Sunday, 26 February 2012
Project Draco Officially Named Crimson Dragon
Project Draco went playable at today's Xbox 360 10th anniversary fan event in Akihabara. In addition to attendees getting a chance to go hands-on with the game, they were also given first official word of its new name, Crimson Dragon. The name had previously leaked out through overseas classification boards.
According to Famitsu.com's report from the event, Crimson Dragon is due for Xbox Live Arcade release some time this year.
Crimson Dragon is one of the high profile Xbox 360 games Microsoft announced at Tokyo Game Show 2010. It's being developed for Kinect by Yukio Futatsugi, of Panzer Dragoon fame.
Famitsu's report mention the following:
The game is a rails shooter, so you automatically progress forward through the stage. Your movements translate to direct movements by your dragon. You'll need to move around to avoid obstacles and incoming attacks.
To attack, you use your right hand, left hand, or both hands. Your right hand is used for lock on and homing attacks. Your left hand is used for powerful single shots.
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The lock-on and homing attack, while relatively weak, can strike multiple enemies at once. It also does not deplete your spirit gauge.
The spirit gauge is needed for performing more powerful attacks. The attacks from your left hand deplete a certain amount of the spirit gauge with each attack. If the gauge is filled up a certain way, you can wave both hands for a screen wiping attack -- this game's equivalent of a "bomb" attack. The spirit gauge is automatically filled up gradually with time.
Famitsu's writer was impressed with the presentation, with high praise for the graphics quality. The sound is from the Panzer Dragoon staff, according to the report.
Joining the impressions, the site shared a bunch of screenshots, which you can see here.
Grand Theft Auto V
Months after the release of the first official trailer for Grand Theft Auto V, details on the game have remained fairly scarce. Now however, information about the direction of the upcoming sequel is finally coming to light.
“The greatest thing about the franchise’s last visit to San Andreas wasn’t the action, or story, or freedom to explore a huge, detailed world,” said Leslie Benzies, long-time producer of the GTA series. “It was the game’s meticulous attention to the protagonist’s physiology. If you ate too much, your character would become fat and sluggish; if he spent a lot of time at the gym he’d get stronger. That’s the sort of thing that gets people invested, that really makes them believe in the world of the game. With Grand Theft Auto V, we’re really pushing that to the forefront to make the most exciting open-world action game/health and personal hygiene simulator ever released.”
GTA: San Andreas’ character development mechanics will be returning in even greater detail. While its predecessor’s tracking of the player’s physical condition was relatively simple, Grand Theft Auto V will have a much more detailed system. “It’s not just a matter of going to the gym, doing some button-mashing to lift some weights, and getting stronger. You’ve got to exercise all the major muscle groups- quads, lats, abdominals, everything- as well as aerobic exercise to maintain cardiovascular health. You’ll also have to maintain proper levels of hydration, have appropriate rest periods between sets, remember to wipe off the equipment afterward if you’re using an exercise machine- all the fascinating minutiae of exercise.
“The player will have tremendous freedom to choose different training options according to the sort of development they want for their own character, whether it’s weight machines, treadmills, jogging, the StairMaster, free weights, isolation exercises, deadlifts, squats, or injecting various mixtures of anabolic steroids, amphetamines, and human and animal hormones into your buttocks. You’ll have to choose wisely, of course, or you may end up with a huge upper body and little stick legs, or be unable to throw a decent punch because you’ve developed huge biceps but neglected your triceps, or become so ‘roided up that you become an acne-covered, tiny-balled, man-bosomy rageaholic or, God forbid, a Gears of Warcharacter.”
Other physical attributes of the main character will also play an important role during gameplay, requiring players to carefully monitor and manage things like their current bowel and bladder capacity, blood sugar, hair length, body odor, breath odor, blood pressure, cholesterol levels, beard length, sperm count, sun exposure and sunscreen SPF, fingernail and toenail length, blood alcohol content, risk of dangerous interactions between prescription medications, and many other important stats.
“There will be a lot of challenging minigames to really bring the character to life,” Benzies said. “Showering, shaving, applying various creams and lotions, using the toilet, brushing your teeth, changing your contact lenses, ‘taking care of business’ when your character gets lonely, and lots of others. Videogame development is a conservative industry. I’m sure there are naysayers who will insist that fans of the Grand Theft Auto series won’t want to have to periodically interrupt the game’s usual intense intense action and excitement to play minigames that revolve around mashing buttons to successfully mix a protein shake, or maintain correct posture during a shoulder press, or douse yourself in aftershave to conceal how long it’s been since you’ve showered, but we believe gamers are a lot more open to innovation than they’re given credit for.”
Saturday, 25 February 2012
WiiU
My speech was about the potential for growth of social gaming. I am pretty sure it was taped and posted on gamerlive.tv
The Wii U comment was in response to a question about the potential for the Wii U.
I believe (and please feel free to disagree) that a large portion of the Wii audience comprised casual gamers--those who bought one or two games a year the first two years, then put the Wii aside--and that those casual gamers moved on to another platform. The "other" platform may have been Facebook games, smart phone games, tablet games, or one of the other consoles, but once they moved on, they are not likely to come back.
At the same time, I believe (again, please feel free to disagree) that the growth of smart phones and tablets has attracted many potential dedicated handheld game customers, and these people also are unlikely to come back to either 3DS or PS Vita.
Summing this up, I think the addressable market for the Wii U is around half of the market for the Wii, and I think Microsoft and Sony will compete for a portion of that market if the Wii U is priced too high. I think that the dedicated handheld market is permanently impacted by smart phones and tablets, and think that Nintendo's addressable market is probably also half of its former market.
