E3 downsizing confirmed

JoeHonkie wrote:

Yep, it's official. E3 will be a smaller and more "private" event in the future with no more booths and public presentations.

Honestly, I don't see the point anymore. The GDC does the targeted approach already, and probably will do a better job than this. Without all the big hype, I think the show will be redundant, or will be overshadowed by another big show. Events like PAX may gradually take over as the more public face of the marketing machine, much like local cons do for the comic industry, but who knows?

I'm not sure an industry that has built itself up on hype and marketing can stay without a large event like E3 for long.

Video game trade show E3 to get more "intimate" (Reuters)

http://www.snackbar-games.com/n1948.html

E3 rumors

JoeHonkie wrote:

OK, just so you know I'm not slacking: I know there's a lot of news about E3 being cancelled/downgraded/moved to the moon, but I'm waiting on a reliable response. So far I'm seeing a general consensus of "It's being downgraded and moved, and we're not sure the major players are in." Apparently people are worried about the rising costs and one-upmanship. As far as I am concerned, there's nothing to panic or worry about until the real news solidifies.

And hey, it's just E3. It's not like they won't make games anymore. Although if they do close it out I will deeply regret never having made it.

http://www.snackbar-games.com/n1947.html

Trauma Center Wii just an upgrade

JoeHonkie wrote:

Those of you wishing for a true sequel are going to be disappointed. Still, they are adding a few things to the package, like new graphics and surgery types, and more voice acting. The new operation types should be a big draw. Hopefully good sales here will pave the way for a true sequel for you Trauma Center fans.

Wii Trauma Center to be an expanded port instead of a new game (ArsTechnica)

http://www.snackbar-games.com/n1946.html

Final Fantasy 3 DS trailer

JoeHonkie wrote:

For those of you all excited about Final Fantasy 3 DS, Joystiq has a trailer. The big question is: are some of those people supposed to be guys? None of them look like guys...

New FFIII trailer all purty 'n stuff (Joystiq)

http://www.snackbar-games.com/n1945.html

Fusion Tour Dates

Nintendo announced the Fusion Tour dates earlier today. Here is the schedule as it currently stands:

Sept. 27 Columbus, Ohio
Sept. 28 Indianapolis
Sept. 29 Detroit
Sept. 30 Cleveland
Oct. 1 Covington, Ky.
Oct. 4 Philadelphia
Oct. 5 Worcester, Mass.
Oct. 7 Pittsburgh
Oct. 8 New York
Oct. 9 Norfolk, Va.
Oct. 10 Winston-Salem, N.C.
Oct. 11 Myrtle Beach, S.C.
Oct. 12 Orlando, Fla.
Oct. 13 Atlanta
Oct. 14 Jacksonville, Fla.
Oct. 15 Ft. Lauderdale, Fla.
Oct. 17 Jonesboro, Ark.
Oct. 18 New Orleans
Oct. 19 Houston
Oct. 20 Dallas
Oct. 22 Phoenix
Oct. 24 Anaheim, Calif.
Oct. 25 Los Angeles
Oct. 26 San Francisco
Oct. 27 San Diego
Oct. 28 Las Vegas
Nov. 2 Spokane, Wash.
Nov. 4 Denver
Nov. 5 Kansas City, Mo.
Nov. 6 St. Paul, Minn.
Nov. 7 St. Louis
Nov. 8 Milwaukee
Nov. 9 Des Moines, Iowa
Nov. 10 Champaign, Ill.
Nov. 11 Chicago

As always, check the official site for confirmation.

http://www.snackbar-games.com/n1944.html

Review: Drill Dozer - GBA

Title: Drill Dozer
Platform: GBA
Author: Snowcone

Save Drill Dozer for a rental or borrow it from a friend, because for $30 there are much better games to be had.

http://www.snackbar-games.com/r369.html

Review: Chibi-Robo - Gamecube

Title: Chibi-Robo
Platform: Gamecube
Author: Snowcone

For me, it’s part of my library for good, but others may not feel the same.

http://www.snackbar-games.com/r368.html

Pac-Man "64% violent"

JoeHonkie wrote:

I...I can't even make fun of this.

It's just crazy.

The 64% Violent Pacman (Slashdot)

http://www.snackbar-games.com/n1943.html

Xbox 360 news wrap-up

JoeHonkie wrote:

Hey guys, I've been out of comission, so I haven't been able to be on top of the news. Thankfully Cone and Wayne have kept up. Here's some Xbox backlog:

A demo of 99 Nights is out on Xbox Live. I'm very interested to see how this is. There's also new "webisode" videos of Dead Rising, which hits soon. Excited? I am!

Also, Bullet Witch hit Japan and is apparently doing pretty ok (for a 360 game).

Demo: Ninety-Nine Nights (Major Nelson)
Trailer: Dead Rising Webisode (Major Nelson)
Bullet Witch Casts Spell Over Akihabara (Kotaku)

http://www.snackbar-games.com/n1942.html

Support for Pirates?

Software piracy is still a hot issue in our industry and I most definitely don't support it or buy into the excuses that people make for it. What I definitely don't get is pirates that expect official support from the developers. Ars has an article up that details that the support requests for SiN Episodes Emergence upon release were a 5 to 1 ratio of pirates outnumbering legit customers. That means the cost of supporting this game was 5 times higher than it should have been due to piracy. Tell me that doesn't cost developers money.

Here is the kicker:

I spent seven hours searching for answers to one guy's problem just to find out that when I asked him a question regarding a setting, he was checking on his friend's machine for the "right" answer and then on his machine and if the two didn't match, he was reporting the "right" answer so I wouldn't know he had a pirated version.

And we wonder why devs take so long to put out games or move to different, more secure platforms.

Source: Ars

http://www.snackbar-games.com/n1941.html

Fuzion Frenzy 2 Announced

Microsoft announced today that Fuzion Frenzy 2 would be arriving this holiday for the Xbox 360. It will offer a variety of 40 mini games with new tournaments on 7 different planets.

I personally enjoy party games and loved the original Fuzion Frenzy. This should be a nice addition to the party game genre and in HD no less.

http://www.snackbar-games.com/n1940.html

Custom Spore figurine in the wild!

JoeHonkie wrote:

You may remember a recent article mentioning custom 3d printing capabilities in Spore. Well, a lucky guy at Joystiq got a figure from his time testing the game already!

I cannot handle the excitement!

http://www.snackbar-games.com/n1939.html

Dead Rising to give rewards for taking sexy pictures

JoeHonkie wrote:

Dead Rising just becomes more and more of my kind of game every week. Now it turns out your get bonuses for taking shots of girls with good cleavage. And running on treadmills. And eating beans.

If this game fails to be awesome, I will be so sad. It will make you cry how sad I will be.

"Interesting" Dead Rising game mechanics (Destructoid)

http://www.snackbar-games.com/n1938.html

Nifty videos of Okami

JoeHonkie wrote:

Yep. That sure does look pretty.

