General Game News

[Smith Dr John Smith]

He didn't say it works. He said with at least half of all games played being pirated, you can't blame them for trying. And I agree with him about the in-game ads. I don't think they'll be doing it with the premium titles that we already paid for. It's going to be tacked onto all the free-to-play games out there. Probably with an option to pay for the game to get rid of the ads. So it's really more like watching The Avengers on TV, and they stop it every 10 minutes for 3 minutes of commercials. :^)

Yes I can blame them for trying when it is such a stupid idea to begin with and when they go out of their way to make it hard to find out if you have to be online to play the game's single player mode.  They rarely include it in the product info,and so people like me are left trying to figure out if the latest game will be something we are allowed to enjoy after paying for it or if it will just be a paper weight.  They are punishing the people who pay for the games and making sure that anyone on dial or an ISP with a cap will get a pirated version.  Also it costs them sales in another way.  All my life I have been a die hard Command and Conquer fan,I started playing the first game in 97 and since then I have been the type who has to buy each new game the week it was released but ever since they started including the always online copy protection I have not been buying the games. They in fact lost the sales of three games and their expansion packs and there are still plenty of pirated versions out there.  Look they have been trying this since 2007 and it hasn't worked yet and it only punishes people who pay for the games,so yeah I think after five years of it being a proven failure I can blame them for sticking with it.

I am mean it's one thing not to blame some one for trying something,but after it has been proven not to work and just make it harder for people to use the product then I feel we can blame them.

[Raefire]

In far better news, DOTA 2 will be F2P - as in, all heroes will be free immediately and the only items in the store (which just went live in the beta) will be cosmetic.

Valve, this is why I goddamn love you more than any other company...

[Compound]

Huh.

CBS' interactive division just signed a deal allowing them the rights to broadcast all the NASL events. (That's the North American Starcraft League, for those not in the know.) Interesting.

[Sideswipe]

Not really

[Henry88]

“Subscriber numbers are funny things. How you count them — the maths you use — really matters and there are lots of variables to consider.” I’ve heard my fair share of PR deflections in my day — heck, in a former life I conjured a few — but this pearler, from Emmanuel Lusinchi, the lead designer on Star Wars: The Old Republic, is a doozy.

Lusinchi gave the answer during an interview with Sponge during London’s Comic Con. That’s not the whole of it though — the designer did attempt to elaborate:

    “All games of this nature, have a set of variables that are constantly changing. You will have a certain number of people that buy the box and never install it. I know it sounds strange, but it happens. There are people that play it, and then decide after ten minutes that it’s not for them -– that’s a small percentage, but every game has them. Finally you have people who play for a couple of months, finish the story, and then be done with it.”

To be fair, there’s a decent point in there — how do you count subscribers? We know Blizzard touts figures like 10 and 11 million when talking about World of Warcraft, but it has never really expanded on what this count includes. The most obvious would be active subscribers, but someone with an active subscription might only play an hour a day. Average players per server could be a better metric, but this would need to take into account the total number of servers to be accurate.

What we do know is that SW:TOR could be doing better — just last month, EA announced a drop of 400,000 subscribers in its latest earnings report. It also gave a number of BioWare employees their marching orders, though this could have just been natural staff contraction.

Lusinchi didn’t comment on reports that the SW:TOR‘s servers are averaging a measly 350 players, though the methods used to calculate this number are hardly solid.

Regardless, the designer’s answer does not reflect confidence. It feels more like an excuse — if the game is doing well, the numbers should speak for themselves.

http://www.kotaku.com.au/2012/06/bioware-unable-to-give-straight-answer-on-swtor-subscriber-numbers/

that is the Price you pay

[Smith Dr John Smith]

“Subscriber numbers are funny things. How you count them — the maths you use — really matters and there are lots of variables to consider.” I’ve heard my fair share of PR deflections in my day — heck, in a former life I conjured a few — but this pearler, from Emmanuel Lusinchi, the lead designer on Star Wars: The Old Republic, is a doozy.

Lusinchi gave the answer during an interview with Sponge during London’s Comic Con. That’s not the whole of it though — the designer did attempt to elaborate:

    “All games of this nature, have a set of variables that are constantly changing. You will have a certain number of people that buy the box and never install it. I know it sounds strange, but it happens. There are people that play it, and then decide after ten minutes that it’s not for them -– that’s a small percentage, but every game has them. Finally you have people who play for a couple of months, finish the story, and then be done with it.”

