ANIME AND VIDEO GAME CORNERS

E3 2008: Mirror's Edge Updated Impressions

2008-08-09T13:29:00.001+07:00

DICE shows off its supersexy first-person action game at the EA E3 press conference.
By Brian Ekberg, GameSpot
Posted Jul 14, 2008 9:41 pm PT

You won't see a game that looks like Mirror's Edge anywhere here at E3. The DICE-developed first-person action game has a futuristic feel and an austere presentation that makes it instantly appealing, as well as an intriguing premise that amps up the pace. DICE developers were onstage today during the EA E3 press conference to show off a brief tour of the game, which has our fingers itching to play as soon as possible.

Located in a futuristic-looking setting, Mirror's Edge stars Faith, a courier who, because of the heavily monitored nature of communications in the game's city, delivers crucial information the old-fashioned way: in person. As you quickly find out, Faith is a master of movement, and movement is the star of Mirror's Edge; from leaping across rooftops in a single vertigo-inducing bound, to climbing up drainage pipes on the sides of buildings, or briefly wall-running in order to cross a gap between two structures, you (as Faith) can do things that you might never even think of trying in a different game.

During the demo, we got a taste of many of the different moves that Faith is capable of, including the aforementioned leaps, climbs, and wall-runs. Beyond those incredible acrobatics--seen in a first-person view--the thing that stood out to us was the relatively simple color scheme of the game's graphics, with lots of whites dominating the landscape. Contrast that with the HUD-less presentation and the red colors that indicate Faith's path through the levels that make up Mirror's Edge world, and you have a game with a look all its own.

The red color indicates the correct way through a level. It might show up on a pipe that you can walk over, or on a door that you need to walk through to continue the adventure. In some cases, the path will be a bit obscured; Mirror's Edge will have its own puzzle elements as well. For example, in the demo, Faith found herself in a room that she had to escape by reaching the ventilation shaft near the ceiling. Looking around, you could see a few ledges that were glowing red, indicating that you'd need to wall-jump and grab on to the ledges before hauling Faith up to the ventilation shaft.

In some cases, the path of escape won't immediately be apparent, even as things get dangerous for Faith. Though you can play the entire game without firing a weapon--there's an achievement for doing so--there are guns in the game that you can take from defeated enemies. During the final scene of the demo, Faith found herself on the roof of a building, with a number of guards trying to take her down. At first there was no immediate avenue of escape available, until the helicopter arrived. True to form, the landing bars of the copter were the avenue of Faith's escape, which she reached by leaping off of the building and grabbing for them. The final shot in the demo had Faith hanging off of the copter's landing bars, being whisked off to safety.

In all, the DICE presentation of Mirror's Edge did a great job of getting us excited to learn more about this game and its seemingly simple interface. We're intrigued by both the look and the story for Mirror's Edge, and it helps that Faith is a looker in her own right. We can't wait to get our hands on her--err, the game, that is.

Sony cuts PlayStation 3 price by $100

2008-07-30T01:29:00.002+07:00

And announces new $599, 80 GB model coming in August

Sony Corp. slashed the price of its current PlayStation 3 by $100, or 16.7 percent, and introduced a high-capacity model in an effort to spur sales of the struggling video game console.

Starting Monday, the current 60 gigabyte model will cost $499, down from $599.

The Japanese electronics maker also said it is introducing a new version of the PlayStation 3 with a bigger hard drive for storing downloaded content such as video games and high-definition movies.

The new PS3 increases the system’s storage capacity to 80 gigabytes from 60 gigabytes and also includes a retail copy of the online racing title “MotorStorm,” a company spokesman said. It will be priced at $599.

The larger capacity machine won’t be available in the United States and Canada until August.It plays into the company’s upcoming strategy of eventually offering downloaded high-definition movies, video games, movie trailers and demos, Sony spokesman David Karraker said.

Karraker said further details on high-def movies for download would be released at a later date.The announcement comes two days before the E3 Media & Business Summit in Santa Monica, Calif., where dozens of industry heavyweights including Sony rivals Microsoft Corp. and Nintendo Co. are expected to show off their latest games and related products.

Sony has said it sold 3.6 million PS3s in the fiscal year ending March 31 and expects to sell another 11 million in the current fiscal year. Microsoft said in its most recent quarterly earnings report filed in April that it had shipped 11 million Xbox 360s.