Okami videos that will make you drool (Joystiq)

http://www.snackbar-games.com/n1937.html

Next wave of Sony greatest hits

JoeHonkie wrote:

For the PS2:
Jack X: Combat Racing
SOCOM 3
Sly 3
Ratchet Deadlocked
Shadow of the Colossus

For PSP:
Ape Escape: On the Loose
ATV Offroad Fury: Blazin' Trails
Hot Shots Golf: Open Tee
Twisted Metal: Head On
Wipeout Pure

Man, PS2 is going out with a bang. Many awesome, cheap games are hitting end of lifecycle here: Jak, Sly and Ratchet series; God of War; Shadow of the Colossus. My library is expanding faster than I can keep up.

Forget Jak X, though. Man, what's up with that?

As for the PSP... Wipeout Pure is pretty good, but it was already 30 bucks.

Yay?

Sony readies next line of PS2 Greatest Hits titles (ArsTechnica)
Sony Confirms PSP 'Greatest Hits' Titles (Gamasutra)

http://www.snackbar-games.com/n1936.html

Flood of Dawn of War: Dark Crusade videos

JoeHonkie wrote:

GameTrailers.com has a whole bunch of videos of the new races, with 1 in HD. This time around they are bringing in the Necron and the Tau. Sadly, no sign of Tyranid. I can't say I'm not excited, though.

Warhammer 40,000: Dark Crusade vids (Joystiq)

http://www.snackbar-games.com/n1935.html

Review: Rockstar Games Presents Table Tennis - Xbox360

Title: Rockstar Games Presents Table Tennis
Platform: Xbox360
Author: Mr.F4i

Overall this game packs great graphics, great player physics, and good game-play. However the lack of features sadly drops this game down into rental status for me.

http://www.snackbar-games.com/r367.html

Review: Zuma - Xbox360

Title: Zuma
Platform: Xbox360
Author: Piniata

If you were like me and thought that it was an easy way to get Achievements and Gamerscore points, then I’m going to have to disappoint you.

http://www.snackbar-games.com/r366.html

More from Itagaki; DOA4 demo on Live

JoeHonkie wrote:

1up has an interview with Itagaki up, now that the Dead Or Alive 4 demo has only just been released on live. The most interesting part?

Is DOA4 really that hardcore? The elementary school kids that come to my house to play are always squealing with laughter as they kick the [omg swear!] of the final boss, Alpha 152S. At any rate, please download and play the game. After all, games are for fun!

Would you let your kid play video games with scantily clad women in the house of a drunken, punk-rock looking Japanese man? I would. I see no problem here.

Itagaki Talks DOA4 Demo on Live (1up)

http://www.snackbar-games.com/n1934.html

Nvidia to ATI: You threw in the towel

Gamasutra is carrying a story that Nvidia seems to think the ATI/AMD merger/acquisition is a sign that ATI has thrown in the towel. I don't know if I believe that, but the article paints an interesting picture of the future of the computing industry as well as the gaming world. Intel's support for ATI cards is currently unclear as is the longterm support of AMD chipsets by Nvidia. Nvidia seems to see this as a positive move so supporting AMD chipsets should be a no brainer to them.

Source: Gamasutra

http://www.snackbar-games.com/n1933.html

Nintendo DS passes 20 Million mark

Prior to launch and even well after it's launch the DS was touted as gimmicky and had a lack of quality games. I think the numbers speak for themselves as Ars Technica carries the story that they have surpassed the 20 Million unit mark. That many systems in such a short time speaks volumes about the strength of the system that has a breath of fresh air in it's sales, I mean sails, with the release of the DS Lite recently.

This little system held off the would be powerhouse that is the PSP, whose rep as a gaming system seems to have fallen by the wayside.

Source: Ars Technica

http://www.snackbar-games.com/n1932.html

New Search Engine

I have completely overhauled the search page for both SBG and MT. These new pages are live and tested. Of course, if you run into any bugs you can drop me an email with a description of the problem.

You can email me at snowcone@snackbar-games.com

Thanks and happy searching.

http://www.snackbar-games.com/n1931.html

AMD to buy ATI

Wayne wrote:

I know I've been gone for some time, and I typically don't have the time for news reporting anymore, but I couldn't pass this one up. I'm a big fan of both AMD and ATI, so I'm quite happy to hear that AMD will be buying out ATI. My PC has an AMD chip as well as an ATI video card in it, and I've been very pleased.

I know we all have out favorites, and some of you prefer Intel and/or Nvidia, but for gaming, I think that AMD and ATI are a nice combination. I'm sure with the likely plans of them being designed to really work well together, we'll be seeing some excellent performance down the road.

I wouldn't be surprised if it'll be a good year before we see any active changes because of this though. Even so... hooray!

Source: MSNBC

http://www.snackbar-games.com/n1930.html

Splinter Cell: Double Agent multiplayer videos

JoeHonkie wrote:

Looks like they are going for a more "cyberpunk" look and feel this time around. I'm not sure I like it as much, espescially since the spy seems to use his little arm computer in places where he would have shot things before.

Still, I never was a big Splinter Cell guy, so I'm not sure my opinion matters here. It definitely looks like it plays in a similar way. Gotta love the new explosive flying drone.

Splinter Cell: Double Agent Multiplayer Vids (Kotaku)

http://www.snackbar-games.com/n1929.html

John Romero Quake 1 interview

JoeHonkie wrote:

John Romero may not be building a lot of confidence these days (Gauntlet: Seven Sorrows, Daikatana), but back in the day he was teamed with Carmack as the other guy behind Doom and Quake. This interview brings back some classic memories.

I remember when Quake was going to be an epic fantasy game with melee weapons and a huge world and such. I'm happy with what came out, but I always wondered what happened to that original planned version. It also talks about some of the issues behind the Trent Reznor music for the game. It's really classic stuff for any Quake fans from back in the day.

Interview here

Romero Gives Another Nostalgic Quake Interview (Kotaku)

http://www.snackbar-games.com/n1928.html

Suda51 reveal their follow up project to Killer7

JoeHonkie wrote:

Those wacky guys who created the stylish and weird Killer 7 are at it again. I can't say much about this game beyond that it looks cool, and involves some bloody huge revolvers. A Wii title to keep an eye on.

Heroes (YouTube video)

Thanks, Hybridial.

http://www.snackbar-games.com/n1927.html

Halo monthly comic?

JoeHonkie wrote:

It looks like the Halo comic book experience will be monthly. This should be good news for all you folks who worried you weren't getting enough Halo.

Marvel Announces 'Halo Ongoing' (1up)

http://www.snackbar-games.com/n1926.html

Next-gen Star Wars tech demo video

JoeHonkie wrote:

Please note that this is not footage from a real game. If you noticed me talking about a Star Wars demo a few weeks ago, I would presume this is more of the same.

Just check out those overdone Force powers. Awesome. But don't get so distracted that you miss the reactions of the Stormtroopers: glinging to a metal ledge for dear life, firing aimlessly as they spin in midair, and generally being badly used.

