The Supaboy. Handheld Super NES goes on sale
Blow the dust out of the carts you stashed in the loft, as accessories manufacturer Hyperkin has released and commenced shipping the Supaboy: a handheld SNES, making for possibly the best portable console money could buy.
This week in new releases
We all like the word 'new,' adds a promotional sheen to stand your product out from the rest. But where can you identify all the new media to cross your path? Sure there's 'new game releases' and 'new film releases' pieces; but where's the convergence? That's where we come into it, introducing This week in new releases.
Playstation movie store viral ads take us into virtual reality
So Sony's recent viral campaign to promote the newly introduced video store on PS3 presents us with a virtual reality experience that we whole heartedly crave for.
Created by the recruited agencies Studio Output and the Marshmallow Laser Factory, Sony appointed them to build a series of viral films to promote the Playstation Video Store (via the tagline 'Great films fill rooms'), which resulted in the VR shots we got here, using 3D mapping, a steadicam and head-tracking via attached Playstation Move controllers.
Move Over OnLive & Gaikai. A New Cloud-Based Gaming Provider Emerges.
Betamax versus VHS, VideoCD (VCD) versus DVD, HD-DVD versus Blu-Ray – the noted format wars of old have all arisen through a combination of technological and sociological factors. The ‘Videotape Wars’ of the 70’s was driven by companies’ hopes to find a standardised media format for recording TV. The dawn of the digital video era was contested between the cost-effective VCD and the superior quality of the DVD, while the transition to high-definition played host to the one of the fiercest format wars in HD-DVD and Blu-Ray’s tussle for supremacy. Now, we think we’ve found the cloud-gaming equivalent.
Introducing The World's First Networked Urinal Gaming System
We’ve all heard of toilet games. These are the games that prove indispensable when ‘in the can’, satiating our gaming appetite amidst the tedium of going to the loo - short and sweet, instantly playable interactive experiences that use the most basic control methods (preferably one-handed) but have an addictive/rewarding presence about them.
Rumour: Kinect 2 Can Lip-Read And Interpret Facial Emotions
The successor to Microsoft’s hugely successful motion-sensing device, Kinect, will be so accurate that it will be able to lip-read and be able to detect human emotion from subtle facial expressions, Eurogamer reports.
Tesco Comes Up Trumps With Modern Warfare 3’s Best Ad Yet
As keen purveyors of gaming advertisements, recent months have seen us indebted to some of the most inventive, engaging and seductive ads in quite some time.
Fuelled by marketing budgets in the millions, we’ve bear witness to an awe-inspiring Forza Motorsport 4 ad that has rekindled our passion for motorsport, seen a downright gritty interpretation of Tamriel in Skyrim’s live-action trailer and laughed at the superbly-played ‘Vet versus Noob’ advert for Modern Warfare 3 featuring a stoic, down-to-business Sam Worthington and a bumbling Jonah Hill.
Two versions of the next generation Xbox planned
A Digital Foundry report on GamesIndustry.biz has claimed that Microsoft are expected to take a two model approach with its next generation console.
The Sun now claims denied hacking is an "Xbox fraud cover-up"
The Sun have fought back against Microsoft's dismissal of its front page "exclusive," claiming Xbox Live was hacked by throwing out accusations of a cyber fraud "cover-up."
Earlier this week (Tuesday to be exact), The Sun ran a front page story in its newspaper about a "Crime Exclusive," reporting that thousands of Xbox Live accounts had been hacked, stealing millions of pounds in the process. Microsoft released a statement, denying claims of hacking, confirming that the infrastructure itself is safe, and stating that this was a case of a phishing scam (online attempts to con people into giving you their personal details).
The Humble Introversion Bundle out today
The latest Humble Bundle, entitled ‘The Humble Introversion Bundle’, has been released today and comes packed with Uplink, Darwinia, DEFCON and Multiwinia, available (as always) for a sum of your choice.
Xbox Live Phishing Scam Front Page News
The front page of The Sun was today adorned not with reports that a number of Xbox Live members have been victims of an email-based phishing scam. The scam sought to gather account details from users of the service when clicking through to retrieve free Xbox Live Microsoft Points.
EA Face Law Suit For Battlefield 1943 Omission. Should Warner Bros. Face Similar Treatment?
Today, a class action lawsuit was filed against EA by US law firm Edelson McGuire over its promise to consumers that Battlefield 1943 – EA DICE’s online multiplayer shooter – could be redeemed when purchasing Battlefield 3 on the PS3.
Modern Warfare 3 graphics comparison. Xbox 360 vs Wii
...wait what?
Turns out that other than the premiere options of purchasing Modern Warfare 3 on the 360, PS3 or PC, the game was also released on Wii, to the tune of pretty much no Activision marketing whatsoever. It's fair to say that the games look a little...different to say the least. Check out a video putting the 360 and Wii version side by side.
GameMaker Challenge at University of Lincoln
First year Games computing students at the University of Lincoln are taking part in a set of GameMaker Challenges: pitching them to make original games based around a key concept. Towards the end of last month, the theme given for the first challenge was 'one button games,' and a handful were as the cream out of a very impressive crop of titles created.
Xbox 360 Successor Due 2012, Or Is It?
While PS4 rumours remain hazy – Sony is likely to see Microsoft’s hand first - the very latest set of rumours seems to be pointing to CES 2012 as the stage at which Microsoft is likely to reveal the next Xbox.
PETA tells us to "relax," the Mario thing was a joke
Speaking to Kotaku today, PETA plays down yesterday's protests about Mario's use of the Tanooki suit: "Mario fans: Relax! PETA's game was meant to be tongue-in-cheek, a fun way to call attention to a serious issue, that raccoon dogs are skinned alive for their fur," said a rep.
Surprise, surprise.
Grand Theft Minecart: GTA V Trailer Comes To Minecraft
Minecraft has and always will be more about creativity than surviving crazed Creepers, deranged Skeletons and deadly cave-dwelling Spiders. With a user-base well in excess of four million, we’ve seen players invest countless hours in re-creating classic 8-bit games using stop-motion, building gargantuan models – the USS Enterprise is a particular favourite – and devising chip-tune remakes of popular music.
PETA protests use of Mario's Tanooki suit
Some call it one of the best power-ups in Mario, allowing you to fly in the air for extended periods of time and do tail spins. Others (namely PETA) call it a metaphorical 'green light' to wear animal fur, in a statment made recently by the organisation for ethical animal treatment.