Regular readers of this site know how I feel about Wii Fit, but you might not know that recently I purchased EA Sports Active just to have a little variety. Having played both, I have to admit I still prefer Wii Fit in general, but EA's title does have its pluses. And things might get even better now that EA has revealed that they're continuing the franchise with the fall release of EA Sports Active 2.0.
The sequel will feature a completely new wireless control system that uses new leg and arm straps with motion sensors, and a heart rate monitor (pictured above). This is a major step up from the previous title which had you using the Wiimote attached to the Nunchuck that you would periodically insert into a leg strap for lunges, squats, running and the like. Not having your arm connected to your leg by a too-short cord is a major plus. And it looks like they're trying to beat Nintendo to the punch with the whole heart monitor gadget thingy.
Additionally, EA Sports Active 2.0 will have an online component, something I've felt all these fitness videogames have been lacking. Through an online hub, you'll be able to track and share all of your workout data, joining a global community to keep yourself honest and motivated.
Even more interestingly, the title is not a Wii exclusive like its predecessor. No, the sequel is going to also appear on the PlayStation 3 as well as the iPhone and iPod Touch. Now, the press release had no details on the iPod/iPhone versions, but I'm going to assume that they're just going to be stripped-down portable versions with very limited functionality. The PS3 version, on the other hand, will have the added benefit of extra workouts and exercises that you can download to keep things fresh.
EA Sports Active had its limitations, but it looks like some of them are being addressed in the sequel, and I'm going to have to keep an eye on this one. I'm intrigued.
Square Enix sent out a press release today proudly declaring that sell-in shipments of the hotly-anticipated Final Fantasy XIII have now exceeded 5 million units. With over 3 million of those sales coming from North American and PAL territories. This brings the grand total of Final Fantasy series up to 96 million units. I know I account for about seven of those 96 million, so I guess I helped do my part.
I do wish they reported specific console numbers, though. I'm very curious to know how it sold on the Xbox 360 versus the PlayStation 3. I would suppose the numbers should be pretty even, if not a little higher on the 360 because of the higher install base. But I don't suppose they would've reached numbers this high if it was still a Sony exclusive...
Can't get enough zombie extermination with your Resident Evil 5? Then Capcom has a deal for you. As of today, you can download the "Untold Stories" bundle on Xbox 360 for 960 MS points and tomorrow on PSN for $12.50.
The bundle includes the Lost in Nightmares and Desperate escape DLC episodes as well as well as alternate consume packs 1 & 2. That comes to a savings about $2.00 over buying all the pieces individually. Not much of a discount in the end I suppose, but in these lean times, you could do worse than an extra $2 in your pocket.
For Crystal Dynamics, the makers of Lara Croft and The Guardian of Light, the question isn't how do you keep a one of the most recognizable faces in gaming fresh, but rather how do you best present it to the audience. Today I had the pleasure of sitting down with some of the team members behind the recently announced digital title and got to see for myself why this isn't your typical Tomb Raider game. Powered by the engine used in the current-gen trilogy of Tomb Raider games, The Guardian of Light aims to tell an individual experience that is custom tailored to digital platforms (XBLA, PSN, and PC). While this might impose some technical restrictions, the team sees this as a chance to do something different.
The most unique element shown off today was the title's emphasis on 2 player co-op. In the game Lara is paired with an ancient spirit named Totec during an expedition gone wrong in Central American temples. By working together and using each character's special abilities, players will be able to launch Lara up to elevated areas using Totec's shield as a moving platform, use Totec's spears to create makeshift ladders, and even make death defying leaps of faith across bottomless pits with Lara's grappling hook. With so many puzzles highlighting how each character's abilities complimented the other and how many of them can be solved in multiple ways, I felt that the puzzles gave off a strong Ico-like vibe, without the "useless princess" stereotype of course. In between puzzles, players will encounter all sorts of bad guys, spiders, and demons to shoot up. With the change in perspective, this title manages to shed the "jump and shoot" mentality of previous games for something more akin to classic top down arcade shooters.
For an Alpha build with only one year behind it, seeing this game in motion was a delight. Screen shots don't give this game the design and artistic credit it deserves. With a fully developed engine behind it, the game showcases smaller details that would prove too costly for other downloadable titles to include. There are plenty of destructible objects throughout each level, plants will move and shake as you brush past them, and some attractive real time lighting and shadows set the scene well.
The team at Crystal Dynamics didn't just set out to enter the downloadable games scene, but enter the highly competitive platforms while raising the bar with something the new. The demo that I saw today definitely set the right tone. While it didn't feel like a Tomb Raider game, it still retained Lara's character, which will hopefully allow players a new perspective on the iconic explorer. Lara Croft and The Guardian of Light releases at towards the end of this summer for $15.
