08/07/07 | | Chris Martin
Just arrived on Xbox Live today are two new demos. Eternal Sonata from Namco Bandai is likely to satisfy all those eager for a JRPG on Microsoft\'s console, and Vampire Rain, which is, something else entirely. I personally am excited for Eternal Sonata, as I haven\'t played a JRPG in some time and it looks fantastic from previews. I\'m less excited for the universally panned Vampire Rain, where you\'re an elite special forces unit sent to thin out the vampire ranks. Impressions forthcoming.
08/07/07 | | Chris Martin
Microsoft has made it official today that the Xbox 360 Premium will see a price drop of $50. Although for many this will seem old hat (as Microsoft is, apparently, no keeper of secrets), but it\'s nice to know anyway. The Core system will have a $20 price drop and the Elite will have a $30 price drop.
Microsoft also announced the pricing of their Halo 3 Special Edition (which features a sweet system: see article for pics) which will go for $399.99, the Premiums original price.
08/07/07 |
XB360 | Chris Martin
08/01/07 | | Chris Martin
I intentionally avoided, up until now, posting news about Halo 3 - pics notwithstanding - because, frankly, I don\'t care to learn about the levels or the neat gizmos the good Master Chief will be using this time around, ahead of time. They, to me, are spoilers. I am at the point where I just want to play the game for myself and be surprised. I am breaking my rule now because the latest news about Halo 3 steps beyond that broad line of \"developer hype.\" Today Bungie officially confirmed that Halo 3 will feature 4 player Co-op play over Xbox Live and System Link. It\'s that kind of important news that just needs to be boldface.
08/01/07 |
XB360 | Chris Martin
It didn\'t take long for Turn 10\'s gearheaded staff to release the first of, what I assume will be, many downloadable packs for Forza Motorsport 2. In this pack they bring us four cars. The first three come from Nissan and are free for all: 2007 Sentra SE-R, 2007 Altima, 2007 350Z. The fourth car is the second place winner of this year\'s Le Mans: the Peugeot 908 race car - costing 50 gamerpoints (not bad). The Peugeot is also the first racecar (R4-1 class), as gamers will note, that can be painted.
07/16/07 |
XB360 | Chris Martin
It actually came to Xbox Live last week, but I thought I\'d share it anyway. Both Blue Dragon and Ace Combat 6 have their own demos, but so do 2K Sports\' The BIGS, EA\'s Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, and THQ\'s Stuntman: Ignition. Quite a bit to keep you busy if you don\'t have enough games already.
04/20/07 |
XB360 | Aaron Stanton
There\'s an interesting article written back in 2006 that asks the question, \"Why is Microsoft still in the gaming industry?\" After losing $5.4 billion between 2001 and 2006, what incentive does Microsoft have to stay in the home console market? In fact, Microsoft has no incentive, unless you look at what the entertainment division does for Microsoft as a whole. Microsoft wants to keep control of the living room away from companies like Sony and Apple, and uses the Xbox 360 as a strategic tool for a larger company vision independent of its individual profits or losses. Additionally, there\'s an 800-lb gorilla in the room that keeps getting overlooked: XNA.
04/19/07 |
PS3 | Chris Martin
Folding@Home is a project that has been undergoing some massive distribution on PCs and now on Sony\'s PS3. It\'s also had
success with the program in understanding proteins. A clever use of the human element here, by distributing the program Scientists at Stanford University are trying to get everyone involved in the unravelling of human proteins.
03/16/07 |
XB360 | Chris Martin
One of the greatest 2D platformers ever created and certainly the best Castlevania game yet, Castlevania: Symphony of the Night will be hitting Xbox Live Arcade next Wednesday (March 21). Blending a memorable storyline and iconic characters (you play as Dracula\'s son, Alucard, fer crissakes!), RPG elements, and a long (read: MASSIVE) game, SOTN is going to be a huge release for Xbox Live Arcade.
01/29/07 |
PC XB360 | Aaron Stanton
Microsoft\'s courtship of the homebrew game developer has led to the Xbox 360 running its first unofficial NES emulator. While not useful to the general public, a programmer by the name of Lone Coder used Microsoft\'s XNA Game Studio Express to convert an existing emulator - SharpNES - to run on XNA environments. That includes both PCs running Windows Vista and the Xbox 360. The development introduces the Xbox 360 to its first taste of unapproved retro-gaming, and while limitations built into Game Studio Express prevent a usable release on the 360, it\'s nice to see Microsoft take steps to embrace the homebrew community instead of alienating them.
Our thumb hurts.