Nintendo, meanwhile, claims it has sold nearly 6 million Wiis worldwide as of March 31, and more than 40 million Nintendo DS handhelds. The company has predicted it will sell another 14 million Wiis and 22 million additional DS systems by the end of the current fiscal year.

The Wii and PS3 were released within days of each other late last year. Microsoft had a head start in the current generation of consoles, having launched its Xbox 360 in 2005. Last week, the software company announced an extension of the warranty due to the high number of systems suffering from hardware failure, also called the “red ring of death.”

In April, Microsoft began selling a version of its Xbox 360 with a 120-gigabyte hard drive and a souped up high-definition video connection. Called Xbox 360 Elite, the black-colored system sells for $479.99.

Xbox gamers who already own the $399.99 20-gigabyte model can buy a snap-on 120-gigabyte hard drive for $179.99.

Karraker said Sony would use the E3 show to focus on two areas: ways to increase the number of consumers who own PS3s and other products such as the PlayStation Portable handheld system, and expanding the system’s library of available games.

He said Sony would be releasing 100 new video games during the current fiscal year, including 15 titles that are exclusive to the PS3 such as the hack-and-slash action title “Heavenly Sword.”

Sony aims for comeback win with PS3

2008-07-30T01:00:00.003+07:00

Top video-game executive says console contest is still in the early innings
By Kristin Kalning

The last year couldn’t have been easy for Jack Tretton, president and CEO of Sony Computer Entertainment America.

The PlayStation 3 launch last Thanksgiving was marred by hardware shortages and bad press over the high price and the lack of exclusive titles. And worse: The PlayStation 3 has consistently finished third to Microsoft’s Xbox 360 and Nintendo’s Wii in monthly sales.

But Tretton shrugs off the slew of bad news, saying that Sony is taking the long view with the PlayStation 3. They’ve played this game before, he says, and they’ve taken home the trophy more often than not.

“The first year is important, but it’s the first inning of a nine-inning baseball game,” he says. “You’re not going to win many baseball games if you panic when you’re down 1-0 in the first inning.”

No one can deny that Sony knows what it’s doing when it comes to video games. The first two PlayStation consoles sold a combined 230 million units worldwide. And Tretton says the company will sell more of the seven-year-old PlayStation 2 consoles in 2007 than it did in 2006.

There are signs that the beleaguered PS3 may be gaining ground. Sales of the console doubled during the week of Oct. 29, following a $100 price cut. Exclusive, well-reviewed titles such as “Ratchet and Clank” and “Uncharted: Drake’s Fortune” are beginning to trickle out to hungry consumers – although biggies such as “Final Fantasy XIII” and “Metal Gear Solid 4” still haven’t launched.

I spoke with Tretton before Thanksgiving to find out what’s next for the PlayStation platform, how long they plan to support the PlayStation 2 and what he thinks Sony did right — and wrong — with the PS3 launch.

A recent report says that the price cut on the PS3 has helped sell over 100,000 consoles in America last week. That’s obviously great news for you guys. Do you think things are starting to turn around a little bit?

While I’m thrilled about the price move and the impact that’s had, what I’m more excited about is that we really get our first holiday selling season on the PlayStation 3, and I think that’s lost on a lot of people. It’s the first time that we have the PlayStation 3 in stock, that we have a great software library for it and we’ve got very attractive pricing. So I really feel like we’re able to go into the holiday season with a fully loaded weapon as compared to last year.

Exclusive titles can help the momentum that you’ve gained here – and they can make or break a system. Tell us about some of the titles you’ve got coming over the next couple of months.

We’ve got 19 exclusives, and again, I think that’s something that’s a pretty amazing feat in the first year of a platform’s lifecycle. And they’re not just games that are exclusive for the sake of exclusivity, they’re games that are built and differentiated for the PlayStation 3 and just couldn’t be done on any other platform.

Some of the bigger titles, “Metal Gear,” “Final Fantasy,” aren’t due out for a bit longer. That’s got to be a nail-biter for you guys because those are huge titles.

The beauty of this business is that it isn’t all about one day, it isn’t all about one title, or one month. I think there’s a tremendous amount of software for the holiday season — 160 games coming out on PS3 alone for this holiday, on top of the 200 games that have already been out there, so there’s more than enough great software for consumers to sink their teeth in for the holidays. And as you pointed out, there’s some absolute blockbusters coming post-Christmas. So, hopefully, a lot people go out and buy the hardware and enjoy the great software that’s available for this holiday — but I think they also have some great software to look forward to in the first quarter of 2008.