Some next gen Star Wars love (Joystiq)

http://www.snackbar-games.com/n1925.html

Burning Crusade class crossovers

JoeHonkie wrote:

The Paladin and Shaman classes will soon be availble to the alternate factions in World of Warcraft as part of the Burning Crusade expansion. The Paladin class will now be available to Blood Elves, and the Shaman class to the Draenei.

From the World of Warcraft site

http://www.snackbar-games.com/n1924.html

Castlevania gameplay video

JoeHonkie wrote:

Castlevania: Portrait of Ruin looks to be shaping up into an awesome game. I loved all the GBA and DS games so far, so if anything will make me replaced my busted DS, it may be this. Behold it in all its glory at Kotaku.

Castlevania: Portrait of Ruin Gameplay Vid (Kotaku)

http://www.snackbar-games.com/n1923.html

New Release Watch - 7/23

JoeHonkie wrote:

Wow, this is a pretty full week for decent releases!

Tekken Dark Resurrection - PSP
For those of you who need the latest Tekken fix, you will have to look to the PSP. I burned out on the series a while ago, but I know there are still hardcore fans.

Painkiller: Hell Wars - Xbox
I know I got the date wrong on this two weeks ago (it was pushed back), but it's coming now. Seems to be a straight port of the PC version, but there's no problem with that. Nice budget price here, too.

Warpath - Xbox/PC (preview here)
This once-sequel to Pariah should offer some solid and pretty online combat fun. The graphics look pretty solid. I know it's hardly the only option, but iff you need a nice multiplayer FPS fix on your original Xbox or PC, you'll likely find it here. It also carries a nice budget price.

CivCity: Rome - PC
Mixing elements of Civilization with the classic city builder game, this should be a new take on the genre. I understand special emphasis has been placed on the fact that there is an Empire at large for you to trade with and form other relationships. Civ and Simcity fans may want to check this out.

Civilization IV: Warlords - PC
The first expansion for Civ IV. If you are still die hard on this one, or hoping to give it a touch of new life, it adds six scenarios and a bit more of everything else: leaders, units, wonders, and even new civilizations.

Galaga - Xbox 360 (Live Arcade)
I am excited about this. I know it's a billion years old. I still love it.

I also forgot to mention Cloning Clyde last week, and I really began to regret it after killing a few hours on single and co-op gameplay with it last night. I recommend it to anyone who has a 360, and if you don't believe me, grab the demo.

http://www.snackbar-games.com/n1922.html

More news from Comic-con

JoeHonkie wrote:

A few more games were being shown at Comic-con: a slow, wonky PSP Bomberman (still early in development); a Spider-Man game for DS, that I can't tell much about from the screenshots; and The Darkness, which is now sporting an interesting sounding FPS system for more John Woo-style gun battles.

I have high hopes for improment in the Bomberman game, because my other option looks to be Bomberman Act Zero, which is a criminal travesty in my opinion. The aiming system for the Darkness sounds weak and gimmicky to me, but I'll hold off until I see it in action.

Bomberman (1up)
Spider-Man Battle for New York Screens (Kotaku)
The Darkness (1up)

http://www.snackbar-games.com/n1921.html

Free Animal Crossing content download

JoeHonkie wrote:

Just stop by your local Toys 'R Us, and you can download free stuff for your Animal Crossing. It all seems to be Mario-themed stuff to decorate your house. I'm no Animal Crossing nut, and I sat on and broke my DS (it was open, no failing on the part of the DS), but content downloads are never a bad thing (insert horse armor joke here). Lets hope they do this for other games in the future!

Free Animal Crossing Download Week Hitting Toys R Us (Kotaku)

http://www.snackbar-games.com/n1920.html

Spore Demo apparently good

JoeHonkie wrote:

Someone has played the spore demo and declares it equal to the hype!

Also there is apparently a game option to get a 3d printout of your game models!

...

Yay!

Someone Finally Plays Spore Demo, Predicts it Will Live Up to Hype (Kotaku)

http://www.snackbar-games.com/n1919.html

Pac-Man invades Texas lotto

JoeHonkie wrote:

I know many of you guys are from the great state of Texas, so if you are interested in blowing money on lottery tickets, at least look at there. Yes, Texas has a Pac-Man themed instant lotto. One of the prizes is a classic cocktail table machine. That sure beats my old Pac-Man scratch games that came with a stick of gum back in the day. They didn't win me jack!

Buy a ticket for old Joe, will ya'? And then I'll send you the address for the game machine.

Pac-Man Lotto Gobbles Up Your Money (Kotaku)

http://www.snackbar-games.com/n1918.html

Atari undercutting next-gen prices?

JoeHonkie wrote:

Test Drive Unlimited for 360 will apparently be only forty bucks. Is Atari banking on Merketplace downloads? Was it just a cheap game developmentwise? Are they just trying to make everyone else look like jerks? Only time will tell.

I haven't played a Test Drive game since the original nearly 20 years ago (Accolade, remember that?), but I had gotten the impression that the series was in decline. With Ridge Racer, Need For Speed, and so many others, it still manages to stick around, so maybe I should keep an eye out at that price.

Atari Prices Test Drive 360 at $39.99

http://www.snackbar-games.com/n1917.html

Game news from Comic-Con

JoeHonkie wrote:

1up has some news from Comic-con on a few new games. I know you DS folks will be excited about the new info for Phoenix Wright and the new Castlevania (Who wouldn't?). For 360 owners, we find that the guys behind Alien Hominid are bringing not only that title, but a new one to Xbox Live Arcade. The new title looks like a swords & sorcery beat-em-up with Alien Hominid-style graphics and is called Castle Crashers.

Really all of these games are great because they push classic gameplay types that I don't want to see left behind in the flood of fancy 3D FPS/RTS/ETC games that come out all the time. A good healthy balance keeps me from getting bored.

Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney Justice For All
Castlevania: Portrait of Ruin
Alien Hominid
Castle Crashers

http://www.snackbar-games.com/n1916.html

Animal Crossing the Movie

JoeHonkie wrote:

Yeah, I've been sitting this for a day, because, what?!

There is an Animal Crossing movie in the works. It will be animated, and there's already a trailer. I'm no Animal Crossing person to begin with, but even if I was I don't think I'd be able to guess what this will be about. It's probably a detail film on the subject of being nice and sharing.

Is it so wrong that I'm curious about what Uwe Boll could make with this license?

Animal Crossing Movie Trailer Debuts (1up)

http://www.snackbar-games.com/n1915.html

Team Fortress 2 trailer

JoeHonkie wrote:

I am totally into the art style here.

If you have Steam, view the thing here.

