Yes, I meant to put "Screenshot," and not "Screenshots."
Today, the Playstation blog revealed a screenshot of what the 256 player MAG will look like. It's not a big deal but the shot they showed actually looks pretty great. It has paratroopers, guns, bazookas, trees, satellite dishes, powerlines, and buildings. I don't know about you guys, but I love any game that has satellite dishes.
Here's what the Playstation Blog had to say:
"Though it’s early to talk in depth about MAG, we can definitely quell some fears we’ve already heard from you about how MAG will need to compromise on gameplay to support its size. Well, it may be massive but it is an action shooter at its core. You can run around and shoot enemies, throw grenades, and drive vehicles just like any other shooter except with MAG you’ll do it with up to 256 players. The team at Zipper was one of the pioneers of online gaming on consoles with the SOCOM franchise and they’ve used this knowledge to create a brand new server architecture to make an original game like MAG possible."
Put on that robe and wizard hat because it looks like D3Publisher is going to be unleashing the brand new expansion pack for Puzzle Quest tomorrow. Puzzle Quest: Revenge of the Plague Lord adds a ton of new stuff to the main game including new classes, new quests, new spells, and new magical items. That's a ton of new stuff. Also being included is a new level cap of 60, and the ability to explore the southern area of the world map.
Puzzle Quest has always been that "go to" game for me. There's many nights where I'm sitting up, thinking about all the good times I had with Fonzie when I was kid, and then I throw in Puzzle Quest and forget all about Fonzie. I'm not sure what it is about the game that I love so much, but I do know that it totally relaxes me. I can be in the shittiest mood ever, and as soon as I hear the LARPtastic soundtrack, I get a huge smile on my face. Then it's on. I puzzle the night away.
Pick it up tomorrow for the great price of 700 Microsoft Points. I think that's like $10 or something.
Capcom sent out a press release today confirming that Dead Rising is in fact coming to the Wii. What was even better about the press release was that it revealed the name of the title as "Dead Rising: Chop Till You Drop." I have just one thing to say about that.
Fuck Yeah!
I think every Wii owner should be getting a veritable chub-on right now because with the promised tweaks and adjustments, this is going to be the best game on the console. It makes me happy knowing that Wii owners are going to be able to run around in their underwear, bludgeoning zombies and cultists with parasols, cash registers, and teddy bears.
The only thing that will hurt it on the system is the obvious reduction of zombies on screen at once. If Capcom does this right, it could be a huge boost to a system that has been pretty horrible for third-party support. Who cares though, it's Dead fucken Rising and even if it's the last third party title put out for the Wii, it's fucken awesome.
Here's what the PR promised:
• Utilizes the same engine as Resident Evil 4 Wii edition.
• New level of interaction – aim and fire guns, swing and throw weapons and shake off zombie attacks with added Wii Remote functionality
• Huge environment – expansive indoor and outdoor areas of the mall provide a variety of different locations to explore
• Improved save functionality allows for more seamless gameplay
• Hoards of enemies on screen at once resulting in non-stop, pulse-pounding action
• Anything in the mall is at Frank’s disposal
• Grab environmental objects like umbrellas and benches to use as improvised weapons
• Snatch items from different stores to use as weapons including golf clubs, lawnmowers, frying pans and more
• Consume food and drink to revive health
To all of you who are getting all hot in the pants at the prospect of the new World of Warcraft expansion, you're in luck. Blizzard announced on Thursday that invites for the "Wrath of the Lich King" beta were being sent out, and the servers prepped for the onslaught of people wanting to appease their addiction. From what we've heard the invites are being sent out randomly, but I'm guessing a handful of guilds are getting in on the action.
Now, I just have to ask. Why the fuck would someone want to participate in a beta for an MMO? We all know that beta characters get wiped, items get taken away, and like the slutty girl in high school, you're ultimately tossed aside for something better. I realize that there is a ton of testing that needs to get done, but I don't understand why people would want to sacrifice so much of their time into something that will net them absolutely nothing but veiny e-peen.
I'm sure all the WoW players reading this right now are foaming at the mouth and screaming "WHAT ABouT KNOWING EXACTLY WHAT TO DO WHEN THE RETAIL VERSION COMES OUT!?!" Yeah, you could offer that as an incentive to bust your ass in the beta, but doesn't that ultimately ruin the experience when it does hit shelves? I knew a couple of people that spent nearly 100 hours testing out "The Burning Crusade" expansion, and every single one of them came to regret it. It made playing the retail version almost seem like a chore, and it only took about two weeks for them to uninstall the game, and post in the forums how they uninstalled the game. Sure, they came back about a week later after realizing real life fucken sucks, but still, it made their expansion experience pretty horrible.
While I commend the people that do actually go into the beta to find bugs, I also realize that there is only about 5% of the player population that really give a fuck about that. Most people that play WOW are more concerned with their personal player growth, and will just use the beta to ensure some advantage when it launches. If WoW wasn't such a pissing contest of retarded proportions I would totally condone beta participation, but we all know exactly how this is going to end. The intensely hardcore players are going to study the thing inside out, level to 80 in about 11 hours, and then cry like babies about how Blizzard has shitty content. It happens every single time, and it will happen again.
