Square Enix has released the box art for the North American version of FFXIII. Here’s the PS3 box:
And here’s the Xbox 360 version:
Continue reading “Final Fantasy XIII North American Box Art”
Akira Yamaoka Leaves Konami?
Akira Yamaoka might not be a familiar name in your gaming household, but you definitely know the games he’s most famous for: the Silent Hill series. He has composed the music for all the Silent Hill games and has served as the series’ producer since SH3. According to Aeropause, Yamaoka has left the building:
After sixteen years at the company, Akira Yamaoka has left Konami.
It would appear that he has left the company entirely rather than moving to another international division. As you would expect, there has been no formal confirmation from Konami, so right now this is an unconfirmed rumour — albeit one generated from a pretty reliable source.
I’m a little stunned by this one. I always thought Yamaoka would be a lifer at Konami, similar to Kojima and Igarashi. He’s been attached to the Silent Hill series since the beginning and it’ll be weird (but cool) to see him doing something else.
The news is a bit personal for me, since Akira was the first Japanese developer to greet me with a friendly hug instead of a professional handshake. This one time (not at band camp), we ditched a GDC party to go dancing. It was cool watching a sound designer and music composer dance.
Coffee Talk #37: Console Wars XXVIII — Black Friday
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 Saints beating up on the Patriots, banning Canadian boxing judges Alan Davis and Benoit Roussel, or the Shakespeare play you want to see in videogame form, Coffee Talk is the place to do it.
As expected, it was a huge week for the “big three” console companies. All three did well during Black Friday weekend. Let’s take a look at some of the (American) results.
- Nintendo claimed that it sold more than 550,000 Wii systems. Adding in the DS and DSi, the company said that it sold more than 1.5-million pieces of hardware. To steal a line from Shelton Benjamin’s music, “Ain’t no stoppin’ me, now!!!”
- Sony claimed its best week ever (not EVAR!!!) for the PlayStation 3, selling more than 440,000 units. With a recent price cut and the introduction of the PS3 Slim, Sony has a huge opportunity to gain marketshare. It looks like the company is making the most of it.
- Microsoft hasn’t cited numbers yet, curiously. The company is putting on a positive front, claiming that it has its best week of 2009 and sold twice as many Xbox 360 systems during Thanksgiving week than it did the previous one.
Nintendo’s continued success isn’t surprising. Most people expected Sony to do well, but the company probably exceeded many expectations. Microsoft’s statements were the most curious. By not citing numbers and using the “we did better than last week” stance, the company looks lame. Maybe its number crunchers are behind and it will put out a strong press release later today, but for now MS looks like a chump.
What are your thoughts on the latest round of the console wars? Will Sony be able to continue its momentum this holiday season? I know you Wii haters out there are hoping for a sharp decline from Nintendo, but do you really think that’s going to happen? And what’s up with Microsoft’s weak-sauce statements?
Vodka in a Pill?!?
I’m hoping this is a joke, but The Times of India has reported that a Russian scientist had discovered a way for vodka to be produced in capsule form. The site noted:
Russian professor Evgeny Moskalev of Saint Petersburg Technological University has evolved a technique that allows turning alcohol into powder and packing it in pills. The new technique can solidify any kind of alcohol, including whisky, cognac, wine and beer.
As a fan of vodka (and really any quality alcohol), I find this disturbing. I can see a bunch of idiots on spring break popping pills of booze instead of learning to appreciate smooth vodka, bourbon, whiskey, rum, etc. I would hate to see my beloved Grey Goose reduce to a capsule — totally kills the point of savoring each sip. (And yes, I know there are plenty of vodkas better than GG, but it’s really easy to find.)
Like I said at the top, I hope this is just a joke.
Marc Ecko Envisions a Videogame Version of Macbeth
Fashion mogul Marc Ecko has had enormous success thinking outside of the box, so it wasn’t surprising to learn that he wants to create a videogame version of Shakespeare’s Macbeth. In a recent interview with Destructoid, Ecko said:
I completely re-imagined Macbeth. Our adaptation, I think, would have made it relevant to people who wouldn’t have otherwise known about this great story. It’s unfortunate, because a lot of people just don’t know Macbeth.
Rumors of Tommy Hilfiger producing a videogame version of King Lear have yet to be confirmed…. Seriously though, I met Ecko a few times when Atari was pushing Getting Up: Contents Under Pressure. He was very cool, extremely creative, and genuinely interested in games as a form of interactive entertainment.