Otherwise you can see it in this article:
Team Fortress 2 is so 'incredibles' (Joystiq)

http://www.snackbar-games.com/n1914.html

Xbox Live Japan

JoeHonkie wrote:

So I just set up an Xbox Live account for Japan to see what I could see. I downloaded the demo for Zegapain XOR and several trailers. Here's some feedback:

Zegapain XOR - A beautiful but generic mech game with poor control. I'll give this one a pass. (7/27)
Bullet Witch - Similar to stuff you can see in the US trailer, with some added scenes. The lighting and action on this look incredible, if the models are a little mediocre. (7/27, may miss the launch date)
Project Sylph - This was mostly cutscenes, but the gameplay looks like an arcade dogfighter. Gone is the 2d shmup Sylpheed of yesteryear. The cutscenes themselves have some incredible space battles. Haven't seen anything like them since Star Blazers. (Not sure when this hits)
Ziria - A whole lot of generic anime cutscenes surrounding a generic looking RPG set in fuedal Japan. The highlight of this was the crazy horde of horses and reindeer. I don't know what that was about, and sadly I can find no video of that part of it. (Out now)
Wrestle Kingdom - A very decent looking wrestling game featuring Japanese Wrestlers. Don't wait for a domestic release, if you are into this sort of thing. (Out now)

Sorry I couldn't get the real trailers for the last two, but chances are that if those appeal to you, you know about them. I'll just leave out the Japanese league baseball game trailer I downloaded by accident...

http://www.snackbar-games.com/n1913.html

Halo graphic novel (Hardback)

JoeHonkie wrote:

The Halo graphic novel is out in hardback. Amazon's not selling it yet, but EB has it online and in the brick & mortar stores.

http://www.snackbar-games.com/n1912.html

PS3 begins production

JoeHonkie wrote:

You've probably seen this all over by now. Best of luck, Sony.

PS3 begins production in Taiwan (Joystiq)

http://www.snackbar-games.com/n1911.html

Clive Barker working on Jericho

JoeHonkie wrote:

Clive Barker is working on a new squad-based horro game. The premise sounds interesting, a few special forces guys with arcane training running through a cursed evil city to stop ultimate evil.

I, for one, loved Undying. It's really my favorite single player FPS experience. Let's hope this sells better, though.

Barker Hears Call, Creates 'Jericho' Game (GameDaily BIZ)

http://www.snackbar-games.com/n1910.html

Flying mounts coming to World of Warcraft

JoeHonkie wrote:

They will have flying mounts as part of the Burning Crusade expansion. Now you can go anywhere with your fancy mount, although they will apparently be pretty rare. Check out the Nether Drake. I have to admit that those things look pretty darn cool.

Flying Mounts: Nether Drakes (World of Warcraft)

http://www.snackbar-games.com/n1909.html

Gametap adds multiplayer and TV

JoeHonkie wrote:

This service keeps looking better to me, espescially now that it's ten bucks a month. Only a few games are getting multiplayer, but it's a start. The TV will include some of my Cartoon Network favorites (Jonny Bravo and Dexter's Lab are worth the price of admission right there).

With that and a chance for the Sam & Max game to be good (fingers crossed; the Bone games have been less than impressive), I think I'm overdue to sign up. I can't miss out on "the one Zaxxon game I ever missed" and Kolibri, arguably the finest hummingbird based shooter available for the 32x.

GameTap Adds Multiplayer, IM, TV Shows (Gamasutra)

http://www.snackbar-games.com/n1908.html

Portal trailer released

JoeHonkie wrote:

Valve has made a trailer for their upcoming FPS puzzle game "portal" available for those who are interested. It actually looks pretty good, and it was done with a nice sense of humor.

If you have Steam you can get it from Valve here.

Otherwise check this Joystiq article:
First trailer of Valve's Portal released

http://www.snackbar-games.com/n1907.html

Portal trailer released

JoeHonkie wrote:

Valve has made a trailer for their upcoming FPS puzzle game "portal" available for those who are interested. It actually looks pretty good, and it was done with a nice sense of humor.

If you have Steam you can get it from Valve here.

Otherwise check this Joystiq article:
First trailer of Valve's Portal released

http://www.snackbar-games.com/n1907.html

"Lost" Penny Arcade comic

JoeHonkie wrote:

Apparently Microsoft hired Gabe & Tycho to do a comic about Xbox 2 rumors. Well, here it is, thanks to a nice MS employee.

The lost Penny Arcade comic (Joystiq)

http://www.snackbar-games.com/n1906.html

Review: Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell: Chaos Theory - PS2

Title: Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell: Chaos Theory
Platform: PS2
Author: Mythological

If you enjoyed the first Splinter Cell, or Pandora Tomorrow, you will most certainly want to pick up Chaos Theory.

http://www.snackbar-games.com/r365.html

Secrets of the Wii revealed

JoeHonkie wrote:

Apparently some folks at GoNintendo ferretted out some non-publicly linked webpages about the Wii. It looks like it will be using Nintendo's wifi service, which will remain free, but will use those annoying friend codes. I can't imagine doing different friend codes for like 15+ games. Yuck.

Official hidden Wii pages revealed (Kotaku)

http://www.snackbar-games.com/n1905.html

Introducing: Gamer Laws

Pickle wrote:

Ladies and gentlmen we introduce a pet project we are working on, the first ever Snackbar Games Gamer Laws. Our next podcast will be about the righteousness that is the Gamer Laws. With the popularity right now of the Man Laws we decided to put a twist on them ourselves, but what is our twist without yours?

So please, get creative and post away, we want to hear your Gamer Laws. What we will do is vote on air on your Laws. If there is a majority vote, your law gets placed as a Snackbar Games Gamer Law. Example you say? Very well...


I. Let it be written that an owner of a system always has dibs on Player 1.

II. Let it be written that Uwe Boll should never again make another video game adaptation.

III. Let it be written that any "Fantasy" RPG where character creation takes place the user must pick a name that fits the setting.

a. Add on to law III: Users may not use names from Fantasy books or movies ie Gandolf, Aragorn etc...

b. Add on to law III: Users also may not use names from gamer pop culture videos such as Galstaff...

And of course, send your audio feedback (would be great to have audio Gamer Laws) and last but not least, your What Are You Playing Now segments to podcast@snackbar-games.com

http://www.snackbar-games.com/n1904.html

360 games dominate Gamefly

JoeHonkie wrote:

It looks like 8 of Gamefly's top 10 rentals are Xbox 360 games. I wonder if the higher price tag per game has anything to do with it?

GameFly's Top Ten Requests List (Kotaku)

http://www.snackbar-games.com/n1903.html

50 new Live games on they way.

JoeHonkie wrote:

Looks like Microsoft is really gonna beef up their Live library by the end of the year.

I'm fer it! It's why I bought my Xbox.

50 Live Arcade Games By Year's End (Kotaku)

http://www.snackbar-games.com/n1902.html

Live roundup

JoeHonkie wrote:

A lot of trailers just dropped on Live

Trailer: G.R.A.W. "Chapter 2"
Trailer: Halo 3 In the Beginning - Now available to all regions
Trailer: GTTV-NCAA Football 07 Inside Look Trailer
Trailer: Bullet Witch - Japan only

Also, there will be a table tennis demo and some free Chromehounds content soon. I need some guns for my Hound.

