Joystiq

Zombified Londoners take to the streets for Resident Evil

by Ben Gilbert { 12 minutes ago }

Resident Evil: Darkside Chronicles may not come out until November 27 in the UK, but a gaggle of Resident Evil fans recently took to the streets to celebrate the impending release regardless. Following the end of the London Games Festival, Capcom organized around 50 undead at the Tate Modern for a good ol' group shamble.

As you can see in the image above captured by The Tanooki, the event erred on the side of Shaun of the Dead rather than 28 Days Later. Though now that we think about it, we're not sure if it's more or less terrifying if zombies are smiling. We're thinking more.

[Image credit]

Zoe Mode creating not-for-profit XBLA puzzler for children's charity

by Randy Nelson { 1 hour ago }

click to enlarge

OneBigGame, a non-profit games publisher founded in 2007, announced today that its first title will come from Zoë Mode, creator of games such as Crush (PSP), You're In the Movies (360) and co-developer of the SingStar franchise (PS3) with SCEE. Called Chime, the music-based puzzle game will launch this winter on Xbox Live Arcade.

The first screens, while sort of soothing in their minimalism, don't exactly explain anything about how the game's played. Thankfully, Zoë Mode goes into detail about the gameplay on its newly launched Chime site.

The developer is the first of what OneBigGame says are many others currently creating 15 titles, with at least 80 percent of all revenue made from them going to two charities: Save the Children and Starlight Children's Foundation. Zoë Mode developed Chime pro bono and has committed to giving all the royalties it receives from the XBLA game -- which it says will be around 60 percent of its purchase price -- to OneBigGame.

Other developers signed on to produce games include Shiny founder David Perry, PaRappa the Rapper creator Masaya Matsuura and prolific adventure game designer Charles Cecil (Beneath a Steel Sky, Broken Sword).

Gallery: Chime

Independent Games Festival 2010 competitors announced

by Randy Nelson { 1 hour ago }

Each year, indie developers from around the world submit their creations to the Independent Games Festival Main Challenge in hopes of becoming the next cola-to-Cristal success. This year, the IGF has received a whopping 306 entries (last year: 224) competing for the top prize of $20,000. Last year's winner, Erik Svedang's Blueberry Garden, was picked up for distribution on Steam.

Screens, videos and details on all 306 entries can be perused on the IGF website, while many of the games are either downloadable or directly playable from their developer's homepages. Finalists will be picked in January, with the winners in various categories -- including art, design, audio, and innovation -- set to be announced during GDC 2010, which runs March 9–13, 2010.

[Via Eurogamer]

Set course for new Star Trek Online gameplay footage

by Richard Mitchell { 2 hours ago }

We've got a double dose of Star Trek Online video goodness for you today, as Cryptic has seen fit to not only release part two of the "Future Past" series, but also a new gameplay trailer. The trailer -- handily embedded above -- is comprised mostly of pitched space battles and ground encounters. It's also packed with more phaser and disruptor beams than you can shake a tribble at. One more thing: Borg cube.

After the break, see part two of "The Future Past," which details the outcome of the Klingon / Nausicaan / Gorn war. In short, the Klingons are pretty much bad guys again by 2409, the year in which Star Trek Online begins.

Continued →

L4D mod 'Dead Before Dawn' recreates Dawn of the Dead remake

by David Hinkle { 2 hours ago }

The Left 4 Dead modding community is really kicking decomposing zombie butt lately. We've seen Raccoon City, some of our favorite Super Mario 64 spots, and even Shaun of the Dead's Winchester pub all realized in the game's zombie apocalypse framework. Now we bring you another mod that pays homage to a zombie film: 'Dead Before Dawn,' a mod based on the 2004 remake of George A. Romero's classic, Dawn of the Dead.

The new mod opened to public beta this Halloween and features a variety of locales stripped from the movie, along with its own snazzy campaign poster. The folks behind the mod even went so far as to create their own title sequence (though their version features far less Johnny Cash than the movie's). You can shamble on past the break to check it out.

[Thanks, Gutfree!]

