Coffee Talk #114: Your Dream Videogame Team-Up

In the spirit of the old Marvel Team-Up comics, I want to ask you about the videogame team-up of your dreams. There are so many wonderfully talented developers in Asia, Europe, and North America. Maybe you’d like them to collaborate? Or maybe there are characters from different publishers that you’d like to see in the same game? Whatever the case, I want to know what you’re thinking (pure energy).

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, American Idol getting it right last night, why the hell Roy Jones, Jr. is still boxing, or everyone swooning over the HTC Evo 4G even though it won’t be out until the end of the summer, Coffee Talk is the place to do it.

In the spirit of the old Marvel Team-Up comics, I want to ask you about the videogame team-up of your dreams. There are so many wonderfully talented developers in Asia, Europe, and North America. Maybe you’d like them to collaborate? Or maybe there are characters from different publishers that you’d like to see in the same game? Whatever the case, I want to know what you’re thinking (pure energy).

As for me, I’d love to see BioWare and Square Enix get together. (It’s not going to happen, but it’s my silly dream so I’m just going to go with it.) I would love a game that combined the gameplay mechanics of Baldur’s Gate or Dragon Age with the art of Final Fantasy or Kingdom Hearts. A game like that would totally own me.

Now let me know about your videogame team-ups! Perhaps you want a cooperative game with Kratos and Mario? Or maybe Warren Spector designing a game with Tetsuya Nomura directing the art? Dream big people (please)!

GameCrush is Still Broken, Here’s a Video While You’re Waiting

The pimps at GameCrush still haven’t figured out their server situation, leaving their service dead in the water. As I mentioned on Tuesday, GameCrush is a social networking service that allows guys to pay money to play games with girls and girls to make money playing games with guys. It’s either going to be one of the most colossal failures in gaming…or so brilliant that it will take over the industry.

The fact that the company hasn’t obtained more server bandwidth in the last 24 hours is telling. Do you think these guys are for real? Or are they a chop shop running out of some basement? As you debate the merits of this social networking service, be sure to check out the awesome GameCrush promo video posted above.

Preparing for RPadholic Uno on Xbox Live

Okay, tomorrow is going to be the first RPad.tv Uno invitational…or something like that. I want to get a few games of Uno going on Xbox Live. If you’re interested, please leave your Gamertag in the comments section. Also, let me know if 4PM PST works for you. I can be flexible with times. Also (again), I need a volunteer to head up another game. I’m hoping N8R is up for leading the other session since I can’t beat him in Uno anyway.

AT&T 3G Microcell Will Make Your 3G Service Not Suck

At CTIA 2010, AT&T announced that its 3G Microcell signal booster will be available nationally starting mid-April 2010. The device was tested in select markets in 2009. 3G Microcell uses your broadband connection to handle calls and data instead of traditional wireless signal. Devices like it are a godsend for people that live in areas with poor coverage or want to be able to use their mobile phone in basements. AT&T customers in New York and San Francisco — two areas where the company’s coverage is poor — can have a stopgap solution with 3G Microcell.

The 3G Microcell costs $149.99, but there are a few rebates available to bring the cost down. A $100 rebate is available to customers that select a Microcell plan, while an additional $50 is available to customers that also get AT&T DSL or U-verse Internet service. A $19.99 plan add-on allows users to make unlimited Microcell calls.

One of the reasons I switched to T-Mobile was because of its similar (but way more flexible) UMA service. Being able to use WiFi to make and receive calls has been incredibly useful to me, especially when travelling internationally. While Microcell is more limited, it should help the millions of AT&T customers that love their iPhone but hate AT&T’s service.

Are any of you interested in this product? Would you use it at home or bring it to the office?

Source

Sony PSP Turns Five…and I Was Completely Wrong About It

Congratulations to Sony for five successful years with the PlayStation Portable platform. The company boldly went into territory that was utterly dominated by Nintendo. Although the Nintendo DS is still the king of the hill, the PSP has done quite well. Here’s what Sony Computer Entertainment America senior vice president Peter Dille had to say in today’s press release:

Five years ago, PlayStation had yet to break into the portable market. Today, the PSP system is a well-established handheld platform that continuously redefines portable entertainment with quality that’s unparalleled. As PSP celebrates its fifth anniversary, the best is yet to come. We’re very excited about the vibrant 2010 lineup and are committed to continuing to offer entertainment experiences and immersive gameplay only possible on the PlayStation platform.

Yesterday my friend from Gamasutra tweeted an article I co-wrote in 2004. The topic was Nintendo DS vs. PSP. Like so many others, I completely underestimated the DS and completely overestimated the PSP. You have to remember, at the time Sony was kicking all sorts of ass with the PlayStation 2 and Nintendo wasn’t the dominant company it is today. My friend at Wired remarked that my half of the debate perfectly encapsulated every wrong thought in 2004. Here’s a choice nugget from the article:

A few months ago, GameSpy’s Dr. Angryman and digitaltaco were daydreaming about the Sony PSP and how it would allow them to go head-to-head in a wireless version of Soul Calibur and listen to MP3s while they waited for their grub at their favorite Mexican joint. Wireless multiplayer gaming in a multifunction device is the stuff that geek dreams are made of. I can guarantee you that neither of them have woken up and said, “You know what I wish I had? A handheld gaming system with two screens. That would be brilliant!”

Ha! So yeah, I can admit that I was totally wrong and should eat a healthy serving of crow. The point I really wanted to get at is that although the PSP wasn’t the groundbreaking handheld system many people thought it would be, it has still done very well — especially when you consider that the PSP was Sony’s foray into portable gaming. It’s a great platform with some truly outstanding games (play Crisis Core now!). I hope that Sony continues to push the handheld market and believe that it can do great things with a PSP successor.

