. Some of these alternate modes have been changed to better serve the new interface, such as the Pulse Rifles Alt-Fire, and new weapons have been added as well, such as the Arc Welder and Rivet Gun. Equipment Upgrades also made the transition as pick-up items and not requiring the use of the Bench like in the original.

Going into the game, I knew that I would revisit locations from Dead Space, such as the “Planet Cracker” ship the Ishimura, though I did not realize that I would actually be setting the scene for when you return to the ship as Isaac. From deactivating the filtration systems, blocking off access to sectors of the ship all the way to the shut down of the ADS (Automatic Defense Systems), forcing Isaac to play thru the worst part of Dead Space, in my opinion.

One of the nice additions to Extraction is the “Hacking” mini-game. Rather than take a cue from Bioshock’s Pipe-Dreams style of hacking, we are instead presented with an altered version of the Metroid Prime “Welding” mechanic, that being Connect-The-Dots (la la la la). Early hacks are quite easy. Further into the game, however, hacks become much more difficult, requiring both steady and timed connections as to not touch or get caught between “bad segments” of the circuit that glow red and losing health. To increase the difficulty more, some hacks take place in the middle of gun fights, with the shooting happening to the left and the hacking on the right. During these specific hacks, the actual gunfight does not end until the hack is complete, so there will be an endless spawning of monsters until you finish the job. In a single player game, this can prove to be quite the challenge from a multitasking perspective. In a Co-Op game, however, this becomes very much like an “Aliens” moment, where one player fights off the baddies while his partner works on the hack.

The character development was very well handled. You play the game through the eyes of four different characters throughout the course of the game, yet there is enough down-time to flesh out each one. The first character you play as was perhaps the least developed overall since you only get to experience his story for the first chapter before SPOILERS happen, however, the way SPOILERS happen was a very nice plot point that brought a smile to my face and set the mood for the game as a whole.  For the remaining three characters, two of them are with you from Chapter 2 until the final chapter, and the third character adds that much needed amount of “Survival Horror” and “playing as a non-soldier/badass” feel that was lacking in even the original game.  Also, much like the first characters story, HER story and eventual SPOILERS was quite poetic, if not complete BS.   The fun BS, not the “I hate this game” BS.

Overall I was highly impressed with Dead Space Extraction.   “For a Wii Game”, the graphics were far beyond what I was expecting and then some.  There were some frame-rate drops, but these were expected, brief, few and far between and never ruin my experience.  This game simply raises the bar for any future Wii games in this style, even those made by Nintendo and it’s First-Party developers.  In this reviewers opinion, Dead Space Extraction is the best thing the Wii has ever had.

]]> http://www.thegeekmedia.com/gaming-entertainment/most-impressive-dead-space-extraction-for-wii/feed 0 http://www.thegeekmedia.com/gaming-entertainment/2633 http://www.thegeekmedia.com/gaming-entertainment/2633#comments Tue, 17 Nov 2009 22:49:07 +0000 Gamertell http://www.thegeekmedia.com/news/2633 Section: Gaming News, Exclusives, Features, Consoles, Xbox-360

This Tuesday (November 17, 2009) Microsoft unleashed a new update for it’s Xbox 360 system.

The new update includes the ability to use a bigger screen, a clearer picture and accessibility from the comfort of your living room couch.

To access all this cool stuff, you need an Xbox live membership, and of course an Xbox 360 system. All these updates are available now, and you should see it right when you log onto your profile.

Here’s the breakdown:

• Facebook:

Almost everyone in the world is on Facebook; Now you can access it from your 360 console. Update your status, leave messages for your friends, play games and upload pictures, just like you would on your computer. You can also compare your Xbox Live and Facebook friends lists to see which of your friends are on Xbox Live .

• Zune:

Listen to music and watch videos right from your 360 with instant-on HD in 1080p and 5.1 channel surround sound. You don’t even have to wait for buffering or downloading, the video or song is there as quickly as a button push. You can also share your music with up to six friends through Avatar integration and voice chat.

• Twitter:

Along with telling people what you are doing every second of the day, you can also view friend profiles, trends and conversations, and search to see if anyone is tweeting about your favorite game.

• Last.fm:

This feature allows you to listen to your own personal radio station right on your 360. You can skip, ban, or love a song is it seems fit; create your perfect mix. There are even now “gamer stations” with game related and styled music, picked just for the gaming community.

Site [Xbox] Read [Stage Select]

Full Story ? | Written by Jessica Moen for Gamertell. | Comment on this Article ?

Click here to view the embedded video.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Then it all went south for me with 7… *sigh*

Who says print is dead? World of Warcraft, the game that has spawned an entire subculture of fans (and millions of happy subscribers/addicts) will soon be getting its very own print publication. According to GameDaily, the new mag will be a quarterly publication, available to fans for the rather steep price (for four issues!) of $39.95 per year.

However, the production sounds pretty fantastic. There will be no ads (so this puppy will be entirely subscription-based), and yes, you can only get it if you sign up and pay up. The very first issue will feature 148 pages (massive for a gaming-oriented publication), complete with a bonus “fifth anniversary perspective about the evolution of the game, it’s future, and top tips from top guild leaders”.

If you really, really love WoW (and I realize, that speaks to many folks), this sounds like the ultimate way to stay tapped in to the community. I personally love a good, well-produced print magazine (RIP, Electronic Gaming Monthly!), so I’m all in favor of resurrecting the format, especially for specialized audiences. In fact, this model only really makes sense for a loyal, premium-paying target (otherwise, gamers get their news, reviews and commentary almost exclusively online these days).

If you’re interested, mosey on over to the magazine’s official site and check it out.

Read [GameDaily] Site [WoW Magazine]

Full Story ? | Written by Danielle Riendeau for Gamertell. | Comment on this Article ?

Haven’t caught all of the Gamertell news this week?? Here’s your chance to catch up on this week’s top 10 articles!

• Five simple things Nintendo can do to improve the Wii
  ” Nintendo has found unprecedented success with the Wii. Yet, the system isn’t everything that it could, or should, be. It’s certainly a fine console, with quite a wide selection of quality games. But there are things that can, and should…” MORE ?
• Gamertell Review: Wallace and Gromit: The Bogey Man for PC
  “Title: Wallace and Gromit: The Bogey Man Price: $8.95 System(s): PC Release Date: July 29, 2009 Publisher (Developer): Telltale Games ESRB Rating: “Everyone” for comic mischief and mild…” MORE ?
• Top 10 iPhone, iPod Touch games every gamer should try
  “In lieu of digging through most of garbage apps that make up the App Store landfill (I kid, I kid) this week, I decided it would be better to spend my time offering suggestions of gaming apps you’d actually want to try.? Sure, some of these apps are the…” MORE ?
• GamesCom 2009: Sony information explosion includes slim PS3, PSP minis and more
  “There has been a serious information explosion from Sony at GamesCom 2009 today, which rivals, and perhaps even puts to shame, the E3 2009 Sony press conference. After comparing the announcements, I’m definitely feeling more excited now. The main…” MORE ?
• Former LucasArts president trying his hand at politics
  ” The video game industry could gain a powerful Washington ally in Arizona’s 2010 Congressional election. Former LucasArts head Jim Ward, who resigned from the company in 2008, wants to be the next US representative from Arizona’s 5th MORE ?
• Persona 3 gets portable
  “Famitsu is amazing. Let’s hear a big round of applause for the magazine that revealed that a PSP port of Shin Megami Tensei: Persona 3 is on the way. Not only that, but said port isn’t just your standard…” MORE ?
• Five PSP RPGs you missed the first time around
  ” There’s been a bit of a lull when it comes to PSP releases. Aside from releases from Atlus, NIS, Square Enix and XSEED, the system hasn’t seen a lot of action. This makes now an ideal time to take…” MORE ?
• Gotta catch ‘em all over again next spring in Pokemon HeartGold and SoulSilver
  “The inevitable announcement has come. Nintendo has confirmed that it is planning to release the latest DS Pokemon games, Pokemon HeartGold and SoulSilver, to North America and Europe in Spring 2010. The news came during the 2009 Pokemon World…” MORE ?
• Hardcore Wii Franchise #5: Fire Emblem
  ” I picked up my first Fire Emblem game—Radiant Dawn—during one of the WiiGaps soon after the system’s release (WiiGaps being those periods where nothing new of note has been released or will be in the immediate future). I didn’t like…” MORE ?
• Top 5 hardcore Wii franchises (for gamers ready to do more than bowl) – (updated)
  “Maybe you’re young and, when looking for your first gaming console, the Wii was the cheapest. Maybe you saw grandma and grandpa bowling at the retirement home and thought, “Hey, this is for me!” Maybe your mom prefers you play fewer games…” MORE ?

Full Story ? | Written by NEWS for Gamertell. | Comment on this Article ?

So, the plan is to start posting again. Sometimes “the plan” doesn’t work out. We’ll see what happens.

Oh, by the way, the new expansion for WoW was announced today at BlizzCon 2009. Anyone whose even semi-involved in WoW outside of the actual game probably already knew everything about the game a week ago anyways – thanks to MMO-Champion. Here’s some key info for the new WoW: Cataclysm.

What is the story of World of Warcraft: Cataclysm?
While the attention of the Horde and Alliance remained fixed upon Northrend, an ancient evil has been lying dormant within Deephome, the domain of earth in the Elemental Plane. Hidden away in a secluded sanctuary, the corrupted Dragon Aspect Deathwing has waited, recovering from the wounds of his last battle against Azeroth, nursing his hatred for the inferior creatures that infest the surface realm…and biding his time until he can reforge the world in molten fire. Soon, Deathwing the Destroyer will return to Azeroth, and his eruption from Deephome will sunder the world, leaving a festering wound across the continents. As the Horde and Alliance race to the epicenter of the cataclysm, the kingdoms of Azeroth will witness seismic shifts in power, the kindling of a war of the elements, and the emergence of unlikely heroes who will rise up to protect their scarred and broken world from utter devastation. The face of Azeroth is altered forever as the destruction left in Deathwing’s wake reshapes the land and reveals secrets long sealed away. Players will be able to re-experience familiar zones across Kalimdor and the Eastern Kingdoms, rewrought by the cataclysm and filled with new opportunities for adventure.

What are the features of World of Warcraft: Cataclysm?
Some of the new features of World of Warcraft: Cataclysm include:

• Two New Playable Races: Adventure as one of two new races–the cursed worgen with the Alliance or the resourceful goblins with the Horde.
• Level Cap Increased to 85: Earn new abilities, tap into new talents, and progress through the path system, a new way for players to improve characters.
• Classic Zones Remade: Familiar zones across the original continents of Kalimdor and the Eastern Kingdoms have been altered forever and updated with new content, from the devastated Badlands to the broken Barrens, which has been sundered in two.
• New High-Level Zones: Explore newly opened parts of the world, including Uldum, Grim Batol, and the great Sunken City of Vashj’ir beneath the sea.
• More Raid Content than Ever Before: Enjoy more high-level raid content than previous expansions, with optional more challenging versions of all encounters.
• New Race and Class Combinations: Explore Azeroth as a gnome priest, blood elf warrior, or one of the other never-before-available race and class combinations.
• Guild Advancement: Progress as a guild to earn guild levels and guild achievements.
• New PvP Zone & Rated Battlegrounds: Take on PvP objectives and daily quests on Tol Barad Island, a new Wintergrasp-like zone, and wage war in all-new rated Battlegrounds.
• Archaeology: Master a new secondary profession to unearth valuable artifacts and earn unique rewards.
• Flying Mounts in Azeroth: Explore Kalimdor and the Eastern Kingdoms like never before.

Why are you revisiting the continents of Eastern Kingdoms and Kalimdor?
As we developed new content and expansions, we learned a lot of techniques to provide players with a better game experience–but the majority of the new content we were creating was for high-level characters only. We felt we could apply the lessons of Outland and Northrend to improve the gameplay experience while leveling in the original two continents. Imagine revisiting a familiar zone like Darkshore only to find Auberdine destroyed by the cataclysm–and then discovering entirely new towns and quests in other parts of the zone. Kalimdor and the Eastern Kingdoms are central to World of Warcraft lore, and we want those areas to remain an important part of the game, not just a place to train or auction. Our goal is to make questing, leveling, and the overall story more fun for new, returning, and existing players. By redesigning areas of the original continents and introducing new content that matches or exceeds the quality of Wrath of the Lich King, we can revitalize the nostalgia and coolness of Azeroth.

How did you decide upon the two new playable races, worgen and goblin?
The community has been requesting to play as the goblins for quite some time now, and we wanted to stick with at least one race that players were very familiar with. This expansion was the perfect time to bring the goblins to the forefront and offer more insight into their past, since the catastrophic events of the expansion really hit close to home. As for the worgen, players have been hoping to be able to learn more about them since Silverpine Forest. This is a great opportunity to explore their lore and the mysteries of the Greymane Wall. The worgen are an aggressive and beastly race, which is something you see often among the Horde races, but is unique among the Alliance races.

Will the two new races have all-new starting experiences?
Yes, we are creating all-new level 1 to 15 starting zones for both races. Players will start their adventures with the worgen in Gilneas, which was sealed off behind the Greymane Wall. Goblin players will start on the Isle of Kezan and then head to the Lost Isles in the South Seas before joining the mainland. Each starting experience will be presented in a fashion similar to the death knight starting area in Wrath of the Lich King, and these starting zones will make extensive use of our new phased-terrain technology.