Gallery: Dead Before Dawn

Continued →

Spector talks initial Disney pitches, hints at spiritual successor to Deus Ex

by Xav de Matos { 3 hours ago }

During a London event to showcase Disney Epic Mickey, developer Warren Spector revealed that his initial pitches to Disney were for two very different titles; hinting one -- in many ways -- may have been a spiritual successor to Deus Ex. The other title, according to The Cut Scene blog, was a "big fantasy" story the developer and his wife unsuccessfully pitched to DC Comics.

Prior to the announcement of a new game in the series, Spector said he had previously attempted to acquire the Deus Ex license from publisher Eidos, but was unsuccessful. Since then, Spector's Junction Point Studios has been acquired by Disney Interactive, revealed his latest title and hinted at more from the Epic universe.

While Spector says there are still stories in the Deus Ex universe he would like to tell, the upcoming prequel, Deus Ex 3 -- helmed by developer Eidos Montreal -- will be the first title in the franchise without the original creator's watchful eye. "That story is not done for me," Spector said. "Deus Ex was very much a game of the millennium." Sadly -- with another team on the project -- it appears Spector's dream of continuing the Deus Ex conspiracy personally have indeed come to an end, for the time being.

[Via GamePro]

Gameloft sales up a dramatic 18% this year

by Alexander Sliwinski { 3 hours ago }

Gameloft's mobile focus is keeping the company flush with cash in these tough times. The prolific publisher announced today that quarterly sales are up 15 percent over the third quarter last year and up 18 percent in year-to-date figures compared to the same period last year. Gameloft achieved $132 million in sales, with mobile devices accounting for 95 percent of revenue; the measly remainder was earned through consoles.

Gameloft tips its hat to the Apple App Store for the "huge success," as well as the company's Java and Brew games, with the expectation that sales and profitability will be up, up and away in 2009. Looking to the future, the company believes it will benefit from Apple, Nokia and Google's mobile devices. Gameloft comes from the proud tradition of releasing sales and profit reports separately, but the expectation is that profits will be positive, as well.

Deal watch: Game discounts at Amazon

by Richard Mitchell { 4 hours ago }

Amazon is tempting us to dip into our holiday savings by discounting many new games. Numerous titles, like those seen in the image above, have been marked down by $10, while others -- including many Wii games -- have smaller discounts applied to them.

Listed after the break, you'll find the most significant deals, but you should also try perusing Amazon to find others. If you do, be sure to post them in the comments!

[Via GamerDeals.net]

Continued →

Why not to expect Capcom vs. SNK 2 on PSN, XBLA

by Richard Mitchell { 4 hours ago }

In the words of Lord Cutler Beckett, it's just good business. Or, as Capcom's Seth Killian explained on the Capcom-Unity forums, releasing a downloadable version of Capcom vs. SNK 2 could be bad business. In a lengthy response to a call for the game on PSN, Killian gave several reasons for not re-releasing Capcom vs. SNK 2; all of them centered squarely on business. Among other things, the audience for the game is less sizable than that of Street Fighter and Marvel vs. Capcom 2, meaning a Capcom vs. SNK 2 port probably wouldn't be worth the money and resources Capcom would need to spend.

Killian noted that even if sales covered cost, placing developers on the project would mean removing them from others, like Super Street Fighter IV. Killian put it simply, saying, "When fan service becomes a black hole for time and money, that party gets ended pretty quick."

Another explanation, according to Killian, is that Capcom doesn't want to flood the market with fighting games. He suggested that most gamers only buy one or two fighting games a year -- thanks mainly to the amount of time it takes to master them. In other words, releasing too many games could dilute the sales of all of them. Besides, we all know that what Capcom should be working on is a new Darkstalkers.

[Via EventHubs]

Borderlands Glitch Watch 2009: Radeon-powered PC crashes

by David Hinkle { 5 hours ago }

Oh, poor little Borderlands -- Gearbox just can't catch a break! On top of the ongoing list of things that need to get fixed and the still unresolved character-nuking glitch on consoles, now PC players are starting to experience some serious issues. Specifically, the game is crashing for those who have certain ATI Radeon graphics cards.

