Videogames Archives - Page 130 of 185

Dragon Age Origins Feastday Gift/Prank Guide

In the spirit of my Dragon Age: Origins character and gift guide for the Awakening expansion pack, here’s a listing of the items for the “Feastday” DLC. I totally missed this one while I was in Asia. It’s an amusing batch of DLC that also adds some in-game items. The gifts and pranks can be purchased separately for $1.99 on PSN or 160 BioWare/Microsoft Points. They can be purchased together for $2.99 on PSN or 240 BioWare Microsoft Points.

In addition to gifts and pranks that will swing character approval by 50 points, there are generic items that let you manipulate approval ratings. The character-specific items can be used in game too. For example, Dog’s plastic cone can be equipped for a hilarious look and Morrigan can use her Alistair doll to inflict voodoo pain on him. Here’s the full list:

Alistair
Grey Warden Hand Puppet (+50)
Compleat Geneaology of the Kyngs of Ferelden (-50)

Dog
Stick (+50)
Plastic Cone (-50)

Leiliana
Fat Lute (+50)
Ugly Boots (-50)

Loghain
King Maric’s Shield (+50)
Orlesian Mask (-50)

Morrigan
Alistair Doll (+50)
The Chant of Light Unabridged (-50)

Oghren
Beard Flask (+50)
Scented Soap (-50)

Shale
Pet Rock (+50)
Uncrushable Pigeon (-50)

Sten
Quanari Prayers of the Dead (+50)
Butterfly Sword (-50)

Wynne
Amulet of Memories (+50)
Cat Lady’s Hobble Stick (-50)

Zevran
Rare Antivan Brandy (+50)
Chastity Belt (-50)

Lost Planet 2 Party Pictures

Last night I went to an excellent party for Lost Planet 2. In addition to drinks and food, there was an LP2 tournament, custom t-shirts from I Am 8-Bit, a Lost Planet ski-ball machine, tons of celebrities I didn’t know, and that Olivia chick from the Iron Man 2 movie. Here are some pictures and goofy comments.

Here’s a shot from the opening moments of the party, before all the kids arrived.

The Lost Planet ski-ball machine was completely awesome. I want one!!!

Here’s a shot from the red carpet. There was dozens of celebs from television shows that I don’t watch, so I didn’t really recognize anyone.

It’s usually awkward running into your ex-fiance, but I’m always thrilled to see Capcom Melody. *sigh* It never would have worked out….

I Am 8-Bit served up some awesome custom-made t-shirts. You’ll have a chance to win mine soon!

Look, it’s that chick from Attack of the Show and Iron Man 2…Olivia something or another.

What Are You Playing This Weekend?

My nemesis Zoe Flower left me a very sweet tweet that reminded me of the many wonderful times we’ve had drinking coffee and playing Scrabble. It also reminded me that I’ve gotten at the game. Perhaps I’m just better at Scrabble when I can see the actual board and arrange my tiles with my own hands, but RPadholics Big Blak and N8R have been making me look silly in Hasbro Family Game Night Scrabble. I need to practice…and it all starts this weekend!

I’m hoping to make some time for Final Fantasy XIII as well, but I’m guessing that competitiveness will win out and I’ll work on raising my Scrabble power levels (it’s like Dragon Ball Z…but you don’t need a scouter).

As always, let me know what you’re playing this weekend!

Coffee Talk #140: What Are You Looking Forward to at E3 2010?

E3 2010 is a little over a month away and I wanted to get your thoughts on the show. I’ll probably ask you this question a couple of more times in the next few weeks so I can see how your answers change as information leaks. For now let me know what you’re jazzed about.

Are you looking forward to PlayStation Move vs. Project Natal? Perhaps you’re more interested in the future of streaming gaming and want to see how Gaikai vs. OnLive plays out. Mobile gaming is growing crazy fast and there will tons of great iPad/iPhone games on display. Perhaps you’re not interested in these new battles and trends. Maybe you just want more info on an exciting console or PC game.

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, your plans for catching Iron Man 2 this weekend, Nutrisystem dumping Lawrence Taylor as a spokesman, or your UFC 113 predictions, Coffee Talk is the place to do it.

Let me know what you’re looking forward to at this year’s show. It will certainly alter my approach going into it. While I’m not going to write every story you’re interested in — I’m just one guy and have my own angles to play too — you’ll certainly be on my mind as I process story ideas. While I’d love for all of you to attend E3 with me, this is sorta kinda the next best thing, yeah? Use your influence and shape my E3 2010 coverage (please)!

Darkspawn Chronicles Lets You Play Dragon Age as a Baddie

Just in case you’ve been wondering what goes through the mind of a lonely genlock, the Darkspawn Chronicles DLC pack for Dragon Age: Origins lets you experience a brief portion of the game from the darkspawn’s perspective. The DLC will be available on May 18, 2010 for $4.99 on PS3, 400 BioWare Points on PC, and 400 Microsoft Points on Xbox 360. Here are some highlights from the press release:

Imagine a world without heroes, where the greatest among you never became a Grey Warden
Play through the Fall of Denerim from the perspective of the darkspawn
Complete the module and unlock an epic darkspawn item for use in Dragon Age: Origins and Dragon Age: Origins — Awakening
Use the “Enthrall” ability – recruit any darkspawn you encounter into your party

As a huge Dragon Age nerd, I’m certainly going to play this batch of DLC, but I’m not super excited for it. As I mentioned in Coffee Talk #36, I just don’t enjoy playing as the villain.

Any of you planning to pick up this Dragon Age: Darkspawn Chronicles?

Coffee Talk #139: Do You Break Videogame Controllers?

I love watching my friend James play videogames. He gets angry. He curses out the television. And inevitably, he flings his controller. Sometimes it’s more fun watching his reactions than watching the game itself.