Which classic zones have been overhauled? What are some examples of changes?
Nearly all of the game’s original zones are being altered to some degree, but the extent of the changes varies by zone. For example, Darkshore is flooded and has been completely redesigned with all new quest hubs. The Barrens have been split in two; one half is for low-level players and the other is for higher-level players. Azshara is now a low-level zone for Horde players and connects directly to Orgrimmar.

Is another Hero class being added to the game?
We are not planning to add a new Hero class in World of Warcraft: Cataclysm. For this expansion, it was more appropriate to focus on the two new races, the goblins and worgen. We never intended to include a Hero class in every expansion. As you saw with death knights, adding a new class changes the dynamics of the game dramatically, which is not something we want to do in every expansion. We still have plans to introduce new Hero classes in the future.

Will I be able to use my flying mount in the redesigned Eastern Kingdoms and Kalimdor?
Yes. While the original Eastern Kingdoms and Kalimdor weren’t designed for flying mounts, we’re redesigning the continents with flying mounts in mind. However, we’re still determining whether there will be any restrictions on where you will be able to fly, at what level flying will become available, or whether you’ll need to do anything to unlock it. We’ll share more details about this in the future.

Will I need the expansion to be able to experience the Cataclysm changes?
When the Cataclysm occurs, it will occur for all players, whether they have purchased the expansion or not–you will no longer be to play in the original version of Kalimdor or the Eastern Kingdoms. However, certain features such as the new zones, new races, and new level cap will only be accessible to players who purchase the expansion.

Will “phasing” be used more extensively in World of Warcraft: Cataclysm?
Yes. We’ve come up with a number of new, cool ways to using phasing since we introduced it in Wrath of the Lich King, and plan to use it more extensively to change the world as players progress. We are also now able to phase terrain, which players will see in the starting areas for the goblins and worgen. We’re also adding some UI improvements to help determine when another player is in a different “phase” from you.

Will there be any updates to the graphics and changes to the minimum system requirements?
Yes, there will be incremental tweaks and updates to the graphics engine in this expansion. For example, we’ve made improvements to the way that water is rendered. We’ll announce the exact system requirements closer to the expansion’s release.

I might post more info later. But, to be honest, there’s enough places out there for info right now. So, I’ll probably post commentary instead.

Here’s an HD version of the trailer for Cataclysm that was shown at BlizzCon a few hours ago. I anticipate it to become the most popular copy of the trailer on YouTube, just like my video for Wrath.

-Matt Graham

So, the plan is to start posting again. Sometimes “the plan” doesn’t work out. We’ll see what happens.

Oh, by the way, the new expansion for WoW was announced today at BlizzCon 2009. Anyone whose even semi-involved in WoW outside of the actual game probably already knew everything about the game a week ago anyways – thanks to MMO-Champion. Here’s some key info for the new WoW: Cataclysm.

What is the story of World of Warcraft: Cataclysm?
While the attention of the Horde and Alliance remained fixed upon Northrend, an ancient evil has been lying dormant within Deephome, the domain of earth in the Elemental Plane. Hidden away in a secluded sanctuary, the corrupted Dragon Aspect Deathwing has waited, recovering from the wounds of his last battle against Azeroth, nursing his hatred for the inferior creatures that infest the surface realm…and biding his time until he can reforge the world in molten fire. Soon, Deathwing the Destroyer will return to Azeroth, and his eruption from Deephome will sunder the world, leaving a festering wound across the continents. As the Horde and Alliance race to the epicenter of the cataclysm, the kingdoms of Azeroth will witness seismic shifts in power, the kindling of a war of the elements, and the emergence of unlikely heroes who will rise up to protect their scarred and broken world from utter devastation. The face of Azeroth is altered forever as the destruction left in Deathwing’s wake reshapes the land and reveals secrets long sealed away. Players will be able to re-experience familiar zones across Kalimdor and the Eastern Kingdoms, rewrought by the cataclysm and filled with new opportunities for adventure.

What are the features of World of Warcraft: Cataclysm?
Some of the new features of World of Warcraft: Cataclysm include:

• Two New Playable Races: Adventure as one of two new races–the cursed worgen with the Alliance or the resourceful goblins with the Horde.
• Level Cap Increased to 85: Earn new abilities, tap into new talents, and progress through the path system, a new way for players to improve characters.
• Classic Zones Remade: Familiar zones across the original continents of Kalimdor and the Eastern Kingdoms have been altered forever and updated with new content, from the devastated Badlands to the broken Barrens, which has been sundered in two.
• New High-Level Zones: Explore newly opened parts of the world, including Uldum, Grim Batol, and the great Sunken City of Vashj’ir beneath the sea.
• More Raid Content than Ever Before: Enjoy more high-level raid content than previous expansions, with optional more challenging versions of all encounters.
• New Race and Class Combinations: Explore Azeroth as a gnome priest, blood elf warrior, or one of the other never-before-available race and class combinations.
• Guild Advancement: Progress as a guild to earn guild levels and guild achievements.
• New PvP Zone & Rated Battlegrounds: Take on PvP objectives and daily quests on Tol Barad Island, a new Wintergrasp-like zone, and wage war in all-new rated Battlegrounds.
• Archaeology: Master a new secondary profession to unearth valuable artifacts and earn unique rewards.
• Flying Mounts in Azeroth: Explore Kalimdor and the Eastern Kingdoms like never before.

Why are you revisiting the continents of Eastern Kingdoms and Kalimdor?
As we developed new content and expansions, we learned a lot of techniques to provide players with a better game experience–but the majority of the new content we were creating was for high-level characters only. We felt we could apply the lessons of Outland and Northrend to improve the gameplay experience while leveling in the original two continents. Imagine revisiting a familiar zone like Darkshore only to find Auberdine destroyed by the cataclysm–and then discovering entirely new towns and quests in other parts of the zone. Kalimdor and the Eastern Kingdoms are central to World of Warcraft lore, and we want those areas to remain an important part of the game, not just a place to train or auction. Our goal is to make questing, leveling, and the overall story more fun for new, returning, and existing players. By redesigning areas of the original continents and introducing new content that matches or exceeds the quality of Wrath of the Lich King, we can revitalize the nostalgia and coolness of Azeroth.

How did you decide upon the two new playable races, worgen and goblin?
The community has been requesting to play as the goblins for quite some time now, and we wanted to stick with at least one race that players were very familiar with. This expansion was the perfect time to bring the goblins to the forefront and offer more insight into their past, since the catastrophic events of the expansion really hit close to home. As for the worgen, players have been hoping to be able to learn more about them since Silverpine Forest. This is a great opportunity to explore their lore and the mysteries of the Greymane Wall. The worgen are an aggressive and beastly race, which is something you see often among the Horde races, but is unique among the Alliance races.

Will the two new races have all-new starting experiences?
Yes, we are creating all-new level 1 to 15 starting zones for both races. Players will start their adventures with the worgen in Gilneas, which was sealed off behind the Greymane Wall. Goblin players will start on the Isle of Kezan and then head to the Lost Isles in the South Seas before joining the mainland. Each starting experience will be presented in a fashion similar to the death knight starting area in Wrath of the Lich King, and these starting zones will make extensive use of our new phased-terrain technology.

Which classic zones have been overhauled? What are some examples of changes?
Nearly all of the game’s original zones are being altered to some degree, but the extent of the changes varies by zone. For example, Darkshore is flooded and has been completely redesigned with all new quest hubs. The Barrens have been split in two; one half is for low-level players and the other is for higher-level players. Azshara is now a low-level zone for Horde players and connects directly to Orgrimmar.

Is another Hero class being added to the game?
We are not planning to add a new Hero class in World of Warcraft: Cataclysm. For this expansion, it was more appropriate to focus on the two new races, the goblins and worgen. We never intended to include a Hero class in every expansion. As you saw with death knights, adding a new class changes the dynamics of the game dramatically, which is not something we want to do in every expansion. We still have plans to introduce new Hero classes in the future.

Will I be able to use my flying mount in the redesigned Eastern Kingdoms and Kalimdor?
Yes. While the original Eastern Kingdoms and Kalimdor weren’t designed for flying mounts, we’re redesigning the continents with flying mounts in mind. However, we’re still determining whether there will be any restrictions on where you will be able to fly, at what level flying will become available, or whether you’ll need to do anything to unlock it. We’ll share more details about this in the future.

Will I need the expansion to be able to experience the Cataclysm changes?
When the Cataclysm occurs, it will occur for all players, whether they have purchased the expansion or not–you will no longer be to play in the original version of Kalimdor or the Eastern Kingdoms. However, certain features such as the new zones, new races, and new level cap will only be accessible to players who purchase the expansion.

Will “phasing” be used more extensively in World of Warcraft: Cataclysm?
Yes. We’ve come up with a number of new, cool ways to using phasing since we introduced it in Wrath of the Lich King, and plan to use it more extensively to change the world as players progress. We are also now able to phase terrain, which players will see in the starting areas for the goblins and worgen. We’re also adding some UI improvements to help determine when another player is in a different “phase” from you.

Will there be any updates to the graphics and changes to the minimum system requirements?
Yes, there will be incremental tweaks and updates to the graphics engine in this expansion. For example, we’ve made improvements to the way that water is rendered. We’ll announce the exact system requirements closer to the expansion’s release.

I might post more info later. But, to be honest, there’s enough places out there for info right now. So, I’ll probably post commentary instead.

Here’s an HD version of the trailer for Cataclysm that was shown at BlizzCon a few hours ago. I anticipate it to become the most popular copy of the trailer on YouTube, just like my video for Wrath.

-Matt Graham

So, the plan is to start posting again. Sometimes “the plan” doesn’t work out. We’ll see what happens.

Oh, by the way, the new expansion for WoW was announced today at BlizzCon 2009. Anyone whose even semi-involved in WoW outside of the actual game probably already knew everything about the game a week ago anyways – thanks to MMO-Champion. Here’s some key info for the new WoW: Cataclysm.

What is the story of World of Warcraft: Cataclysm?
While the attention of the Horde and Alliance remained fixed upon Northrend, an ancient evil has been lying dormant within Deephome, the domain of earth in the Elemental Plane. Hidden away in a secluded sanctuary, the corrupted Dragon Aspect Deathwing has waited, recovering from the wounds of his last battle against Azeroth, nursing his hatred for the inferior creatures that infest the surface realm…and biding his time until he can reforge the world in molten fire. Soon, Deathwing the Destroyer will return to Azeroth, and his eruption from Deephome will sunder the world, leaving a festering wound across the continents. As the Horde and Alliance race to the epicenter of the cataclysm, the kingdoms of Azeroth will witness seismic shifts in power, the kindling of a war of the elements, and the emergence of unlikely heroes who will rise up to protect their scarred and broken world from utter devastation. The face of Azeroth is altered forever as the destruction left in Deathwing’s wake reshapes the land and reveals secrets long sealed away. Players will be able to re-experience familiar zones across Kalimdor and the Eastern Kingdoms, rewrought by the cataclysm and filled with new opportunities for adventure.

What are the features of World of Warcraft: Cataclysm?
Some of the new features of World of Warcraft: Cataclysm include:

• Two New Playable Races: Adventure as one of two new races–the cursed worgen with the Alliance or the resourceful goblins with the Horde.
• Level Cap Increased to 85: Earn new abilities, tap into new talents, and progress through the path system, a new way for players to improve characters.
• Classic Zones Remade: Familiar zones across the original continents of Kalimdor and the Eastern Kingdoms have been altered forever and updated with new content, from the devastated Badlands to the broken Barrens, which has been sundered in two.
• New High-Level Zones: Explore newly opened parts of the world, including Uldum, Grim Batol, and the great Sunken City of Vashj’ir beneath the sea.
• More Raid Content than Ever Before: Enjoy more high-level raid content than previous expansions, with optional more challenging versions of all encounters.
• New Race and Class Combinations: Explore Azeroth as a gnome priest, blood elf warrior, or one of the other never-before-available race and class combinations.
• Guild Advancement: Progress as a guild to earn guild levels and guild achievements.
• New PvP Zone & Rated Battlegrounds: Take on PvP objectives and daily quests on Tol Barad Island, a new Wintergrasp-like zone, and wage war in all-new rated Battlegrounds.
• Archaeology: Master a new secondary profession to unearth valuable artifacts and earn unique rewards.
• Flying Mounts in Azeroth: Explore Kalimdor and the Eastern Kingdoms like never before.

Why are you revisiting the continents of Eastern Kingdoms and Kalimdor?
As we developed new content and expansions, we learned a lot of techniques to provide players with a better game experience–but the majority of the new content we were creating was for high-level characters only. We felt we could apply the lessons of Outland and Northrend to improve the gameplay experience while leveling in the original two continents. Imagine revisiting a familiar zone like Darkshore only to find Auberdine destroyed by the cataclysm–and then discovering entirely new towns and quests in other parts of the zone. Kalimdor and the Eastern Kingdoms are central to World of Warcraft lore, and we want those areas to remain an important part of the game, not just a place to train or auction. Our goal is to make questing, leveling, and the overall story more fun for new, returning, and existing players. By redesigning areas of the original continents and introducing new content that matches or exceeds the quality of Wrath of the Lich King, we can revitalize the nostalgia and coolness of Azeroth.

