When Mad Catz announced it would be producing a line of Arsenal Football Club branded peripherals, it wasn’t hard to predict more of the like would follow. The latest team to sign up is Manchester United Football Club.
“Manchester United is one of the world’s most popular and historic sports teams, with millions of dedicated fans worldwide, and we look forward to providing retailers and customers across Europe with entertaining accessories that bring the excitement of Manchester United to the gaming experience of its fans,” said Darren Richardson, President and Chief Executive Officer of Mad Catz. “The addition of the Manchester United brand further strengthens and diversifies our growing portfolio of high-profile licenses and allows Mad Catz to continue building on its success and product penetration in key European markets.”
Manchester United fans can expect to see videogame controllers, faceplates, Console Skinz™ and carrying cases featuring the Red Devil for the PS2, PS3, Xbox 360, PSP, DS Lite, and Wii gaming consoles.
2K Sports and Konami are teaming up once again to hit MLB Power Pros 2008 out of the park. This game depicting super-deformed caricatures of Baseball greats is a favorite in Japan, and will be making its second appearance in the US.
Players will be able to choose from ten different game modes including Practice, Exhibition, League and Home Run Challenge. They can also choose to play the part of a team’s General Manager in Season mode.
“We’re thrilled to partner with Konami again, and with the Baseball™ season now in full swing, we’re proud to offer our fans a refreshingly smart and exciting baseball game that is easily accessible for all ages,” said Christoph Hartmann, president of 2K. “Baseball enthusiasts will appreciate the variety of newly added features, intuitive game modes and improved overall feel, and we look forward to hitting one out of the park this season with MLB Power Pros 2008.”
Gamers can catch MLB Power Pros 2008 for the Wii and the PS2 this July. The game will be available for the DS this fall.
Looks like Tony Hawk is taking a break from the game business for a little while. Activision recently confirmed that there is no Tony Hawk game set for release in 2008, making this the first year without a Hawk game on consoles since the first one came out in 1999. Well, there will be one coming out for the DS sometime this year, but that doesn’t really count — though Activision is saying that it will “utilizes new technology not yet seen on the DS.” The publisher claims that the extra development time will be used for “reinventing Tony Hawk from the ground up.” We should see a new Hawk game in fiscal year 2010, which begins in April 2009 for Activision.
Oh no. No new Tony Hawk game in 2008? That’s…just…terrible…you know, I can’t even fake disappointment here. It took me hours to wash out the stink that Proving Ground left in my 360, and it still kind of lingers there a little. Sometimes there just isn’t enough Febreze.
They may have launched a teaser site for Quantum of Solace recently, but the one thing that Activision failed to mention about the game was that it will run on the same engine as CoD4.
While sitting here at my computer listening to the boring audio from the conference call - and wishing I had Irished up my coffee just to make it through the thing, I heard this interesting tidbit after the news that the game would launch the same day as the movie.
According to Chief Executive Officer of Publishing Mike Griffith, Quantum of Solace, “uses the Call of Duty 4 engine and technology to bring Bond games to a new level.” Since the game will be released onto multiple platforms, it will be interesting to see how it will differ from port to port. CoD4 was not released for the Wii, so I imagine (correct me if I am wrong) that either they will have to tweak things a bit or use a different engine for the Nintendo Console. Plus, a myraid of developers will be creating the game for different versions. Treyarch (Xbox 360 and PS3 developers), Vicarious Visions (handheld developer), Beenox (confirmed as the developer for the Wii) and Eurocom (PC devlopers.)
What this means, is that like most multiplatform games, you can expect each one to look drastically different from the next. Unless of course you are looking at PC/PS3/360 comparisons, which mainly just differ in matters of clarity - or so I have found. Of course, this could be because I added a bit of whiskey to my espresso earlier.
For more information on the Activision conference call, check out all the posts related to this bevy of information by hitting this link.
We have known for quite some time that Activision has planned to release Guitar Hero IV sometime close to the holiday shopping extravaganza, but during their conference call yesterday they confirmed that it will be made available for all three major consoles plus the PS2 and DS. Still, that is no surprise.
What is surprising though, slightly at least, is that this yet unnamed title will provide what Activison calls a “significant leap forward in innovation” for not only the franchise but for music simulation gaming as a whole. Could this be the extra instruments they have been talking about recently? Who knows at this point, but during the call it was stated that information would be forthcoming soon.
As far as new concerning Guitar Hero: On Tour for the DS, Activision announced that the company and Nintendo are planning to release a bundle which will include a Nintendo DS, Guitar Hero: On Tour and the DS peripheral. Also, an add-on pack of new music will be released for Guitar Hero: On Tour sometime this year but contents, release date, and price was not given.