Bloggers, reporters and analysts have not been terribly kind to Sony or the PlayStation 3 this year. Were there missteps on Sony’s part, or do you think that the criticisms have been unfair?

I don’t think there’s any question that there were missteps, but I don’t think anybody is being honest with you if they say that the first year of any platform goes perfectly according to plan. I think the biggest miss for us was the launch, in that we had easily a million consumers in North America alone that wanted to get their hands on a PlayStation 3 … and we had roughly 200,000 units to take advantage of that demand. … I think that that was probably the biggest disappointment for the first year.

The reason why we don’t end up on window ledges, where other people might not have the perspective, is we’ve been through this many, many times, and we’re the only company that’s gone out and had 10-year product lifecycles and sold over 100 million units — and we haven’t done it once, we’ve done it twice.

Fair enough. But I think the early quotes that I was seeing prior to launch were things like “this system will sell itself” because of the fans of the previous iterations. This couldn’t have been the year that you’d hoped for.

I think it fell short of what we’d ideally like. But if you put it into perspective, we’re not taking the safe route. We didn’t take the PlayStation 2 and add a few bells and whistles to it. … What we’re trying to do here is … refocus the game industry towards high-definition gaming, a real state-of-the-art, future-proof machine for the next decade.

Xbox 360™

2008-07-28T20:18:00.003+07:00

Hardware, software, and services: Fusing powerful hardware, software, and services, Xbox 360 fully engages you in a gaming experience that is more expansive, dramatic, and lifelike, where the possibilities are limitless and your imagination knows no boundaries.

Industrial design: A merger of form and function, Xbox 360 wraps powerful technology in a sophisticated exterior.

Xbox Gamer Guide: The Xbox Gamer Guide is an entertainment gateway that instantly connects you to your games, friends, music, movies, and downloadable content.

Personalized interface: Xbox 360 lets you create your own unique system and experience.

Ring of Light and Xbox Guide Button: Featured on both the wireless and wired controllers, the Xbox Guide Button puts you in control of your experience. In addition to bringing up the Xbox Gamer Guide and the Xbox System Guide, the Xbox Guide Button lets you turn the system on and off without ever leaving the couch.

Xbox Live: Xbox Live is where games and entertainment come alive, the only unified place where you can play with anyone, anytime, anywhere. And the best just got better. Connect your Xbox 360 to your broadband connection and get instant access to Xbox Live Silver. Express your digital identity through your Gamertag and gamer card, talk with others using voice chat, and access Xbox LiveMarketplace—all right out of the box, at no extra cost.

Xbox Live Marketplace: Keep your favorite games fresh with instant access to new content. Accessible to everyone who establishes a broadband connection with their Xbox 360, XboxLive Marketplace lets you personalize and extend your experience, on demand.

Games: Xbox 360 redefines what games look like, sound like, feel like, and play like to engage you like never before. Vibrant characters display depth of emotion to evoke more dramatic responses, immersing you in the experience like never before. You’ll see all Xbox 360 titles at 720p and 1080i resolution in 16:9 widescreen, with anti-aliasing for smooth, movie-like graphics and multi-channel surround sound.

Digital entertainment: Amplify your music, photos, video, and TV. Watch progressive-scan DVD movies right out of the box. Rip music to the Xbox 360 hard drive and share your latest digital pictures with friends. Make the connection, and Xbox 360 instantly streams the digital media stored on your MP3 player, digital camera, Media Center PC, or any Microsoft® Windows® XP-based PC.

The New Xbox 360 Experience

2008-07-28T20:13:00.003+07:00

Xbox 360 as you know it will soon transform into something new and incredible. You won’t need new hardware because the change is going to happen from the inside. Just sit tight and learn how ‘The New Xbox 360 Experience’ is all set to reinvent home entertainment. And, by the way, all of this will cost you exactly nothing!

In fact it all starts with you! The new Xbox 360 experience lets you personalise your own world of entertainment, placing you at the centre of it all while sharing the fun with your friends and family. You’ll create and customise your own character for adventures via Xbox LIVE. Your all-new Xbox LIVE persona will help share your interests in games, movies or your latest photos online. Thanks to an amazing and dynamic new friends list you’ll always find someone join your party.