How did you decide upon the two new playable races, worgen and goblin?
The community has been requesting to play as the goblins for quite some time now, and we wanted to stick with at least one race that players were very familiar with. This expansion was the perfect time to bring the goblins to the forefront and offer more insight into their past, since the catastrophic events of the expansion really hit close to home. As for the worgen, players have been hoping to be able to learn more about them since Silverpine Forest. This is a great opportunity to explore their lore and the mysteries of the Greymane Wall. The worgen are an aggressive and beastly race, which is something you see often among the Horde races, but is unique among the Alliance races.

Will the two new races have all-new starting experiences?
Yes, we are creating all-new level 1 to 15 starting zones for both races. Players will start their adventures with the worgen in Gilneas, which was sealed off behind the Greymane Wall. Goblin players will start on the Isle of Kezan and then head to the Lost Isles in the South Seas before joining the mainland. Each starting experience will be presented in a fashion similar to the death knight starting area in Wrath of the Lich King, and these starting zones will make extensive use of our new phased-terrain technology.

Which classic zones have been overhauled? What are some examples of changes?
Nearly all of the game’s original zones are being altered to some degree, but the extent of the changes varies by zone. For example, Darkshore is flooded and has been completely redesigned with all new quest hubs. The Barrens have been split in two; one half is for low-level players and the other is for higher-level players. Azshara is now a low-level zone for Horde players and connects directly to Orgrimmar.

Is another Hero class being added to the game?
We are not planning to add a new Hero class in World of Warcraft: Cataclysm. For this expansion, it was more appropriate to focus on the two new races, the goblins and worgen. We never intended to include a Hero class in every expansion. As you saw with death knights, adding a new class changes the dynamics of the game dramatically, which is not something we want to do in every expansion. We still have plans to introduce new Hero classes in the future.

Will I be able to use my flying mount in the redesigned Eastern Kingdoms and Kalimdor?
Yes. While the original Eastern Kingdoms and Kalimdor weren’t designed for flying mounts, we’re redesigning the continents with flying mounts in mind. However, we’re still determining whether there will be any restrictions on where you will be able to fly, at what level flying will become available, or whether you’ll need to do anything to unlock it. We’ll share more details about this in the future.

Will I need the expansion to be able to experience the Cataclysm changes?
When the Cataclysm occurs, it will occur for all players, whether they have purchased the expansion or not–you will no longer be to play in the original version of Kalimdor or the Eastern Kingdoms. However, certain features such as the new zones, new races, and new level cap will only be accessible to players who purchase the expansion.

Will “phasing” be used more extensively in World of Warcraft: Cataclysm?
Yes. We’ve come up with a number of new, cool ways to using phasing since we introduced it in Wrath of the Lich King, and plan to use it more extensively to change the world as players progress. We are also now able to phase terrain, which players will see in the starting areas for the goblins and worgen. We’re also adding some UI improvements to help determine when another player is in a different “phase” from you.

Will there be any updates to the graphics and changes to the minimum system requirements?
Yes, there will be incremental tweaks and updates to the graphics engine in this expansion. For example, we’ve made improvements to the way that water is rendered. We’ll announce the exact system requirements closer to the expansion’s release.

I might post more info later. But, to be honest, there’s enough places out there for info right now. So, I’ll probably post commentary instead.

Here’s an HD version of the trailer for Cataclysm that was shown at BlizzCon a few hours ago. I anticipate it to become the most popular copy of the trailer on YouTube, just like my video for Wrath.

-Matt Graham

Kiddies, you may want to sit down for this one. I have some bad news.

During a chat with ArsTechnica, Sony Computer Entertainment of America’s marketing director, John Koller, the longtime question of what Sony plans to do about PlayStation 2 backwards compatibility on PlayStation 3 was asked and met with a disturbing answer:

“It’s not coming back, so let me put that on the table,” Koller says…

“It’s not as big as a purchase intent driver as you may be hearing,” he claimed. “We’ve got such a substantial lineup of titles on the PS3; most people are buying the PS3 for PS3 games. They’re buying it for PS3 games and Blu-ray movies.

“That won’t be returning.”

Sadly, I’m inclined to think Sony is meaning it this time around. The newly introduced PS3 Slim is apparently going to be the future of the PlayStation 3 according to Mr. Koller in the same interview, this means all the features the Slim has and doesn’t have are all we will be getting, probably until Sony introduces the PlayStation 4. A major bummer considering that PS2 backwards compatibility is one of the things that pushed me into purchasing the once $600 console, especially since the patch released upscaling PS2 games.

This news doesn’t mean that Sony couldn’t bring PS2 games to the PlayStation Store ala the PSOne games it currently provides but then you have to wonder, what are they waiting for?

According to the July 2009 NPD numbers, the PlayStation 2 was the lowest selling of the three Sony systems, the second time in two consecutive months the system has fallen behind (it was also last in June). If Sony was waiting for consumers sales of the PlayStation 2 to slow down before they bring back PS2 and PS3 integration, now would seem to be the time to make their move.

As for the quote about consumers buying the PS3 for PS3 games, has Sony really given said consumers a choice in the last couple of years (60GB models were discontinued in 2007)?

Alright readers, sound off in the comment section below.

Read [ArsTechnica] Also Read [1UP] Also Read [Shacknews] Also Read [JoystickRadio]

Full Story ? | Written by Kris Rosado for Gamertell. | Comment on this Article ?

There has been a serious information explosion from Sony at GamesCom 2009 today, which rivals, and perhaps even puts to shame, the E3 2009 Sony press conference. After comparing the announcements, I’m definitely feeling more excited now.

The main announcement was the confirmation of a $299 slimmer PS3 that comes packaged with a 120 GB hard drive. The new version of the system will debut September, 2009. All existing PS3 models will experience a $100 price drop and will also cost $299 starting August 19, 2009. The new PS3 slim is 2/3 the size of the original PS3, and also uses 2/3 the power of the original PS3. It also comes with system software 3.00, has the Bravia Sync feature which lets you use a remote control, comes with a vertical stand and doesn’t allow other operating systems to be installed on it.

There’s also a big expansion coming to the PlayStation Store that PS3 and PSP owners have been waiting and begging for, TV shows and movies. Content for each region’s video section will be different and specifically tailored for that region, but it’s still great to know that it’s coming in November, 2009 for both the PS3 and PSP.

Europe will also be getting some new PSP colors soon. There will be Blossom Pink and Turquoise Green PSP-3000s released. The green PSP will also be available in a LittleBigPlanet bundle, in case you’re interested.

Some other major PSP announcements concern two new additions to the PlayStation Store. The first are minis, which are games that will be under 100mb. Minis will first be made available in North America and Europe on October 1, 2009. So there’ll be more downloadable goodness for PSPgo owners, especially since Sony is promising around 50 minis by the end of 2009 and EA is commiting to Sudoku and Tetris minis. The other big announcement is that digital reader is finally on the way, and will be in the North American and European PlayStation Stores in December, 2009. Marvel Comics, iVerse Media, Image Comics and IDW Publishing are among the comic companies who have commited to making content available via the service.

Sont also released a cavalcade of information about the following forthcoming games:

• Heavy Rain (PS3)
• ModNation Racers (PS3)
• Invizimals (PS3, PSP)
• Ratchet and Clank: A Crack in Time (PS3)
• Eye of Judgement (PSP)
• echoshift (PS3, PSP)
• Buzz! Quiz World (PS3, PSP)
• Fat Princess (PSP)
• Uncharted 2: Among Thieves (PS3)
• SingStar Take That (PS2, PS3)
• White Knight Chronicles (PS3)
• MAG (PS3)
• Jak and Daxter: The Lost Frontier (PSP)
• EyePet (PS3)
• LittleBigPlanet (PSP)
• DC Universe Online (PC, PS3)
• MotorStorm Arctic Edge (PS2, PSP)
• SOCOM: U.S. Navy SEALs: Fireteam Bravo 3 (PSP)
• God of War III (PS3)
• The Last Guardian (PS3)
• LocoRoco Midnight Carnival (PSP)
• PixelJunk Shooter (PS3)

And last, but not least, a bit of good news for Home fans. A version 1.3 upgrade is on its way, which will allow avatars to carry more stuff and also mark the debut of SingStar‘s community space.

Read [PlayStation.Blog Europe] Also Read [Stuff.tv] Also Read [Joystiq]

Full Story ? | Written by Jenni Lada for Gamertell. | Comment on this Article ?

In preparation for GamesCom 2009, BioWare and EA have let loose quite a bit of Mass Effect 2 information. We not only are finding out about the PC and Xbox 360 game’s storyline, but we also get to see a brand new trailer.

Once again, Commander Shepard is the hero/heroine of Mass Effect 2. Humans are now an endangered species, and it’s up to Shepard and his crew, which the player will hand select, to take part in what’s being called a suicide mission to find out why humans are disappearing and what can be done to stop it. Players get to choose from a wide variety of potential squad members. The first one revealed was Thane the assassin. The trailer released unveiled the second potential member, Grunt the Krogan.

Here’s the Grunt-centric Mass Effect 2 trailer that has been unveiled for GamesCom 2009. Let’s take a look:

Mass Effect 2‘s mission’s success is based on who you choose as your party members. Make the right choices and combinations to succeed. The wrong choices, however, can lead to a darker outcome.

I’m sure we’ll see a lot more Mass Effect 2 revelations over the next few days, once GamesCom 2009 really gets going.

Read [BeefJack.com] Also Read [Team Xbox] Site [Mass Effect 2]

Full Story ? | Written by Jenni Lada for Gamertell. | Comment on this Article ?

Haven’t caught all of the Gamertell news this week?? Here’s your chance to catch up on this week’s top 10 articles!

• Best Buy may be matching used prices on new games in some markets
  “The game retail market could be getting a little more competitive, if the photo of a recent Best Buy ad is any indication. An eagle-eyed Cheap Ass Gamer reader in Utah spotted a Best Buy advertisement proclaiming…” MORE ?
• Latest Xbox Live update features games on demand, Netflix upgrades
  ” Several much-awaited updates to Microsoft’s Xbox Live go into effect today (August 11, 2009).? The Games on Demand service allows for the purchase of full Xbox 360 games (either by credit card or with Microsoft Points) from the Xbox…” MORE ?
• Mimobot’s making a fancy Hello Kitty USB Flash drive
  “Mimobot, makers of fancy USB Flash drives, today (August 11, 2009) announced the upcoming release of a Hello Kitty themed Flash drives. The drives will be available early September 2009, pre-empting Hello Kitty’s 35th Anniversary on November 1,…” MORE ?
• Apple App Store gaming update for the week of August 3 to August 9, 2009
  “The Apple App Store gaming update is Gamertell’s weekly look at the previous week’s Apple App Store game releases. We cover them all – good and not so good – in their respective categories with a breakdown…” MORE ?
• PAX 2009 schedule announced
  “The independent gamers gathering, Penny Arcade Expo (aka PAX), has made it to a sixth year (which cannot be said for some corporate sponsored expos). The event will take place September 4 through 6,…” MORE ?
• Gamertell Review: Bionic Heart for PC (also Mac and Linux)
  ” Title: Bionic Heart Price: $19.99 System(s): Windows PC (also for Mac and Linux) Release Date: July 27, 2009 Publisher (Developer): Tycoon Games (Tycoon Games) ESRB Rating: N/A. Since there are some mature themes and…” MORE ?
• Expect to see Ankama at GamesCom 2009
  “Ankama, the force behind DOFUS, Wakfu and Dofus-Arena have decided to fully support GamesCom 2009 by attending the August 19-23, 2009 convention in Cologne, Germany. And when I say fully support, I mean…” MORE ?
• PlayStation Store Update: Trivia Guru’s delight! (August 9 to 15, 2009)
  ” This week’s PlayStation Store update features the game TV Show King for $9.99 for the PlayStation 3, in the style of the more popular television game shows like wheel of fortune, weakest…” MORE ?
• Sony Home Update: Criss Angel Mindfreak exclusives on Home
  “Home Theater Special items and Giveaways This week members of the Sony Home community are treated to exclusive clips from Criss Angel’s upcoming show and an exclusive limited time free item at the theater now through Aug. 12, 2009. The…” MORE ?
• Gamertell Preview: The Clique: Diss and Make Up, (aka Queen Teen: The Clique) for DS
  “When a game for girls is released, especially if it has a title that could be considered cute or an attempt to be overly feminine, it is often dismissed by the gaming masses as something…” MORE ?

Full Story ? | Written by NEWS for Gamertell. | Comment on this Article ?

Title: Ponyo
Release Date: August 14, 2009 (US), July 19, 2008 (Japan)
Rating: “G” for General Audiences.
Length: 1 hour, 41 minutes. (101 minutes)
Pros: Gorgeous visuals. For the most part, the voice acting is fantastic. Great pacing for the story. A nice mix of active and passive scenes. The music and soundtrack is absolutely wonderful.
Cons: Noah Cyrus’ voice (Ponyo) can occasionally be grating and/or annoying.
Overall Score: 9/10

Handdrawn, 2D animation is an endangered art form. Most films are now made with computers and companies have a habit of releasing everything in 3D. Thankfully, Studio Ghibli is still doing things the old fashioned way. The company’s latest film, Ponyo, is among its most beautiful, and is a new adaptation of Hans Christian Andersen’s The Little Mermaid.

A new take on The Little Mermaid.