Coming Soon: Table Tennis demo
The first Chromehounds add-on package on Live to be released free on July 19 (ArsTechnica)

Except for that last one, those all come from Major Nelson.

http://www.snackbar-games.com/n1901.html

God of War creator turning his back on the genre?

JoeHonkie wrote:

Apparently David Jaffe considers epic action adventure games fun to play, but not fun to create. Without revealing details, he claims he is going after games that fully embrace interactivity and don't really tell a story. Of course he is still providing the oversight on the new God of War title, but someone else is handling the actual director position.

I'm curious as to what he's planning. As for Adventure games being fun to play, but not fun to make, well, work is work, Mr. Jaffe.

Jaffe: I Have Changed as a Game Designer (Gamedaily BIZ)

http://www.snackbar-games.com/n1900.html

Another Joystiq interview

JoeHonkie wrote:

This one is with Tetsuya Mizuguchi (Q Entertainment), who your probably know as the Rez guy. He's also behind the upcoming 99 Nights, or perhaps you remember Sega Rally and Space Channel 5. Read away!

Joystiq interviews Tetsuya Mizuguchi of Q Entertainment

http://www.snackbar-games.com/n1899.html

DS Lite cracking up?

JoeHonkie wrote:

Apparently news is flooding in from everywhere that DS Lites are developing cracks along the hinge. Keep an eye out. You know this is Nintendo so I'm sure they will be quick to replace problem DSes once they realize this is an epidemic. The cracks don't look debilitating.

News from: Joystiq, ArsTechnica, Kotaku

http://www.snackbar-games.com/n1898.html

More data on the Wiimote

JoeHonkie wrote:

So these will use AA batteries and a bluetooth connection (which may mean hacked PC drivers, whooo!) as well as built in rumble and the required LED to show you which player you are and your battery life. Sounds good to me.

Nintendo Wiimote details emerge (Joystiq)

http://www.snackbar-games.com/n1897.html

Dead Rising achivements listed

JoeHonkie wrote:

Normally I wouldn't care too much about achievements for an Xbox 360 game, but this list for Dead Rising shows you how it's meant to be done. Too many games have achievement lists that are either too difficult or just an obvious afterthought (Fight Night is a great example of the latter). This set actually encourages you to be creative and muck around and explore the game.

Honestly if you're the sort of person who really is in a race to keep the highest gamerscore, I doubt I will ever understand you, but as long as the achievements in a game are fun and clever, I'm sure I will put some time into completing a bunch of them.

Dead Rising Achievements Absolutely Horrific

http://www.snackbar-games.com/n1896.html

Stylin' Pac-Man watch!

JoeHonkie wrote:

Now you can be just like Gabe from PA! Namco is releasing a limited edition Pac-Man watch that is damn cool. 130 bucks if you can spare it.

Order page here.

Get Your Limited Edition Pac-Man Watch (Kotaku)

http://www.snackbar-games.com/n1895.html

Peter Molyneux and Phil Harrison interviews at Joystiq

JoeHonkie wrote:

I have to admit I really love Joystiq. Here they put some non-pulled punches to two important gaming figures. Molyneux, who I have been a bit skeptical of recently, really manages to be honest about taking blame for faults and give a candid view of what it's like to be in his shoes. Harrison ends up looking evasive. Both good reads.

Joystiq interviews Peter Molyneux of Lionhead Studios
Sony's Phil Harrison: "I don't think we're arrogant"
(both from Joystiq, of course)

EDIT: A thir interview is up with Rob Kay of Guitar Hero fame.

http://www.snackbar-games.com/n1894.html

Every Extend Extra demo

JoeHonkie wrote:

But not for PSP. Every Extend is one of my favorite little PC time wasters, so the opportunity to get a full game based on it on my PSP was big news for me. Now there's a demo you can play on your PC. I'm checking this out as soon as I can get a moment to.

Every Extend Extra Demo Released (1up)

NOTE: Digging around for the actual file can be a pain, so I moved a copy up to here gor you guys. Dig it.

http://www.snackbar-games.com/n1893.html

New Release Watch - 7/16

JoeHonkie wrote:

Well, for all you folks who can't wait for Madden, it may be a good week. Madden surrogate NCAA Football '07 hits for the major platforms. Other than that, you may want to take a snooze.

NCAA Football '07 - Various
It's Madden's less popular younger brother about NFL's less popular younger brother, the NCAA. But it can tide you over, an if you really like NCAA football, there's nowhere else to go.

Valkyrie Profile: Lenneth - PSP
This one's a classic, but still pretty much a game most people have played. If you missed out or long to do it again and have a PSP, you might want to grab it.

Super Dragon Ball Z - PS2
It's a Dragon Ball Z game. I don't know anything about this one, but historically that has meant mediocre fighting games with a lot of flying and huge beams.

Monster House - Various
A video game about a movie that looks like a video game... I have nothing else to say on this. I predict it will be bad, because I'm psychic like that.

Yeah, slow week other than NCAA Football being iterated. Apparently Pain Killer: Hell Wars for Xbox has been pushed back from its original date I listed of this week.

http://www.snackbar-games.com/n1892.html

Why games developers hate poor reviewers

JoeHonkie wrote:

GamesDaily has a nice summary of why developers hate certain game reviewers. Oddly enough, the reasons mostly mesh with why I hate most games reviewers: People shouldn't review games they haven't spent time with, and they shouldn't review genres they hate. I have seen dozens reviews lambasting puzzle or retro arcade games because "I don't like this kind of game." Great, I don't like most RPGs much, that's why I don't review them.

The big sites and magazines have had some notably terrible reviews recently. Aside from copy & paste jobs between reviews of the same game on different systems, there are reviews of games which complain about problems that could be circumvented just by reading the instructions or following a tutorial. I have taken to trusting nobody unless I know them pretty well (it helps if you know how their preferences mesh with your own). It also helps if they are Cone, because Cone hooked me on Ratchet and Clank and for that he is a god.

What Game Developers Hate About Videogame Reviewers (GameDaily)

http://www.snackbar-games.com/n1891.html

Free pizza, Microsoft points, and music download

JoeHonkie wrote:

All you have to do is hold a party. This was too good to keep to myself.

Want to get in on the action? Throw your own Wednesday Night Arcade party! We'll even help get you started with a Party in a Box. Okay, there's not really a box, but here's what we'll send you:
A free pizza from Papa John's.
1000 Microsoft points. Use 'em to download Xbox Live Arcade titles!
Free digital music download to get your favorite eighties tunes.

All we ask in return? Take some pictures of your party and tell us who was there and what happened. What did you play? What did you listen to? Did you get pepperoni or sausage on your Papa John's pizza?

Xbox Live Arcade Wednesday Party-In-A-Box (Xbox.com)

http://www.snackbar-games.com/n1890.html

Team Fortress 2 is real? Also, Half-life 2 console bound and more Valve goodies

JoeHonkie wrote:

So apparently after years of fanboy waiting, Team Fortress 2 leaves the land of vaporware and becomes real. While I was never a big TF guy, I know people who would damn near kill for this game. It was really the great-grand-daddy of class-based FPS games.

