Xbox COO doesn’t like the chances of PS Vita, 3DS

Posted on June 24, 2011 by Mike Gutierrez

The PlayStation Vita has garnered a lot of enthusiasm from gamers with its promising software lineup, as has the 3DS with its innovative visuals and recently released The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time 3DS. But where many gamers see hope, Microsoft corporate executives see doom.

Xbox COO Dennis Durkin told Industry Gamers that while he respects Nintendo and Sony, he wouldn’t want to trade places with them, especially in the handheld space. “I’m not sure I would want to be launching a dedicated portable device right now into that market,” said Durkin. “If you look at the 3DS, certainly versus people’s expectation’s, it’s not been as successful as people would have thought. So that’s a very crowded market and a very, very red ocean right now with a lot of change happening. So I’m not sure it’s [a good idea].”

While I’m sure that mentality is what makes him very good at what he does, it makes me glad Microsoft isn’t involved in the dedicated gaming handheld space, given their attitude. When it comes to handheld gaming, I usually like to order a healthy heaping of gameplay with a side of innovation… hold the corporate bullsh*t.

Posted in 3DS, News, Vita, Xbox 360 |

Just Dance 2: Summer Party gets jiggy this July

Posted on June 24, 2011 by John Scalzo

Ubisoft plans to get the party started on the Wii this July with Just Dance 2: Summer Party. The standalone expansion (meaning you don’t need a copy of Just Dance 2 to play it) includes 21 songs previously available for download from the Wii Shop along with two exclusive tracks.

Just Dance 2: Summer Party will be available on July 21 and you can check out the full track list after the break. But prepare yourself… because it’s full of classics like “Here Comes The Hotstepper” and “Kung Fu Fighting!”

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Posted in News, Wii |

Monolith Soft hiring en masse for an upcoming Wii U project

Posted on June 24, 2011 by Mike Gutierrez

We’ve all been so excited about the third party developers supporting the Wii U that sometimes we forget about Nintendo’s own first party studios. One would hope the best of the best would be gearing up to work on the new platform, and it seems that Monolith Soft is doing just that.

The once Xenogears, then Xenosaga, now Xenoblade developer is accepting applications for nearly every position under the sun, from 3D artists to 2D artists, planners, and even office staff. Monolith Soft got some pretty nice visuals out of the Wii on its last project, it will be interesting to see what they can do with the Wii U.

Any other studios or franchises you’d like to see on the Wii U? If Nintendo got a license for Shining Force from Sega and had their own Camelot Software Planning (the original developers) make it, I would literally throw my PS3 out the window.

Posted in News, Wii U |

Team Fortress 2 goes free to play

Posted on June 24, 2011 by Mike Gutierrez

Valve has been at the forefront when it comes to experimental pricing in the digital age of game consumption. They’ve also taken bold steps towards the “games as services” model. Now that ideal becomes more of a reality.

Team Fortress 2, one of the iconic Valve franchises, has now gone free to play. Robin Walker, who worked on the game way back when it was just a Quake mod, sat down with Develop to discuss the reasons for the move. Getting more people on Steam is one, as is learning more about consumer habits. But Walker also cites the fact that in multiplayer games, the more people actually playing it creates more value for each consumer.

Anyone yet to try out Team Fortress 2 should do so promptly, and be sure to read the full interview with Robin Walker.

Posted in News, PC | Tagged

Smash Bros. for 3DS/Wii U is “several years” away

Posted on June 24, 2011 by John Scalzo

One of the highlights of Nintendo’s E3 Press Conference was the announcement of a new Super Smash Bros. game for the 3DS and Wii U. It was also revealed that the games will be developed by Kid Icarus: Uprising mastermind Masahiro Sakurai. But Sakurai recently informed Famitsu (and translated by 1UP) that gamers shouldn’t expect them anytime soon.

“Right now, we’re devoting all our manpower to working on Kid Icarus. We’ve got no plans whatsoever — we’ve got two new games out in the open when there’s no extra time to work with them at all. It makes me cringe, and I’m not sure it’s the smartest thing to make gamers wait for several years, but the early announcement was made chiefly in order to attract new team members.”

So the next Smash Bros. is “several years” away? Ouch. Let’s hope Sakurai and his team at Project Sora can find the right people to fit in with the group as they work on the fourth Smash Bros. game.

Posted in 3DS, News, Wii U | Tagged ,

Daily Scoop: June 24, 2011 – Friday deals!

Posted on June 24, 2011 by Nicole Kline

We’ve got a lot of deals for you today! First up is a great one at Amazon – their Deal of the Day in video games, which is Batman: Arkham Asylum: Game of the Year Edition. Both the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 versions are just $19.99 today. If you don’t already own this game, you must pick it up! It’s excellent, and will help prepare you for the October 18 release date of Batman: Arkham City.

Amazon’s also got loads of bonus offers up right now, including $25 promotional credit for buying a Nintendo 3DS, Kinect Sensor with Kinect Adventures, and the PlayStation Move Starter Bundle. Whew. That’s a lot of promotional credit!

I love today’s Ript shirt, aptly titled “Give Me A Hand:”

Can you figure out who all of these hands belong to?!?!

Posted in Daily Scoop, Etcetera, News |

Ms. Splosion Man blasts onto XBLA on July 13

Posted on June 23, 2011 by John Scalzo

The funniest guys making video games today, Twisted Pixel, has announced that Ms. Splosion Man will be available to download from the Xbox Live Arcade on July 13. More than a mere sequel to 2009’s Splosion Man, Twisted Pixel promises a ton of enhancements to their already explosive game:

Boasting improvements to nearly every aspect of its gameplay, Ms. Splosion Man is a true successor to her illustrious forebearer. Players can look forward to a host of new gameplay mechanics, varying environments posing new unique challenges, totally revamped network support, epic boss battles, original music, and plenty of the humor and charm that people have come to expect from Twisted Pixel. Tons of unlockables throughout the game give players a complete behind-the-scenes look at the game’s creation.

In case that weren’t enough, the developer also promises players will have access to 50 single-player levels, 50 multiplayer levels and “a bunch of surprises to come.”

Posted in News, Xbox 360 | Tagged

Dirt 3 Review: Can You Class Up Dirty?

Posted on June 23, 2011 by Adam Woolcott

Codemasters has spent this entire hardware cycle delivering consistently excellent racing games – with their biggest success being the Dirt franchise. An “evolution” of the old Colin McRae Rally games, the original Dirt offered not just traditional rally racing, but numerous other disciplines of off-road racing. 2009’s Dirt 2 continued this movement away from what made the CMR games so popular… and added an unfortunate “extreme” element that was insanely out of place. The result is a series that’s commended for solid racing action, but frequently criticized for its abandonment of “serious” off-road racing. The result of these complaints is Dirt 3, which can best be explained as a “happy medium” between the seriousness of Dirt and the insanity of Dirt 2. In short, if Dirt 2’s craziness was a serious turn-off, Dirt 3 is a heartfelt apology.

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Posted in PC, PS3, Reviews, Top Story, Xbox 360 | Tagged