Stay tuned for more information on the ever growing assortment of Guitar Hero titles. I am sure Guitar Hero: Fergie is next somewhere down the line. God I hope not.
Thanks: Videogaming247 (here and here)
Codemasters has secured the exclusive video game rights to Formula One in a worldwide licensing agreement with Formula One Administration Ltd. In turn, the developer/publisher will create a new generation of the multi-million selling Formula One game franchise across multiple consoles, handhelds and PC.
Here are some “gushing” quotes pulled from the press release:
“FORMULA 1 is ambitious in expanding its reach with more circuits planned beyond recent additions in the Middle East and China. It is also ambitious in expanding its reach via technology. The digital communities that computer and video gaming creates will play a key role in further growing the FORMULA 1 audience and connecting them globally,” said Rod Cousens, chief executive officer, Codemasters.
“As a world-leading creator of driving games, this alliance with FORMULA 1 is the jewel in Codemasters’ racing crown and creates an undisputed segment champion. FORMULA 1 has gone with the best, the segment leader. It has gone to the home of the EGO Engine for quality; it has gone to the company that can host FORMULA 1 Online, to the company that is streaking away from the pack.”
“Codemasters’ success and recent innovations in the racing game space makes the company more than appropriately tuned for the challenge,” said Chris Deering, chairman, Codemasters.“The combination of FORMULA 1’s new momentum of expansion and Codemasters’ contemporary technology and past experience is the breaking of a new dawn for the sport, on the track and on the HD game screen.”
This deal will provide Codemasters with rights to feature all Grand Prix circuits, Formula One teams, cars, and driver likenesses. In addition, the FIA Formula One World Championship games will be developed using the evolution of the EGO Game Technology Engine, Codemasters’ cross-platform middleware technology. The EGO Engine is currently being deployed in the creation of Race Driver: GRID, the latest in Codemasters Studio’s international circuit-based racing series which will be released on May 30th.
The first FIA Formula One World Championship game is set to launch in 2009.
Over the past decade, THQ and Nickelodeon has been able take advantage (read: exploit) children’s love for Nickelodeon properties to the tune of more than $1 billion and more than 50 million units sold worldwide. This announcement comes alongside the companies’ announcement of their 2008 portfolio, which includes games based on shows I’ve never heard of such as Tak and the Power of Juju, Back at the Barnyard, and The Naked Brothers Band. (What the hell?)
THQ attributes much of the success to the popularity of both the Wii and DS. “With the enormous popularity of Wii and DS coupled with our exceptionally diverse portfolio of Nickelodeon-based games, THQ continues to lead in family entertainment,” said THQ’s Jim Huntley. “Featuring new forms of gameplay such as the music-based The Naked Brothers Band and the drawing-based Drawn to Life: SpongeBob SquarePants Edition, we expect our upcoming titles to offer completely new ways for families to play together.”
Nickelodeon continues to view gaming as an important activity to their audience, so don’t expect to see a lack of SpongeBob games anytime soon. “Gaming is one of the primary activities of our audience, whether it’s online or on the console,” said Nickelodeon’s Steve Youngwood. “THQ’s interactive video games based on our hit shows have continued to help Nickelodeon maintain its position as a leader in gaming entertainment for the family, and we look forward to the addition of these new releases to our library.”
That’s a crapton of money. But you know what’s scarier? The Hannah Montana franchise is expected to total around $1 billion in 2008 alone.
In Code Lyoko: Fall of X.A.N.A., William is being held captive somewhere in Lyoko by the evil virus X.A.N.A. and it’s up to you to help the Code Lyoko Warriors find and free him. To achieve this goal Ulrich, Yumi, Odd an Aelita must complete a number of challenging missions in the different sectors of the digital world of Lyoko. X.A.N.A. has created a new virtual world consisting of Replikas based on Lyoko.
To get to William the Code Lyoko team must first destroy all of the Replikas from inside as well as the Super Computer linked to each of them hidden in strategic locations around Lyoko and protected by tough high tech bosses. Their final challenge is to defeat the mysterious and dangerous Volcano Replika containing the very core of X.A.N.A.: a crater containing a number of towers one of which contains William…
Journey to the virtual universe with your favorite Code Lyoko heroes and experience another chapter in the RPG franchise for the DS which is slated for a Jun 17th release.
Key Features
Explore the five different environments of the Digital World: Forest, Desert, Mountains, Ice field and Volcano territory
Fight against more than 20 different enemies, super tough bosses and the brand new monster from season 4, the Kolossus. Each enemy is characterised by their own individual visual, behaviour and stats
Carry out exciting missions with Odd, Yumi, Ulrich and Aelita each with individual skills, weapons and stats and get back-up from Jeremy by summoning special attacks only he can program!