Housekeeping: Registration Coming Soon

Hey guys and gals! I’m strongly considering adding site registration for comments, but I wanted to see how you felt about it first. The good news is that it’ll keep other people from stealing your handles. The bad news is that it’ll require you to…er…register.

Ever since I posted that DS2 story at GDC 2010, the site has been getting a ton of comment spam. It’s not the usual variety that gets easily filtered by WordPress. It’s like spam 3.0 or something. Adding registration would help cut that out.

Anyway, let me know what you think and I’ll flip the switch (or not) by the end of the week.

Coffee Talk #113: Do Games Impact Your Real-World Thinking?

Have you ever found yourself thinking in videogame terms in the real world? I have to admit that I’ve done just that way more than I ought to. For example, if I come across a building with cool architecture, I think about how it would work as a Quake level. I look for the best places to camp, spawning points, etc.

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, Google leaving China, when the hell Bryan Danielson is going to win a match in the WWE, or Jose Canseco being subpoenaed in Roger Clemens’ trial, Coffee Talk is the place to do it.

Have you ever found yourself thinking in videogame terms in the real world? I have to admit that I’ve done just that way more than I ought to. For example, if I come across a building with cool architecture, I think about how it would work as a Quake level. I look for the best places to camp, spawning points, etc.

After I play a Splinter Cell game (anyone try the demo for Conviction?), it’s really, really hard for me to look at lights. I want to shoot them and create shadows. Thankfully, I don’t have a gun.

One running gag among game writers is to shout, “Achievement unlocked!” whenever a mundane task is completed. Finding the restroom, tracking down a wandering waitress, and discovering new beverages like Pepsi Max Cease Fire are all worthy achievements in real life.

Hopefully I’m not insane and you have thoughts like this too. Let your fellow RPadholics and me know what videogame thoughts you have in everyday life.

Guys Pay, Girls Get Paid to Play Games GameCrush

Hey guys! Would you pay money to play games with a girl and get to know her? Hi girls! Would you accept money to play games with men “wookin’ pa nub”? GameCrush thinks that gamers are willing to do so. Its service, which launches in a few hours, is part multiplayer gaming and part Craigslist personal ads. According to IGN:

On GameCrush, guys are Players and girls are PlayDates. Players pay to play and PlayDates get paid to play. Guys can browse PlayDate profiles (there are currently around 1,200), view photos, and even chat with girls for free.

Part of me wants to dismiss the service as complete lameness, but I’m going to try to look on the bright side of life here. It’s cool that GameCrush will pay girls to play games. It stimulates the economy (am I stretching here?). I think personal ads are kind of loser-ish, but one of my best friends went on a bunch of fun dates through Craigslist San Francisco.

It’s not for me, but I want to know what you think of GameCrush. Is it a lame service based on a weak stereotype that male gamers are lonely losers? Or is it an innovative way to meet people and find romance? For the three female readers that I have, would you accept money to play games with strangers that may or may not want to talk dirty on Xbox Live?

Source via Brian Leahy

Sprint Announces HTC Evo 4G, World’s First 3G/4G Phone

At its CTIA 2010 press conference, Sprint announced that it will be aggressively expanding its WiMax coverage this year and offering its customers the HTC Evo 4G. The company claims that it’s the world’s first 3G/4G phone. Here are some specs on the Evo 4G:

  • Google Android 2.1 with HTC Sense UI
  • 1GHz Snapdragon processor
  • 4.3-inch screen capable of 720p playback
  • 1GB of internal storage
  • 512MB of RAM
  • 8 megapixel outer camera and 1.3 megapixel inner camera (for video conferencing)
  • WiFi, WiMax, and CDMA radios

The HTC Evo 4G will be out this summer.

I left Sprint last summer because I thought it was the biggest loser out of the four major American carriers. Although its network and coverage are great (partially due to a roaming agreement with Verizon), I was disappointed in the company’s phone selection and (especially) customer service. Also, I wasn’t confident in Sprint’s future; it spent a ton of money on WiMax, while the rest of the world seems to be going with LTE for 4G technology.

All that aside, the phone looks pretty damn sweet. I’m not going to do it, but a small part of me is tempted to return to Sprint for two years and rock the HTC Evo 4G. By the time my contact is up, LTE should be mature (enough) and widely deployed. Nah, that’s a bad idea. It would take more than that for me to go back to Sprint. Besides, there will be numerous “awesome” phones announced before the Evo 4G comes out.

What do you ladies and gents think of the HTC Evo 4G?

Source

Coffee Talk #112: When Do You Play Online Multiplayer Games?

When do you play online multiplayer games? My friend asked me this the other week and I replied, “Whenever I feel like it.” He continued to ask me questions and we discovered that my initial response wasn’t true. There are a number of factors that go into when I play multiplayer games and today I wanted to see if you have similar considerations.

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, American Idol Fantasia singing the American national anthem at WrestleMania 26, Joe Mauer being a Twin for life, or mobile phone news from CTIA, Coffee Talk is the place to do it.

New coffee: Intelligentsia Papua New Guinea Agoga

When do you play online multiplayer games? My friend asked me this the other week and I replied, “Whenever I feel like it.” He continued to ask me questions and we discovered that my initial response wasn’t true. There are a number of factors that go into when I play multiplayer games and today I wanted to see if you have similar considerations.

For example, I hate playing with mouthy 13-year olds. There are several nights when TV comes before gaming (WWE Raw, American Idol, Entourage, Curb Your Enthusiasm, etc.). With all of that in mind, I tend to play online multiplayer games past 10PM. My favorite shows are over and the children are in bed for school.

Do you player online whenever the mood strikes? Or do you have certain conditions that impact when you play?