Half-Life 2 Episode 2 should be coming to the PC, 360, and PS3, and will include TF2 and a "puzzle game" called Portals. The latter involves, well, portals and using them to move yourself and other things around.

Valve will also be bringing HL2 and HL2 Episode 1 to both the 360 and the PS3 as part of the package.

Half-Life 2: Episode Two - The Return of Team Fortress 2 and Other Surprises (Gamespot)

http://www.snackbar-games.com/n1889.html

Mayor of Vegas infuriated with Rainbow Six; New screens

JoeHonkie wrote:

Apparently the mayor of Las Vegas thinks that somehow his town is exempt from being depicted in fictional stories, and the sheriff thinks that kids are forced to play video games. The mayor, at least, needs a very harsh education on what first amendment rights actually are.

Kotaku also has some nice new screens of the game.

Las Vegas Hates Ubi
New Rainbow Six: Vegas Screens
(both via Kotaku)

http://www.snackbar-games.com/n1888.html

EA Wii lineup

JoeHonkie wrote:

Doesn't that just roll of the tongue? Electronic Arts has released their first 6 games for the Wii: Madden NFL, Need for Speed, Harry Potter, Tiger Woods PGA TOUR, SSX, and The Godfather.

No more info beyond that.

Godfather, Harry Potter, Others for Wii (1up)

http://www.snackbar-games.com/n1887.html

Cell info for gearheads

JoeHonkie wrote:

For those of you with a little technical interest in how the Cell processor works, Gamasutra has a nice article discussing the basics of the multiprocessing beast. The complication of the PS2 was both its greatest strength and weakness, and the cell is certainly taking an exponential jump down that path. So if you have the mental fortitude, take a look.

A Glimpse Inside the Cell Processor (Gamasutra)

http://www.snackbar-games.com/n1886.html

Alan Kotok dies at 64

JoeHonkie wrote:

Alan was one of the men who made "Spacewar," which is one of the first video games ever. He was responsible for the controller design and some of the math routines used in the PDP-1 it ran on. Hats off to one of the videogame pioneers who helped bring us to where we are today.

Alan Kotok, designer of the first video game controller, dies at 64 (Artechnica)

http://www.snackbar-games.com/n1885.html

Target UMD drop confirmed, Sony using memory sticks to distribute movies

JoeHonkie wrote:

It has been confirmed that Target is pulling UMDs from their shelves. In related news, sony will be selling a distro pack with a memory stick and four unlockable movies (although you only get to unlock one). The movies are: Hitch, SWAT, The Grudge, and XXX: State of the Union.

I really thing if they want people to watch movies on this thing, cheap digital distribution is the only way for them to go, but I doubt this package will be cheap, and the movie selection isn't exactly impressive. Maybe if they'd just unlock full resolution for movies you rip yourself we could all be happy. Archive.org has some great 3 stooges episodes if you want to try your hand at messing with PSP Video 9.

Rumor Confirmed: Target Pulls UMDs From Stores
Sony Explores PSP Movie Distro Via Memory Card
(both via Kotaku)

http://www.snackbar-games.com/n1884.html

New Xbox Live Content

JoeHonkie wrote:

Today on Xbox Live you will find trailers for Halo 3 and Mass Effect and a demo for NCAA Football 2007. Go get 'em.

Trailer: Mass Effect: Demo Walkthrough
Trailer: Halo 3: In the Beginning
Demo: NCAA Football 07
(all via Major Nelson)

http://www.snackbar-games.com/n1883.html

RUMOR: Target gives up on UMD?

JoeHonkie wrote:

This is just a rumor, because they seem to be selling them full price online, but lets hope stores lose this stuff like a bad cold ASAP.

Rumor: Target Pulling UMDs (Kotaku)

http://www.snackbar-games.com/n1882.html

More from Mark Rein

JoeHonkie wrote:

Apparently Mark Rein isn't big on episodic gaming, either.

Epic's Rein Outspoken At Develop Conference (Gamasutra)

http://www.snackbar-games.com/n1881.html

Is Intel bad for PC gaming?

JoeHonkie wrote:

Mark Rein seems to think so, but for different reasons than you might expect. Epic has always seemed to think everyone else is a huge whiner as far as it comes to dual core, so what is Intel doing wrong? Integrated graphics.

I totally agree here. Retailers love Intel's integrated graphics chipsets because they are cheap, but casual users usually feel cheated by them. Most of my friends don't understand why their brand new Dell or whatnot can't play games out of the box. The issue could easily be resolved by tossing in a $100 (more lik $25 to them) low-end Ati or Nvidia card, but the retailers know that their users probably aren't aware of the difference until it's too late.

Epic's Mark Rein: Intel is killing PC Gaming (Joystiq)

http://www.snackbar-games.com/n1880.html

PGR3 car pack on Xbox Live Marketplace

JoeHonkie wrote:

If you're still playing PGR3, why not drop 400 points on a bunch of new cars? If you don't want to do that, you can grab a few for 60 points each.

PGR3 Style Pack (Major Nelson)

http://www.snackbar-games.com/n1879.html

A review of wacky controllers

JoeHonkie wrote:

1up has an article going through many of the wacky controllers we've seen in the past. It's pretty hilarious stuff, espescially if you remember all that garbage (the powerglove and U-force, jeez).

Of course, he leaves out a lot of the good specialized controllers, so you won't see any of the DDR pads or anything like that, but it's really not the point of the article. We wanna laugh at the stuff that stinks!

The on thing I don't get is his hatred of Prop Cycle. Get some excercise!

Out of Control: The Craziest Game Controllers Ever (1up)

http://www.snackbar-games.com/n1878.html

Quake Wars to be delayed

JoeHonkie wrote:

Enemey Territory: Quake Wars is being delayed until 2007 to give time to polish it up. I'm happy they are making sure it's a quality game, but man, I would prefer to have it now. I was a huge fan of Wolfenstein: Enemy Territory, and I am very much looking forward to this. Of course, I will be all alone playing it since you will all be playing Battlefield 2142.

Enemy Territory: Quake Wars Delayed (1up)

http://www.snackbar-games.com/n1877.html

Video of Bullet Witch

JoeHonkie wrote:

I can't say I'm super hot for Bullet Witch, but it does look pretty stylish and I know some of you guys seem a little interested. You should check out this video from Team Xbox if you are one of those people.

Video Here

New Bullet Witch media (Joystiq)

http://www.snackbar-games.com/n1876.html

More Oblivion content coming

JoeHonkie wrote:

Oblivion is releasing some downloadable content for evil characters. It's a 7MB new level and it costs $1.99 as usual.

[Insert horse armor joke here]

Heh heh. Horse armor.

Evil Oblivion Content Coming (1up)

http://www.snackbar-games.com/n1875.html

MORE RUMOR: Microsoft portable NOT for gaming

JoeHonkie wrote:

I kinda saw this coming. Gizmodo is reporting that the MS portable is called "Zune" and will have no games or Xbox branding.