Some attack commands triggers mini games. Complete them successfully to increase the effect of your attacks!
There are 5 missions to complete – one per territory. Each territory holds 10 battle areas as well as a boss fight resulting in 50 battle areas on Lyoko, 50 battle areas on Replika and 5 boss fights for a total of 105 battles!
Battle against your friends in 3 different multiplayer modes using the Nintendo DS Wi-Fi connection and find out who has the genuine team of Code Lyoko Heroes and whose team is made up of Replicas
Forbes has published their list of the 40st richest people in Japan and topping the list is former Nintendo President Hiroshi Yamauchi. Running the company from 1949 to 2002 and retiring from the gaming giant completely in 2005, over the past year his wealth has increased by $3 billion dollars - thanks mainly in part to the Wii, DS and the game sales for both systems. This has increased his overall wealth to a whopping $7.8 billion.
Hiroshi’s wealth has tripled over the past three years, and one can only imagine how much wealth he will accumulate once the WiiFit hits the states.
Sierra has announced the development of The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor, a video game based the third installment of the “Mummy” movies from Universal Pictures. The game, which will mirror the events depicted in the film, is being developed by Eurocom Studios for the PS2 and the Wii; and in development for the DS from A2M.
The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperorgame was created through a licensing agreement with Universal Pictures Digital Platforms Group. In this third-person action-adventure game, players will take on the roles of Rick O’Connell and his son, Alex (played by Brendan Fraser and Luke Ford, respectively, in the film). Gamers will follow the lead characters on their journey - across locations from ancient Chinese catacombs to the Himalayan peaks - to defeat the revived servants of the Dragon Emperor (Jet Li). The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor will allow players to switch between gunplay and hand-to-hand melee attacks, and also features an arsenal of weaponry that can be used to vanquish the many enemies players will face during their journey. Players will also be able to utilize combat, puzzle-solving and hieroglyphic decoding gameplay elements to fight their way through the game.
The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor is expected to be available on July 22nd, while the movie is expected to be released in theaters on August 1st.
You know, as horrid as The Scorpion King was combined with the asinine antics and plotline of the The Mummy Returns, I am surprised that they are even making ANOTHER one. I mean, even Rachel Weisz is smart enough not to be a part of this one - her character is being played by Maria Bello this time around - who isn’t even British so how in the world can she still be considered Jonathan’s sister? Plus, with the “son” as a side-kick in the movie, that just guarantees that it will both suck and blow. Plus, with Luke Ford playing Brenden Fraser’s son, his character would have been 13 when Alex was born which is absurd - of course, now I am just nit-picking so I will shut up.
Poor Harvey Dent. His campaign against crime ended when crime boss Sal “Boss” Maroni threw sulfuric acid in Dent’s face, horribly scarring and discoloring his left hand and the left half of his face. Tormented by his hideous reflection, he becomes not only a shadow of his former self, but a demented villain and changes his name to Two Face. This crazed former attorney uses the toss of his coin to decide whether he acts for good or evil in any situation. Unfortunately, the coin rarely lands on good.
While this may sound like a dire plotline, we can pretty much guess that it will be more light hearted if not down right comical when portrayed in the new LEGO Batman game where a stampede of notorious criminals have busted out of Arkham Asylum (the place where Gotham City houses only the shadiest of characters).
It’s up to the famed Caped Crusader to sweep Gotham clean of criminal activity using everything at his disposal, including crime-fighting vehicles as well as several baddie-bashing gadgets.
LEGO Batman is expected to be released in September on multiple platforms. You can view more of the new screens featuring Two Face and others by clicking here.
Speed Racer: The Videogame, is available today for the Wii and Nintendo DS. Based on the Warner Bros. Pictures film directed by the Wachowski brothers, Speed Racer: The Videogame features the voices of Emile Hirsch as Speed Racer, Matthew Fox as Racer X and Christina Ricci as Trixie, who reprise their film roles as playable characters.
In Speed Racer: The Videogame, developed by Sidhe Interactive for the Wii and Virtuos for the Nintendo DS, players will race at amazing speeds to engage in “Car-Fu” battles to outmaneuver opponents as they jump, flip, smash and spin competing cars off the track. Select from 19 different drivers and their extreme cars as players take to the track in an effort to win the illustrious World Racing League cup. One of the first games compatible with the Wii Wheel, Speed Racer: The Videogame allows players to experience all the twists and turns of the film’s racing sequences first hand as they jump behind the wheel of Speed’sT180 race car the Mach 6, or the specially designed T180 race cars of more than 15 other characters, including Racer X, Trixie and other film favorites.
