Conspiracy Theory: EA Setting Up EA Sports MMA to Fail?

EA Sports MMA

CrunchGear has posted an…interesting conspiracy theory regarding EA Sports: MMA: “Is EA Sports MMA intentionally going to stink in order for EA Sports to lose the Strikeforce license and later acquire the UFC license?” The conjecture is that EA wants the game to flop so that it can snag the UFC license when the MMA organization’s deal with THQ expires. Here’s more:

Maybe it knows that there’s no way in hell EA Sports MMA is going to outsell UFC Undisputed, and it’s cool with that. Why? THQ’s license agreement with UFC runs out next year (I guess it was for two games). EA, which has a tremendous amount of money at its disposal, could then go to UFC and say, “Look, we’re EA. We’re big time. Undisputed did well, but with our muscle at your disposal, we’ll make a UFC game so incredibly huge that you’d be a fool to stick with THQ. Also, here’s several truckloads of money to help sweeten the deal.”

Although some of the points are valid, the theory is pretty shoddy. Yes, EA Sports MMA will probably not be as popular as UFC Undisputed. Yes, EA would love to have the UFC license. However, that doesn’t mean it wants to game to fail. That would be idiotic. It would be far more productive to make a good game that gets strong reviews and bring that to UFC. EA could say, “Look, we made a great game without you, but together we could eclipse your success with THQ.”

The notion that EA would purposely want a game to fail seems monumentally stupid to me. What do you make of this conspiracy theory?

Source

AT&T Knows it Sucks in NYC and SF, Vows to Stop Sucking

NYC Skyline

AT&T president & CEO of mobility and consumer markets Ralph de la Vega knows that the company’s mobile service in urban areas is pathetic. He recently acknowledged that the company’s service in New York City and San Francisco is lacking and vowed to improve it. BoyGeniusReport has…er…reported:

AT&T’s very own Ralph de la Vega says that Manhattan and San Francisco’s Financial District “are performing at levels below our standards.” In our own experiences, it seems much worse than that, but we’re happy to finally hear it being acknowledged and addressed. He also says that these issues are going to get fixed. “In both of those markets, I am very confident that you’re going to see significant progress.” Thanks for finally coming out and openly saying it, AT&T, instead of hiding behind figures like “our network covers 97% of the population.”

I remember attending a Giants game at AT&T Park with a friend armed with an iPhone. I found it hilarious that she dropped four calls over nine innings. AT&T can’t even provide decent coverage in its own ballpark! While I’d love to use my iPhone as something other than a glorified iPod Touch, I can’t deal with AT&T’s shoddy service in cities. I’m interested to see if it can improve its network in 2010…or if Verizon and T-Mobile get the iPhone, as many analysts have claimed.

Source

PSA: December Xbox Live Deals of the Week

Coldplay

Microsoft marketing tool Major Nelson revealed the upcoming Xbox Live deals of the week for December. They are:

Week of December 14:
Lips: Coldplay Track Pack for 240 Microsoft Points
December 21 through December 27:
Shadow Complex for 800 points
Week of December 28:
The Maw for 400 Microsoft Points

If you haven’t tried Shadow Complex, it’s worth playing if you like old-school 2D shooters like Contra and Metroid. As a karaoke aficionado, I’m always down for more Lips tracks. I haven’t tried The Maw, but a few of my friends are pretty high on it. Most importantly, saving money is always a good thing, so take advantage of these sales if you have the means.

Source

BioWare Announces Star-Studded Cast for Mass Effect 2

BioWare has announced the large and star-studded cast for the upcoming Mass Effect 2. There are some big stars and sci-fi favorites here (I’m more excited about the latter). Today’s press release stated:

BioWare, a division of Electronic Arts, today revealed the voice actors performing in Mass Effect 2, the second act of the award-winning science fiction trilogy. The game features Emmy and Golden Globe Award-winning actor Martin Sheen (“The West Wing”, “Apocalypse Now”), 2009 Emmy Award-winner Shohreh Aghdashloo (“House of Saddam”), comedic actor Seth Green (“Austin Powers”), “Chuck” stars Yvonne Strahovski and Adam Baldwin, Keith David (“Crash”) and sci-fi favorites Michael Dorn (“Star Trek: Deep Space Nine”) Tricia Helfer (“Battlestar Galactica”), Michael Hogan (“Battlestar Galactica”) and Carrie-Anne Moss (“The Matrix”).

Tricia Helfer

I’m totally geeked out by the cast. The dude from Robot Chicken meets Worf from Star Trek meets Goliath from Gargoyles meets Trinity from The Matrix meets 6 from Battlestar Galactica. Awesome!!!

Tarver Games’ Ghosts Attack Available through iPhone App Store

Ghosts Attack from Tarver Games, the new studio headed up by the excellent Chris Cross, is now available from Apple’s iTunes App Store (iTunes link). Here’s a snippet from the press release:

In Ghosts Attack, a story unfolds regarding the late 1960’s disappearance of thirteen scientists who were accidentally transported to a parallel dimension in a failed teleportation experiment. Too dangerous for humans, the company that employed the scientists is now dispatching remote controlled Rovers to explore and conquer the new realm.