Brunhilde is a little goldfish who lives under the sea with her father and sisters. All her life, she’s been stuck in and Fujimoto’s submarine, but she wants more out of life. She one day sets out to see what there is outside of the ocean she knows. Unfortunately, it doesn’t go too well and she ends up trapped in a bottle.

She’s then rescued by a young boy named Sosuke. He breaks the bottle trapping her and sets her free. She then licks clean a cut he got saving her, healing it with her magic. He renames her Ponyo and decides to keep her with him and protect her. Ponyo loves her new name and him. However, her father Fujimoto comes to claim her, dragging her home, and the Ponyo and Sosuke are separated.

Ponyo is then determined to not only find a way back to Sosuke, but also find a way to become a human. However, doing so could disrupt the world’s balance.

Ponyo is a reminder of how beautiful 2D animation can be.

Ponyo is the kind of movie you’d have to see twice. The first time, you’d see and appreciate the actual story presented on the screen. The second time, you’re able to focus on the detailed artwork on the screen. In fact, Ponyo sets a new record for Studio Ghibli films – there are 170,000 individual, handdrawn images in the movie.

It also features a wonderful sense of storytelling and pacing. The beginning of the movie is very relaxed, almost leisurely. The audience is able to take this time to get to know and identify with the characters, specifically Ponyo and Sosuke. It then gradually builds in intensity and action, and features a satisfying ending. It never feels rushed, and while there are some fairly intense and dark moments, even those don’t feel threatening. It’s just a trial that must be faced and overcome.

Disney did do a wonderful job when casting the English version, with one exception. Personally, I found Noah Cyrus (Ponyo) to be a tad annoying at times, as opposed to endearing, and I preferred Yuria Nara’s take on Ponyo. Frankie Jonas, on the other hand, does a decent job as Sosuke. Of course, Tina Fey (Lisa), Liam Neeson (Fujimoto) and Cate Blanchett (Gran Mamare) all provide wonderful performances, and so do Matt Damon, Betty White, Lily Tomlin and Cloris Leachman in their cameo appearances. Overall, it’s very well-acted.

A tale all ages and cultures can appreciate.

If you enjoyed previous Studio Ghibli movies, like Princess Mononoke, Howl’s Moving Castle and Spirited Away, you’ll fall in love with Ponyo. It’s an endearing adventure. The English language version is well cast, and it’s a joy to watch. I have a feeling that it will also become the most popular of the Studio Ghibli movies released in America, due to the familiar story and breathtaking visuals.

COMING NEXT WEEK: Important Importables looks at Japan’s Pokemon Centers.

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT: Last week Important Importables reviewed Nanashi no Game for the DS.

Site [Play-Asia] Site [YesAsia] Site [NCSX] Site [Himeya Shop] Site [Strapya World]

Full Story ? | Written by Jenni Lada for Gamertell. | Comment on this Article ?

EA is also among the major companies ready to step up and support GamesCom 2009. And the company’s going to be putting on quite a show. It is bringing 42 games across all platforms to display, including the iPhone.

There are a number of highlights to check out, from the extraordinary amount of games being displayed, to a special press conference (which you can watch online via live stream), an exclusive closed door area with special games being shown, a booth set up just for Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning and the demo debut of Star Wars: The Old Republic.

Let’s look at the list of games EA is bringing along, in some shape or form, in alphabetical order:

1. All Points Bulletin (PC)
2. Army of Two: The 40th Day (PS3, PSP)
3. Battlefield: Bad Company 2 (PC, PS3, Xbox 360)
4. Brütal Legend (PS3, Xbox 360)
5. Bubble Bobble Evolution (cell phone)
6. Command & Conquer 4 (PC)
7. Command & Conquer: Red Alert (cell phone)
8. Dante’s Inferno (PC, PS3, PSP, Xbox 360)
9. Dead Space Extraction (Wii)
10. Dragon Age: Origins (PC, PS3, Xbox 360)
11. EA Sports Active: Personal Trainer (Wii)
12. FIFA 10 (cell phone, DS, PS2, PSP, Wii)
13. FIFA Manager 10 (PC)
14. Fight Night Round 4 (PS3, Xbox 360)
15. Game of Life (iPhone)
16. GI Joe (cell phone)
17. GI Joe: The Rise of the Cobra (DS, PS2, PS3, PSP, Wii, Xbox 360)
18. Hasbro Family Game Night 2 (Wii)
19. Littlest Pet Shop: Beach Friends (DS)
20. Littlest Pet Shop: City Friends (DS)
21. Littlest Pet Shop: Country Friends (DS)
22. Mass Effect 2 (PC, Xbox 360)
23. Monopoly Classic (iPhone)
24. My Sims Agents (DS, Wii)
25. NBA Live 10 (TBA)
26. Need for Speed: Nitro (DS, Wii)
27. Need for Speed Shift (cell phone, PC, PS3, PSP, Xbox 360)
28. NHL 10 (PS3, Wii, Xbox 360)
29. Rage (PC, PS3, Xbox 360)
30. RockBand: The Beatles (PS3, Wii, Xbox 360)
31. The Saboteur (PC, PS3, Xbox 360)
32. SimAnimals: Africa (Wii)
33. The Sims 3 (iPhone, PC, Mac)
34. The Sims 3 World Adventures (PC, Mac)
35. Spore Hero (Wii)
36. Spore Hero Arena (DS)
37. Star Wars: The Old Republic ()
38. Tetris (iPhone)
39. Tiger Woods PGA Tour 10 (PS2, PS3, PSP, Wii, Xbox 360)
40. Tiger Woods PGA Tour Online (PC)
41. Trivial Pursuit (iPhone)
42. Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning (PC)

Now, bear in mind, not all of these games will be on display to the public. EA is going to have a press only business lounge set up in Hall 5.1, where special sessions will show off games not scheduled to appear at EA’s booth in Hall 6.1, like All Points Bulletin, Army of Two: The 40th Day, Command & Conquer 4, EA Sports Active: Personal Trainer, Rage, Rockband: The Beatles, The Sims 3 World Adventures, The Sabateur and Tiger Woods PGA Tour Online. The exclusive demonstrations will also show off information on some games that are appearing at the main booth, like Brütal Legend, Dante’s Inferno, Dead Space Extraction, Mass Effect 2 and The Sims 3.

If you’re attending and want to see, here are key EA locations to visit:

• General EA Booth: Hall 6.1, A-71, C-70 from August 19-23, 2009.
• EA Press Conference: Palladium, Schanzenstraße 36, Gebäude 197, 51063 Cologne at 4:30pm on August 18, 2009.
• Star Wars: The Old Republic demo debut: Hall 6.1 theater, B-066, A-061.
• Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning booth: Hall 9.1, Aisle A#041 and Aisle B#040.

Read [GamesIndustry.biz] Site [EA @ GamesCom]

Full Story ? | Written by Jenni Lada for Gamertell. | Comment on this Article ?

The independent gamers gathering, Penny Arcade Expo (aka PAX), has made it to a sixth year (which cannot be said for some corporate sponsored expos). The event will take place September 4 through 6, 2009, at the Washington State Convention and Trade Center in downtown Seattle, Washington.

The family-friendly gaming event admits anyone who can afford a ticket and promises, according to the press release sent today (August 12, 2009), “43 hours of content over three days, featuring a plethora of tournaments, freeplay areas,? geek movies, nerdcore concerts and panels by industry leaders on gamer lifestyle, challenges, education and careers.” Aside from the relatively low amount of adult content at the event (with the exception of the nerdcore performances), the event also embraces all types of gaming.

Tickets are $30 per day if you purchase passes prior to September 5, 2009, or $35 at the door (assuming any will be left). If you actually killed a tree to mail in a registration form, for shame. Oh, and it’s due this Saturday (August 15, 2009). Also, if you pre-register after August 15, you’ll need to pick up your fancy schmancy pass at the door.

The full PAX 2009 schedule is available as a PDF but here are a few haphazardly chronological panel or event highlights:

• PAX 2009 Keynote Ron Gilbert
• Breaking into the Game Industry the Educated Way
• Various Penny Arcade Q&As
• How can we make online gaming communities suck less?
• Post-N’Gai, Post-EGM Video Game Journalism, or Where Do We Go Now
• Working with Fans to Create Better Video Games
• Original Gangstas: Why Table-Top Gaming Still Packs Heat
• LIVE ON-STAGE DEMO – Assassins Creed II and Splinter Cell Conviction
• Psychiatry, Video Games, and Kids – The Science, The Opinions, and the Lies
• Girls and Games: The Growing Role of Women in the Game Industry
• Twitter and Beyond – New Game Communities Online
• Star Wars: The Old Republic live demonstration
• Pitch Your Game Idea (always popular)
• Sex in Videogames: A comparative Study
• “I’ve Just Been F#$%ing Fired”: How To Get Back Into the Industry On Your Own Terms Through Mobile Game Development
• Touching a New Generation: How the iPhone has Changed Portable Gaming
• Game Culture: How Gamers Impact Society & How Policy Affects Gamer Culture
• Wil Wheaton presents: THE AWESOME HOUR!!

PAX is a product of Penny Arcade webcomic strippers Jerry “Tycho” Holkins and Mike “Gabe” Krahulik.

If you go bring all of your portable gaming devices and make certain they are charged (and you have extra battery packs) since some of the events may require you wait in line for a while.

Site [PAX] Read [Gamertell] Download [PAX 2009 schedule (PDF)]

Full Story ? | Written by PJ Hruschak for Gamertell. | Comment on this Article ?

Home Theater

Special items and Giveaways

This week members of the Sony Home community are treated to exclusive clips from Criss Angel’s upcoming show and an exclusive limited time free item at the theater now through Aug. 12, 2009. The free item is a coffin-style sofa for their personal spaces, also, while watching the clip players will be entered into a give away for one of two real-life coffins used in Criss Angel: Mindfreak and one of three Criss Angel: Burn DVDs and books. Only five winners will be selected and to participate register and log on to Sony Home and visit Auditorium 1 to watch the video. Players can find the Theater in Central Plaza or by selecting the space from the World Map.

Home Shopping Mall

There really isn’t anything new going on space wise on home but there are a few new items available at the shopping mall located in Central Plaza, check it out:

Threads 1

Males Only:

• Western shirt for 99 cents
• Scenester Street top for 99 cents
• Victorian Vest and Shirt for 99 cents
• Padded Jacket for 99 cents
• Flower Power Button-down Shirt for 99 cents
• Bomber Jacket for 99 cents
• Argyle Ensemble for 99 cents
• Down Vest for 99 cents
• Board Shorts for 99 cents

Females Only

• Buckled Boots for 49 cents
• Ski Parka for 99 cents
• Cheongsam Top for 99 cents
• Jean Shorts for 99 cents

Threads 2

Both Male and Female:

• Animated Smiley Face T-shirt for $1.99
• Animated Revolving Earth T-shirt for $1.99

Males Only:

• Band Jacket for 99 cents
• Animated Growing Vines T-shirt for $1.99

Costume Shop

Males Only:

• Deep Sea Diver Bundle cost $1.99

Individual items:

• Deep Sea Diving Gloves cost 49 cents
• Deep Sea Diving Boots cost 49 cents
• Deep Sea Diving Helmet cost 99 cents
• Deep Sea Diving Suit Top cost 99 cents
• Deep Sea Diving Suit Pants cost 99 cents

Females Only:

• Cave Woman Bundle cost $1.99

Individual items:

• Prehistoric Bracelet cost 49 cents
• Prehistoric Fur Boots cost 49 cents
• Prehistoric Bodice cost 99 cents
• Prehistoric Mini-skirt cost 99 cents

Read [Playstation Blog] Site [PlayStation] Site [Criss Angel’s Official Website]

Full Story ? | Written by Lucy Newman for Gamertell. | Comment on this Article ?

This week’s PlayStation Store update features the game TV Show King for $9.99 for the PlayStation 3, in the style of the more popular television game shows like wheel of fortune, weakest link and others this game will challenge you, your friends and family with questions ranging from history to geography, literature to science and sports to entertainment. Check it out:

Also available for download is Crystal Defenders for $9.99. A defensive strategy game in which players deploy popular job classes used in Final Fantasy Tactics A2 like soldiers, monks, black mages and archers to strategically place them on the map to defend your crystals from a stream of enemy creatures that fly or crawl past your army.