I’m usually pretty calm when I play games. There are a few things that can drive me into a controller-throwing rage. Cheap deaths and cheap boss fights immediately come to mind. Last year I was playing Street Fighter IV while dealing with a malfunctioning Xbox 360 that often made the screen impossible to see. This made beating Seth — one of the cheapest bosses ever — even more irritating. This also made my hand hurt from punching my arcade stick.

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, the latest American Idol elimination, Milton Bradley being stressed out by earning millions of dollars playing baseball, or 61* being in the HBO rotation again, Coffee Talk is the place to do it.

I’m usually pretty calm when I play games, but there are a few things that can drive me into a controller-throwing rage. Cheap deaths and cheap boss fights immediately come to mind. Last year I was playing Street Fighter IV while dealing with a malfunctioning Xbox 360 that often made the screen impossible to see. This made beating Seth — one of the cheapest bosses ever — even more irritating. This also made my hand hurt from punching my arcade stick.

Do any of you throw or break your controllers? What drives you into that zone? Consider today’s Coffee Talk therapy and release your videogame rage!

Poll: What’s Your Favorite Iron Man Videogame Appearance?

I’m totally psyched to see Iron Man 2 tonight. While I count down the hours to the screening, I want to go over some of Shellhead’s appearances in videogames. Obviously he’s an integral part of the Marvel vs. Capcom series. Arcade fans will remember him in Captain America and The Avengers. More recently he was one of the best characters in the Marvel Ultimate Alliance games. I’m sure none of you willl pick this one (because it mostly sucked), but Iron Man had a prominent role in Marvel Nemesis: Rise of the Imperfects. And who could forget the unlockable version of Iron Man in Tony Hawk’s Underground?

As for me, I’m going to go with X-Men Legends II. If you found the scattered pieces of Iron Man’s armor (or used a cheat code) then you could play the game as him. He was ridiculously powerful and I had a blast vaporizing hordes of minions as Shellhead. I’m pretty sure I played the game an extra three or four times just to blast the hell out of things as Iron Man. Good times.

Now it’s your turn! Kindly make your selection in the poll and expand on your answer in the comments section. The best explanation wins a one-hour repulsor-ray massage!

[poll id=”42″]

“The Iceman” Chuck Lidell Hypes UFC Undisputed 2010

MMA legend Chuck Lidell promotes UFC Undisputed 2010 (PlayStation 3, Xbox 360) in this excellent video clip that features footage of him training, some of his most exciting fights, and astonishing recreations of his fights created in the game. It’s a pretty slick video that “Iceman” fans will totally love. He is, after all, the second-most famous man from San Luis Obispo. (“Weird” Al Yankovic is the first. Duh!)

Coffee Talk #138: Should Sony Have Made a Play for Bungie/Respawn?

Last weekend I hung out with two industry friends that argued (separately) that Sony should have made a big-time play for Bungie or Respawn. (This is what game geeks do over coffee or lunch. It’s like when jocks get together and discuss what GM moves they’d make for their favorite NBA team. In both cases, none of the participants are qualified to steer the ship.) Their arguments were basically the same — although Killzone and Resistance are respectable franchises, it would have been killer for Sony to have its own Call of Duty or Halo, exclusively. Nabbing the creators of those franchises would have been huge.

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, graciously recapping last night’s Lost for me, round two of the NBA playoffs, or Rasheed Wallace remembering how to play basketball for one night, Coffee Talk is the place to do it.

Last weekend I hung out with two industry friends that argued (separately) that Sony should have made a big-time play for Bungie or Respawn. (This is what game geeks do over coffee or lunch. It’s like when jocks get together and discuss what GM moves they’d make for their favorite NBA team. In both cases, none of the participants are qualified to steer the ship.) Their arguments were basically the same — although Killzone and Resistance are respectable franchises, it would have been killer for Sony to have its own Call of Duty or Halo, exclusively. Nabbing the creators of those franchises would have been huge.

Today I want to invite you into the conversation. Pretend you’re a hotshot Sony executive. Looking through the retroscope, do you think it would have been wise to lay out a ton of money for exclusive deals with Bungie or Respawn? Are Resistance and Killzone big enough bullets for the company? How crazy would it have been if Bungie or Respawn became first-party studios for Sony? If you could only sign one of those companies, which one would it be (poll below)? How would you upstage Kaz Hirai at Sony’s E3 2010 press conference?

I can’t wait for all your answers today! Let’s make it fun!!!

[poll id=”41″]

EA Claims Respawn Deal Fell Into Its Lap (You Buying This?!?)

EA Games president Frank Gibeau claims that the company’s deal with Respawn — you know, the hot new company started by former Infinity Ward creators — is a happy little coincidence that’s a result of fortuitous timing. As many of you know, one of the alleged reasons behind Activision’s termination of Jason West and Vince Zampella was that the pair met with EA behind ATVI’s back. That makes the EA/Respawn deal seem awfully…convenient. Gibeau told Gamasutra that it’s all on the up and up:

[The Respawn deal] was something that fell into our laps, after they were terminated and announced they were free and independent, and we went for it. The fact that those guys are doing what they’re doing, we’re very excited.

The fact that we were able to take advantage of an opportunity that came our way and partner with Respawn and create a relationship with them has been spectacular, something that we’re very excited about. It’s a key part of how we’re growing our EA Partners business going forward.

Although I have no proof, I’m not buying Gibeau’s explanation. Perhaps I’m being too cynical and maybe I’m buying into the rumor mill, but I’ve heard too many things from too many smart people to believe that this deal was something that just fell into EA’s lap. Again, that’s just my opinion.

What do you think? Was this deal in the works for months? Or was it all happenstance?

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