Microsoft Argo's Final Name: The Zune? (Gizmodo)

http://www.snackbar-games.com/n1874.html

RUMOR: Hellgate:London stolen

JoeHonkie wrote:

It seems that the source code for Hellgate:London has possibly been stolen. The last time something like this happened there was a huge delay on the game, with blame laid (and later denied) on the theft. Let's hope that doesn't happen here, because this game looks pretty good.

Hellgate: London source code lifted? (Joystiq)

http://www.snackbar-games.com/n1873.html

Eternal Darkness to come out... Someday

JoeHonkie wrote:

Silicon Knights is going to be doing a sequel to the hugely awesome Eternal Darkness. They just don't say when.

Let's see how Too Human turns out first, eh?

Eternal Darkness sequel on deck, no hints on when (Arstechnica)

http://www.snackbar-games.com/n1872.html

RUMOR: Xboy to take on the world!

JoeHonkie wrote:

According to one Seattle Times columnist, Microsoft has a project Argo in the works that will compete with the DS/PSP/iPod/everything else. Some of what he says in the article is pretty damn sketchy. For example, he cites that it may use XNA to run games, but unless MS has been spending a lot of money in secret, this is pretty unlikely. Developing a solid handheld platform takes time and money, and selling it requires hype.

I'm waiting to hear more on this one.

Xboy's iPod murder plot exposed, will involve major online media service (Joystiq)

http://www.snackbar-games.com/n1871.html

Tingle solo DS game

JoeHonkie wrote:

There's going to be a Tingle DS game. I'm rendered speechless by this development.

Tingle DS Website Launches (1up)

http://www.snackbar-games.com/n1870.html

RUMOR: Xbox 360 with HDMI?

Engadget is carrying a mildly blurry photo of an Xbox 360 motherboard with an onboard HDMI port. Could an HDMI upgrade be on the roadmap for the 360? Possibly. I will admit that I would not be so thrilled to have this hit after the fact and not have an easy way to get an upgrade.

Source: Engadget

http://www.snackbar-games.com/n1869.html

Megaman ZX to allow GBA cart unlockables

JoeHonkie wrote:

Apparently, if you have Megaman Zero games, they may unlock secrets in Megaman ZX. The Japanese version allows you to unlock boss battles in Rockman ZX with Rockman Zero 3 and 4. Completing the battles gives you bonus items.

Personally I'm just terrified of how hard the game will be. I was a master of Megaman, and found Megaman X to be a fair bit harder, and when I got to Megaman Zero I was just useless. At this rate, ZX will destroy me.

Mega Man offers some bonuses in Japan for owning multiple games (Arstechnica)

http://www.snackbar-games.com/n1868.html

Crazy Ghouls n' Ghosts Live action ad

JoeHonkie wrote:

What does Arthur do between games? Apparently semi-retirement involves fishing, doing karaoke at hostess bars (a very Japanese activity), and yelling at insolent schoolgirls. Check out this ad for the upcoming PSP game (note: ad will not tell you anything about PSP game).

Video here

The Return of Heroic Boxers: Ghouls n' Ghosts Trailer (Kotaku)

http://www.snackbar-games.com/n1867.html

Final Fantasy III DS to have...E-mail!

JoeHonkie wrote:

Apparently Final Fantasy III will support at least one form of multiplayer interaction. Scans from a Japanese magazine show a basic letter-writing interface, and these letters will supposedly even trigger in game events.

I'm having trouble getting excited about this feature. If I'm gonna play a Final Fantasy game, I just wanna play it, you know?

Final Fantasy III DS wi-fi feature revealed: emailing? (Joystiq)

http://www.snackbar-games.com/n1866.html

Old gaming magazine scans

JoeHonkie wrote:

RacketBoy is starting to scan old gaming magazines in for the nostalgia factor. Some recent finds are the ever classic Nintendo Power Issue 1 (I remember it way too well) and PSM Issue 1 (OMG FFVII LOL!). They even have the first issue of Sega Visions, not that I remember that. Check them out. Espescially the first one.

Nintendo Power

PSM

Sega Visions

http://www.snackbar-games.com/n1865.html

Video of new Shadowrun game

JoeHonkie wrote:

This should be nothing new if you've got Xbox live, as it's been available since E3, but if you guys were wondering what happened to the Shadowrun gameplay, Ben Kuchera at Ars has found a video of it for you.

It looks like a pretty generic and uninspired Counterstrike clone with magic thrown in as far as I'm concerned. There are much better things that could be done with the Shadowrun license.

If you weren't ambivalent about the Shadowrun FPS, here's some video (Arstechnica)

YouTube here

For fanboy yuks, read the comments at Ars.

http://www.snackbar-games.com/n1864.html

Crazy expanded House of the Dead 4 cabinet hitting Japan

JoeHonkie wrote:

Japan is apparently getting a House of the Dead 4 cabinet with screens in front and behind the players and a rotating set of seats. It will also apparently blast you with air whenever you get hit.

Honestly I like HotD 4 just fine the way it is, and I worry this version will be more than a dollar a play, but people seem very excited about the possibility of getting this in the US.

House of the Dead 4 gets Japanese rerelease, huge arcade cabinet (Arstechnica)

http://www.snackbar-games.com/n1863.html

New Release Watch - 7/9

JoeHonkie wrote:

Well, for once we have some impressive games that I can't make too much fun of. Let's have a look, shall we?

Chromehounds - Xbox 360
Giant robots with lots of guns, smashing everything in their path? With Live 16 player support and huge war modes? More please.

Prey - Xbox 360, PC
Feedback from the demos has been very positive. It looks like 3d Realms has managed to take the beauty of the Doom 3 engine and their own talent and create a fairly unique FPS that mixes it up with some good gimmicks. Supposedly this one even runs bearably on the 360. Now if they could only finish Duke Nukem Forever...

Painkiller: Hell Wars - Xbox
Painkiller is really a great game. A basic high energy run and gun game, but a great one nonetheless. Let's hope this new Xbox version manages to keep up the fun of the original.

Hey, I'm keeping it short this week. If you like robots and FPS games, it's a good week for you.

http://www.snackbar-games.com/n1862.html

New Starfox DS news

JoeHonkie wrote:

Apparently Starfox DS will support rumble, 4-player internet play, and 8 player ad-hoc play. Should be sweet.

I used to love Starfox 64 dogfights, as simple as they were.

Star Fox DS details surface (Joystiq)

http://www.snackbar-games.com/n1861.html

Happy Birthday, Mr. President!

JoeHonkie wrote:

So Nintendo apparently sent our president a DS Lite and a copy of Brain Age for his birthday. The jokes for this one just write themselves.

At least somebody cool has a birthday today.

Me. (My mom says I'm cool.)

