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Slam Bolt Scrappers preview: Build those blocks up

David Hinkle — Fri, 10 Sep 2010 00:10:00 +0000

It's difficult to convey the sheer terror and chaos I experienced in the first few minutes of the Slam Bolt Scrappers PAX demo. Though the Firehose Games reps told me how to play, it wasn't preparation enough for the actual game, a combination puzzler/brawler/strategy title that is one of the most unique blends of genres I've ever played. The learning curve was, um, kinda steep!

Gallery: Slam Bolt Scrappers

Continue reading Slam Bolt Scrappers preview: Build those blocks up

Slam Bolt Scrappers preview: Build those blocks up originally appeared on Joystiq on Thu, 09 Sep 2010 19:10:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Valve owns up to its ‘failures’ with PS3 and 360

Richard Mitchell — Thu, 09 Sep 2010 23:50:00 +0000

As part of a series of interviews with PC Gamer, the folks at Valve recently gave out a laundry list of failures on the company's part. Many readers will be familiar with many on the list, including early versions of Team Fortress 2, the flying fairy game and, more recently, mistakenly banning over 12,000 Modern Warfare 2 players. Of particular note on the list were Valve's failures regarding the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3.

Valve's Erik Johnson lamented the way the company has dealt with the PS3, and also referred to the lack of Team Fortress 2 updates on the Xbox 360 as "a total failure." Johnson noted that these failures are worse than internal failures, saying, "If you fix a bug before it ever ships, it's pretty cheap. If you ship it and then fix it, it's really expensive." Gabe Newell added that the company is "really happy with the current situation with the PS3."

Concerning the lack of TF2 updates on Xbox, Newell admits that Valve built the game assuming that Microsoft would eventually change some of its Xbox Live rules (thought he didn't elaborate on the nature of said rules). "We thought that there would be something that would emerge," said Newell, "because we figured it was a sort of untenable." He added that Valve understood Microsoft's rules when it made TF2, but they were "such a train wreck" that the company assumed they would "have to change" eventually.

Valve owns up to its 'failures' with PS3 and 360 originally appeared on Joystiq on Thu, 09 Sep 2010 18:50:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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August NPD: It’s another mad, mad, Madden year

Alexander Sliwinski — Thu, 09 Sep 2010 23:30:00 +0000

The sun will rise, the moon will set and it would be a sign of the end days if Madden didn't rule August software sales in the United States. The August NPDs are out and Madden NFL 11 sold over 1.8 million units in the month, a six percent increase over last year, with significant increases on PS3. Mafia 2, which Take-Two expects to be profitable, entered with a badda-boom and appears to have sold around 200K units during the month -- the title has been a chart topper in the UK since launch.

The Xbox 360 remains the top-selling console for a second month, but its sales did drop nearly 20 percent from July. The only hardware to see sales gains during the month was the PlayStation 3, which according to the NPD has now seen 13 consecutive months of year-over-year sales increases.

Overall, hardware and software sales were down both year-over-year and year-to-date. Sales for hardware, software and accessories combined was down 10 percent to $818.9M from last year and down 8 percent year-to-date to $8.31 billion. Consoles tried to make up for the sagging handheld market, as NPD analyst Anita Frazier notes, "The 360 and PS3 platforms both grew in dollar sales versus last year. In fact, the 360 platform contributed more than 1/3 of total new physical retail sales across hardware, software and accessories while the PS3 platform contributed over 1/4 of total dollar sales."

Oh yeah, one more thing: the top ten list of titles after the break only charts console and portable SKUs, so it's worth mentioning StarCraft 2 sold another 300K units in August, which would make it the second best-selling game for the month... if it were factored in. Frazer also stated, "PC games retail dollar sales saw a 35% increase over last August."

360: 357K, down 83K (-19.7%)
DS: 343K, down 55.3K (-13.9%)
Wii: 244K, down 9.7K (-3.8%)
PS3: 226K, up 11K (5.1%)
PSP: 79K, down 4.6K (-5.5%)

Continue reading August NPD: It's another mad, mad, Madden year

August NPD: It's another mad, mad, Madden year originally appeared on Joystiq on Thu, 09 Sep 2010 18:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Portal and Flight Simulator played on Microsoft Surface

Alexander Sliwinski — Thu, 09 Sep 2010 23:04:00 +0000

Students at the University of Massachusetts Lowell Robotics Lab have adapted an "on-screen joystick" for use on Microsoft's Surface table with Portal and Flight Simulator. The DREAM (Dynamically Resizing Ergonomic and Multi-touch) controller is activated by putting five fingers on the table. The joystick will then resize itself to the user.

The controls don't look nearly as efficient as a keyboard and mouse, or as comfortable as a gamepad, but it gives a good idea of the interface we may eventually use on the "iPad XL." Check out the video after the break for the full effect (and be prepared to mute the audio).

Continue reading Portal and Flight Simulator played on Microsoft Surface

Portal and Flight Simulator played on Microsoft Surface originally appeared on Joystiq on Thu, 09 Sep 2010 18:04:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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PlayStation: 15 Years In The Making…

Rey Gutierrez — Thu, 09 Sep 2010 23:01:42 +0000

Today we celebrate 15 Years of PlayStation, the gaming industry and most importantly, the PlayStation fan. It is an honor to officially kick off our celebration on the PlayStation.Blog with a retrospective journey and history lesson 15 years in the making.

The PlayStation, the PlayStation 2, the PlayStation Portable, the PlayStation 3 — these aren’t just names to Sony gaming products — these are milestones in every gamers’ coming of age story. Twisted Metal, Metal Gear Solid, Final Fantasy VII, Killzone and God of War, aren’t just clever titles to PlayStation classics — but defining moments in gaming history where PlayStation stands above the rest, delivering memorable experiences and jaw-dropping moments.