It's hard to swing a mouse without hitting one debater or another who's firmly convinced, and sometimes convincing, that big-budget PC gaming is on its way out. Whether it's the pirating of popular games in droves, the draconian and broken DRM schemes that punish paying customers, or the increasing lack of larger titles actually seeing PC versions--the glory days are definitely gone. Luckily, numbers coming out of GDC today give some points PC gamers can rally behind.
The PC Gaming Alliance, an industry group, puts PC gaming software revenue at $13.1 billion worldwide for 2009, which is up from 2008's $11 billion. Less than 20% of these were sales at brick-and-mortar stores, which means digitial distribution is catching on and finally an accepted part of the method for most gamers. This is equally promising for publishers, since online storefronts like Steam also take care of most piracy problems by making it easy to ensure there's only one copy of an online game being played at a time. Steam also helped developer revenues considerably near the end of the year with their week-long holiday sale, which prompted gamers to buy and download titles on the cheap.
But despite all this delicious data and retentive analyses, most of the revenue increase for PCs came from the burgeoning Asian market, as most countries in North America and Europe had 10-15% revenue declines from 2008. The PC Gaming Alliance cited the recession for the dip in Western sales, as well as the lack of new "high-end subscription games" - Aion notwithstanding.
It's important to note these numbers do include free-to-play games with virtual items and microtransactions--the group says these made up a great deal of the growth in Asia, and should help bolster Western sales once consumers become more used to the idea of dropping money for premium items.
The overall message here seems to be that - while there's still no perfect solution for piracy, digital distribution is helping both consumers and developers immensely in the PC gaming world. Meanwhile, all those people you know on Farmville are about to become the new analog to the Wii market for consoles. Whether this means more quality titles for 2010 and beyond or just more Facebook game clones is surely known only by oracles and Michael Pachter.
PC Games Net $13.1 Billion in 2009 as Digital Distribution Grows and Retail Sales Shrink [Shacknews]
Those who bought the Special Edition of Aliens vs. Predator will already be familiar with this map pack, but for those who are looking to grab four new maps in a DLC bundle, Sega has announced that they will be on their way to all the respective platforms and networks. Insert here some mention of how it will swarm on to your choice of console...
Of what do these maps consist?
Two new Multiplayer maps for six different online modes (Deathmatch, Predator Hunt, Infestation, Species Deathmatch, Mixed Species Deathmatch and Domination):
• Docks: The caustic alkali waters of BG-386 put an end to Weyland-Yutani's planned shipping activities. But this dockyard soon became an historic battleground.
• Machine: As well as processing exotic ores, the BG-386 Refinery provided electrical power to the colonists at Freya's Prospect. The lights may still be on, but nobody's home. Yet.
Two new Survivor maps in which up to four Marines battle to stay alive against increasing swarms of Aliens:
• Outpost: The site of the original Weyland-Yutani colony on BG-386 was abandoned, and soon reclaimed by the planet's voracious jungle plant life. It is now the perfect hunting ground for all manner of wildlife.
• Hive: Deep in the heart of the Freya's Prospect Refinery lays the Xenomorph Hive. Beware all who enter here.
The pack will be available later this month, March 18, for $6.99 USD or 560 Microsoft Points. Anyone tried these maps and can vouch for them yet?
Well, one thing that makes all the panels and meetings of GDC a little more bearable are the many press parties that different companies throw each night to showcase some of their games and release new info to the press. The Capcom party last night was a fine example: swanky location near Union Square, Final Fight and Super Street Fighter IV stations a plenty, and a bevy of libations abounded to help soothe our already aching bodies; however, between rounds of beating Game-Boy with metal pipe "on accident" in Final Fight, there were some big announcements to be made at the event, all of them Street Fighter related.
One of the announcements was concerning Street Fighter IV launching for the iPhone with them pushing the game live onto the appStore while at the event. Game-Boy will be delighting you with some of his impressions from the button-less controls for the game later today. The bigger news was the fact that they were announcing the last character for Super Street FIghter IV, Hakan. As you can see in the trailer above, Hakan loves himself some oil wrestling, which leads to some very comedic moves of his own. In fact, the last minute of the trailer involves him shooting just about every character in the game from his chest and between his greased up thighs in a torpedo motion. The whole scene is semi-erotic, but mostly hilarious. Hakan is apparently fighting for his wife and daughters, but I'm sure he doesn't mind giving Zangief the full squeeze from what I can see. Look for Super Street FIghter IV releasing on both the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 on April 27th.
Not the handheld gaming system, silly, our writer! Please join me in giving a big ol' GayGamer birthday shout out to GameBoy. He has been with us for quite a while now after his humble beginnings as a forum member who always had something smart to say. From there we steamrollered him into convinced him he should put his unpaid writing skills to good use and put them on the site where he could continue the tradition of not getting paid for it.
