Kingdom Hearts: Birth by Sleep Coming September 7

Square Enix has finally announced the released date for the North American version of Kingdom Hearts: Birth by Sleep — September 7, 2010!!! Naturally, Sony will be offering a PSP bundle to commemorate the game’s release (or move old hardware depending on your perspective). Be sure to check out the video above and enjoy this lovely snippet of press release magic:

Players will explore iconic Disney worlds in a unique gaming experience that unfolds through the perspectives of three different main characters: Terra, Ventus and Aqua. Their journeys will take them through Sleeping Beauty’s Enchanted Dominion, the Dwarf Woodlands from Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs and Deep Space from Lilo & Stitch. Additionally, Kingdom Hearts: Birth by Sleep includes four all-new multiplayer modes that allow players to enjoy the action with their friends.

I love the Kingdom Hearts franchise and can’t wait for this game! Button-mashing combat, Disney characters, Final Fantasy characters, and Nomura art — what’s not to love?!? Who else is psyched for this one?

This Week’s Videogame Releases

After several weeks of boring releases, mid-May delivers with authority! The Xbox 360 exclusive Alan Wake is out this week and numerous critics have compared it to Sony’s Heavy Rain, but with broader appeal. On the multiplatform kick there’s Red Dead Redemption, Split / Second, and Prince of Persia: The Forgotten Sands. Last but not least is Blue Dragon: Awakened Shadow for Nintendo DS.

With all the great games available this week, I want to know if you’re planning on picking anything up. Please let me know!

Coffee Talk #146: Where Will Lebron James Play Next Year?

The NBA playoffs are moving on without the Cleveland Cavaliers, but the most interesting NBA story of the year remains with the team — where will Lebron James play in the 2010-2011 season? After the Cavs were eliminated, James’ demeanor and answers seemed to indicate that he was leaning towards leaving his home franchise. Where will the best player in the NBA end up? I want to hear your thoughts on the matter!

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 vegetable, Google I/O, or the excellent Christian vs. Kofi Kingston match from Friday (Hulu it!), Coffee Talk is the place to do it.

The NBA playoffs are moving on without the Cleveland Cavaliers, but the most interesting NBA story of the year remains with the team — where will Lebron James play in the 2010-2011 season? After the Cavs were eliminated, James’ demeanor and answers seemed to indicate that he was leaning towards leaving his home franchise. Where will the best player in the NBA end up? I want to hear your thoughts on the matter!

Most sports writers favor the Chicago Bulls snagging Lebron, with the Miami Heat, New Jersey Nets, and New York Knicks having a shot too. Writers are drooling at the potential of a Bulls team led by James, with Derrick Rose and Joakim Noah as the supporting players. Miami could work its salary cap flexibility into signing Lebron and resigning Dwyane Wade — that would be a killer combo. The Knicks and the Nets are two teams that could sign Lebron and another quality player (most writers are pointing to Chrish Bosh and Carlos Boozer). Playing for the Nets would mean being pampered by an awesome Russian dictator, but winning a championship for the downtrodden Knicks would be a legendary achievement that would elevate James into the Michael/Magic category.

Personally, I’m not sure where he ends up. Part of me hopes he’s eventually paired with Carlos Boozer and wins a championship with him. That would be the most devastating scenario for Cleveland. Remember when Boozer got all shady with his Cavs’ contract negotiations, going back on his word and eventually signing with Utah? That makes him the perfect sidekick for Lebron!

Now it’s your turn. Make your choice in the poll and explain your answer in the comments section (please)!

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The iPhone HD/4G Finder Was Ratted Out By His Roommate

Brian Hogan — the dude that “found” the iPhone HD/4G that made all the headlines in April — is probably guilty of a lot of things, but is certainly guilty of picking crappy roommates. According to Wired, Hogan was narced on by his roommate, Katherine Martinson. Here’s my favorite bit from the article:

“Sucks for him,” Hogan allegedly told Martinson about Powell. “He lost his phone. Shouldn’t have lost his phone.”

Martinson turned Hogan in, because Hogan had plugged the phone into her laptop in an attempt to get it working again after Apple remotely disabled it. She was convinced that Apple would be able to trace her Internet IP address as a result. “Therefore she contacted Apple in order to absolve herself of criminal responsibility,” according to the detective who wrote the affidavit.

Thinking back on the roommates I’ve had since my sophomore year in college, I can’t think of a single one that would have ratted me out. Let this be a lesson to you. Most of all, let this be a lesson to Brian Hogan. Pick your roommates wisely!

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Today’s Poll: Batman (The Dark Knight) vs Sato (Karate Kid II)

Karate Kid II is playing in the background right now and I’ve been greatly amused by Sato’s (Danny Kamekono) voice. When he wants to kill Mr. Miyagi, his voice is all gruff, coarse, and disgusting. As soon as he makes amends with his former best friend and foe, he sounds like a delightful Okinawan man.

I’m convinced that Sato inspired Christian Bale in Batman Begins and The Dark Knight. Bale’s Batman voice is gravelly and ridiculous. His Bruce Wayne voice is foppishly charming.