Nintendo sends President Bush DS Lite, Brain Age for b-day

http://www.snackbar-games.com/n1860.html

Direct PC to 360 Prey comparisons

JoeHonkie wrote:

Some folks in the Arstechnica forums have done direct screenshot comparisons of the 360 and PC versions of Prey (using some fairly high end PC hardware). The 360 fares a whole lot better than I expected. Sure the PC has a few better features like anisotropic filtering, but the Xbox 360 version is getting fairly close. Add in that you can sit on your couch and play it on your huge TV, and it looks like the choice between 360 and PC versions of some games just got tougher (unless you find that playing FPS games with a controller is pain in the rear, like I do).

Direct comparison of Prey's graphics on the PC and 360 (Arstechnica)

http://www.snackbar-games.com/n1859.html

MS "portable" coming this X-mas?

JoeHonkie wrote:

Is Microsoft releasing a portable media player this Christmas? Bloomberg seems to think so. There's no mention of gaming capability.

I seriously doubt this is the truth. Microsoft seems to do just fine making their own codecs and OSes and such and licensing them to other folks. I think more likely they will be developing a new media player platform and letting other people build it.

We'll see if such a thing comes out, and if it can beat the momentum held by the iPod.

New MS portable could be in stores by Christmas

http://www.snackbar-games.com/n1858.html

Wii in production already? September release?

JoeHonkie wrote:

A lot of people seem to think the Wii could hit before October, because it is in production now. I'm not sure the former necessarily follows the latter, but it is interesting speculation.

I think they may be starting production early so they don't have the shortages their competitors seem to have so often, but that's just me.

WII On Sale Even Earlier Than October? (Kotaku)

http://www.snackbar-games.com/n1856.html

Sony's version of Xbox Live

JoeHonkie wrote:

We all know that Microsoft clearly copies Sony and has no ideas of its own. That's why Sony is launching an online distribution service for PS3. It was totally their own idea. Gamasutra apparently had a chance to talk to Sony rep. John Hight about their upcoming E-Distribution service.

Anyways, I'm totally in favor of this. Live is a damn good model, and it's good to see everyone hopping on the train. Sony is going one step further and developing a lot of the content for E-Distribution in house, so hopefully it will be some pretty solid stuff.

Of course, being a Sony rep, Mr. Hight has to throw some mudslinging into the conversation:

Most interestingly, when asked whether there is any concept of exclusivity, or can Xbox Live Arcade titles be ported to PS3 E-Distribution and vice versa, Hight comments pointedly: "We're looking for fresh, new ideas that fully exploit the power of PlayStation 3. Our 1st party projects are all unique to PS3. Some of our games, by virtue of their design and hardware demands, simply couldn't work on Xbox 360."

Suuuuuure.....

Exclusive: Sony Talks PS3 E-Distribution Initiative

http://www.snackbar-games.com/n1855.html

Time Crisis 3 & 2 Guncons $20

JoeHonkie wrote:

And I just thought I got an awesome deal when I bought this package for 25 bucks! Amazon has two Guncon 2s packed with Time Crisis 3 for 20 dollars. These guns also work with Time Crisis 2, Crisis Zone, Vampire Night, Ninja Assault, Resident Evil: Dead Aim, Endgame, and Dino Stalker. Also there's a Japanese import with all the Point Blank games and Time Crisis on one disk out there.

Amazon.com deal (Slickdeals)

NOTE: Guncon 2 does not work with PS1 Guncon games!

http://www.snackbar-games.com/n1854.html

3rd Resident Evil film in the works

JoeHonkie wrote:

Just when you thought it couldn't get any worse! Resident Evil: Extinction takes place in a post apocalyptic world overrun by zombies. Most of the action will apparently revolve around a Las Vegas that is gradually being reclaimed by the desert. And it will apparently star the previous two leading ladies of the Resident Evil movies and a new Claire Redfield.

All I can say is that I actually pretty much enjoyed the original Resident Evil movie and the second one was pretty much horrible. I'm not expecting much here, folks.

Third Resident Evil film to be buried in desert (Kotaku)

http://www.snackbar-games.com/n1853.html

Itagaki is a big lush

JoeHonkie wrote:

Itagaki is apparently drunk pretty much all of the time, and proud of it. He apparently gets his best ideas off whiskey, and thinks of Soju (a pretty strong Korean drink) as a starter. It definitely explains Extreme Beach Volleyball...

Itagaki on getting ideas for his games: "drinking pretty much full-time"

http://www.snackbar-games.com/n1852.html

Moonpod developer diary

JoeHonkie wrote:

Moonpod, the guys behind the excellent indie game Starscape, have a new chapter of their developer diary up. They are working on an excellent-looking isometric puzzle game called Mr. Robot. The graphics look nice, and I was a big fan of Starscape, so I will be picking that one up.

It's also really nice if you want to get a look into indie PC game development.

Bugs Bonanza (Moonpod)

http://www.snackbar-games.com/n1851.html

A big thanks

I want to give a big thanks to JoeHonkie for his news contributions lately. My job has really kept me from being able to contribute in that way. I start a new job that will afford me a little more free time to be visible around here so bare with me as I make that transition on Friday.

http://www.snackbar-games.com/n1857.html

Vote for the Snackbar Games Podcast

Pretz and Pickle and the rest of the crew do an absolutely bang up job on the podcast every time a new episode comes out. That being said I'd like to ask everyone to nominate for us at PodcastAwards.com. Those guys put in a ton of work and being nominated would go a long way in showing our appreciation for all they do.

Podcast Name: Snackbar Games Podcast
Podcast Url: http://www.snackbar-games.com/podcast/podcast.xml

http://www.snackbar-games.com/n1850.html

WoW CCG this October

JoeHonkie wrote:

I'm trying with every bone in my body not to use this as an excuse to make fun of people. World of Warcraft is getting a collectible card game from the company that makes Yigioh cards in the US. So, good news if you are into that. I'm ending this post before my abusive side gets the better of me.

WoW Gets Geekier with Trading Card Game (Kotaku)

http://www.snackbar-games.com/n1849.html

Sylpheed for 360

JoeHonkie wrote:

Apparently Squeenix is working on a Sylpheed game for 360 called "Project Sylph." Now some people are crazy about this series, and other people just don't know what the hell. I've always kind of enjoyed it, and I can always use a nice new, fancy-looking shmup game.

Square-Enix Gives 360 Nasty Case of Sylpheed (Kotaku)

http://www.snackbar-games.com/n1848.html

Transformers: The Movie: The Game

JoeHonkie wrote:

There will be a new Transformers game coming out the day of the live action film. Now before you get all excited, remember that it will likely be based on the film. The Michael Bay film. That one. Play at your own risk.

I personally recommend the PS2 Transformers game. Sure, it's based on Armada, but it's actually a pretty good game.

Transformers: The Movie (Kotaku)

http://www.snackbar-games.com/n1847.html

Review: Mega Man Powered Up - PSP

Title: Mega Man Powered Up
Platform: PSP
Author: JoeHonkie

Mega Man and classic gaming enthusiasts should not pass this up, no matter how much they’ve played the original.

http://www.snackbar-games.com/r364.html