If you knew me, and really you should, you'd know it's very hard to get me interested in anything with just a CG trailer. This trailer for Dead Head Fred is one of those rare exceptions. Zombies are really starting to reach the saturation point (thanks, Internet), but there's still room for them to be used well. And we can always use more stories about 1940's private dicks. Play magazine has a short preview of the game:

As Fred battles a variety of monsters, mutants, and ghouls, he can used the severed heads of some of his fallen foes to replace his own, giving him a variety of new ability and powers. For example, one of the heads I got to check out was a zombie head, which can suck in various things, expanding as it fills with said content. You can suck in air to expand the head like a balloon, giving you longer hang time while jumping, or you can suck up liquids like water to then use for various tasks. Another head featured in the E3 demo was a shrunken head, which allows Fred to grow smaller to fit through tight spots, walk across beams and wires he would usually be too heavy for, or access new areas otherwise inaccessible. In all there will be nine different heads Fred will be able to keep on-hand and switch up on the fly, depending on the situation and what is called for at the time.

The gameplay doesn't sound outrageously different from other power-up based games. But I'm hoping there will actually be some semblance of a story involved, as well as the same kind of bizarre humor shown in the trailer. Now if it just wasn't for the PSP...

Posted by Ermac at 03:51 PM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)

Not much coming out this week, with the only real notables being a Tomb Raider: Legend port on the PSP, MotoGP 4 on the PS2, and NFL Head Coach on the Xbox, PS2 and PC, the finest "wear a headset and yell at people while pointing" simulator available on the market today. Actually, EA has said their biggest hurdle with Head Coach is just communicating what the game is (they call it a "3D sports strategy game"), so maybe you should read a preview or two to help you get it straight.

The rest of the release list can be found here and consists primarily of puzzle games and PC expansions. God, how many versions of Sudoku do we need?

Posted by Ermac at 12:58 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

A new patent filed by Sony has been uncovered, describing a fluid-filled electronic device which can be folded or rolled up, yet can be flattened out and made rigid when electric current is applied. The patent suggests it could be used for PDAs, cell phones, remote controls, and clocks, as well as game systems. This is the example they give:

"The electrorheological fluid device can be applied to, for example, part of a controller of a home-use game machine as another example of the electronic apparatus of the present invention. A user touches a control section of the controller by fingers, and the feeling of touch is controlled by the electrorheological fluid device. For example, if a game player is defeated in a fighting game, the electrorheological fluid device is controlled to become soft in order to improve the realistic sensations in the game."

And to be honest I don't know what the hell that means. You get beaten in a fighting game, so your controller goes squishy? How is that useful? This undoubtedly has some cool applications, but games aren't one of them. Sony's probably just stretching to cover all the bases they can so they can sue anyone who tries to use anything remotely similar in the future.

Source: Gamespot

Posted by Ermac at 01:19 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Here are the highlights of what's coming out today and tomorrow.

• Big Brain Academy (DS) - The next step in the Brain Training series arrives in America. $19.99 at EB Games.
• Grand Theft Auto: Liberty City Stories (PS2) - If you're like me and didn't feel like playing this on a small screen with a weird analog nub, now it's on the PS2. And it's only $19.99 at EB Games.
• Magnetica (DS) - A Puzz Loops game for your DS just in case you haven't played Zuma enough already. $34.99 at EB Games.
• The Movies: Stunts and Effects (PC) - An expansion for The Movies which may possibly add stunts and/or effects. $29.99 at EB Games.
• Gradius Collection (PSP) - Gradius I through IV and the never before released in the US Gradius Gaiden, all in one pack. If you haven't emulated them all already, anyway. $39.99 at EB Games.

The rest of the list can be found here.

Posted by Ermac at 03:01 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

The upcoming Medal of Honor Airborne will feature real, licensed, historically accurate Jeeps. Surely this is a momentous occassion, especially since you know how many of those Jeeps fly.