Here’s a list of everything else that’s new:

Qore

• Qore Annual Subscription: August 2009 (PS3/$24.99)
• Qore Episode 15: August 2009 (PS3/$2.99)

Downloadable Games:

• Dynasty Warriors (PSP/$14.99)

Game Demos:

• Rag Doll Kung Fu Demo Demo (PS3/Free)
• Batman: Arkham Asylum Demo (PS3/Free)
• Crystal Defenders Demo (PS3/Free)
• Worms Demo (PS3/Free)

Bonus Game Contents:

• Cross Edge Trial Edition Pack (PS3/Free)
• Cross Edge Additional Dungeon 4 (PS3/Free)
• Cross Edge Enigma Synth Pack (PS3/Free)
• Dynasty Warriors 6 Empires Additional Music Set 3 (PS3/Free)
• Hannah Montana: Rock Out The Show Musicians Wardrobe Add-On (PS3/Free)
• Hannah Montana: Rock Out The Show Moment Maker Special Effects Add-On (PS3/Free)
• Hannah Montana: Rock Out The Show Stage Prop Add-On (PS3/Free)
• Hannah Montana: Rock Out The Show Fashions Add-On (PS3/Free)
• Cross Edge Latest Technology Pack (PS3/$1.99)
• Cross Edge Pretty Little Pack (PS3/$1.99)
• LittleBigPlanet: inFamous Costumes Pack (PS3/$1.99)
• GTI Club Plus (PS3/$1.99)
• Savage Moon Waldgeist Add-On (PS3/$4.99)
• Tiger Woods PGA Tour 2010 Cog Hill Golf & CC (PS3/$4.99)
• Call of Duty: World at War Map Pack 3 (PS3/$9.99)
• Call of Juarez: Bound in Blood Old West Map Pack (PS3/$9.99)

Guitar Hero World Tour Individual Songs:

• “Camel’s Night Out” by Eric Johnson (PS3/$1.99)

Rock Band Music Packs:

• Spinal Tap’s TAP TEN (PS3/$17.99)

Individual Songs:

• “America” by Spinal Tap (PS3/$1.99)
• “Big Bottom” by Spinal Tap (PS3/$1.99)
• “Cups and Cakes” by Spinal Tap (PS3/$1.99)
• “(Funky) Sex Farm” by Spinal Tap (PS3/$1.99)
• “Gimme Some Money” by Spinal Tap (PS3/$1.99)
• “Heavy Duty” by Spinal Tap (PS3/$1.99)
• “Hell Hole” by Spinal Tap (PS3/$1.99)
• “(Listen to the) Flower People (Reggae Stylee)” by Spinal Tap (PS3/$1.99)
• “Rock ‘n’ Roll Creation” by Spinal Tap (PS3/$1.99)
• “Stonehenge” by Spinal Tap (PS3/$1.99)
• “Tonight I’m Gonna Rock You Tonight” by Spinal Tap (PS3/$1.99)

Rock Band Unplugged bonus content:

• “Had a Dad” by Jane’s Addiction (PSP/$1.99)
• “Renegade” by Styx (PSP/$1.99)

Free Game Videos:

• TV Show King Trailer (English, French and Spanish versions) (PS3/Free)
• Unbound Saga Between the Panels Issue 2 (PS3/PSP/Free
• Watchmen The End Is Nigh Part 2 Launch Trailer (PS3/Free)
• Watchmen The End Is Nigh Part 2 The Complete Experience Launch Trailer (PS3/Free)
• G Force The Video Game Trailer (PS3/Free)
• Mini Ninjas Futo Gameplay Trailer (PS3/Free)
• Mini Ninjas Futo Vignette (PS3/Free)
• Mini Ninjas Shun Vignette (PS3/Free)

New Movies to Rent or Own:

• Obsessed. Rated PG-13 (Own/SD Format/$14.99)
• Miss March. Rated R (Rent/SD Format/$3.99)
• Miss March. Rated R (Rent/HD Format/$5.99)
• Miss March. Rated R (Own/SD Format/$14.99)
• Dragonball: Evolution. Rated PG (Rent/SD Format/$3.99)
• Dragonball: Evolution. Rated PG (Rent/HD Format/$5.99)
• Dragonball: Evolution. Rated PG (Own/SD Format/$14.99)
• The T.O. Show Season 1. Rated TV Y-7 (Own/SD Format/$1.99)
• Saber Rider and the Star Sheriffs. Rated G (Own/SD Format/$1.99)

Wallpapers and Themes:

• College Football Theme: Arkansas (PS3/$1.99)
• College Football Theme: Clemson (PS3/$1.99)
• College Football Theme: Colorado (PS3/$1.99)
• College Football Theme: Illinois (PS3/$1.99)
• College Football Theme: Missouri (PS3/$1.99)

Read [PlayStation Store Blog] Site [PlayStation]

Full Story ? | Written by Lucy Newman for Gamertell. | Comment on this Article ?

Haven’t caught all of the Gamertell news this week?? Here’s your chance to catch up on this week’s top 10 articles!

• Monster Hunter Tri on the way to the Wii in 2010
  ” Capcom’s formally announced what many of us already knew thanks to the company’s May investor briefing – Monster Hunter Tri, aka Monster Hunter 3, is going to be released outside of Japan. The game just…” MORE ?
• Special Effects: A few fanciful game industry predictions
  “There’s no doubt that the current economic recession is having an impact on the video game industry. Companies are downsizing, consolidating or closing (which means games are getting delayed or canceled), games stores are cutting back and game-related publications are also feeling the pressure. Of course, a recession cannot last…” MORE ?
• Apple App Store gaming update for the week of July 27 to August 2, 2009
  “The Apple App Store gaming update is Gamertell’s weekly look at the previous week’s Apple App Store game releases. We cover them all – good and not so good – in their respective categories with a breakdown…” MORE ?
• PlayStation Store Update: Let them eat cake! (August 2 to 8, 2009)
  ” This week’s PlayStation Store is featuring the game Fat Princess for $14.99 for the PlayStation 3, this game is about capturing and keeping your enemies princess while rescuing your own, except there’s…” MORE ?
• Sony Home Update: Zombies spotted, Fat Princess wants cake
  ” This week on PlayStation Home there are several new events taking place that will continue to entertain the PS Home community and one very promising upgrade to one of PS Home’s hangouts.? New and…” MORE ?
• Gamertell Review: Help Wanted for Wii
  ” Title: Help Wanted Price: $29.99 System(s): Wii Release Date: May 12, 2009 Publisher (Developer): Hudson (Hudson Soft) ESRB Rating: Everyone 10+ for Comic Mischief, Mild Cartoon Violence and Mild Suggestive Themes Pros: 50…” MORE ?
• Get Madden NFL 10 free with a Sports Illustrated subscription
  ” Boom! If you don’t have to be the first kid on the block to play Madden NFL 2010, Sports Illustrated has a deal for you. You can get 28 weeks of Sports Illustrated and a copy of the wildly…” MORE ?
• Pokemon Platinum owners can connect to Wi-Fi for Darkrai
  “Owners of Pokemon Platinum for the DS will be able to do what Action Replay DS owners have all probably done by now, get the Member Card to trigger the Darkrai catching event! The MORE ?
• Sims go around the world with the first Sims 3 expansion pack
  ” That was quick. EA has already announced the first Sims 3 expansion pack. Of course, we all knew this announcement was coming. Honestly, I think it’s a bit tardy. After all, the game came…” MORE ?
• A look at the allure of Harvest Moon
  ” The Harvest Moon games are something special. They’ve developed a devoted cult following, which people who have never experienced the games may not understand. Especially since, on the surface, each game seems to be pretty much the same.…” MORE ?

Full Story ? | Written by NEWS for Gamertell. | Comment on this Article ?

Boom! If you don’t have to be the first kid on the block to play Madden NFL 2010, Sports Illustrated has a deal for you.

You can get 28 weeks of Sports Illustrated and a copy of the wildly popular game for $49. There’s also an NFL films DVD about John Madden’s road to the Hall of Fame.

If you cancel the subscription you can keep the game and DVD for $26 (you get the rest refunded, they don’t hit you for an additional $26).

Needless to say, they’re not going to ship it to you before the game’s official release. EA’s a multi-billion corporation for a reason, folks. But if you can just wait 4-6 weeks, you can get the game for less than half of its regular retail price. If you can’t wait, well, I bet you’ve already got your pre-order turned and been obsessively playing the demo for weeks now. Yeah, me too.

Initial indications are that whichever route you take to purchase, this could be one of the years that Madden is more revolutionary than evolutionary. The big improvement EA is touting this year is the Pro-Tak animation technology. This reportedly allows players to break out of any tackle animation, so the play isn’t over until it’s over. This, in theory, makes it easier for running backs to keep throwing out the special moves and for quarterbacks to evade sacks.

As a defender, you can keep adding to the pile up to nine-man gang tackles. Fights for the fumble are getting more interactive with a button-pressing mini-game.

Yes sports fans, quick time has come to Madden Football.

Read [Time Inc.] Also Read [Examiner]

Full Story ? | Written by Brian Allen for Gamertell. | Comment on this Article ?

Full Story ? | Written by NEWS for Gamertell. | Comment on this Article ?

The Harvest Moon games are something special. They’ve developed a devoted cult following, which people who have never experienced the games may not understand. Especially since, on the surface, each game seems to be pretty much the same. Natsume obviously gets it, as the series is probably it’s best known property. Games in the series have appeared on practically every system, including the Wii, GameCube, PS2, PS1, PSP, DS, GBA, Game Boy Color, Game Boy and SNES.

It’s only when you take a closer look at the Harvest Moon series that you appreciate what the games allow players to achieve. I recently had the opportunity to rent the Wii entry, Harvest Moon: Tree of Tranquility, and fell in love with the series again because of it.

So if you’ve never played the games and are wondering why people are drawn to them, here’s a brief overview of Harvest Moon‘s many charms.

There’s more to the world than what you can see.

There’s a strong fantasy element present in the Harvest Moon world, in the form of the Harvest Goddess, Harvest Sprites, and occasionally the Harvest God, Witch Princess and Wizard Prince. These fantasy characters won’t do mystical and magical things every day, but sometimes Harvest Sprites will help you at your farm or the Harvest Goddess will bestow some kind of blessing. It’s really more about the element of fantasy being there, but the whole point of the game is to focus on hard work and real, daily life.

Hard work is rewarded.

In Harvest Moon the overall goal is to be a successful farmer. And, thankfully, there’s really no way to fail. If you want to focus on crops to build your wealth, go for it. Or if you’d prefer to raise animals, that’s fine too. There’s really no way to totally waste or lose money, especially in the Wii entry, Harvest Moon: Tree of Tranquility, where you can take a part time job during the day at one of the island’s establishments to earn some extra cash. As long as you’re making some sort of effort, you’ll gradually earn money that you can put toward expanding your place.

There’s no need to rush.

There are no deadlines in the majority of the Harvest Moon games. You can work at your own pace to achieve your goals, and you can spend as much or as little time a day/week/month playing the game to reach those goals. Once you’ve developed a basic farming routine for essential work and your character has built up some stamina, it’s easy to complete many tasks. There is an in-game clock, but unless it’s a festival day, you need to attend to a potential spouse event or you need to get to one of the stores before it closes, you can pretty much ignore that.

Small actions can make a difference in the lives of others.

Harvest Moon also has elements of a communication game. Players can develop relationships with all of the townspeople, and sometimes even the supernatural characters like the Harvest Goddess, Harvest Sprites, Witch Princess, Wizard or Harvest God. If you become good friends with people, you could unlock special events, earn the right to enter their homes, get special items, learn new recipes or perhaps even get one of the bachelor or bachelorette characters to marry your character. Building a relationship could be somewhat trying in earlier games, where you’d have to talk and give gifts to townspeople, but in more recent games relationships can be built by talking on a regular basis or working at the same job together.

No two games are ever really the same.

There are two basic plot elements to every Harvest Moon game – the Harvest Goddess is in some kind of trouble and there’s a dilapidated farm your character is going to restore to prosperity. Plus there’s the whole animal/crop raising and townspeople to make friends with. Aside from the fundamentals, Harvest Moon is sort of a sandbox game. Since there are no requirements that must be met to have a successful farm, you can achieve it any way you want. So you could mine, ranch, harvest, fish or work part time jobs until you get enough money to expand your little empire. Plus, there can be different villagers, crops or farm animals in each entry. Occasionally the tasks to assist the Harvest Goddess do require players to perform certain tasks, but again, assisting her isn’t mandatory. Each time you play, you can use different strategies to succeed.

Site [Natsume]

Full Story ? | Written by Jenni Lada for Gamertell. | Comment on this Article ?

Haven’t caught all of the Gamertell news this week?? Here’s your chance to catch up on this week’s top 10 articles!

• New Battlestar Galactica series to begin airing January 2010
  “SyFy sent out a press release today (July 27, 2009) announcing that the new Battlestar Galactica series, titled Caprica, will start airing 9:00 p.m., January 22, 2010, on the SyFy channel. The first episode…” MORE ?
• Comic Con 2009: Gettin’ telekenetic with Mattel’s Mind Flex
  “Have you ever thought you had telekinesis? Well it turns out everyone does! I didn’t believe it myself until I tried out the new Mind Flex game by Mattel at Comic Con this year.? …” MORE ?
• Comic Con 09: Hands on with Smith Micro’s Anime Studio Pro 6
  ”? Animation and manga software company Smith Micro has just released it’s newest version of Anime Studio and Gamertell was able to get an exclusive look at it at the 2009 San Diego Comic Con.…” MORE ?
• Gamertell Interview: Madden NFL 10 Wii art director, Tim Spangler
  ”? I was able to meet the art director of the Madden NFL 10 for the Wii, Tim Spangler, at this year’s San Diego Comic Con (2009). Tim has…” MORE ?
• Three free, browser-based, text-based RPGs worth gaining experience in
  “RPGs weren’t always glorious, lavish epics with cutting edge graphics, intense character development, voice acting and entire world to explore. No, they started out more simply. With pen, paper and people’s imaginations. Some people have sought to reclaim that nostalgic…” MORE ?
• Apple App Store gaming update for the week of July 20 to July 26, 2009
  “The Apple App Store gaming update is Gamertell’s weekly look at the previous week’s Apple App Store game releases. We cover them all – good and not so good – in their respective categories with a breakdown…” MORE ?
• PlayStation Store Update: Shattered (July 26 to Aug. 1, 2009)
  ”? This week’s PlayStation Store is featuring the game Shatter for $7.99 for the PlayStation 3, this…” MORE ?
• Opinion: When a DS device is an in-game tool, a game becomes believable
  “Video games are designed to take players into an entirely new world. The goal of developers is to make this new environment identifiable, and to create an atmosphere where players can lose themselves in this virtual world and feel they’re a part…” MORE ?
• Comic Con 2009: A closer look at three new Playstation games
  ” Playstation was hands-on at Comic Con this year and Sony brought out a few of its best games for the PS3 and PSP to show off. I attended a media party at the Hard Rock Hotel (across the street…” MORE ?
• Comic Con 09: A peek at DC Universe
  ”? DC Comics fans are surely anxious for the release of Sony Online’s newest MMO, DC Universe, to come out on the PC and PS3. I was able to get a look at this awesome title at MORE ?