From this coming autumn you’ll notice that the Xbox 360 dashboard has changed dramatically, enabling more fun and intuitive ways to interact, play and enjoy your home entertainment. Because we know that real entertainment is nothing without you to appreciate it and then your enjoyment in spreading the word. It’s why Xbox LIVE is the fastest-growing social network in the world, doubling membership this past two years to 12 million. Next year it’ll be 20 million! You’re in good company.

And so Xbox 360, already the ultimate interactive home entertainment system, will soon make it easier and offer more compelling new ways to have fun with the finest people in your life. Whether you’re relaxing with a game show session on Xbox LIVE Primetime, watching a DVD, singing to your favourite songs, or getting serious with the latest blockbuster videogame, Xbox 360 is the new Xbox 360. The best just got better!

PSP® (PlayStation®Portable) VALUE PACK

2008-07-28T19:13:00.003+07:00

PSP-1006K - Black

Sony Computer Entertainment Inc.
Power Cable / AC Adaptor / Memory Stick Duo™ (32MB) / Earphone / Bag / Battery / Hand Strap / Cleaning Cloth / Guide Book

PSP-1006KCW - White

Sony Computer Entertainment Inc.
Power Cable / AC Adaptor / Memory Stick Duo™ (32MB) / Earphone / Bag / Battery / Hand Strap / Cleaning Cloth / Guide Book

Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots

2008-07-27T23:55:00.003+07:00

Conquer Solid Snake's last mission with the Metal Gear Solid 4.
By: Doug Radcliffe

Hideo Kojima’s Metal Gear series continues in Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots, a perfect blend of action, stealth, and story. This game of the year contender will satisfy both long-time Metal Gear veterans as well as brand new Solid Snake-hopefuls looking for the ultimate stealth action experience.

This Metal Gear Solid 4 game guide includes a complete walk-through of the single-player game with strategies for defeating bosses, locating hidden weaponry and items, and conquering the game’s toughest sections. We’ve included lists of unlockables, including emblems, weapons, FaceCamo, and iPod tracks and how to obtain them as well as a collection of Easter Eggs and secrets. You’ll also get tips on obtaining the coveted Big Boss emblem and strategies for battling your friends and enemies on Metal Gear Online.

E3 2008: Final Fantasy XIII 360-bound, Last Remnant dated

2008-07-27T23:37:00.004+07:00

Square Enix's formerly PS3-only RPG epic will launch day and date on Microsoft's console in North America and Europe; 360 exclusive hitting US November 20.

By Tor Thorsen, GameSpot

LOS ANGELES--At the 2005 Electronic Entertainment Expo, Microsoft presented what it thought was a major announcement from a top Japanese developer, Square Enix. Unfortunately, the "news" proved a tad anticlimactic, considering that the game in question was Final Fantasy XI, a massively multiplayer online role-playing game previously released on the PC in 2003 and the PlayStation 2 in 2004. Despite a sizeable PR push, the 360 edition of the game was lukewarmly received by critics and consumers, who barely bought 213,000 copies of it in the US.

Over the next three years, Microsoft would announce several more Square Enix games for the Xbox 360, including the exclusive Star Ocean: The Last Hope and the timed exclusive The Last Remnant. However, in many gamers' minds these projects were dwarfed in importance by the stature of two other Square Enix games: Final Fantasy XIII and Final Fantasy XIII Versus, both PlayStation 3 exclusives until today.

This morning at its press briefing at the E3 Media & Business Summit, Microsoft stunned many in the audience by announcing that Final Fantasy XIII is now in development for the Xbox 360. Not only is the game coming to the console, but it will arrive on the same day and date as the PlayStation 3 edition of the game, with no timed exclusivity of any kind. However, when exactly that is remains a mystery, given that the graphics-intensive role-playing game still has no firm release date.

"We believe that releasing an Xbox 360 version of Final Fantasy XIII will allow us to provide the game to even more fans in the two regions of North America and Europe," Square Enix boss Yoichi Wada told a stunned audience. No mentioned was made of Japan, where the 360 is far less popular than the PS3.

Wada also used today's event to announced the release date of the 360-exclusive Last Remnant as being November 20 in North America. Square Enix's timed 360 exclusive, Infinite Undiscovery, will ship in North America on September 2, Europe and the UK on September 5, and Japan and Asia on September 11. [GameSpot initially reported Last Remnant as having Infinite Undiscovery's release dates, and regrets the error.]

Check back throughout the week for previews and impressions of Square Enix's game lineup from E3 2008.