Sitting at PlayStation and being part of this amazing journey as a gamer and now working with the PlayStation team, I can’t help but recollect my first encounter with Metal Gear Solid. Within moments of popping in my PlayStation Underground disc, and booting the MGS demo — I knew right there and then what I wanted to do with my life. I must have shredded through several layers of protective coating on the PlayStation disc, playing the MGS demo over and over, patiently waiting for Hideo Kojima’s classic. If I can define my favorite PlayStation moment in two words, it would be: Pyscho Mantis.

Where were you on September 9th, 1995?

Street Fighter 4 iPhone adding another new challenger: E. Honda

Randy Nelson — Thu, 09 Sep 2010 22:45:00 +0000

The iOS port of Street Fighter 4 continues to grow its roster, with word from Capcom that fast-handed sumo wrestler Edmond "E." Honda will arrive in-game alongside the previously confirmed Crimson "C." Viper in a free update. Catch Honda in action after the break.

Continue reading Street Fighter 4 iPhone adding another new challenger: E. Honda

Street Fighter 4 iPhone adding another new challenger: E. Honda originally appeared on Joystiq on Thu, 09 Sep 2010 17:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Relic’s Brian Wood involved in fatal car crash [Update]

Stephany Nunneley — Thu, 09 Sep 2010 22:40:45 +0000

Sad news today regarding Company of Heroes and Relic designer Brian Wood, who died in a car accident on Friday.

According to The Province, in an effort to avoid an SUV heading straight for the vehicle he and his pregnant wife of five years, Erin, were traveling in, Wood cut the wheel of his vehicle so the unavoidable impact would hit the driver’s side instead of the passenger’s side of his Subaru.

While Wood’s decision only cause a minor head-injury for his wife, it unfortunately ended his life.

“All the policeman say that if we had hit the car head-on all of us would be dead, ” said Erin Woods. “At the very last second (Brian) braked really hard and turned right so that he would be put in the path of the SUV and not me and the baby, and that is the only thing that saved us both.

“I am not going to waste the gift he gave us.”

According to the police report, the driver of the SUV was attempting to remove her sweater, and handed over control of the vehicle’s steering wheel to the passenger.

Two male passengers in the back seat were also killed in the wreck and the passenger sustained a pelvic injury. There was also evidence of drug use by the occupants of the SUV, and all were known to police.

The driver has been charged with three counts of vehicular homicide and one count of vehicular assault, with the passenger who took the wheel expected to face the same charges.

VG247 wishes Wood’s family and Relic the best during the sad times ahead.

[Update: A memorial fund has been set up in Wood's name. If you wish to donate, you can do so here - JC]

Via D’toid.

3D effects written into Resident Evil: Afterlife script

Griffin McElroy — Thu, 09 Sep 2010 22:25:00 +0000

Though the scripts of most game-to-movie adaptations are written with a heavy focus on maintaining the canon and integrity of the source material, it seems ... HA! Oh, man, we almost made it through that sentence without breaking. Anyways, Resident Evil: Afterlife producer/director/writer Paul W.S. Anderson recently gushed to Reuters that much of the script for the fourth film in the franchise was deliberately penned with 3D technology in mind.

"I wrote things into this script that I knew would work well in 3D, like lots of sets with depth-like tunnels, elevator shafts, and big wide landscapes," Anderson explained. We suppose that doesn't stray too far from the actual Resident Evil games. For instance, this trailer for the film features a ton of people throwing sharp hand tools at other people -- an attack that rings familiar of Resident Evil 4, no? Oh, and let's not forget the absolutely devastating sunglasses death-fling maneuver from Resident Evil 5, seen in this spoileriffic video.

3D effects written into Resident Evil: Afterlife script originally appeared on Joystiq on Thu, 09 Sep 2010 17:25:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Borderlands: Claptrap’s New Robot Revolution DLC will be screenshot-ized

Randy Nelson — Thu, 09 Sep 2010 22:05:00 +0000

2K Games and Gearbox have rolled a batch of fresh screens from this month's new Borderlands content, Claptrap's New Robot Revolution, off the ol' assembly line and into the gallery after the break. Frankly, if we were getting torn apart like the poor 'bot above, we'd stage an uprising of our own!

Gallery: Borderlands: Claptrap's New Robot Revolution (09-09-10)

Borderlands: Claptrap's New Robot Revolution DLC will be screenshot-ized originally appeared on Joystiq on Thu, 09 Sep 2010 17:05:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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TimeGate judges Section 8: Prejudice ready for debut, ‘early 2011′ release

Randy Nelson — Thu, 09 Sep 2010 21:45:00 +0000

TimeGate Studios has just announced a sequel to its multiplayer-focused 2009 multiplatform FPS, Section 8. Titled Section 8: Prejudice, the game -- destined for yet-unknown platforms, though the original hit PC, 360 and PS3 -- is targeted for an "early 2011" release.

Based on the first trailer (which you can find after the break), we're looking at new abilities, locations and weaponry. The title, as the clip's narrator so gruffly puts it, comes from the fact that in the game's universe, wars are being fought based on -- wait for it -- prejudice.

In this universe, we do our best to combat prejudice through tolerance, understanding and generally not pre-judging people. We don't need fancy power-armor, though it's admittedly pretty damn cool.

Continue reading TimeGate judges Section 8: Prejudice ready for debut, 'early 2011' release

TimeGate judges Section 8: Prejudice ready for debut, 'early 2011' release originally appeared on Joystiq on Thu, 09 Sep 2010 16:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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