Videogames Archives - Page 124 of 185

Coffee Talk #156: What Would Make You Enjoy Motion Controls?

Perhaps this is a lost cause, but I’m going to go ahead and do it anyway. I mean, I know most of you guys hate motion controls. A lot of you dismiss them as gimmicky and limited. I maintain that they can be lots of fun in the rights hands (I’m talking about developer’s hands, not your hands or Reona Rewis’ hands).

Welcome to Coffee Talk! Let’s start off the day by discussing whatever is on your (nerd chic) mind. Every morning I’ll kick off a discussion and I’m counting on you to participate in it. If you’re not feelin’ my topic, feel free to start a chat with your fellow readers and see where it takes you. Whether you’re talking about videogames, Ray Allen lighting up the Lakers last night, tonight’s three-hour episode of WWE Monday Night Raw, or what the hell happened to Mark Teixeira, Coffee Talk is the place to do it.

Do you see a way for you to enjoy motion-control games? Perhaps a particular developer or genre would work better for you? Maybe you have a great motion-control experience in your head and haven’t seen a game that executes it properly. Share your thoughts on motion (please)! Do you see a way that Wii, Natal, or Wave can be fun for you personally?

Project Natal Leads to Father Smacking Son (Accidentally)

Ah, the perils of Project Natal. A writer for Parade recently tried out a few demos for Project Natal with his family. While he seemed generally impressed with Microsoft’s motion-control peripheral, playing with it led to a funny incident that caused him to smack his son to tears:

We next tried an obstacle course where you have to dart under trees and jump over logs. I was really working it, leaning my body and windmilling my arms. Unfortunately, Zane, 3, wandered a bit too close to me and, well, I inadvertently smacked him in the face. He started crying. The Microsoft representatives on hand for the demo looked like they might cry, too.

Personally, I would have went on a Tom Hanks rant from A League of Their Own. “Are you crying? Are you crying?!? There’s no crying! There’s no crying in Xbox!!!” I’m sure I wouldn’t find this as funny as I do if I had a son of my own…but I don’t, so it’s frickin’ hilarious.

Source via Engadget

PaRappa Creator Developing WINtA Pro Bono for OneBigGame

WINtA, by PaRappa the Rapper creator Masaya Matsuura, is being developed in a unique way for a unique publisher. Matsuura-san’s company NanaOn-Sha is working on the game pro bono for OneBigGame, which is a non-profit publisher that donates at least 80 percent of its profits to various charitable organizations that help kids. Here’s more info on this game for the iPhone and iPod Touch:

Designed by godfather of music games Masaya Matsuura, WINtA is the next logical step in the genre as it comes up with a new way of involving players in a song’s music and lyrics. Combining elements of pattern recognition challenges with the natural tendency of humans to tap along with music and words, WINtA goes a step beyond the highway of colored symbols which has become synonymous with music games ever since PaRappa the Rapper set the tone in 1996. Making full use of the iPhone and iPod touch’s touch abilities, WINtA provides a fun and natural way for people to tap along to their favorite songs whilst creating a unique and addictive game challenge at the same time.

I hope the project does well, partially because Matsuura-san is frickin’ awesome and partially because I want OneBigGame to succeed. With all the crap that publishers have been pulling lately, the concept of a non-profit publisher seems so alien to me. I’d love for OneBigGame to knock one out of the park with WINtA. Hopefully some of you support the game too!

I could use some more fuzzies today. Please let me know what you think about this cool project and unique publisher.

Coffee Talk #155: Worst Addition to Gaming in the Last Five Years?

Yesterday we had a fun discussion about the best thing to happen to gaming in the last five years. Today I want to talk about the worst thing. While EA’s Online Pass has been making the news lately, I’m sure there are worse things we can think of, right?

Welcome to Coffee Talk! Let’s start off the day by discussing whatever is on your (nerd chic) mind. Every morning I’ll kick off a discussion and I’m counting on you to participate in it. If you’re not feelin’ my topic, feel free to start a chat with your fellow readers and see where it takes you. Whether you’re talking about videogames, Drogba missing the World Cup with a broken arm, Miley Cyrus getting in touch with her lesbian side, or Rasheed Wallace being the only Celtic thay played last night, Coffee Talk is the place to do it.

I’m actually having a hard time thinking about the “worst” thing. Perhaps I’m a generally positive person (at least, when it comes to this business). Some people think Bobby Kotick is gaming’s anti-Christ, but I love him simply for giving me so many things to write about. A lot of people hate DRM, but I’m not much of a PC gamer anymore so the problem doesn’t bother me. I guess the thing that bugs me the most is that game creators still aren’t recognized for their awesome works. Things have gotten a little better, but this business is still more about the publisher than it is the developer, sadly.