To be fair, there’s a decent point in there — how do you count subscribers? We know Blizzard touts figures like 10 and 11 million when talking about World of Warcraft, but it has never really expanded on what this count includes. The most obvious would be active subscribers, but someone with an active subscription might only play an hour a day. Average players per server could be a better metric, but this would need to take into account the total number of servers to be accurate.

What we do know is that SW:TOR could be doing better — just last month, EA announced a drop of 400,000 subscribers in its latest earnings report. It also gave a number of BioWare employees their marching orders, though this could have just been natural staff contraction.

Lusinchi didn’t comment on reports that the SW:TOR‘s servers are averaging a measly 350 players, though the methods used to calculate this number are hardly solid.

Regardless, the designer’s answer does not reflect confidence. It feels more like an excuse — if the game is doing well, the numbers should speak for themselves.

http://www.kotaku.com.au/2012/06/bioware-unable-to-give-straight-answer-on-swtor-subscriber-numbers/

that is the Price you pay

Yeah...I don't think anyone will be shocked if Bioware isn't around or has been absorbed into EA proper in a couple of years time.

[Compound]

Resident Evil 6 News:
The Capcom Store is showing Two anthology/archive sets, one for PS3, one for 360, both for $89.99. Both have different stuff. No word yet on whether this is a Capcom store exclusive for will be available in stores as well.

PS3
 
 Celebrate the upcoming release of Resident Evil® 6 with the complete library of Resident Evil 1-6! Included in this PlayStation® 3 exclusive package is the latest installation of the blockbuster series, Resident Evil® 6, along with digital copies of Resident Evil® Director’s Cut, Resident Evil® 2, Resident Evil® 3: Nemesis, Resident Evil® 4 HD, and Resident Evil® 5 Gold Edition redeemable on the PlayStation® Network.

• Resident Evil® 6: The newest chapter in the Resident Evil franchise brings three separate yet interwoven storylines together as they fight to survive the global C-virus outbreak. Blending both action and survival horror, Resident Evil 6 promises to be the dramatic horror experience of 2012.
• Resident Evil® Director’s Cut - Return to the mansion that started it all! The S.T.A.R.S. Bravo team has been sent to the outskirts of a remote Midwestern city to investigate a number of grisly murders. Little do they know the worst is yet to come…
• Resident Evil® 2 - The T-virus has consumed Raccoon City leaving rookie cop Leon S. Kennedy and Claire Redfield stranded in a city overtaken by zombies and powerful B.O.W.s (bio-organic weapons).
• Resident Evil® 3: Nemesis - With Raccoon City crumbling, Jill Valentine’s last escape is stopped dead by a monstrous B.O.W. known as the Nemesis, who’s programmed to eliminate the last remaining members of S.T.A.R.S.
• Resident Evil® 4 HD - The President’s daughter has been kidnapped and Leon S. Kennedy is on assignment and back in action in Europe to track her down and investigate a mysterious cult coming to power. Remastered in high definition, this Resident Evil classic has never looked better!
• • Resident Evil® 5 Gold Edition - Working together with his partner Sheva Alomar, Chris Redfield is sent to Africa in response to a report of parasitic B.O.W.s terrorizing the area. Also included are the 2 extra downloadable episodes “Lost in Nightmares” and “Desperate Escape”, 2 bonus costume packs, the online multiplayer “Versus Mode”, and PlayStation® Move functionality.

Xbox 360
 
 Celebrate the upcoming release of Resident Evil® 6 with the best of the Resident Evil® franchise. Included in this Xbox 360® exclusive package is the latest installation of the blockbuster series, Resident Evil® 6, the feature film Resident Evil® Degeneration, and downloadable copies of Resident Evil® 4 HD, Resident Evil® CODE Veronica X HD and Resident Evil® 5 (with bonus Gold Edition content) redeemable on Xbox LIVE®.