Speed Racer: The Videogame captures the action, look and feel of the high adrenaline arena racing developed for the movie in an accessible, fun-filled gamewith intense, rollercoaster-like race tracks. Award-winning composer Winifred Phillips, created an original score for the videogame, fusing rock, classical and retro beats into a truly unique game soundtrack.
That’s right, we’ve slipped into another year, so there has to be a new Crash Bandicoot game on the horizon. As such, Sierra has revealed a new teaser trailer for the upcoming Crash Bandicoot: Mind Over Mutant, set for release this fall. It already looks pretty much like his last game, Crash of the Titans, just with a few new abilities and enemies; so I can already draw some educated guesses on what this game will be like. Let me put it this way: the trailer begins with a cartoon character getting kicked in the groin. If you find that hilarious, then you probably fit into these games’ demographic. You’re also probably ten years old.
This has been a good year for THQ and much of its success is due to its partnership with Nickelodeon. The Company has netted over $1 Billion on Nickelodeon titles. On that note THQ has announced it portfolio of upcoming Nickelodeon titles.
This year’s feature titles include the video game debut of The Naked Brothers Band. The Naked Brothers Band: The Video Game (working title) is based on the highly rated TV show that follows the lives of a kids’ rock band fronted by real-life brothers Nat and Alex Wolff.
In addition, SpongeBob SquarePants will take on a new creative form this year in Drawn to Life™: SpongeBob SquarePants Edition. Based on last year’s top selling Drawn to Life™ video game for Nintendo DS™, the game will allow players to draw their own characters and populate the world of Bikini Bottom with their own creativity.
Gamers will find new games based on Tak and the Power of Juju, Avatar: The Last Airbender and Back At The Barnyard; and can also look forward to a new installment of the popular Nicktoons.
The 2008 Nickelodeon portfolio will be in stores for Fall 2008. Titles will be widely available on consoles including the Wii, PlayStation2 and Nintendo DS.
An annoyed female has thrown down on men and the lengths they go to get and play video games. Apparently the release of Grand Theft Auto IV has La’Juanda Knight up in arms with “grown ass men” indulging in this particular form of entertainment. I had to share this with all of you men out there, because I find it sad, offensive and hilarious all at the same time.
It seems that her main problem with video games is that men choose games over time spent doing something else. Her diatribe includes waiting in long lines, scheduling time to play, taking days off work to play and ignoring family members during game time. She’s infuriated with coming home to a gathering of guys watching someone play a game and is absolutely incensed with being asked to spend time with “her man ” (gotta love the possessive nature of that statement) watching him play. She also complains about men staying up late playing instead of doing something “constructive.” Like what? Drinking, scoring drugs, trolling for hookers or stepping out with a mistress? I can think of many past times that are worse than video games.
Nintendo is bringing another old favorite past time into the digital age with the release of Crosswords DS. Crosswords puzzles are more portable than ever with a variety of puzzles and levels of difficulty. If you get stuck you can choose how much information the Hint System gives you. You can get another hint, have it reveal a letter or just reveal the whole word and go on with the puzzle. Everything is entered via the stylus, so there are no worries about smudging or erasing a hole in your paper with this game.
The game also includes the usual puzzles that accompany Crosswords in your local papers. There are over 200 Wordsearch puzzles as well as an Anagrams game which will challenge you to combine letters into words.
LucasArts has unveiled a new trailer for the upcoming LEGO Indiana Jones, which shows off a few of the gameplay features. Like the past LEGO Star Wars games, the brick-based environments will have you constructing and deconstructing all manner of in-game objects to solve puzzles and such. Of course, since there are no Force powers in Indy’s world, he’ll have to rely on his hands – and his fists — to get the job done. This time around, supporting characters will have more specific powers rather than just being cookie-cutter versions of each other. Look for this game to hit store shelves later this summer.
Activision has announced that a new demo for the upcoming Kung Fu Panda game is now available for download through Xbox Live. The demo offer one level for players to experience the game’s “kung fu awesomeness and bodacious humor” (I swear, that’s what the press release says). You’ll play as Po the Panda to fight your way through waves of enemies using several combos and special moves. As a bonus, anyone who completes the demo will get a code for an exclusive unlockable character for the full game’s multiplayer. You know, I’d probably actually care about this game a bit more if it weren’t based on a kids’ movie. And if my Xbox 360 were not being exclusively used for GTA IV play at the moment.