Nintendo is in disarray because they waited too long to launch the Wii U. I know that this sounds like (and is) sour grapes because they didn't launch the Wii HD in 2009 or 2010 as I "predicted". They should have, and because they didn't, the decline in Wii and DS hardware and software sales drove them into generating LOSSES. For those of you who aren't financial analysts, losses mean that the company is worth less than it was before. Nintendo stock has dropped by over 80% in the last few years, and the market has appreciated over the same period. I'm paid to advise investors, and none have made a profit owning Nintendo stock. I don't think that many will make a profit over the next few years, because I don't think Nintendo's strategy will return them to profitability.
The Wii U comment was in response to a question about the potential for the Wii U.
I believe (and please feel free to disagree) that a large portion of the Wii audience comprised casual gamers--those who bought one or two games a year the first two years, then put the Wii aside--and that those casual gamers moved on to another platform. The "other" platform may have been Facebook games, smart phone games, tablet games, or one of the other consoles, but once they moved on, they are not likely to come back.
At the same time, I believe (again, please feel free to disagree) that the growth of smart phones and tablets has attracted many potential dedicated handheld game customers, and these people also are unlikely to come back to either 3DS or PS Vita.
Summing this up, I think the addressable market for the Wii U is around half of the market for the Wii, and I think Microsoft and Sony will compete for a portion of that market if the Wii U is priced too high. I think that the dedicated handheld market is permanently impacted by smart phones and tablets, and think that Nintendo's addressable market is probably also half of its former market.
Nintendo is in disarray because they waited too long to launch the Wii U. I know that this sounds like (and is) sour grapes because they didn't launch the Wii HD in 2009 or 2010 as I "predicted". They should have, and because they didn't, the decline in Wii and DS hardware and software sales drove them into generating LOSSES. For those of you who aren't financial analysts, losses mean that the company is worth less than it was before. Nintendo stock has dropped by over 80% in the last few years, and the market has appreciated over the same period. I'm paid to advise investors, and none have made a profit owning Nintendo stock. I don't think that many will make a profit over the next few years, because I don't think Nintendo's strategy will return them to profitability.
News
IGN reported that the 3G model of PS Vita is capable of receiving text messages from the carriers like AT&T, and the carrier can also send SMS notifications to the device; you can find the mobile number assigned to your 3G SIM card in the System Information section.
Sony will release MotorStorm RC on PSN on Mar 6, the game will run on both PS3 and PS Vita.
Capcom has released Rival Schools: United by Fate on PSN this week, this is one of the most requested classic game by players, Capcom had to re-acquire rights from various companies in order to put this game on PSN. The game has two discs, one is the arcade fighting game, the other one is a collection of mini games and simulation adventure.
Nintendo will publish a remake of horror adventure game Project Zero 2: Crimson Butterfly [Fatal Frame II: Crimson Butterfly] for Wii in Japan on June 28. The remake will have a new 2 player cooperative mode.
Nintendo will release the card battle game Culdcept for 3DS in Japan on June 28, for 4800 yen. Nintendo announced the Game Gear Virtual Console will launch on the 3DS eShop on Mar 14 in Japan, the first batch of games will include GG Shinobi, Dragon Crystal Shirani's Maze and Sonic & Tails 2. Bandai Namco launched a teaser site for a mystery 3DS game, which is co-developed by Capcom, Sega and Bandai Namco. Koei Tecmo announced 5 cross-over characters for Shin Sangoku Musou VS [Dynasty Warriors VS], they are Ryu Hayabusa from Ninja Gaiden, Ayane from Dead or Alive and Sanada Yukimura, Ishida Mitsunari & Naoe Kanetsugu from Sengoku Musou. In addition, you can also use your Mii characters as support characters. The game will have download content in future, including costumes and new weapon. The first print of the game will come with a download code to receive a volleyball uniform and judo outfit for certain characters. Nintendo announced a new Brain Age title is in the work for 3DS, which features Dr. Kawashima. This time the theme is to improve your concentration and working memory, the doctor will appear in devil form. Nintendo will release Mario Tennis Open for 3DS in Japan on May 25, and May 25 in North America and Europe. Monolith Soft is recruiting staffs for a new 3DS project, which seems to be a new role playing game. Square Enix is working with Electronic Arts to bring Mass Effect 3 outfit download content to Final Fantasy XIII-2, no release date has been revealed yet. Here are the latest Dengeki PlayStation Review scores from Japan, Asura's Wrath got an average score of 81/100.- Asura's Wrath (PS3, Capcom): 85, 85, 85, 70
- Ninja Gaiden Sigma Plus (PSV, Koei Tecmo): 75, 70, 80, 65
- Tacchi, Shiyo! Love Application (PS3, Compile Heart): 80, 70, 85, 60
- Reality Fighters (PSV, Sony): 75, 70, 85, 60
Nintendo is helping publishers to revive their old franchises on 3DS in order to build a stronger portfolio of games for the system. The first game in this initiative is Vivarium's virtual pet title Seaman, originally released for Dreamcast in 1999.Sales
Here are the latest Media Create Console Hardware Sales in Japan for the week of Feb 13 - 19, 3DS sales went up to 95k thanks to New Love Plus and Theatrhythm Final Fantasy.....
| Platform | This week | YTD |
|---|---|---|
| 3DS | 94,667 | 744,479 |
| PS3 | 21,993 | 216,158 |
| PSP | 14,824 | 173,291 |
| PS Vita | 12,309 | 138,826 |
| Wii | 7,874 | 109,167 |
| PS2 | 1,433 | 6,858 |
| XB360 | 983 | 10,584 |
| DSiLL | 901 | 10,814 |
| DSi | 656 | 8,307 |
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