• Resident Evil® 6: The newest chapter in the Resident Evil® franchise brings three separate yet interwoven storylines together as they fight to survive the global C-virus outbreak. Blending both action and survival horror, Resident Evil 6 promises to be the dramatic horror experience of 2012.
• Resident Evil® Degeneration (DVD feature film) - The deadly G-Virus is unleashed and a new mutated monster goes on the rampage. Will Claire and Leon be able to terminate the virus before history repeats itself?
• Resident Evil® 4 HD - The President’s daughter has been kidnapped and Leon S. Kennedy is on assignment and back in action in Europe to track her down and investigate a mysterious cult coming to power. Remastered in high definition, this Resident Evil® classic has never looked better!
• Resident Evil® CODE Veronica X HD - While searching for information on her missing brother, Claire Redfield is trapped on a top-secret Umbrella prison installation on Rockfort Island. Discover the beginnings of Umbrella Corp. and the dark family secret behind it all. Relive the survival horror nightmare in high definition!
• Resident Evil® 5 Gold Edition - Working together with his partner Sheva Alomar, Chris Redfield is sent to Africa in response to reports of parasitic B.O.W.s (bio-organic weapons) terrorizing the area. Also included are the 2 extra downloadable episodes “Lost in Nightmares” and “Desperate Escape”, 2 bonus costume packs and the online multiplayer “Versus Mode”.

[Compound]

Amnesia: A Machine for Pigs is on the way. Yep, a sequel to the uber scary game with a very silly name.

[Henry88]

God of War and Twisted Metal creator David Jaffe has told Games Industry International that the next generation of consoles – namely the Xbox 720, PlayStation 4 and Wii U – will be the last.

Before you throw your gamepads down in anger, we should point out that Jaffe doesn't think that gaming will die off completely. Rather, he reckons that consoles will die off within ten years, to be replaced by streaming services such as OnLive or Gaikai – running on Smart TVs.

Jaffe's predictions are based on the success of casual gaming on tablets and smartphones – and with current consoles like the Xbox 360 filling a media streaming role as much as a gaming one, the thought of a smarter-than-Smart TV with inbuilt game streaming capabilities doesn't sound so far fetched to us.

http://www.stuff.tv/news/computers-and-consoles/rumour-mill/the-xbox-720-playstation-4-and-wii-u-will-be-the-last-consol

booooo!

[Smith Dr John Smith]

God of War and Twisted Metal creator David Jaffe has told Games Industry International that the next generation of consoles – namely the Xbox 720, PlayStation 4 and Wii U – will be the last.

Before you throw your gamepads down in anger, we should point out that Jaffe doesn't think that gaming will die off completely. Rather, he reckons that consoles will die off within ten years, to be replaced by streaming services such as OnLive or Gaikai – running on Smart TVs.

Jaffe's predictions are based on the success of casual gaming on tablets and smartphones – and with current consoles like the Xbox 360 filling a media streaming role as much as a gaming one, the thought of a smarter-than-Smart TV with inbuilt game streaming capabilities doesn't sound so far fetched to us.

http://www.stuff.tv/news/computers-and-consoles/rumour-mill/the-xbox-720-playstation-4-and-wii-u-will-be-the-last-consol

booooo!

Oh great.  I don't want to have to go online to play games,I want to just put a disc in a console and be able to take my console to a friend's house.

[Invader_quirk]

Jaffe's an idiot. Don't worry about him.

[Raefire]

<a href="http://www.youtube.com/v/4CagMNLxa9M" target="_blank" class="new_win">http://www.youtube.com/v/4CagMNLxa9M</a>

[Smith Dr John Smith]

http://www.cracked.com/blog/5-reasons-diablo-iii-represents-gamings-annoying-future/?wa_user1=5&wa_user2=Video+Games&wa_user3=blog&wa_user4=companion

All I can say is well said. Number 3 really bugs me.

[Compound]

There's a strong rumor that the long MIA PC version of Final Fantasy VII might be available again soon via Steam or other gaming download places.

Yes, there was a PC version of it and VIII too. And yes, the PS version is available on PSN right now, but the PC version isn't.

[Pak-Man]

Nintendo has confirmed the 3DS XL (And it doesn't have that second circle pad all the waiters were waiting for. :^)).

http://www.ign.com/articles/2012/06/22/nintendo-reveals-3ds-xl

I honestly don't get the XL thing. The 3DS screen is plenty big for me, and since my 3DS lives in my pocket, I'd want the upgrade to take up less space.