We love you GameBoy, especially your thoughtful insight and endless energy for covering events when the rest of us just want to go to bed. We love you! Happy Birthday!
Before we get to this week's reviews, I first want to introduce you to an upcoming indie JRPG that looks simply fantastic. The game is Breath of Death VII, a parody and homage to classic RPGs, with the above trailer for the game magically appearing in my inbox over the weekend. If you like classic RPGs like Dragon Warrior/Quest then this is one Xbox 360 game that should definitely be on your radar. Can you count the classic game references?
As for games released in the here and now, there were quite a few great ones recently. Two new tower defense games that actually manage to do something fresh with the genre, Two great puzzle games that can warm your heart or disgust you, a puzzle platformer in the style of N+, and a hack 'n slash RPG of sorts. Not a bad mix. So click on to see what hidden gems the Xbox Live indie games have to offer.
Because this is the first time that Final Fantasy is getting a release across multiple platforms, there's been some debate as to whether to buy Final Fantasy XIII on the Xbox 360 or the PlayStation 3. We've already mentioned how the 360 version has compressed sound and graphics and comes on multiple discs, which is mostly the reason why I opted for the PS3 one. And obviously, if you only have one of the two consoles, your choice is pretty much made for you. But if you are still on the fence, you might be interested to know that the PS3 version of FF XIII has an exclusive bonus offer for Final Fantasy XIV (which is not coming to the 360, btw). Registering your game with the enclosed code at the Squeenix website will net you a secret in-game item for FF XIV, and enter you for the opportunity to become a beta tester for FF XIV. It's a nice perk for the Sony loyalists, but honestly, not a big deal for me since I'm not an MMO fan. Howzabout you?
Final Fantasy XIII on Store Shelves Today, Includes PS3 Exclusive Bonus Offer for Final Fantasy XIV [PlayStation Blog]
While Rock Band and Guitar Hero may be content with fighting with each other over similarly flavored music rhythm experiences, new comer Power Gig: Rise of the Six String is set to call out two of the most recognizable names in the genre like it's nobody's business. Coming our way from Seven45 Studios this fall as a "full band experience," developers were on hand to give me a brief demonstration of a pre-alpha build and showcase what sets it apart from the rest of the pack.
The most notable difference between this title and Rock Band/Guitar Hero wannabes is that Power Gig lets players pick up a real guitar with real strings (see image). While this may be a slightly intimidating sight for those of us more accustomed to "toy" guitars with Fischer-Price colored buttons, the realities of how this effects gameplay becomes immediately obvious. Hammer-ons are no longer a button pressed combo, but are performed for real. Same with sustain notes, chord progressions, and other musical technique that makes music actually music. In fact, the controller is so real that it can be hooked up to an amp and played as an instrument.
The guys at Seven45 were quick to note that a real guitar would help ease new players into the experience with a flexible difficulty curve, but also give hardcore music rhythm gamers an experience they cannot find anywhere else. In addition to a beat matching mode similar to Rock Band/Guitar Hero, Power Gig offers a Chording Mode that gives players string specific note patterns, essentially having players learn the real chords to the "original masters only" soundtrack. Don't worry if this sounds like a little too much to handle at first. Chording Mode is something that players can be eased into as they wish, and not required to play through every song.
As with all intriguing demos, some of the most enticing details of Power Gig have yet to be revealed. The developer slyly referred to an excited new approach to Story Mode that goes beyond the "garage to rockstar" formula, a mysterious drum set, and promises of new type of vocal performance. The juiciest bit that I was able to learn from the demo was that because the game features a real guitar, there have been a few musical artists who have been previously reluctant to having their work featured in music games rethinking their stance. While the developers had a bit of a laugh at my request for Prince's When Doves Cry or anything by Peaches, they were serious about this title offering players music they won't be able to find anywhere else.
While we'll have to wait until E3 for more details, the demo left a significant impact on me. Power Gig doesn't want players to like they're playing music, but want to enable players to perform it for real. It felt like the next, most natural step in the genre and could become total game changer.
Today, Microsoft shipped out the new Xbox 360 Elite Spring Bundle, which for the regular price of $299, now comes with Halo 3: ODST and Forza Motorsport 3 packed in! And remember, Halo 3: ODST comes with access to the upcoming Halo: Reach multiplayer beta on Xbox LIVE which begins May 3.
I do appreciate when a console comes with a free game, but neither of these would make me want to buy a 360 just for them. Of course, it is the regular price, so it would be foolish not to at least get the free games! (Though to be honest, the biggest draw of the 360 Elite is the 120GB hard drive — Lips and Rock Band DLC is killing me!)
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