Full Story ? | Written by NEWS for Gamertell. | Comment on this Article ?

Fear Clinic is one of the first series that will be exclusively online and will play exclusively on Fearnet.com sometime in October 2009. The show is directed by Robert Hall (Sarah Connor Chronicles, Laid to Rest) and includes horror greats Robert Englund and Kane Hodder (Freddy and Jason, respectively), co-stars Danielle Harris (Halloween remake) and newcomer Lucas Till, among others.

The show is about Dr. Andover (Englund) who claims to be able to cure any phobia by using his patented “fear chamber.” Several unsuspecting clients come to his clinic hoping to get cured. They realize however, the horrors that are in store for them. There are five episodes made so far, each dealing with a different phobia.

I was fortunate enough to sit at a roundtable interview with Hall and the actors to discuss this upcoming series.

First up was Englund, who I could write this whole article about alone. Englund was a nice, docile old man, despite the usual characters he plays. He is also very animated and loves to talk about his projects and past endeavors. It was actually hard to keep him on the topic of this series.

“[Fear Clinic] is looking to raise the bar on the horror experience. It started with a script written by Aaron Drane who wanted to put this series on the web, so we had to figure out how to chunkcate these chapters into episodes.” He also mentioned that each episode would only be about 5-8 minutes long, and that it is all spent anticipating what will happen. “It’s great working with such a fun cast, but we end up killing off half of them.”

Hall, who is the director and producer of the series, was also excited to talk. “I grew up as a horror kid. Jason 7 was my favorite horror movie, so to be able to work with greats like Englund and Hodder is a horror kids dream.”

I asked what he thought about the series being on the internet rather than on TV and he said, “I’m actually cool with it being online, with things like Hulu and YouTube, I don’t think it matters anymore. You know it’s gonna get to people.”

I talked to Danielle Harris about her character Susan who is the first client. Her character suffers from scotophobia (fear of the dark). She said, “Susan’s parents died when she was young, and no one really cared about her. She meets Andover and, even though he is probably trying to kill her, he is the first person to really care about her, which gives them a weird sort of relationship.”

I asked Englund about his character and how he interacts with Harris’ character. “Andover can’t cure her and, because of this, she becomes his obsession, his Achilles heal, because she is his only failure.”

We will see Harris a lot in these episodes, as she tries to escape from this clinic, unlike the other phobia’s who will only be dealt with in one episode.

Kane, who is mainly a stunt man, plays Andover’s nurse in the series. He told me that it was great to work with such a great cast. “Me and Englund were actually in several movies together, but this is the first time we are in scenes, acting together.” He also told me that he prefers to be an actor and a stuntman because it’s easier to coordinate an actor when you are playing them.

Finally there was Lucas Till who is best known for his role as Travis in the Hannah Montana movie. “It is really cool to be able to work with Englund and Hodder in this show, I am not a huge fan of the horror genre, so this is all new to me.” Till worked previously with Hall in Laid to Rest, which is how he got the role.

I had a good time talking to these awesome people and it really got me excited about this new series. It is unclear whether or not their will be more than five episodes since, as Hall explained, it really depends on how the show does and how audiences perceive it. “I would love there to be more and more shows on the internet, and it is great that we are the first one,” Kane said.

Site [Fear Clinic] Read [Dread Central]

Full Story ? | Written by Jessica Moen for Gamertell. | Comment on this Article ?

Playstation was hands-on at Comic Con this year and Sony brought out a few of its best games for the PS3 and PSP to show off. I attended a media party at the Hard Rock Hotel (across the street from Comic Con) and was able to try out a few of the awesome titles coming out. Here are three I was able to extensively play.

Ratchet and Clank: A Crack in Time

They showed us two different parts of the game, one with Ratchet and one with Clank. Clank’s was a but hard, basically you had to step on these platforms and by doing so it created a clone of him that would mimic everything he did until you stopped the recording. You would use this to your advantage to open a door that required you to stand on two platforms. You press Go and your clone runs over and stands on the platform like you did, while you stand on the other to open the door and run through. This got harder as the puzzles got more difficult since you had to make multiple clones doing different things. It was actually a bit frustrating.

Ratchet’s was basically him running around in this big open field and trying all his gadgets while killing huge machines. You got to try out his hover boots (which allow you to float quickly across the land and over water) and various weapons to destroy all the huge machines that were walking around. Much simpler, but I still didn’t quite know what I was doing. Either way it gave us a sneak peek about what the game would be like. It’s coming out Fall 2009

Heavy Rain

I was excited to try this out since I read about it a while back. The game starts with you being a detective with futuristic gear that allows you to analyze DNA and other evidence simply by touching it. You walk into a junk yard and talk to a rather tough looking guy operating the forklift. You ask him about a specific car and he basically tells you to go stick it. So you are on your own to look for clues. By hitting your controls you activate your special glasses that allow you to see all the evidence stick out at you. By clicking on specific things like a DNA or tire tracks, you can determine if it belongs to the person or car your looking for.

It took a while to figure all this out. I did a lot of walking around, button mashing, and consulting with people around me to get to this point. After you search around for awhile, the big tough guy gets angry and confronts you, eventually grabbing you and dragging you along with a gun to your head. If you hit certain buttons when the icons pop up, you can knock things in his way, or trip him up long enough to get away or grab the gun. This part requires perfect timing and you may need to start over.

Another feature of the game is to know what is on the characters mind and what he thinks about different things. By clicking a button, you bring up several options including mood, sadness, weather, etc. When you click on these, you get a better sense of how he feels about himself and what’s around him. I think once you get the control schemes down, this could be a very fun game. It reminded me a bit of Indigo Prophecy for the PS2. Available sometime in 2010.

Fat Princess

This was an awesome, fun little title. It is a “Defend the Castle” type game that can be played online. I was playing as a character from the red team, defending my castle from the blue team. You can pick from five classes including mage, archer and gunner. You can change these classes at will and each class has different weapons you can switch from by hitting a button. All you do to switch classes to to pick up the different hats. The hats are found at your base (produced by machines) or by finding them on the field. You can even get a rivals hat.

Not only do you have to defend you castle but you have you have to infiltrate the rivals castle and save your princess who is in the rival castle. This is not easy because people will be shooting at you from all over. The best option is teamwork, which was hard for me since I was playing with people I couldn’t communicate with. In order to stop the rivals from saving their princess, you can feed her cake that you find laying around the field. When you feed them the cake, the princesses get fatter and fatter, and it will take several people to work together to save her, making her harder to rescue.

This was a fast paced, quick moving game that had a lot of fun with. If you get killed, you just start back at your base and try again. And you can play with your friends online to team up against the rivals, or be on separate teams for more competition! This title is available at the end of the month at the Playstation store.

Site [Playstation] Read [IGN] Read [Gamertell]

Full Story ? | Written by Jessica Moen for Gamertell. | Comment on this Article ?

Animation and manga software company Smith Micro has just released it’s newest version of Anime Studio and Gamertell was able to get an exclusive look at it at the 2009 San Diego Comic Con.

Anime Studio is a program that allows you create fun and detailed Anime cartoons. It’s easy to use and great for a beginning animator. I was able to get a hands-on view of all the features of this program.

The animator started out with a basic drawing – a big blob – and then got to the animating. By clicking on an icon, the animator was able to add bends to his blob so that it was able to bend it’s appendages. He also showed me how to expand or contrast an object so that it got bigger or smaller as it walked across the screen.

On feature I thought was cool was the motion sensor. The animator took an object and had it move across the screen for a few frames, then he added a sensor to a different object that allowed it to follow the first one across the screen. In this case it was a car driving down the street. He added a motion sensor to a chicken he took from the clip art and that caused the chicken to follow the car (at a distance) creating the illusion that it is chasing the car.

I was also shown various effects you can add to your animation such as rain falling, wind blowing, and even allow for a warp speed effect (for a spaceship). These effects are built into the program, and you can also create your own effects. There is also clip art included into the program for quick use, all you have to do is add the animation. You can even import 3D animation onto the program and into Flash.

From what I saw in the display, the controls all seem simple and easy to use. There are many different things you can do to make your character animated. As with everything, it will take practice to get all the effects down, but once you get to know how each icon works, you will be able to make great anime cartoons.

You don’t even have to be an artist, you can make a great cartoon using some of the clip art and scenery already included in the program, as well as your own crude or well drawn characters.

The product is in stores now and is available for $199.99. A bit pricey but worth it if you are truly trying to become an animator or just have a passion for it. It is available on both Mac and Windows.

Site [My Smith Micro] Read [Gamertell] Also read [Designer Today]

Full Story ? | Written by Jessica Moen for Gamertell. | Comment on this Article ?

This week’s PlayStation Store is featuring the game Shatter for $7.99 for the PlayStation 3, this game is an interesting twist to the old school classic Super Breakout with each level more challenging than the one before. The game features multiple game play modes, a trophy system, more than 90 minutes of original music and a leader board system so players can challenge friends.

Calling all Final Fantasy fans! This is a must download demo of all time. Dissidia Final Fantasy free at the PSN store for the PSP. In this game you can assume the role of your favorite Final Fantasy hero or villain in this battle of ultimate destiny. Who wouldn’t want a second chance to kick Kefka’s butt or even wipe the smile off Kuja’s face again? Or relive the battle between Sephiroth and Cloud? Fight in various environments every Final Fantasy game deserves.

Also, with Comic-Con 2009 underway the PlayStation Store has created a special category for all things comic related from movies to games and an exclusive sneak peek of an upcoming animated film Green Lantern: First Flight available for download.

PSOne Classics:

• Spec Ops: Covert Assault (PS3/$5.99)
• Wild Arms 2 (PS3/$5.99)

Downloadable Games:
*Free themes are available now until July 31, 2009, with purchase of any of these Tomb Raider downloads.

• Tomb Raider: Legend (PSP/$12.99)
• Tomb Raider: Anniversary (PSP/$12.99)

Game Demos:

• Call of Duty: World at War Demo (PS3/Free)

Bonus Game Contents:

• Cross Edge Fluffy Synth Pack (PS3/Free)
• Cross Edge Chicken Prediction Pack (PS3/Free)
• Cross Edge No Sense of Direction Pack (PS3/Free)
• Cross Edge Fickle Woman Pack (PS3/Free)
• Dynasty Warriors 6 Empires Additional Music Set 2 DLC (PS3/Free)
• Dynasty Warriors Strikeforce Pack 3 (PSP/Free)
• Overlord 2 Battle Rock Pack (PS3/$4.99)
• Killzone 2 Napalm & Cordite Pack (PS3/$5.99)
• Tiger Woods PGA Tour 2010 Banff Springs (PS3/$7.50)
• Wipeout HD? Fury Add-On (PS3/$9.99)
• Killzone 2 DLC Bundle Pack (PS3/$11.99)

Guitar Hero World Tour Music Packs:

• Vagrant Records Track Pack (PS3/$5.49)

Individual Songs:

• “All the World is Mad” by Thrice (PS3/$1.99)
• “The Martyr” by Senses Fail (PS3/$1.99)
• “Young Cardinal” by Alexisonfire (PS3/$1.99)

Rock Band Music Packs:

• Kings of Leon Pack 01 (PS3/$5.49)

Individual Songs:

• “Crawl” by Kings of Leon (PS3/$1.99)
• “Molly’s Chambers” by Kings of Leon (PS3/$1.99)
• “Sex on Fire” by Kings of Leo (PS3/$1.99)

• Rancid Track Pack 01 (PS3/$5.49)

Individual Songs:

• “Last One to Die” by Rancid (PS3/$1.99)
• “Time Bomb” by Rancid (PS3/$1.99)
• “Ruby SoHo” by Rancid (PS3/$1.99)

• Rise Against Track Pack 01 (PS3/$5.49)

Individual Songs:

• “Prayer of the Refugee” by Rise Against (PS3/$1.99)
• “Re-Education (Through Labor)” by Rise Against (PS3/$1.99)
• “Savior” by Rise Against (PS3/$1.99)

Single track:

• “Sweetness and Light” by Lush (PS3/$1.99)

Rock Band Unplugged bonus content:

• “The Boys are Back in Town” by Thin Lizzy (PSP/$1.99)
• “Casey Jones” by Grateful Dead (PSP/$1.99)

Free Game Videos:

• Alpha Protocol CG trailer (E3 Trailer) (PS3/Free)
• Alpha Protocol Developer Diary #4 (PS3/Free
• Battlefield 1943 Launch Trailer (PS3/Free)
• Digger Trailer (PS3/Free)
• Gran Turismo B/W Trailer (PS3/PSP/Free)
• Killzone 2 Boltgun 4400 (PS3/PSP/Free)
• Killzone 2 Napalm & Cordite Pack Video (PS3/PSP/Free)
• The King of Fighters XII Trailer 3 – Be the King (PS3/PSP/Free)

New Movies to Rent or Own:

• Confessions of a Shopaholic. Rated PG (Rent/SD Format/$3.99)
• Confessions of a Shopaholic. Rated PG (Own/SD Format/$14.99)
• Coraline. Rated PG (SD Format/$14.99)
• Fast & Furious. Rated PG-13 (SD Format/$14.99)
• Dragonball: Evolution. Rated PG (Rent/SD Format/$3.99)
• Dragonball: Evolution. Rated PG (Rent/HD Format/$5.99)
• Dragonball: Evolution. Rated PG (Own/SD Format/$14.99)

Wallpapers and Themes:

• Overlord II Minions Theme (PS3/Free)
• Overlord II Overlord Theme (PS3/Free)
• College Football Theme: Miami (PS3/$1.99)
• College Football Theme: North Carolina (PS3/$1.99)
• College Football Theme: Michigan (PS3/$1.99)
• College Football Theme: Tennessee (PS3/$1.99)
• College Football Theme: Utah (PS3/$1.99)

Read [PlayStation Store Blog] Site [PlayStation]

Full Story ? | Written by Lucy Newman for Gamertell. | Comment on this Article ?

