Videogames Archives - Page 47 of 185

Valve Working on “Steam Box” Console?

Here’s the frontrunner for the hottest videogame rumor of 2012: Valve is working on a Steam-powered console and could reveal more details next week at GDC 2012. That’s the word from the excellent Joshua Topolsky from The Verge. It will be interesting to see if Valve can succeed as a console manufacturer. Certainly videogame publishers and developers would benefit from a more diverse, flexible, and open system. Valve is a phenomenal developer and Steam is a fantastic service, but selling, marketing, and supporting console hardware is a Herculean undertaking. It would be a huge risk, but it could also reap huge rewards.

Obviously I want this rumor to pan out. The ramifications are just tremendous. Imagine Valve suddenly becoming a major player in videogame development, publishing, and console manufacturing? It sounds crazy, but it would be fantastic to see Valve try to change the “Big Three” of console gaming (Microsoft, Nintendo, and Sony) to the “Fantastic Four”. A videogame system that’s a bit more open has the chance to help fix console gaming’s broken publishing model. For that reason alone, I’m thrilled by the potential of a Steam Box.

Are you geeked out by the potential of a Steam Box console from Valve? Do you see a Steam-based console changing the videogame business? Are you interested in buying a “less closed” console from Valve?

Source

What Are You Playing This Weekend? (And Beyond!)

I’m off to San Francisco for GDC on Sunday. I’ll be writing, filming, and editing for SlideToPlay/Padvance, so feel free to update any changes to what you’re playing throughout the week. As for me, I’ve been doubling my Final Fantasy pleasure and will continue to do so until I leave. Of course I’m still enjoying Final Fantasy XIII-2. I reached the last chapter 15 gameplay hours ago; now I’m just running around space and time, collecting items to develop my monsters.

Earlier in the week, I started Final Fantasy Tactics for iPad. The original PlayStation version is my favorite game of all time. It’s frickin’ brilliant that my all-time favorite game now lives on my iPad 2! So far, it doesn’t have the performance issues that plagued the iPhone version. That said, I haven’t had any huge battles with lots of summons yet. The controls definitely feel weird after playing hundreds of hours of the game on the PlayStation and PlayStation Portable. It took me about four hours to get accustomed to controlling FFT with a touchscreen and I don’t think I’ll ever get used to it completely. It’s not a big deal though. The gameplay, art style, and music completely rule!

How about you? What’s on your weekend playlist (and beyond!)?

Baldur’s Gate HD Remake or Sequel in the Works?

Earlier in the week, I posted a link on my Facebook page to this Baldur’s Gate teaser site. As some of you know, Baldur’s Gate is one of my favorite series of all times; I played through the first game 18 times and the sequel 11 times. With that in mind, I’ve been terribly excited by the teased return of this brilliant series. That said, people are split on what’s actually coming. I spoke to a few videogame journalists and opinions were divided; some think that a Baldur’s Gate HD remake is in the works, while others believe that a true sequel is on the way.

Adding to the intrigue is former BioWare director Trent Oster. Taking a page from the Riddler’s book, Oster has been sending out enigmatic tweets on the new Baldur’s Gate project. By the way, he’s now working for Beamdog, which published the MDK2 HD remake. Like Baldur’s Gate, MDK2 was developed by BioWare and published by Interplay. It’s all so…convenient.

What do you think is happening? Is Baldur’s Gate getting the HD treatment? Or is a new game in the works? I’m going to wish for both, but that’s unlikely. Any of you excited by the prospect of playing Baldur’s Gate with an HD version of the Infinity Engine? It’s been too long since I’ve adventured with gaming’s most fantastic brain-addled warrior (Minsc) and his miniature-giant space-hamster (Boo)!

Coffee Talk #459: Measuring the Value of DLC

I’ve been reading a lot of complaints about the “Sazh: Heads or Tails” DLC for Final Fantasy XIII-2. I totally understand people not liking the story elements or not digging Sazh, but I don’t see how people can criticize it for being a poor value. For $4.99 you get some cute touchscenes…

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, Verve’s El Salvador Izote, the Windows 8 consumer preview, or rooting for Heejun Han, Coffee Talk is the place to do it.

I’ve been reading a lot of complaints about the “Sazh: Heads or Tails” DLC for Final Fantasy XIII-2. I totally understand people not liking the story elements or not digging Sazh, but I don’t see how people can criticize it for being a poor value. For $4.99 you get some cute touchscenes, two casino games, and a character crystal that can be used for the whole game. While I enjoyed the story (not enough single-father-as-the-hero angles in gaming), being able to get Sazh as a support character was more than worth the $4.99. He’s one of the best synergists in the game!

Seeing all the whiners complain about the DLC made me think about how DLC value is measured. Obviously it’s very subjective, but the medium is so new that publishers are still learning how much digital add-ons are worth to gamers. For story-driven add-ons, how many hours of gameplay do you expect from DLC? What’s the right price for in-game outfits? What factors do you use in determining whether or not a certain batch of DLC is worth your money?

What Do You Think of the Noobz Movie Trailer?

You’ve seen the interview with director Blake Freeman and star Jason Mewes. You’ve watched (and were dazzled!) by the on-set interview with the legendary Casper Van Dien. Now check out the trailer for the videogame movie Noobz!!! In addition to the four main characters going on a zany road trip to play in a videogame tournament featuring Gears of War 3, highlights include my pal Adam Sessler playing himself and the awesome Jon Gries (Lazlo from Real Genius!) being the awesome Jon Gries.

I’m totally psyched for this movie. It’s kind of like American Pie for gamers. Check out the trailer and let me know what you think (please)!