Reader Bryan tipped us off to three different forums on Steam, AMD and Gearbox, where numerous users haven't even been able to get past the game's first mission. We've reached out to Gearbox for comment and will be sure to update the post when we hear back.

[Thanks, Bryan!]

Source - Steam forums
Source - AMD forums
Source - Gearbox forums

Initial Modern Warfare 2 budget was 'ridiculous'

by David Hinkle { 5 hours ago }

During an interview with Develop, Infinity Ward's front-line man, Robert "fourzerotwo" Bowling, recalled the early planning stages of Modern Warfare 2. Unsurprisingly, publisher and owner Activision was eager to pour money into the development of the COD4 sequel, following the basic business formula: more money = better product = more sales = more money. Infinity Ward followed another school of thought: "If it ain't broke, don't fix it."

"Much like we don't let ourselves get distracted by hype, if you have excess you feel like you should use excess," Bowling said. Even though Activision "estimated out a ridiculous budget" early on, Infinity Ward "didn't let the budget affect [its] mentality." Since Infinity Ward apparently didn't take the money (or, at least, all of it), we do have a pretty good idea of what Activision spent it on: night-vision goggles for everyone!

Margaritaville trademarked for video game use

by Griffin McElroy { 6 hours ago }

From the second our feet left the comfort of our bed in favor of the harsh, cold ground this morning, we knew it was going to be a terrible day. What we expected were little accumulative annoyances -- stubbed toes, traffic, cold coffee and the like. What we got was a report from supererogatory pointing us to a terror-inducing trademark filing, which permits "Margaritaville" to be used for video game software purposes.

As we see it, there's an infinite number of ways that Jimmy Buffett's tropically-tinted tune could manifest itself in video game form:

A near-endless RPG: The Quest for the Lost Shaker of Salt
A sailing simulator: Son of a Son of a Sailing Simulator
A smooth rhythm game, which is sadly what it probably will be
A smooth rhythm game/sailing simulator, which ... which might be kind of magical

GameStop: PS3 sales remain 'very strong' post price cut

by Alexander Sliwinski { 6 hours ago }

For a moment, let's ignore the billions Sony has lost on the PS3 so far and focus on optimism for the future. GameStop executive vice president Tony Bartel notes that momentum for the console has maintained a solid sales pace following Sony's most recent price drop and hardware remodeling.

Bartel tells IndustryGamers that there was a natural surge after the initial announcement of the price drop months ago and that the retailer has seen "very strong" PS3 sales through October. He didn't reveal specific data, though, and we'll have to wait and see if his claims are reflected in the overall October hardware sales figures released by the NPD later this month.

THQ stock loses 12 percent after WWE extension

by Justin McElroy { 7 hours ago }

It seems investors are unhappy that one of THQ's most important relationships continues to be in flux. After the news that the company was extending its renewal notice with the WWE on October 28, its stock has lost 12 percent of its value, according to GameIndustry.biz. When compared to its worth on September 23, the company is down 26 percent.

THQ's convoluted relationship with JAKKS Pacific and the WWE is fully explained here, but it suffices to say that things are pretty messy right now, and it seems the stockholders are getting impatient for tidiness.

Miyamoto: Next Zelda will use MotionPlus for more realistic swordplay

by Randy Nelson { 7 hours ago }

Nintendo's resident legend, Shigeru Miyamoto, has revealed that the next installment in the Legend of Zelda series on Wii will make use of Wii MotionPlus for more realistic sword combat and targeting. "In this (installment of the series), we're using MotionPlus to make you feel much more like you're actually fighting while holding a sword in your hand," Miyamoto disclosed during an October 30 Q&A session, as translated by GameLife.

"In the previous game, you aimed at things by pointing at the screen, but this time we'll use MotionPlus to create a much more convenient targeting system and a more pleasurable playing experience," Miyamoto added.

Despite these revelations, Nintendo has yet to officially state whether Wii MotionPlus will be an option or a requirement for playing the game. When this next Zelda was announced during E3 2009, Miyamoto could only say that MotionPlus-exclusivity was "possible." These gameplay elements -- especially the swordplay -- only make it seem more likely.

[Via GameLife]