Now it’s your turn! What’s the worst thing about the last five years of gaming?

What Are You Playing This Weekend?

For some reason, my recent gaming choices have been all Nintendo. This weekend I’ll be playing more Glory of Heracles for Nintendo DS. It’s a fun RPG written by Kazushige Nojima, who worked on several Final Fantasy games, various Kingdom Hearts titles, and Super Smash Bros. Brawl. On the Wii I’ll be playing Sakura Wars: So Long, My Love. It’s a strategy RPG that’s…well…very Japanese — very quirky and unusual in a way that I love.

How about you? What’s on your weekend playlist?

Gran Turismo 5 Still Isn’t Out: Do You Care?

E3 2010 is just around the corner and Sony is set to reveal a ton of information, including the latest update on Gran Turismo 5. It feels like Sony has been talking about this game for 12 years. Yes, it’s finally coming out this year…but do you guys and dolls still care? (And yes, it’s fine if you say that you don’t care but still plan to buy the game — just admit it!)

EA Sports President Peter More Explains Online Pass…Badly

EA has been getting a lot of heat for its Online Pass, also known as “the $10 solution” that combats used-game sales. While it’s clear that it makes money for publishers and indirectly benefits developers, it also limits consumer choice and hoses retailers. EA Sports president Peter Moore explained the reasoning behind Online Pass to MCV and the his words were…interesting:

Online Pass is a way for us to frankly bring more digital experiences quicker. If it is going to be successful, it is up to us to create compelling, fresh, 365-days a year, digital experiences. And there is a cost to serve that we deserve to get paid for.

What our consumers are telling us, and the growth that we are seeing, is that the preference now is not to buy lots and lots of games, but to spend more money on fewer games. In fiscally challenging times, maybe a gamer won’t buy three games anymore, maybe they’ll buy two and spend the other $60 or £30 on extendable content, on experiences they know they love, rather than taking the risk on another product.

The first paragraph is reasonable, though certainly arguable. The second paragraph is just a bunch of crap. In a “fiscally challenging” time, EA’s strategy is to make games more expensive and less accessible? Really?!? My budget has been limited lately and I’m definitely buying less games. I’m definitely not spending more money on less games.

I have a ton of respect for Moore. He’s smart, approachable, and one of the coolest execs in gaming, but I can’t back his stance on Online Pass. I’d love to hear what you think of Moore’s comments. Shout it out!

Source

Coffee Talk #154: Best Addition to Gaming in the Last Five Years?

Gaming evolves at a ridiculous pace. Thinking about the videogames I played as a kid and what I play now…it’s just crazy! The improvements made in the last couple of years — just a few years! — are also impressive. Today I’d like to know what your favorite gaming innovation is from the last five years.

Welcome to Coffee Talk! Let’s start off the day by discussing whatever is on your (nerd chic) mind. Every morning I’ll kick off a discussion and I’m counting on you to participate in it. If you’re not feelin’ my topic, feel free to start a chat with your fellow readers and see where it takes you. Whether you’re talking about videogames, having a perfect game ruined by a bad call, Japan’s prime minister resigning and asking people to keep following him on Twitter, or the possibility of foul play in Gary Coleman’s death, Coffee Talk is the place to do it.

For me it’s definitely digital downloads. I love that I can download games for $5 to $10. Whether it’s a board game, a new arcade title, or a treasured classic, making impulse purchases from the comfort of my couch is just powerful and awesome (and sometimes financially dangerous). Before digital downloads proliferated, I had to order games or go to a store — often spending at least $40 for a title. The cheapness and immediacy of digital downloads rule!

So how about it? In your opinion, what’s the best thing that’s happened to gaming in the last five years?

Project Natal Shown at D8: All Things Digital

Here’s a video of the Project Natal demo at D8, the All Things Digital conference. It’s interesting to see how the tech crowd reacts to the peripheral. Hosts Walt Mossberg and Kara Swisher have a basic understanding of gaming, but are more interested in how Natal can possibly influence the future of general electronics. It’s important for Microsoft to show this product to a broad audience and the crowd at D8 is full important people that will probably not be at E3.

Here’s Captain America’s Movie Look!

Ain’t it Cool News has several illustrations of the Captain America costume that will be used in the upcoming movie starring The Human Torch Chris Evans. Obviously this look will be used in the related Captain American videogames as well. Check out the images and let’s discuss it! Do you miss the wings? Do you prefer this Ultimates looks? Or do you like the classic looks from the original comics?

Source