I’d love to see Ecko’s interpretation of Macbeth…especially if it lets me go one a Highlander-style beheading spree. (I’m kidding about that last part.) Would you be interested in a Marc Ecko Macbeth game? Or do you think it’s a classic that shouldn’t be touched?
Kingdom Hearts: Birth by Sleep Headlines Square Enix Jump Festa
Square Enix recently launched a web site for its Jump Festa 2009 fan fest. The heavy hitters in this year’s lineup are Kingdom Hearts: Birth by Sleep (PSP) and Dragon Quest VI (DS). Here’s the current list as translated by Andriasang:
- Cross Treasures (DS, movie, playable)
- Kingdom Hearts: Birth by Sleep (PSP, movie, playable)
- Dragon Quest VI (DS, movie, playable)
- Star Ocean: The Last Hope International (PS3, movie, playable)
- Dragon Quest IX (DS)
- Dragon Quest Monsters: Battle Road (Arcade, movie, playable)
- Final Fantasy IV (Mobile, playable)
- Dragon Quest III (Mobile, playable)
- Kingdom Hearts Mobile (Mobile, movie)
- Dragon Quest: Battle Road Mobile (Mobile)
I can’t wait for Birth by Sleep. I want it now!!! Which of these games are you psyched for?
Kingdom Hearts: Birth by Sleep Headlines Square Enix Jump Festa
Square Enix recently launched a web site for its Jump Festa 2009 fan fest. The heavy hitters in this year’s lineup are Kingdom Hearts: Birth by Sleep (PSP) and Dragon Quest VI (DS). Here’s the current list as translated by Andriasang:
- Cross Treasures (DS, movie, playable)
- Kingdom Hearts: Birth by Sleep (PSP, movie, playable)
- Dragon Quest VI (DS, movie, playable)
- Star Ocean: The Last Hope International (PS3, movie, playable)
- Dragon Quest IX (DS)
- Dragon Quest Monsters: Battle Road (Arcade, movie, playable)
- Final Fantasy IV (Mobile, playable)
- Dragon Quest III (Mobile, playable)
- Kingdom Hearts Mobile (Mobile, movie)
- Dragon Quest: Battle Road Mobile (Mobile)
I can’t wait for Birth by Sleep. I want it now!!! Which of these games are you psyched for?
Xbox 360 Controller Hacked to Work with a NES
In a brilliant use of technology, Francois Gervais hacked an Xbox 360 wireless controller to work with his NES. It’s great to see sharp minds tinkering with tech for (awesome) trivial pursuits.
Michael Arrington’s CrunchPad Dies Over Legal Squabbles
CrunchPad, an exciting Internet tablet being developed by TechCrunch’s Michael Arrington (among others), was supposed to be unveiled before the end of the year. Instead, the project has died due to a curious legal skirmish. According to Arrington, Fusion Garage (TechCrunch’s partner) CEO Chandra Rathakrishnan nuked the project through a strange series of emails. He wrote:
Bizarrely, we were being notified that we were no longer involved with the project. Our project. Chandra said that based on pressure from his shareholders he had decided to move forward and sell the device directly through Fusion Garage, without our involvement.
Err, what? This is the equivalent of Foxconn, who build the iPhone, notifiying Apple a couple of days before launch that they’d be moving ahead and selling the iPhone directly without any involvement from Apple.
That’s pretty nuts. Fairly, Arrington admitted that this is his side of the story and Fusion Garage will surely spin it another way. Arrington wanted the CrunchPad to be, “a tablet computer that I could use to consume the Internet while sitting on a couch.” I’m totally down with that. I use my iPhone to check on my site, post some tweets, and read Facebook during television commercials. I wish I could do all of that stuff on a device with a larger screen. It’s sad that a cool and possibly revolutionary product will miss the market due to shareholder greed.
Congrats to Bsukenyan!!!
Congrats to bsukenyan for being the latest winner in the RPad.tv chick magnet contest! Here’s his winning post. I would also like to give him bonus thanks for posting a few of my articles on Gamekicker. A few weeks ago, I started submitting articles to N4G. Those two sites helped bring in some new traffic. In fact, the week before Thanksgiving was the site’s best since launch!
Bsukenyan, please check your email and congrats/thanks again!!!