• Halo 3 is getting daily multiplayer testing, which I guess means it exists in some form greater than a two minute trailer.
• Eidos denies report of a next-generation Fear Effect.
• The two most popular console games in sales for the week of May 14 were both DS titles. How odd.
• Insane people roll katamari in San Francisco Bay to Breakers race.
• First screenshots of Earthworm Jim for the PSP.
• Unlockable secret modes found in the Japanese version of Street Fighter Alpha Anthology. I can't keep any of those things straight, so you'll have to read and see if they mean anything to you.
• First official info and screens for Tenchu: Time of the Assassins on the PSP.
• Has viral marketing pervaded Xbox Live? And if so, do they think anyone's going to believe that someone who describes M:I3 as "super artistic" isn't a shill?

Posted by Ermac at 05:05 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Hey look, actual games are coming out this week.

• Table Tennis (360) - Probably the only time anyone's actually been interested in a table tennis game, and only because this one's developed by Rockstar. Yes, that Rockstar. $39.99 at EB Games.
• Jaws Unleashed (Xbox, PS2) - I was just thinking to myself the other day, what I want is a game based on a 30 year old movie. Where's my Night Moves game? $29.99 at EB Games for the Xbox and PS2, so long as you search for the title "Jaws" and not "Jaws Unleashed," like it says on the damned box. I switched from Amazon because I thought these guys would have a better handle on what they're doing.
• Heroes of Might & Magic V (PC) - The famous turn-based strategy franchise returns, StarForce free. $49.99 at EB for the regular version, $59.99 for the super deluxe limited edition with candy inside.
• Lemmings (PSP) - The same old lemmings, continuing their quest to be ported to every system ever created, back in glorious 2D after some unfortunate 3D outings. $39.99 at EB Games.
• Steambot Chronicles (PS2) - New Atlus USA release comes out of nowhere. Why was I not informed? I must admit, Next Gen's write up has me intrigued. Renamed for America (for obvious reasons) from the original Japanese title of Bumpy Trot, which sounds like something you'd get after eating bad Thai food. $49.99 at EB Games.

Other bits and pieces I neglected to talk about, like Rogue Trooper, can be found at the full release list.

Posted by Ermac at 02:35 PM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)

Of course, most of the news over the next three days will just be announced games and previews of stuff on the show floor, and I'm not going to repeat all that here. I'd suggest regularly looking over IGN and Gamespot's E3 pages, with the following being the bits I found interesting.

• Just in case you missed it yesterday, here's the Wii's classic controller.
• Guitar Hero 2 will feature Primus playing John the Fisherman. Not a cover, the actual master track.
• A new Resident Evil is headed to the Wii.
• Rockstar is bringing Vice City Stories to the PSP. I'll just wait for the inevitable PS2 version.
• Zelda is no longer the only thing still worth having a Gamecube for: Nintendo announces Super Paper Mario.
• Hideo Kojima announces new DS game with weather-based vampires.. eh?
• New Duck Hunt omg wtf. And the light gun that goes along with it.
• First screenshots of Trauma Center 2.
• Sega announces Wii-exclusive Sonic Wild Fire.
• The President of Sega marketing says to bet on the Wii being less than $200.
• Gates announces Live Anywhere at Microsoft conference.
• The Wii version of Twilight Princess will feature a widescreen mode.
• First details on the non-card game PSP Metal Gear: Metal Gear Solid: Portable Ops.
• Draenei to be next playable race in World of Warcraft expansion.
• Leisure Suit Larry creator Al Lowe returns to gaming and unveils his first project, Sam Suede: Undercover Exposure.
• Screens of the Opera browser on the DS.
• Atari picks up the rights to Earthworm Jim.

Last but not least, I finally found that sumnbitch. He was playing Warhawk the whole time.

Posted by Ermac at 03:27 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

I'll be updating on the Sony conference from here. If you'd like to watch yourself, Gamespot seems to have the only live, free feed here.

Update: Okay, the conference is over, and I'll summarize here. If you want the ongoing notes I was taking, they're below.

