Home
Someone scrambled up these shooters! They swapped the ships in the pictures below and made five matched pairs. Can you figure out which vessel goes with which game?
| 1) |
6
Full disclaimer: Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures flew me out and put me up in a hotel to see an early screening of this motion picture.
I'm not a movie critic, and I wouldn't do their craft injustice by attempting to do a full, proper review of Walt Disney Pictures' upcoming Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time. Not that it would be of any use to anyone right now anyway -- the film doesn't even come out until May 28. But after a flurry of Tweets where I talked about the bizarre circumstances surrounding my 1.5-minute interview with Producer Jerry Bruckheimer, the number-one thing my Twitter followers wanted to know was: How was the movie? Perhaps followed closely by: How many explosions were there?
Here is my quick and simple take from a gamer's point of view. And "quick and simple take" means I'm going to interview myself....
Does the movie do the game license justice?
Read more >>
Monday, March 22, 2010
Yikes.
News Blips:
A disagreement over possible cheating in Counter-Strike turned violent when an unidentified assailant allegedly stabbed a 17-year-old boy in the head in China. Doctors removed the knife, and the youth survived as the blade missed major arteries and didn't damage the parts of the brain that control motor functions. I can imagine what the fear-mongering mainstream media might say: "The suspect learned how to stab people in the head from playing that evil game, Counter-Strike." [SankakuComplex - Warning: disturbing picture]
Nintendo creates Big Name Games for WarioWare D.I.Y. developers. Nintendo plans to release new games for the latest installment in the WarioWare series from Masahiro Sakurai (Super Smash Bros.) and Yoshio Sakamoto (Metroid) on March 29. Afterward, on every Monday through July 26, Nintendo's set to put out other games from developers such as Pixel (aka Daisuke Amaya of Cave Story), 5th Cell (Scribblenauts), Gaijin Games (Bit.Trip series), and more. Who cares if this is cross-promotional madness -- I think it's pretty damn cool.
EA plans to release premium demos, or "Premium Downloadable Content," for $10 to $15. Speaking to Wedbush Morgan's Michael Pachter, Visceral Games' Nick Earl discussed the details of EA's plan, which involves making long demos (3 hours to 4 hours) as a way to generate more interest in the game and provide developers with feedback on parts of the games that might need some work. In a sense it's like a music single and albums -- but going by the current state of the music industry and popular music in general, I'm not so sure that's a good idea. [GameIndustry.biz]
McDonald's plans to use the Nintendo DS to train employees in Japan Using a special training program called eSmart, the fast-food giant expects to cut training time in half. I wonder how popular this software will be with bootleggers. [Nikkei via Andirasang]
Got any hot news tips? Send 'em over to tips@bitmob.com.
Read more >>
The Escapist's Russ Pitts, GameXplain.com's Andre Segers, and ex-journalist-turned-indie-dev Shanker Srinivasan join Bitmob's Aaron Thomas on this week's show.
The group remembers lost game saves, questions the importance of story over gameplay, ponders a one-console future, debates in-browser 3D gaming, and recalls their most epic gaming binges.
They also complain about getting old, mock Shanker for wasting hundreds of hours on one (broken) game, and alienate anyone who has ever played Farmville. Good times!
Have a question you want answered? Want to share some important insight with the world? E-mail the crew at letters@bitmob.com.
Click here to find out how you can get in on the "3 Great Prizes, 3 Ways to Win" giveaway.
Read more >>
Monday, March 22, 2010
Silly laws of physics -- your powers mean nothing in the Crackdown universe.
Video Blips:
• Crackdown 2 indirectly asks: Who doesn't love a good, old-fashioned-rocket-launcher fight? Aside from the people who get blown up. [GameTrailers]
Continue after the break for a developer diary on the art and design of ModNation Racers, a Naughty Bear parody of Alien, and the trailer for Kick Ass: The Game.
Read more >>
Welcome back for another week of community-submitted video game tunes!
For those of you who aren't aware, a car struck me while I was riding my bike the other day. It was a hit and run, and I'm currently recovering from a broken clavicle. On that note, I've decided to keep my selections upbeat this week -- collarbone be damned!
The community busted out with a pretty awesome selection of songs, too. Contributor Alex R. Cronk-Young jumped in with the main theme from an uber-popular Internet meme called Robot Unicorn Attack. Jukebox regulars Jimmy Flores and Ryan Conway represent Sonic two-fold -- maybe they are gearing up for Sonic 4. And Bitmob's resident RPG guru, Brian Shirk, suggests a great tune from yet another re-release of the original Lunar.
Want to know how to get your song on the list? Hit the jump and find out how.
Read more >>
Editor's note: I'm constantly thinking about the issues that Matthew highlights here. With parenthood comes new responsibility: How does one keep up with the fast-moving culture of video games, then? By focusing my passion for the pastime into writing for Bitmob, I think I'm one step closer to the answer. -Rob
Last week, my wife and I welcomed another baby boy into this crazy world.
After the excitement died down and life returned to what I like to call "the new normal," I found myself in a similar frame of thought as when our last child was born: reflective, contemplative, and wondering what effect midnight feedings and soccer-practice runs would have on my hobby of choice -- gaming.
