Halo: Combat Evolved Anniversary to match original score

Posted on July 7, 2011 by Mike Gutierrez

Halo fans worrying about the handling of the upcoming Halo: Combat Evolved Anniversary remake can rest a bit easier. Microsoft and 343 Industries are teaming with Pyramind Studios to recreate the original score, note for note. The Skywalker Symphony Orchestra and Chanticleer vocal ensemble will also collaborate to recreate the orchestral pieces and famed Halo monk-like singing.

“It was a huge undertaking to transcribe, orchestrate, and produce every note from the original game soundtrack files” said Paul Lipson, Pyramind Studios COO/Audio Director. “Our team approached every aspect of the music with an immense amount of skill and care, keeping the core Halo sound while updating the production to today’s highest standards.”

Halo: Combat Evolved Anniversary releases for Xbox 360 on November 15, 2011.

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Dream Trigger 3D Review: Anything But Lucid

Posted on July 6, 2011 by Nicole Kline

Dream Trigger 3D by D3 Publisher for the 3DS is not just a lot of 3’s and D’s. It’s a shmup that destroys all of your preconceived notions of shmups. It’s frustrating at times and it will leave your hands cramped (quite literally and painfully). But it will also appeal to your love of difficult, old-school arcade games because it’s fun, addictive, and a breath of fresh air in a time when some games don’t even have a failure option. But do the benefits outweigh the frustration and pain?

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Posted in 3DS, Reviews, Top Story |

Sony confirms Resistance 3 will require PSN Pass

Posted on July 6, 2011 by John Scalzo

Earlier today, we reported on the possible requirement of a “PSN Pass” to play the online portion of the upcoming PS3-exclusive Resistance 3. Now, Sony has issued a statement to IGN confirming the existence of the PSN Pass and its inclusion in Resistance 3:

“We are always evaluating new programs for our online offering, and starting with Resistance 3 this September, we will be instituting a network pass program for PS3 games with online capabilities. This program will be game-specific. Games that are a part of this program will include a single-use registration code that grants the account holder redeeming the code full online access for that title,” a Sony spokesperson said.

As expected, if you purchase a used copy of Resistance 3 (or any game that uses the PSN Pass system), Sony will generously offer to sell you a PSN Pass through the PlayStation Store. Other publishers, such as EA, THQ and WB Games, use a $10 price for their “online passes.” I’d expect Sony to offer the PSN Pass at a similar price.

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Wii U to include 3DTV support

Posted on July 6, 2011 by John Scalzo

Nintendo President Satoru Iwata recently sat down for an interview with the San Jose Mercury News and during the short Q&A he confirmed that the Wii U will include 3DTV support:

If you are going to connect Wii U with a home TV capable of displaying 3-D images, technologically, yes, it is going to be possible, but that’s not the area we are focusing on.

When it comes to 3-D, we already have the 3DS, and each owner of the Nintendo 3DS is capable of viewing 3-D images. However, when it comes to the home console, it depends upon the availability of 3-D TV sets at home, which, unfortunately, is not expanding enough. And rather than pouring a lot of energy into that kind of area, with the Wii U we’d like to focus more on each Wii U owner being able to have an equal opportunity to enjoy it.

So basically, it sounds like the Wii U will support 3DTVs, but don’t expect a lot of 3D content from Nintendo.

Posted in News, Wii U |

Daily Scoop: July 6, 2011 – Encounters!

Posted on July 6, 2011 by Nicole Kline

It’s Wednesday again! And you know what that means… it’s another night of D&D Encounters! I’m looking forward to it. It seems to make the workweek go by more quickly!

Amazon’s Deal of the Day in video games today is Activision’s Cabela’s Dangerous Hunts 2011 with Top Shot Elite for the Nintendo Wii. It’s only $39.99 today, and features “next-generation shooting galleries featuring hot-seat, multi-stage and head-to-head multiplayer options.” The description also refers to is as an “epic story of drama and survival as players face kill-or-be-killed scenarios deep in the wild.” Damn!

No video game t-shirts today, but today’s Ript shirt is definitely worth $10:

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Posted in Daily Scoop, Etcetera, News, Wii |

XBLA Today: Dead Block, Deadliest Warrior 2, MLB Bobblehead Pros

Posted on July 6, 2011 by John Scalzo

As the 2011 Summer of Arcade approaches, Microsoft has opened the Xbox Live Arcade floodgates and added three titles to the service today.

Dead Block goes all Night of the Living Dead on us as three survivors are trapped in a house with the zombie horde banging on the door. But instead of shooting their way out, this trio must barricade themselves inside and set traps for the unstoppable undead.

Deadliest Warrior: Legends is the sequel to last year’s XBLA fighting game and features a new assortment of historical personages battling it out for historical bragging rights. Dracula versus Braveheart, why didn’t I think of that?

Finally, Konami brings their cartoony take on the national pasttime, MLB Bobblehead Pros, to the XBLA just in time for next week’s All-Star Game.

All three games have been priced at 800 Microsoft Points ($10) and more information on each title can be found after the break.

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“PSN Pass” spotted on German Resistance 3 bundle

Posted on July 6, 2011 by Mike Gutierrez


“PSN Pass Network features only available in countries that have PlayStation Store.” This disclaimer was spotted alongside the logo you see above for the mysterious “PSN Pass.” The picture was taken of a 320 GB PlayStation 3 Resistance 3 bundle in Germany. While Sony Computer Entertainment has yet to announce PSN Pass, many are suggesting that it will be similar to EA’s “Online Pass” or “Project Ten Dollar,” where every copy of a game comes with a code that can only be redeemed once in order to play online or access premium content for free. Given the Resistance series’ inclination towards ambitious multiplayer features, the third installment would seem the perfect game to introduce such a plan with.

Since I buy nearly all my games new, I usually have no problem with online pass programs by publishers. However, hopefully Insomniac won’t restrict the content on the disc like DICE, who released the maps for Battlefield: Bad Company 2 in small increments over the first year of its release.

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Michael Pachter predicts Duke Nukem Forever sales to disappoint

Posted on July 6, 2011 by Mike Gutierrez

Industry analyst Michael Pachter is shoring up his sales prediction for the highly anticipated Duke Nukem Forever, and it’s not good. Originally expected to sell roughly three million copies in its first quarter, The Pach is now tempering that expectation to 1.5 million. While that would be a respectable number for most games, it’s seen as quite underwhelming for a series with such a legendary place in gaming, not to mention over a decade of hype. The lukewarm critical reception seems to be responsible for a lot of the game’s troubles.

“We had previously expected Duke to be one of the year’s top sellers due to a high degree of hype and a dedicated fan base, and expected solid profit contribution as the bulk of development had been previously expensed,” said Pachter in a note to investors. “However, the game’s poor reviews (average Metacritic score of 49) likely had a negative impact on sales, causing us to lower our [first quarter] sell-in estimate to 1.5 million units from 3 million units.”

It isn’t all bad for Take Two, who bet on Duke, as L.A. Noire‘s success at retail has been well documented.

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