In short, that was downright shameful. The first hour and a half of the show was boring, with games that looked less than thrilling. Most games will still shown as movies rather than showing actual gameplay. The team tried to get the audience excited about using your PSP as a rear view mirror for a racing game on the PS3 (???) and playing Ridge Racer on your PSP through their PSX games download service, but judging by the lack of response people just weren't having it. Basically the only two notable games on display were FFXIII and Metal Gear Solid 4. FFXIII looked great, what little you could tell about it. MGS4 was another movie type preview, with no gameplay shown, but it drew enough attention simply with the appearance of Meryl and with by ending with Snake (or Old Snake, as it called him) saying there was one more thing he had to endure, and putting a gun in his mouth. One of the last lines of the trailer was "some legends are meant to die." Definitely intriguing.

But the real shock of the night was a two hit punch at the very end. One, they unveiled the PS3 controller, which is simply a PS2 DualShock painted silver with no cord and an extra button in the middle (most likely serving the same function as the 360 guide button). More importantly, it features motion sensor controls, much like the Wii remote. Hell, the same as the Wii remote. They ripped them off, basically, the same as they did when they created the DualShock upon the introduction of the N64. That's business, I suppose. I should note that from what it seems from the conference (and their insistance that the controller "doesn't even need an external sensor"), that what the PS3 has is essentially a tilt sensor. So it can be controlled by moving it around, but the system can't know where the controller is in space, which is what the Wii does in addition to being tilt-sensitive. So they don't have everything Nintendo does.

But it's hard to imagine they're creating much competition for Nintendo anyway, after their next announcement. The system will launch worldwide November 11 in Japan and November 17 in the US and Europe, in two SKUs. One will feature a 20 gig hard drive, and the other will have a 60 gig drive. The prices of each are -- wait for it -- a staggering $500 for the 20 gig SKU and $600 for the 60. That's right, Sony wants consumers of the world to believe that the $500 unit is the cheap option.

In my humble estimation, Sony has taken a major blow here. They've got a bloated, expensive hunk of plastic with very little coming to it that actually looks interesting. Practically every game they showed on tape was a shooter of some sort, either an FPS or a GTA-type. Now they need to convince everyone that it's worth $500 for a new Metal Gear.

Continue reading "The Sony E3 2006 Press Conference" »

Posted by Ermac at 06:57 PM | Permalink | Comments (6) | TrackBacks (0)

Hideo Kojima announced on his blog that there would be a new title in the Metal Gear Solid series on the PSP. Yes, Metal Gear Solid, not Metal Gear Acid. Gamers will play as Big Boss, as well as being able to control other members of Foxhound (whether that's within the main game or as an extra mode, I don't know), so the game must take place either between MGS3 and Metal Gear or between MG1 and MG2. Kojima mentioned that objectives in the game will have multiple solutions, and that it will support multiple players over WiFi.

Source: The Magic Box

Posted by Ermac at 12:31 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

EA has delayed the Superman game until fall. It was going to coincide with the theatrical release, but as the "ambitious design of the free-roaming world proved challenging," it will coincide with the release of the DVD instead.

In other EA news, the company has lost the rights to the Bond franchise, which will be picked up by Activision until at least 2014. The weird bit? EA gave it up willingly. They're intentionally choosing to move away from licensed properties. I'm expecting to find the real EA executives stashed in an alien pod somewhere at any moment.

• Next Generation's E3 previews: Ubisoft and Vivendi.
• THQ is working on a new game based on The Sopranos.
• Eidos announces a video game based on Reservoir Dogs, coming in Fall 2006.
• Article: How good can graphics get in the next generation?
• California Assembly speaker Leeland Yee is quick to jump on the ESRB and Take Two for the latest Oblivion screw up. Good job, guys!
• Was Microsoft planning a Halo title for the failed Gizmondo handheld?
• First screens of Every Extend Extra and Lumines 2 surface.
• Next-gen Sonic will be a PS3 launch title.
• IGN has an interview with the developers of Turok on the PS3.
• Gold seller haven IGE.com buysMMORPG site Allakhazam.com.
• Sega bringing Charlotte's Web to DS and GBA. Hopefully none of the annoying voices from the upcoming movie are included.