I'd read somewhere that a lot of people -- typically of the male persuasion -- have a hard time giving up their independence as well as their already scant free time to diaper changes and impromptu baths.
It's rough when your little bubble of personal space is summarily popped by rug rats riding stick horses and packing rubber-band guns. With our last youngling, I eventually adjusted and actually learned to better appreciate my constant need to twiddle my thumbs in front of a television.
Naturally, when number three decided to part with the womb, I wondered when those overwhelming feelings of loss would show up and cause me to grasp at the slipping straws that were my playtime. One week later, it still hasn't hit me. And I don't think that it will.
I can't really summarize what video games mean to me; they strike me in both profound and simple ways. That will never change. Where I've found my path diverging is how I've come to appreciate them.
Read more >>
This week on Hit or Miss: Jamie Foxx joins a game adaptation that finally makes sense (but will still likely suck); I explain the probably completely inaccurate connection between Sega's Yakuza games and Tom Berenger; a dude breaks his own damn hand playing a video game; and Sam Fisher provides the latest proof that nothing good ever comes from Twitter.
The Bitmob Reviews Spotlight is a weekly feature which endeavors to bring attention to the website's most capable writers. While most of your are still enmeshed in the stockpile of recently released titles, these community members have been glued to their keyboards, writing until their extremities grew numb.
A curt shout out was the least we could do for these devoted community members. Here is the fruit of their labor:
Jack Morphy gives his index finger a break and decides to share his opinions on Torchlight, a Diablo-esque role-playing game. Anticipate spellcasting pets and furious mouse clicking.
Sage Knox follows suit with his impressions of The Saboteur. If you're a fan of trippy color transitions and snarky Irish men, be sure to check it out. But if you're not into that sort of thing, Ariel Feist has you covered with an article about Demon's Souls -- a game which has achieved more accolades than I care to count.
For those of you who've missed out on the Blur beta, Garret Staus provides his thoughts on this newcomer to the "battle-racing" genre. Apparently, you haven't missed too much.
Dana Laratta returns with another inspiring Haiku. This time, he directs his poetic prowess toward Double Fine's latest production, Brütal Legend. Remember: Never be ashamed of crying over poetry. Stay on your toes, because once you've wiped away your tears, Ryan Conway will inundate you with yet another Mega Man review.
Lastly, Chris Whitehead makes the case for Assassin's Creed 2, a game whose intrusive DRM and unnecessarily high price point have concerned many PC gamers.
Torchlight Review
By Jack Morphy
The appeal of Diablo 2's elegantly conceived dungeons and deluge of mana potions overwhelmed any pain which the constant mouse clicking may have procured. Jack Morphy explains how Torchlight capitalizes on that masochistic pleasure. Prepare to sacrifice entire days to this game.
Full disclaimer: Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures flew me out and put me up in a hotel to see an early screening of the upcoming Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time and to do this interview.
They said I had 15 minutes with Jerry Bruckheimer at 3:30 pm -- right before the premiere screening of this summer’s Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time at the 2010 ShoWest conference in Las Vegas, NV. But what Hollywood wants to do and what Hollywood can do are two different things. After several reschedulings and waiting for TV interviews, photo ops, and other interviews to wrap up, I finally got to meet the famed (and busy!) movie producer around 7:30 pm.
I had a bunch of questions for Bruckheimer about his new game studio, mixing the worlds of motion pictures and electronic entertainment, and, of course, his new film based on the long-running Prince of Persia series. Only one problem: One of the publicists told me my 15 minutes would have to be five. Hey, he has Extra, People magazine, and Robin Leach waiting to talk to him still -- I was amazed he was going to take time to chat with a gaming-enthusiast outlet at all.
That's a lot of pressure, conducting a full Q&A in under five minutes. But amazingly enough, that turned out to be more than enough time. I only needed one minute and 30 seconds to finish up with the most succinct guy I’ve ever interviewed….
Bitmob: So...what does Jerry Bruckheimer know about video games?
Read more >>
Friday, March 19, 2010
Warning, this Kane & Lynch 2: Dog Days trailer has a censored, naked (digital) lady in it...I don't know if you're into that kind of thing.
Video Blips:
• The way that sources of light show up on screen leads me to believe that this video was "shot" on a handheld camcorder. I'm impressed that whoever filmed this footage for Kane & Lynch was able to keep such a steady hand. [GameVideos]
Continue after the break for a look at Prince of Persia: The Forgotten Sands, Trials HD's amazing/brutal hits and misses, and a preview of Mirror's Edge on the iPhone.
Read more >>The PlayStation 3 may claim to cure cancer with Folding@Home, but can games really make the world a better place?
At this year's TED Conference (Technology, Entertainment, Design), Jane McGoniga gave a presentation on how "gaming can make a better world." While playing games and saving the world at the same time may seem to be a little far-fetched, companies such as Foursquare and Gowalla have seen success in turning the monotony of everyday life into metagames.
Would you prefer a more immersive alternate reality or a more immersive reality?
Read more >>