The Ghosts Attack series will offer multiple features inherent to the iPhone OS 3.1, including regular push notifications and badges, In-app Commerce support for evolving episodic content, streaming video for in-game content and more. New content will be introduced in-game through [in-game guide] Karl, keeping the game and the story relevant. The first game features 17 missions, 5 weapons, and 5 Rover upgrades. On a semi-weekly basis, Karl will alert players of new missions set in different destinations around the world, keeping them engaged in the story and the gameplay.

If you have an iPhone or iPod Touch, I encourage you to check out this $4.99 game. I’m going to be downloading it shortly and would love to hear your thoughts on Ghosts Attack!

Coffee Talk #44: The Disconnect Between Game Critics and Gamers

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, Barry Bonds’ agent saying the slugger’s career is over (duh), the Yankees trying to sign Johnny Damon (why?!?), or how much longer “The Heartbreak Kid” Shawn Michaels will continue to perform for the WWE, Coffee Talk is the place to do it.

As I was watching this excellent Dante’s Inferno developer diary, I started thinking about the disconnect between game critics and gamers. Some writers are just out of touch with what gamers want and expect. Part of it comes from getting too many free games for too many years, which makes some writers forget that paying $60 for a game is a lot of money for many consumers.

Dantes Inferno 2

In other cases, some critics are too busy being critical to remember what’s fun. Dante’s Inferno is a great example of this. A lot of writers are already down on this game, dismissing it as a God of War rip-off. They’re thinking, “This is crap. It’s just like God of War.” At this year’s San Diego Comic Con, one of my friends was telling me that a lot of the people that saw the game at EA’s booth said things like, “This is cool! It’s just like God of War!” Funny how it goes….

What’s your opinion on game reviewers? Do you think a lot of them are out of touch? Or do you think most of them are spot on? Do you think that some reviewers forget what it’s like to be a paying gamer? If so, does it have a negative impact on their reviews?

Dante’s Inferno Developer Diary: Violence is Golden

The Dante’s Inferno development team discusses the use of violence in this action-packed videogame from Electronic Arts. Included in the mix are gameplay engineer Tom Wilson, art director Ash Huang, and lead designer Steve Desilets. Check it out and let me know what you think (please)!

Apple Tablet with 10.1-inch Display Coming in March for $1,000?

Apple Tablet 2

Ah, the old Apple tablet rumors…. The latest one comes from BoyGeniusReport, which claims that a financial analyst has pegged the product for a March 2010 release:

According to Oppenheimer analyst Yair Reiner, Apple is almost ready to give its Chinese manufacturing partners the green light to begin mass production of the oft-rumored tablet that is believed to feature a 10.1? Multi-Touch capacitive display. If all goes well, Reiner believes that the tablet will be available as early as March provided Apple is able to stockpile enough units in order to minimize any potential shortages. So how many units are we talking? Based on an average retail price of $1,000, Reiner predicts Apple could sell as many as 1.5 million tablets in the first quarter.

Whenever Apple decides to unveil its tablet, you can be sure that millions of people will be in line to snatch one up. I want to know if you’re considering dropping $1,000 for an XXL iPod. It seems so expensive to me, but Apple has an unmatched way of getting people to fall in love with its products, so I wouldn’t be surprised if this expensive tablet was a huge success.

(The image above is just a mock up, FYI.)

Source

EA Details Brutal Legend DLC, Hammer of Infinite Fate

Brutal Legend slider

Double Fine’s excellent Brutal Legend (as opposed to the excellent Psychonauts) is getting its first piece of downloadable content on December 17 — Hammer of Infinite Fate. The DLC will cost $4.99 for PlayStation 3 and 480 Microsoft Points for Xbox 360. Here are some details from the press release:

The Hammer of Infinite Fate pack allows players to upgrade Eddie Riggs with three new outfits including the Mountain Man, Black Metal and Zaulia Threads, as well as seven more back patches to slay the tainted coil in style. Eddie’s trusted hotrod, The Deuce (aka The Druid Plow), will also get a face lift with four brand new paint jobs and four more upgrades that players can purchase including the Oculus of the Lost, an all-seeing GPS for the world, and the Eye of Sorrow, a weapon that harnesses the power of the Sea of Black Tears and launches black projectiles of doom at enemies, in addition to The Disgorger and the Coiling Maw.

Players will also be able to unlock 9 new achievements and trophies in Brütal Legend which are based on the latest additions of the Hammer of Infinite Fate expansion pack. Mount Rockmore will also see six more heads for players to purchase and unlock, including Rima, Razputin, Dadbat, Hunter, Kage the Kannonier and Tim Schafer himself.

Any of you buying this DLC? As a Double Fine fan, I plan on supporting the company.

Source

Congrats to Dricknasty!

RPad Tramp Stamp

The RPad.tv chick magnet giveaway continues! The latest winner is Dricknasty for this comment. Please keep an eye on your email so that you can claim your prize. RRODisHere, kindly check your inbox and shoot me a reply so I can throw your magnet in the mail (probably using a split-fingered fastball).

Today’s photo is from the amazing N8R. It’s not a magnet pic, but rather an imagining of what a chick would look like with an RPad.tv tattoo (i.e. tramp stamp). I love it!!! If any of you can convince a pretty girl to do this…I’d give you something cool.