Activision has unveiled the rack list for the upcoming DS installment of the Guitar Hero franchise. Strangely though, it only includes 15 songs, which is down from the 25 count that the publisher was claiming before. The rest will probably need to unlocked throughout the course of the game or possible downloaded later. Either way, it’s kind of an odd mix of tracks:
Do What You Want - OK Go
All The Small Things - Blink 182
Spiderwebs - No Doubt
Are You Gona Be My Girl - Jet
We’re Not Gonna Take It - Twisted Sister
All Star - Smash Mouth
Breed - Nirvana
Jessie’s Girl - Rick Springfield
Hit Me With Your Best Shot - Pat Benatar
This Love - Maroon 5
Heaven - Los Lonely Boys
Helicopter - Bloc Party
China Grove - The Doobie Brothers
Rock and Roll All Nite - KISS (cover by Line 6)
What I Want - Daughtry
Wait, is that Smash Mouth on the list? Seriously? I think I associate them more with those “Kids Bop” CDs they advertise on TV than with any actual music. As if the goofy non-guitar controls weren’t enough to deter people.
Any of you gamers out there near Berkley, will have the opportunity to attend a panel discussion with the author of “Grand Theft Childhood?” sponsored by Greater Good Magazine, Greater Good Science Center. This is a free event planned for Tuesday, May 6th, 6-7:30 pm at the North Gate Library, UC Berkeley Graduate School of Journalism. Harvard Medical School psychologist Lawrence Kutner, author of “Grand Theft Childhood?” will be presenting the results of his breakthrough study on the effects of video games on teenagers.
The popularity of video games–and the bloody, pyrotechnic action of some games–have fueled a wide range of fears. Are those fears justified?
To celebrate the release of its new issue on play, Greater Good magazine is hosting a panel discussion that will reveal the newest facts about video game play, and what guidelines they suggest for parents, teachers, kids, and the people who create video games.
Remember folks to put your best foot forward. This study’s findings are very positive unlike many others. You can find the full press release including the link to detailed directions to North gate Library following the break.
When Mad Catz announced it would be producing a line of Arsenal Football Club branded peripherals, it wasn’t hard to predict more of the like would follow. The latest team to sign up is Manchester United Football Club.
Looks like Tony Hawk is taking a break from the game business for a little while. Activision recently confirmed that there is no Tony Hawk game set for release in 2008, making this the first year without a Hawk game on consoles since the first one came out in 1999. Well, there will be one coming out for the DS sometime this year, but that doesn’t really count — though Activision is saying that it will “utilizes new technology not yet seen on the DS.” The publisher claims that the extra development time will be used for “reinventing Tony Hawk from the ground up.” We should see a new Hawk game in fiscal year 2010, which begins in April 2009 for Activision.
Codemasters has secured the exclusive video game rights to Formula One in a worldwide licensing agreement with Formula One Administration Ltd. In turn, the developer/publisher will create a new generation of the multi-million selling Formula One game franchise across multiple consoles, handhelds and PC.
Forbes has published their list of the 40st richest people in Japan and topping the list is former Nintendo President Hiroshi Yamauchi. Running the company from 1949 to 2002 and retiring from the gaming giant completely in 2005, over the past year his wealth has increased by $3 billion dollars - thanks mainly in part to the Wii, DS and the game sales for both systems. This has increased his overall wealth to a whopping $7.8 billion.
This has been a good year for THQ and much of its success is due to its partnership with Nickelodeon. The Company has netted over $1 Billion on Nickelodeon titles. On that note THQ has announced it portfolio of upcoming Nickelodeon titles.
Activision has announced that a new demo for the upcoming Kung Fu Panda game is now available for download through Xbox Live. The demo offer one level for players to experience the game’s “kung fu awesomeness and bodacious humor” (I swear, that’s what the press release says). You’ll play as Po the Panda to fight your way through waves of enemies using several combos and special moves. As a bonus, anyone who completes the demo will get a code for an exclusive unlockable character for the full game’s multiplayer. You know, I’d probably actually care about this game a bit more if it weren’t based on a kids’ movie. And if my Xbox 360 were not being exclusively used for GTA IV play at the moment.
Do What You Want - OK Go
Any of you gamers out there near Berkley, will have the opportunity to attend a panel discussion with the author of “Grand Theft Childhood?” sponsored by Greater Good Magazine, Greater Good Science Center. This is a free event planned for Tuesday, May 6th, 6-7:30 pm at the North Gate Library, UC Berkeley Graduate School of Journalism. Harvard Medical School psychologist Lawrence Kutner, author of “Grand Theft Childhood?” will be presenting the results of his breakthrough study on the effects of video games on teenagers.