Posted by Ermac at 04:46 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Nintendo's apparent new stance towards mature games gets another boost as it's announced that Midway will bring the M-rated football game Blitz: The League to the Wii.

• Next Generation has previews of what Take Two, THQ, and Square Enix will have at E3.
• Hollywood's shaky history with properly representing the Internet. SEND SPIKE
• Adult game Naughty America has been banned from appearing at E3.
• Kingdom Hearts II passes the one million sales mark after four weeks.
• Mother (Earthbound) series creator says he won't make a Mother 4.
• Leisure Suit Larry creator Al Lowe may be returning to games.
• Rascally kids are using their DSes to cheat in school.
• Atari announces a "dirtier, grittier" Wario Ware-type game called "HOTPXL."
• After being lost in Acclaim's bankruptcy, comic to game conversion 100 Bullets is back on track for Q3 2007.

Posted by Ermac at 05:38 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

In an effort to make sure the blue hedgehog appears on every system in existence, Sega has announced Sonic will be coming to the PSP in Sonic Rivals. The game is being described as a "racing platformer" that takes place in 3D environments, but with 2D gameplay. Gamers choose one of four main characters and compete in races, making use of power-ups and boosts to get ahead, as well as less gentlemanly methods like tripping and shoving. Each character has his (or her?) own storyline, because I know how important that is to you. The game will also featuring a trading card rewards that allow you to customize your racer, or you can wager cards in multiplayer battles.

Sonic Rivals is not being developed internally, but instead by Death Jr. developers Backbone Entertainment.

Update: Screenshots are available here.

Source: Gamespot

Posted by Ermac at 01:03 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Honestly, it was just a matter of time until this happened, wasn't it?

a 14 year old boy in North Dakota got in trouble for bringing porn stored on his PSP to school and sharing it with his classmates. One of them tattled, and as result the boy got slapped with a C class felony for promoting obscenity to minors. He was also charged with simple assault for scratching the tattler with a key, though whether this was before or after he told isn't known.

It's doubtful he'll get tried as an adult, but all the same it seems odd to apply that law to a minor. Sharing something with your friends as a kid really doesn't even involve the same thought process as an adult deliberately exposing children to obscene materials, so the same law shouldn't apply to both.

Source: Game Politics

Posted by Ermac at 04:09 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Most people scoffed at the idea of UMD movies on the PSP -- why get a movie in a new format that only works on one player? The recent news of retailers dropping UMDs from their shelves and movie studios halting production of movies on UMD seemed to bear out the idea that no one really wanted this.

But a survey conducted by the NPD Group seems to suggest that the desire is there, it's the people making and selling the movies that are holding consumers back.

The NPD's report, titled, PSP Functionality and Content Study, says that almost two-thirds of PSP owners own movies or TV shows on UMDs, and two-fifths bought the system because they found its UMD capabilities to be "very important."

However, even though many considered the PSP's UMD functionality important upon purchase, no one seems to be buying the format on a consistent basis. The report states that the intent of owners to buy classic movies and TV shows on UMD is about three times the actual purchase rate, implying that there isn't enough compelling UMD content available to coax potential consumers to fully adopt the format.

Users stated that price, followed by selection, were their main reasons for holding off on buying UMD movies. If studios hadn't gotten the bright idea to charge $20 to $25 a pop for their movies, maybe they wouldn't be in the position now to put the brakes on UMD production. There are plans for DVD-UMD bundles selling at $28.95, but with retailers and studios already bailing out on the format, it may be too late for a turnaround.

Source: Next Generation

Posted by Ermac at 02:24 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Responding to the recent rumors that Oblivion would be ported to the PS3 and PSP, a Bethesda representative said today: "At present we have no announced plans to bring Oblivion to any platforms other than the PC or Xbox 360."

I've seen a few responses to rumors in this manner recently, and I've always wondered why anyone takes them to heart. Of course you have no announced plans, because if they were announced we wouldn't need the rumor. Maybe I'm reading too much into their words, or maybe they're very carefully avoiding outright denying something that isn't actually wrong.

Posted by Ermac at 03:19 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)