This Week’s Videogame Releases

It’s a pretty exciting week for February! SSX makes a triumphant return and lots of people are saying that it’s a thrilling ride. Mortal Kombat: Komplete Edition is out this week too…just don’t tell RPadholic Big Blak. Sega’s Binary Domain is flying under the radar if you’re looking for some Gears of War-like gameplay. Hardcore Japanese RPG fans will want to pick up Hyperdimension Neptunia Mk-II. It’s not for Pokefanatics like RPadholic bsukenyan, but millions of gamers are sure to love PokéPark 2: Wonders Beyond. The Nintendo DS gets some demonic excitement with Shin Megami Tensei: Devil Survivor 2.

Normally, I don’t include DLC in this roundup, but I’m completely excited for the downloadable Final Fantasy XIII-2 goods hitting this week. Sazh Katzroy — the coolest single-father in gaming? — returns in an add-on adventure. And yes, I’m totally downloading Serah’s beachwear costume. At least I can admit it.

How about you? Any new games for you this week?

Coffee Talk #457: Ancillary Aspects of Games > Actual Game

I’m loving Final Fantasy XIII-2. I’m going to end up playing it way longer than I expected. Part of it is because I’m anxiously awaiting next week’s DLC (Sazh is cool and Serah in a bikini is cooler), but the bigger part is that I love how monsters are handled. In many ways, it’s similar to Pokemon…

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, Ryan Braun being guilty or innocent, the American Idol top 25, or Powerfox & Ponymane, Coffee Talk is the place to do it.

I’m loving Final Fantasy XIII-2. I’m going to end up playing it way longer than I expected. Part of it is because I’m anxiously awaiting next week’s DLC (Sazh is cool and Serah in a bikini is cooler), but the bigger part is that I love how monsters are handled. In many ways, it’s similar to Pokemon. I’ve played over 1,000 hours of Pokemon, so this facet of the XIII-2 is immensely appealing. I’ve spent hours catching monsters, looking for components to level up monsters, infusing monsters to increase their powers, and more. Hunting and training monsters in XIII-2 gives me the same type of enjoyment as hunting, breeding, and EV training monsters in Pokemon.

In fact, I’ve spent roughly 65 percent of my game time focusing on monsters and only 35 percent on progressing the story. The monster system is so good that I’d be perfectly content just catching, training, and fighting monsters. (And yes, I want the DLC because the game will be 37 percent more fun playing as Serah in a bikini). While I’m definitely enjoying the game as a whole, I’m enjoying this aspect of the game more than the entire game.

Has this ever happened to you? I remember a few of you being hooked on gambling minigames. Have you enjoyed a sub-game, minigame, or ancillary aspect of a game more than the entire game?

What Are You Playing This Weekend?

There are so many games I want to play this weekend! Of course I’m still loving Final Fantasy XIII-2. It looks like I’ll be playing the game way longer than I thought I would (more on that in Coffee Talk). I’m really intrigued by Asura’s Wrath and will definitely give it some time this weekend. I’m reviewing PokePark 2 for the fine folks at Machinima. My dance card is full!

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

Coffee Talk #456: Would You Buy Games Modularly?

Are you ready to think about buying games in a modular way? A few publishers are exploring the option in the quest to find a new game-publishing model that will work better in the upcoming years. As an example, let’s use the fictitious (but potentially awesome) game Marvel vs. San Rio…

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 favorite Chocobo color, the arrival of Cadbury Creme Eggs, or dreaming of Chris Brown getting curb stomped, Coffee Talk is the place to do it.

What do you think of when you hear the word modular? For me, the cheap and popular modular furniture from Ikea immediately springs to mind. Are you ready to think about buying games in a modular way? A few publishers are exploring the option in the quest to find a new game-publishing model that will work better in the upcoming years.

As an example, let’s use the fictitious (but potentially awesome) game Marvel vs. San Rio. The full game costs $60. The game is also available modularly, with the single-player and multiplayer components costing $35 each. This could be a potentially interesting way to buy and sell games. People that want to enjoy all the variations of Wolverine vs. Hello Kitty would snatch up the whole thing. Those that only care about the story mode would save $25 by paying for single-player only, while multiplayer fiends could just buy that mode. Naturally, the publisher would include all kinds of demos and incentives to nudge players to buy the mode they don’t already have.

A couple of publishers have mentioned this idea to me and my friend Paul mentioned that a publisher mentioned it to him last week (that’s triple mentioning in case you’re counting). Do you think this model would work? Is it something you’re interested in? Will videogame publishers borrow from the ingenious world of Swedish modular furniture and sell their wares modularly?

Coffee Talk #455: Are You Ready for $80 Games?

The other day, my colleague Kevin Dent asked about the prices of next-gen games. Due to escalating development costs, he believes that there will be $60 and $80 titles. Of course there are other revenue sources to consider, like monthly subscriptions, online passes, dolly avatar clothing…

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, wishing you had a moogle that could transform into a sword, Verve’s El Salvador El Porvenir Bourbon, or CM Punk vs. Chris Brown, Coffee Talk is the place to do it.

To be honest, the reason why the $80 price was so jarring to me was that I really haven’t been thinking about the price points for next-gen games. I’ve been more curious to learn about how publishers are going to adjust their business models because the traditional way of publishing videogames isn’t long for this world. It just never occurred to me that a publisher would think, “I know! Let’s increase the price of games by $20! That will solve all our problems!!!” I’d like to (naively) think that even the stiffest suit is more creative than that.

How much do you think next-gen games will cost? Are you ready for a world where triple-A console games cost $80? How many $80 games can thrive considering you can get a solid iOS experience for $6 or less?