This week’s PlayStation Store is featuring the game Shatter for $7.99 for the PlayStation 3, this game is an interesting twist to the old school classic Super Breakout with each level more challenging than the one before. The game features multiple game play modes, a trophy system, more than 90 minutes of original music and a leader board system so players can challenge friends.

Calling all Final Fantasy fans! This is a must download demo of all time. Dissidia Final Fantasy free at the PSN store for the PSP. In this game you can assume the role of your favorite Final Fantasy hero or villain in this battle of ultimate destiny. Who wouldn’t want a second chance to kick Kefka’s butt or even wipe the smile off Kuja’s face again? Or relive the battle between Sephiroth and Cloud? Fight in various environments every Final Fantasy game deserves.

Also, with Comic-Con 2009 underway the PlayStation Store has created a special category for all things comic related from movies to games and an exclusive sneak peek of an upcoming animated film Green Lantern: First Flight available for download.

PSOne Classics:

• Spec Ops: Covert Assault (PS3/$5.99)
• Wild Arms 2 (PS3/$5.99)

Downloadable Games:
*Free themes are available now until July 31, 2009, with purchase of any of these Tomb Raider downloads.

• Tomb Raider: Legend (PSP/$12.99)
• Tomb Raider: Anniversary (PSP/$12.99)

Game Demos:

• Call of Duty: World at War Demo (PS3/Free)

Bonus Game Contents:

• Cross Edge Fluffy Synth Pack (PS3/Free)
• Cross Edge Chicken Prediction Pack (PS3/Free)
• Cross Edge No Sense of Direction Pack (PS3/Free)
• Cross Edge Fickle Woman Pack (PS3/Free)
• Dynasty Warriors 6 Empires Additional Music Set 2 DLC (PS3/Free)
• Dynasty Warriors Strikeforce Pack 3 (PSP/Free)
• Overlord 2 Battle Rock Pack (PS3/$4.99)
• Killzone 2 Napalm & Cordite Pack (PS3/$5.99)
• Tiger Woods PGA Tour 2010 Banff Springs (PS3/$7.50)
• Wipeout HD? Fury Add-On (PS3/$9.99)
• Killzone 2 DLC Bundle Pack (PS3/$11.99)

Guitar Hero World Tour Music Packs:

• Vagrant Records Track Pack (PS3/$5.49)

Individual Songs:

• “All the World is Mad” by Thrice (PS3/$1.99)
• “The Martyr” by Senses Fail (PS3/$1.99)
• “Young Cardinal” by Alexisonfire (PS3/$1.99)

Rock Band Music Packs:

• Kings of Leon Pack 01 (PS3/$5.49)

Individual Songs:

• “Crawl” by Kings of Leon (PS3/$1.99)
• “Molly’s Chambers” by Kings of Leon (PS3/$1.99)
• “Sex on Fire” by Kings of Leo (PS3/$1.99)

• Rancid Track Pack 01 (PS3/$5.49)

Individual Songs:

• “Last One to Die” by Rancid (PS3/$1.99)
• “Time Bomb” by Rancid (PS3/$1.99)
• “Ruby SoHo” by Rancid (PS3/$1.99)

• Rise Against Track Pack 01 (PS3/$5.49)

Individual Songs:

• “Prayer of the Refugee” by Rise Against (PS3/$1.99)
• “Re-Education (Through Labor)” by Rise Against (PS3/$1.99)
• “Savior” by Rise Against (PS3/$1.99)

Single track:

• “Sweetness and Light” by Lush (PS3/$1.99)

Rock Band Unplugged bonus content:

• “The Boys are Back in Town” by Thin Lizzy (PSP/$1.99)
• “Casey Jones” by Grateful Dead (PSP/$1.99)

Free Game Videos:

• Alpha Protocol CG trailer (E3 Trailer) (PS3/Free)
• Alpha Protocol Developer Diary #4 (PS3/Free
• Battlefield 1943 Launch Trailer (PS3/Free)
• Digger Trailer (PS3/Free)
• Gran Turismo B/W Trailer (PS3/PSP/Free)
• Killzone 2 Boltgun 4400 (PS3/PSP/Free)
• Killzone 2 Napalm & Cordite Pack Video (PS3/PSP/Free)
• The King of Fighters XII Trailer 3 – Be the King (PS3/PSP/Free)

New Movies to Rent or Own:

• Confessions of a Shopaholic. Rated PG (Rent/SD Format/$3.99)
• Confessions of a Shopaholic. Rated PG (Own/SD Format/$14.99)
• Coraline. Rated PG (SD Format/$14.99)
• Fast & Furious. Rated PG-13 (SD Format/$14.99)
• Dragonball: Evolution. Rated PG (Rent/SD Format/$3.99)
• Dragonball: Evolution. Rated PG (Rent/HD Format/$5.99)
• Dragonball: Evolution. Rated PG (Own/SD Format/$14.99)

Wallpapers and Themes:

• Overlord II Minions Theme (PS3/Free)
• Overlord II Overlord Theme (PS3/Free)
• College Football Theme: Miami (PS3/$1.99)
• College Football Theme: North Carolina (PS3/$1.99)
• College Football Theme: Michigan (PS3/$1.99)
• College Football Theme: Tennessee (PS3/$1.99)
• College Football Theme: Utah (PS3/$1.99)

Read [PlayStation Store Blog] Site [PlayStation]

Full Story ? | Written by Lucy Newman for Gamertell. | Comment on this Article ?

Haven’t caught all of the Gamertell news this week?? Here’s your chance to catch up on this week’s top 10 articles!

• Sony Home Update: New spaces, new stores, more items galore
  “The PlayStation Home has been updated with three new spaces to new stores at the mall and more stuff than you can shake a stick at. And like a 3-year-old in the candy isle at WalMart, I’m hopped…” MORE ?
• Open Plea: Sony, please drop the PS3’s price, the industry needs it
  “Contrary to what we were reporting this time a year or so ago, the game industry is not recession proof.? Video games just took their biggest monthly sales drop in nearly a decade. Even GameStop,…” MORE ?
• Comic Con 2009: Kotobukiya’s lineup and schedule (with frickin’ lightsaber chopsticks)
  ” Statue, figure maker and cool stuff creator Kotobukiya has released its full schedule and lineup of offerings for the 2009 San Diego Comic Con taking place July 23 through 26, 2009 (with a…” MORE ?
• Gamertell Review: Harry Potter and the Half-Blooded Prince the movie
  “Title: Harry Potter and the Half-Blooded Prince Release Date: July 15, 2009 Company: Warner Bros. Rating: “PG” Length: 153 min (2 hours, 33 minutes) Pros: All of the actors…” MORE ?
• Apple App Store gaming update for the week of July 13 to July 19, 2009
  “The Apple App Store gaming update is Gamertell’s weekly look at the previous week’s Apple App Store game releases. We cover them all – good and not so good – in their respective categories with a breakdown of the great games and the free games right where you want ‘em,…” MORE ?
• iTunes offers free download of Inuyasha’s first episode
  ” I know there were a lot of Inuyasha fans and gamers disappointed by the lackluster DS RPG Inuyasha: Secret of the Divine Jewel. Hopefully, today’s news will make up for it. Apple has a habit of trying to…” MORE ?
• Sam Raimi to direct World of Warcraft film
  ” Ain’t It Cool News let the Corrupted Cat out of the bag and now Blizzard has confirmed it with a release: Sam Raimi will direct the World of Warcraft movie. Raimi is world famous for directing…” MORE ?
• PlayStation Store Update: Namco Essentials, PSN Game Sale (July 19 to July 25, 2009)
  ” This week’s the PlayStation Store is featuring the Namco Museum Essentials collection for $9.99 bringing…” MORE ?
• See Jake Gyllenhaal run, backflip and spin kick as the Prince of Persia
  ” There’s been a bit of controversy about Jake Gyllenhaal playing The Prince of Persia in the upcoming movie, so the above pic from Entertainment Weekly may or may not sway your opinion. Nonetheless,…” MORE ?
• Japanese Imports: Big fat list of J-List updates for July 2009
  “It’s been way too long since I posted an update of the game-related and generally interesting items being offered at Japanese import site J-List and under-18 site J-Box. To help bring everyone back up to speed,…” MORE ?

Full Story ? | Written by NEWS for Gamertell. | Comment on this Article ?

Full Story ? | Written by NEWS for Gamertell. | Comment on this Article ?

This week there weren’t as many casual game releases as last week, but there was still a fairly adequate amount. It almost seemed like this week’s motto should be “Quality over quantity,” as quite a few anticipated and intriguing games were released.

The two most expected games were undoubtedly Alawar’s Farm Frenzy 3 and Ouat’s Pure Hidden. Which means, naturally, that they’re named as this week’s best bets. One’s your standard time management game, where you manage all sorts of farming tasks and animals. The other is a zen approach to the hidden object and casual genre, with a New Age feel and artsy design.

This week, time management games are the way to go. They dominate this update, so simulation and strategy fans should take note and see if there’s something they’d like.

This week’s best bets are: Pure Hidden (PC, Mac) and Farm Frenzy 3 (PC).

Midnight Mysteries: The Edgar Allen Poe Conspiracy
Genre: Puzzle (Hidden Object)
Availability: Big Fish Games, Harmonic Flow
Retail Price: $6.99
Platform: Windows XP and Vista
Premise: Ghosts guide you through hidden object puzzles as you attempt to not only find important information to help you finish your novel, but also discover the truth behind Edgar Allen Poe’s murder.
Demo Available: Yes

Paradise
Genre: Adventure
Availability: Big Fish Games, Harmonic Flow
Retail Price: $6.99
Platform: Windows XP and Vista
Premise: A young woman named Ann Smith was flying across Africa when an unknown assailant shot down her plane, leaving her stranded with amnesia. If she can reach her father, she can find out the truth, but she faces a long journey before she reaches him.
Demo Available: No

Megaplex Madness: Summer Blockbuster
Genre: Simulation (Time Management)
Availability: Big Fish Games, Harmonic Flow
Retail Price: $6.99
Platform: Windows XP and Vista
Premise: You are the brand new owner and manager of a multiplex. Your goal is to create a successful theature by taking good care of five theaters and making sure your customers are happy. There are also arcade mini-games included.
Demo Available: Yes

Megaplex Madness: Now Playing
Genre: Simulation (Time Management)
Availability: Big Fish Games
Retail Price: $6.99
Platform: Mac 10.4 and 10.5 (also for PCs)
Premise: Get ready to restore classic movie theaters! Do what ever it takes to get the theaters running and keep customers happy. Arcade mini-games also are accessible in the game.
Demo Available: Yes

Pure Hidden
Genre: Puzzle (Hidden Object)
Availability: Harmonic Flow
Retail Price: $9.99
Platform: Windows XP and Vista, Mac 10.4 and 10.5
Premise: There’s no story in Pure Hidden, just artistic little puzzles to solve. There are 66 cream boxes. You choose to open them, playing one of the assorted puzzles within. When you do well, you unlock wallpapers for your desktop relating to the game.
Demo Available: Yes, a web-based trial is available at the Pure Hidden site http://www.purehidden.com/.

My Kingdom for the Princess
Genre: Puzzle
Availability: PlayFirst, Big Fish Games, Harmonic Flow, RealArcade
Retail Price: $19.95
Platform: Windows 98, ME, 2000, XP and Vista
Premise: The sick King Sigmund wants to see his daughter, so it’s up to you to travel across the kingdom to bring her home to the castle. It won’t be an easy task though, since the kingdom’s been assault by natural disasters lately, not to mention a dragon, and you’ll have to use puzzle solving skills to find paths that will lead her home.
Demo Available: Yes

Farm Frenzy 3
Genre: Strategy (Time Management)
Availability: Alawar Games
Retail Price: $19.95
Platform: Windows
Premise: Scarlett wants to be president of the Farmers’ Union, and the best way to do so is show what a fantastic farmer she is. In an effort to win votes, she does a massive campaign tour across five countries where she helps farmers in order to gain their respect and their vote.
Demo Available: Yes

Passport to Perfume
Genre: Simulation (Time Management)
Availability: PlayFirst, Harmonic Flow
Retail Price: $19.95
Platform: Windows XP and Vista, Mac 10.4 and 10.5
Premise: Following along the lines of Chocolatier and Wine Maker Extraordinaire, Passport to Perfume lets players see what it’s like to become a perfume mogul in the 1940’s. You follow Sophia, who starts out a beginner and is working her way towards becoming a premier perfume artisan. The ultimate goal is to recreate Marie Antoinette’s perfume.
Demo Available: Yes

Editor’s Note: Due to so many casual games sites offering game plans or preferred member prices, which can cause a game to have multiple price-points, the games’ average retail prices is mentioned in Casual Friday.