Let's face it. 2006 was the last time E3 was truly any fun. Yes, it got a little taxing as a game reviewer trying to get impressions on all your assigned titles, but it was fun. You walked around the absolutely packed Los Angeles Convention Centre, watching kids getting all excited about the Nintendo Wii, and even though you hated the 1 hour lines to try it, a small part of you felt like those kids. It was a spectacle, and while it may have gotten a little too big, that doesn't mean that it was the wrong direction to take with the event.
Today, Ryan Kim from the San Francisco Chronicle published a story about several industry execs wanting to bring the old E3 back from the dead. Bring back the booth babes, re-introduce the oversized statues of Master Chief, and throw some of the best parties the gaming press will ever experience. While many companies did spend over $10 million on their booths, in some way it was totally worth it. It created that flash that this industry strives on and actually made the event feel like something other than a glorified preview copy of a game you just flew halfway across the country to play.
Within Kim's article there are several comments from some of the gaming industries biggest names. Our good buddy John Riccitiello from over at EA had the following to say. "I hate E3 like this" and "Either we need to go back to the old E3, or we'll have to have our own private events." For anyone who saw EA's press conference, you'll totally understand where JR is coming from. It was so tight and charismatic that for a brief second you almost felt like you were at the old E3. They brought out some big names, they showed some great games, and they made a pretty big announcement with the "id software" partnership. They were trying.
Laurent Detoc, the president of Ubisoft NA came right out and said it. "E3 this year is terrible." We were all thinking it, many people said it, but it's totally different when someone at Detoc's level just outright proclaims it. He also stated "The world used to come to E3. Now it's like pipe-fitters show in the basement." We have no clue what the pipefitter thing means, but we do understand the "The world use to come to E3" comment. It's true. At one time you had people actually making the trek from Europe, from Asia, from everywhere to take part in E3. Now, why bother? Yeah you can try out some games, but the payoff just doesn't seem to exist anymore.
While I don't think E3 should get as massive as it was back in 2005 (record setting 70,000 people through the door), I think some adjustments are definitely in order. Bring back the real events and get people excited over hitting the show floor again. Move the show back to a weekend in May. It fit into everyone's schedule, and LA is way too hot in July to be rubbing up against stinky fat guys all day. Lastly, and I absolutely hate to say it, but bring back the public. I know many people won't agree with this, but I think that the more people that are excited about the industry, the better. I know of several people that never followed gaming news, went to E3, experienced the glitz of the gaming industry (no matter how manufactured it was), and started to care about what was going on in it.
So. Where do we go from here? I think there really is only two different paths the ESA can take, and that is either, bring back the old E3 or abolish the show all together. Many companies have stated that they would hold their own events, but is that really good for the industry as a whole? What we have personally loved about E3 is the fact that there are some companies who might not have the money to spend on a lavish booth, but with the show they actually have an outlet to showcase their games. No matter how small the booth, someone, somewhere will stumble in there and get the word out about their title. Take that away and it really does hurt the smaller companies trying to get the word out.
Something happened in the last several years. Something that will totally change the way the industry designs and develops games in order to appease the gamers. I'm not talking about the new breed of gamers that think playing "Wii Sports" automatically entitles them to the title. I'm talking about all of us that were there during the Golden Age of gaming. The Super Nintendo/Sega Genesis years. The Arcade years. Even the PSX years. The real gamers that follow the industry and know the names of the actual developers. Something changed to appease us.
In the shadow of the Wii selling a billion units, and Carnival Games being played at family reunions, stands a rabid audience. We are that audience. We're longing for something that brings us back to the days of standing in the arcade waiting for our turn to play Street Fighter II. Waiting to get beat down by that kid that actually knew how to throw fireballs and Dragon Punches. Every single one of us is just waiting for that title to just bring us back to simpler times (Could I be more cliche'?).
Well, it looks like there is a company looking out for us.
This week at E3, Capcom absolutely dominated the competition and took a stand for every real gamer in attendance. Yes, their press conference about the Lost Planet movie was a pretty stupid move, but their booth was a totally different story. They showed off both Bionic Commandos, the retro-tastic Mega Man 9, Super Street Fighter II Turbo HD Remix, Resident Evil 5, and above all else, Street Fighter IV. All games made for the hardcore gamer, all games that I will willingly pay money for.
Street Fighter IV is what really opened my eyes to the direction Capcom has decided to take in this very casual-friendly gaming world. They're not catering to people and making the game easier, they're catering to those that love Street Fighter and making the game impossible to put down. With extensive combo mechanics and a "learn to play" attitude, Street Fighter IV is well on it's way to being a game that will not only satisfy core gamers, but could also signify a change in the direction of the industry as a whole. Yes, it's just a 2D fighter, but why would a company release a 2D fighter in this gaming environment if not to send a message?
Maybe I'm being a little too optimistic, but I really do think that people are going to look back at this E3 and realize that Capcom was one of the only companies willing to go against the norm. They rewarded fans of their blog by inviting them to check out their booth (http://www.1up.com/do/newsStory?cId=3168628), they took a chance and made Megaman 9 one of the most retro new games in years, and most of all, they didn't disappoint.
Destructoid is an independently-run publication forged by our love of video games and the gaming community's need of accountable enthusiast press living the dream since March 16, 2006