The contrast in their good guy and bad guy voices is pretty silly. My question for you today is who had the sillier voice-180?

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Is Final Fantasy XIII More of an Adventure Game Than an RPG?

BioWare writing director Daniel Erickson made lots of noise yesterday in an interview with Strategy Informer by stating that Square Enix’s Final Fantasy XIII is not an RPG. It’s an interesting stance and a great starting point for discussion. Before I get to that, here’s the exact quote:

You can put a ‘J’ in front of it, but it’s not an RPG. You don’t make any choices, you don’t create a character, you don’t live your character… I don’t know what those are — adventure games maybe? But they’re not RPG’s.

I agree with two of his three points. You don’t make choices or create characters in FFXIII, but I definitely enjoyed viewing things from the characters’ perspectives. The characterization is one of the game’s strongest points. That said, is FFXIII more of an adventure game than a true RPG? Or has the definition of what an RPG is evolved over time? I’d love to hear your thoughts on that matter!

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Google to Kill Nexus One Online Sales

Well…that didn’t last very long. In January, Google made a bold move and started an online phone store featuring the Android-powered Nexus One. Four months later the company has announced that it will be phasing out its online initiative in favor of brick-and-mortar retailers. VP of engineering Andy Rubin posted the news on the Google Blog:

Once we have increased the availability of Nexus One devices in stores, we’ll stop selling handsets via the web store, and will instead use it as an online store window to showcase a variety of Android phones available globally.

With Sprint and Verizon rejecting the Nexus One after pledging to support it, Google didn’t have the carrier support it needed for its atypical business model. In America, so much of the handset business is carrier driven and controlled. Take Nokia, for example — it’s the largest handset manufacturer in the world, but since it doesn’t have much support from the “big four” (AT&T, Sprint, T-Mobile, and Verizon) it’s a minor player in America.

I’m sad that Google isn’t giving its online store more of a shot. Certainly it made several mistakes over the last few months, but its online venture still has the potential to change the way consumers buy phones. *sigh* I just prefer the Asian and European models of paying more for phones and using cheaper services that are contract-free. Perhaps I’ll wear black at Google I/O next week to mourn the death of Google’s online phone store.

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Coffee Talk #145: What Will You Play Games on in the Future?

At a recent financial results briefing, Nintendo president Satoru Iwata said, “We do not think that the combination of a game system and dedicated software will last forever.” As we all know, nothing lasts forever…even cold November rain. Seriously though, I found it terribly interesting that Iwata was completely candid about consoles eventually going the way of the dodo. If Nintendo — which sells tens of millions of systems every year — can admit this then shouldn’t we be wondering what’s next?

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, tomorrow’s excellent boxing card on HBO, Google I/O, or Captain Carrot, Coffee Talk is the place to do it.

At a recent financial results briefing, Nintendo president Satoru Iwata said, “We do not think that the combination of a game system and dedicated software will last forever.” As we all know, nothing lasts forever…even cold November rain. Seriously though, I found it terribly interesting that Iwata was completely candid about consoles eventually going the way of the dodo. If Nintendo — which sells tens of millions of systems every year — can admit this then shouldn’t we be wondering what’s next?

What do you think you’ll be playing games on ten years from now? Surely you don’t think the disc-and-box combination will still be around, do you? Perhaps systems like OnLive and Gaikai are glimpse of what the future holds. Maybe you’ll be plugging controllers directly into your television, which will stream games to you in the blink of an eye. Will game pads have even more buttons? Or will motion controls be so advanced that even intricate games will be easily controllable through hand gestures?

Put on your thinking caps (fact: I never owned a thinking cap) and share your vision of gaming’s future (please)!

What Are You Playing This Weekend?

There’s only one game that exists to me right now: Scrabble on Hasbro Family Game Night. My training has been going well. My power level is increasing, though it’s still not where it was when Zoe and I competed. Hopefully it will get to that level…and perhaps beyond. The only thing that could possibly get in the way is Alan Wake. I should have my copy tomorrow and that’ll probably be too good to pass up.

How about you guys and gals? Any Mac users out there giving Steam a whirl? Or is it going to be another weekend of Just Dance? Kindly share your weekend playlist!

NPD Hardware Sales Figures for April 2010

NPD Group released its console sales data for April 2010. This is the first time that I didn’t see any numbers for the PlayStation 2. Is the sun finally setting on Sony’s ridiculously popular console? How did the boys and girls at Microsoft and Nintendo fare? Digest April’s numbers as I digest a Cadbury Creme Egg in honor of Easter month.

  • Nintendo DS: 440,800
  • Wii: 277,200
  • Xbox 360: 185,400
  • PlayStation 3: 180,800
  • PSP: 65,500

It was a slow month for all systems except for the Nintendo DS, which continues to shatter records and sell like MacDoubles. Four months into the year and the PS3 is holding its own against the Xbox 360. Unless it has a killer Q4 — which is certainly possible — I don’t see how the PS3 overtakes the Xbox 360 in North America, as some analysts have predicted.

Now it’s time for you to play Jesse Divnich and Michael Pachter. What do you think of April’s console sales numbers?