Site [Big Fish Games] Site [PlayFirst] Site [GameHouse] Site [eGames] Site [Alawar Games] Site [Amazon] Site [Reflexive Arcade]

Full Story ? | Written by Jenni Lada for Gamertell. | Comment on this Article ?

Contrary to what we were reporting this time a year or so ago, the game industry is not recession proof.? Video games just took their biggest monthly sales drop in nearly a decade. Even GameStop, a company that has been able to do no wrong financially, is feeling it.

In an economy where folks are losing their houses, cars and 401Ks, there is no bigger albatross in the gaming industry than the PlayStation 3. Launching with a hefty $600 price tag, the PS3 has more in common with GMC’s Hummer vehicle than it does with the PS2. Both the gas-guzzling SUV and the overpriced game machine are symbols of an excess most of society can’t afford right now. Looking back, it’s easy to understand Sony’s thought process. Their last generation competitors – weren’t competitors. If it weren’t for the Halo series, the Xbox would have been the Nintendo GameCube. And the Nintendo GameCube was the Nintendo GameCube. I want to make more fun of Nintendo for its effort last gen. But since they re-released the GameCube with a fancy new motion controller and are now the biggest success story in gaming, it looks as if the joke is on the rest of us.

Sony was in the driver’s seat. It had decisively won the last two console wars and there was no reason to expect it wouldn’t do it again. Then the company gave us 600 reasons it wouldn’t. Once the price of the new console was announced, it was akin to a huge disfiguring mole. As much as you try not to look at, talk about or acknowledge it, it’s really the only thing you can see. Thus, it was the focus of every mainstream media article about the PS3 and most of the gaming articles. Sony may as well have called it The Sony This-Machine-and-a-Game-Will-Set-You-Back-700-Big-Ones System.

My first car didn’t cost me $700 and my first apartment didn’t cost $700 a month. With the exception of my house and current vehicle, nothing I own cost me $700. And I’m the target market for the PlayStation 3. The guy that can drop $700 on a game console and not miss the money can afford numerous other diversions such as trips to the Bahamas with surgically-enhanced female companions. Us common working folk are having it rough and now even “escapist” hobbies such as movies and video games are feeling it.

Who am I in the grand scheme of things? Nobody whose words will echo in industry halls. But I’m not the only one saying this. Activision’s Bobby Kotick fired a huge salvo threatening to pull support for the PS3 if it didn’t cut the price. Sony CEO Howard Stringer fired back that Kotick likes to make “a lot of noise.” True, and Amy Winehouse has impulse control issues, what’s your point, Howard? These gross understatements don’t have anything to do with the core issue here: the PlayStation 3, even at $400, costs too much to sell in current economy.

The bottom line is that Sony is nearly as responsible for the current state of game sales as General Motors and its Big Three comrades is for the nosedive in the automotive industry. When the company that was winning in spectacular fashion starts losing in equally spectacular fashion, there are ripple – scratch that – there are tidal wave effects throughout the industry.

And before the responses come, I don’t hate Sony or the PS3. It would be ludicrous for me to wish ill will on any console maker since I make my living in the game writing industry. I want Sony to get it right so we can have the true three-way slugfest this console war should be. I also want an Xbox 360 that doesn’t crap out and I want mature content on my Nintendo Wii.

I complain because I care.

Since Sony had a large part in creating the current mess, they should pitch in and help out. It is true that in the short term, they will lose a lot more money on each console. But no Sony executive and their talk of 10-year console cycles can convince me the company won’t lose even more money long term if it finishes a distant third in the console race.

I don’t know a single gamer who wouldn’t like to be able to play more games and they can’t do that without buying more games. The industry model has long been to take the short-term loss on the hardware to sell customers on the software. This isn’t 2007. The games Sony predicted would sell this system, including Metal Gear Solid 4, are here now. Another system seller in God of War 3 is coming.

It would be a crying shame if no one could afford to play them without selling an organ.

Read [Bloomberg] Also Read [Edge Online]

Full Story ? | Written by Brian Allen for Gamertell. | Comment on this Article ?

Full Story ? | Written by NEWS for Gamertell. | Comment on this Article ?

By now PS3 Killzone 2 players have probably gotten a bit tired of the “Steel & Titanium” and “Flash & Thunder” downloadable content map packs. After all, the first was released April 30, 2009 and the second June 11, 2009. Well, the PlayStation.Blog has just announced that “Napalm & Cordite,” the third add-on, will be released July 23, 2009.

Like the previous Killzone 2 dlc, “Napalm & Cordite” is going to contain two maps to be used in the multiplayer mode. The first is the mining village environment Suljeva Cliffside. The second is situated in Blood Meridian’s defense post area and is called Arctower Landing.

“Napalm & Cordite” also contains a bit of a surprise. The previous add-ons simply contained new maps and trophys. “Napalm & Cordite” also allows players to use two single player mode weapons in multiplayer. The VC1 Flamethrower appears in Suljeva Cliffside and the Boltgun 4400 appears in Arctower Landing.

So if you own the game and you’ve been searching for an excuse to pick it up and play again, “Napalm & Cordite’s” as good a reason as any.

Read [PlayStation.Blog] Site [Killzone]

Full Story ? | Written by Jenni Lada for Gamertell. | Comment on this Article ?

Joystiq reports that Eidos has registered a trademark for Kane and Lynch 2: Dog Days.

Although Kane and Lynch: Dead Men is destined to be remembered more for the PR fallout known as Gertsmanngate than the game itself as it sold well for Eidos. So it’s no surprise that the game is poised to receive a sequel.

Besides which, you know what they say: There’s no such thing as bad publicity. Go ahead, name another digital crime tale that played to average reviews that will get anywhere near the press coverage this sequel is going to (especially one that nobody has tried to use as a defense for committing a real crime).

The 2007 game did introduce a couple of new characters to the gaming canvas in Kane and Lynch. In an industry rampant with game mascots spitting out their 500th game installment, there’s something to be said for that.

Eidos may have registered the trademark but Kane and Lynch‘s IP now belongs to Square Enix. Square Enix is no doubt looking for marketable properties to get the most bang for its acquisition buck. As long as Kane and Lynch don’t show up in the next Kingdom Hearts, I have no beef with that.

Read [Gamertell] Also Read [Joystiq]

Full Story ? | Written by Brian Allen for Gamertell. | Comment on this Article ?

Bad news for PlayStation 3 owners of Fallout 3. That downloadable content that you thought was going to be available in June, 2009, isn’t. Of course, you probably already realized that by now, given that it’s July already. The thing is, you’re going to have to wait quite a bit longer to play “Operation: Anchorage,” “The Pitt,” “Broken Steel,” “Point Lookout” and “Mothership Zeta.” Think September, 2009. Well, technically October, 2009, since the official PlayStation.Blog says the first DLC will be out at September’s end.

In order to make up for the massive delay, the release schedule is going to be altered. “Broken Steel”, which continues the main story, raises the level cap and adds in new enemies, will be released first. (It was the third add-on for the Xbox 360 and PC versions.) “Operation: Anchorage” and “The Pitt” will be released next, and Bethesda teases that they may be out at the same time. “Point Lookout” and “Mothership Zeta” will be released last.

Originally, the Fallout 3 DLC wasn’t going to be released for the PS3, but Bethesda changed its mind and, in May 2009, announced that the PS3 would also receive all of the add-ons available to Xbox 360 and PC owners. So while this delay is a crushing blow to PS3 owners’ spirits, be happy that you’re getting the downloadable content to begin with.

By the way, that chuckling you hear? That’s the Xbox 360 and PC owners gloating over the fact that they already can own and have all of the add-on DLC with the exception of “Mothership Zeta”, which comes out July 28, 2009.

Read [PlayStation.Blog] Via [Joystiq]

Full Story ? | Written by Jenni Lada for Gamertell. | Comment on this Article ?

Haven’t caught all of the Gamertell news this week?? Here’s your chance to catch up on this week’s top 10 articles!

• PlayStation Store Update: The Punisher shows no mercy, bonus content, too (July 5 to July 11, 2009)
  ” This week’s store features The Punisher: No Mercy by Zen Studios available exclusively on the PlayStation Network for $9.99. Frank Castle is back and ready to dish out a whole new kind…” MORE ?
• McFarlane’s makin’ more Halo toys
  “McFarlane Toys recently announced the second wave of Halo Odd Pod figures, its 2009 San Diego Comic-Con figure and a small slew of other Halo-themed figures and figure-related products. The Odd Pod figures are hand-painted, stand 4…” MORE ?
• More that 13,000 games in the Apple App Store and counting
  “Yep, that’s right. More than 13,000 games are currently avaialble in Apple’s App Store to help drain the battery on your iPhone or iPod Touch. According to a chart by Mobclix, there are currently 13,117 games available, comprising 20.7% of…” MORE ?
• Gamertell Review: Harcos’ Mana Energy Potion
  ” Product: Mana Energy Potion Price:? two for $6.90 Rating: Two thumbs sideways, 73/100, C, * * out of 5 Pros: 50mL of drink. Cute bottle. Portable. Contains Vitamin B1, B3, B6, B12…” MORE ?
• Rumor: Next PSP might include a quad core chip
  “If you believe a Google translation of a rumor on a foreign language web site, the next PSP may utilize four cores which would give it more processing and graphics power than the original Xbox console. The English version of Eurogamer…” MORE ?
• Gamertell Review: Shin Megami Tensei: Devil Survivor for DS
  ” Title: Shin Megami Tensei: Devil Survivor Price: $29.99 System(s): DS Release Date: June 23, 2009 Publisher (Developer): Atlus (Atlus) ESRB Rating: “Teen” for Fantasy Violence, Language, Mild Blood, Partial Nudity MORE ?
• Help Atelier Annie use alchemy to build a resort and attract a prince
  “The Atelier game universe is expanding in North America. NIS America has just announced that it is planning to localize Gust’s DS game Atelier Annie. Siliconera first discovered rumors of the release in the GameFly listings,…” MORE ?
• Peggle and World of Warcraft collide in an unexpected manner
  “Love Peggle, but don’t want to actually pay for it? Congratulations, there’s a solution. To help promote the fact that the PopCap games Peggle and Bejeweled can be played in World of Warcraft, PopCap games and Blizzard Entertainment have…” MORE ?
• Gamertell Review: Naruto: Clash of the Ninja Revolution 2 for Wii
  ” Title: Naruto: Clash of the Ninja Revolution 2 Price: $29.99 System(s): Wii Release Date: October 21, 2008 Publisher (Developer): Tomy (Eighting) ESRB Rating: “Teen” for Cartoon Violence and Mild…” MORE ?
• Gamertell Review: 101-in-1 Explosive Megamix for DS
  ” Title: 101-in-1 Explosive Megamix Price: $19.99 System(s): DS Release Date: April 21, 2009 Publisher (Developer): Atlus (Nordcurrent) ESRB Rating: “Everyone” for Comic Mischief and Cartoon Violence Pros: You get 101 games…” MORE ?

Full Story ? | Written by NEWS for Gamertell. | Comment on this Article ?

For those who might not yet quite enough gaming garb, now you can get T-shirts featuring Diner Dash‘s main character, Flo.

PlayFirst, owners of the Diner Dash franchise, have opened Flo’s Closet where anyone can purchase onlinesix Flo-themed shirts priced US$14.99 to $19.99. The shirts include a large art image on the front featuring a slogan and a smaller slogan hidden elsewhere on the shirt:

• The Girl with Gumption / Take a Chance, You Can Do It
• Not Another Princess. I’m My Own Fairy Godmother / Dare to make a change.
• Roll Up Your Sleeves, Dreams Take Work / Do What You Love
• All In a Day’s Work / Believe In Your Dreams
• Dream It, Do It / Look At Life Funny Side Up
• Elbow Grease is the New Black / Dream Big. Work Hard.

According to the company’s press release, the T-shirts are not simply another income stream:

The launch of Flo’s Closet is deliberate in its timing as it aims to inspire and encourage women to strive towards success in challenging times. A recent study reiterates this potential showing that female business owners are surviving the downward trend better than other businesses and Flo’s in-game character notoriously rejected the corporate life and aggressively pursued a more meaningful venture as a successful restaurateur.

While games offer an enjoyable escape from tough times, Flo’s character also mirrors real life experiences and faces difficult decisions – her ultimate message in the game world and the real world is designed to inspire and empower.

All of the shirts are designed for women and range in size from Small to XXLarge,

The original Diner Dash restaurant management game debuted in 2004 for PC and Mac, spawning several sequels and portable releases (PSP, DS and iPhone).

Site [Everyday Gear] Read [Gamertell]

Full Story ? | Written by PJ Hruschak for Gamertell. | Comment on this Article ?