The Super Soldiers

According to IGN, the PSP will soon be seeing UMD’s as optional with full games being distributed via download. Sony announced recently that two of it’s forthcoming Japanese titles will be available both through retailers and via digital download. Not unlike what Sony did with Gran Turismo: Prologue, Yuusha no Kuse ni Namaikida or2 and Bleach Soul Carnival will be released both online and in retailers, though they will be priced online at a discounted rate of 2,800¥ as opposed to their retail counterparts which will be priced at 3,980¥. Yuusha is slated for a retail date of October 16, with Bleach shipping on October 23. Sony has not as of yet provided details on Memory Stick storage requirements or how it will be handling instruction manuals.

Although we obtained both the Xbox 360 and PC versions of this game, we have decided to review primarily based on the PC version.

Playing Mass Effect was like nothing I have ever experienced before. I can honestly find nothing to equate it too. Mass Effect is a gem of beauty to be marveled and experienced by every gamer at least once. It’s presentation is spectacular. After playing on both the PC and the Xbox 360, I can say that Bioware truly deserves an ovation for what is truthfully one of the greatest projects ever conceived. Mass Effect leads players on one of the greatest and most in depth explorations of the galaxy ever invisioned leading one to new places where every decision made affects your character and your relations with others. The perfect Space opera.

After already playing Mas Effect on the Xbox 360, I was left with a feeling of accomplishment. The Xbox 360 version was nothing short of beautiful and deserves a merit in it’s own right. The PC version, however, solves some issues which were present in the Xbox 360 version and adds new features. The experience, however, is still, for the most part, identical. The PC version offers faster load times, higher resolutions, and of course, nothing wins in a virtual firefight (short of a light gun) like a keyboard and mouse. The Bring Down The Sky DLC add-on is free for PC users so this is a nice bonus as well.
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Rockstar has given out details on some of the additions and improvements for the PC version of Grand Theft Auto IV. According to Eurogamer (via Joystiq), the version it was shown at Leipzig featured more realistic lighting, animation, and “a much higher level of detail on both characters and environments.”

The PC version will expand on the 16-player online which we saw on the consoles. The extent of what’s planned, however, is for the most part, aside from there being more filters for finding specific matches, unknown.

What is known, and what seems to be a step up from what was in the PC version of Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas is a replay editor. According to Rockstar, the PC version of GTA IV, not unlike San Andreas, is always recording the previous 30 seconds worth of gameplay, so you can pause at any time and review the destruction you’ve left in your wake. New to GTAIV though and unseen in San Andreas is the possiblity to tweak the footage by filter effects, cuts, and different camera angles. The clip can also be combined with other 30 second shorts into one montage to adorn upon the Rockstar Social Club.

We’ll bring you more information as the release date of November 18th approaches.

GameCulture reports on a controversy sparked by the creation of a french artist at the Leipzig game conference this week.

In celebration of the 30th anniversary of Space Invaders, the Games Convention included “Invaders!”—a work by French-American artist Douglas Edric Stanley. The original installation consisted of a Space Invaders machine set amidst a large interactive space. In that installation, the game screen was overlaid on an 8-bit backdrop depicting the two towers of the World Trade Center, which fell in September 2001 after being struck by a pair of hijacked jetliners…

The juxtaposition of the terrorist attack and a classic arcade game, coupled with the full-body gestural control scheme, seems as though it could have been an involving, if challenging, experience. Like Danny Ledonne’s Super Columbine Massacre RPG!, “Invaders!” pushes back at our tendency to lock horrific events into an untouchable cultural trophy cabinet, forever off limits and sacrosanct…

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Well call this one… awkward. Kimberly Jernigan, an employee of the USPS and a player of the popular Second Life MMORPG was arrested for attempting to kidnap her virtual ex. According to the police, Jernigan (human) tried to kidnap her virtual ex (No in real life connection) a 52-year-old guy who played a lion in Second Life. On top of the lack of real life connection, she tried to kidnap him not once, not twice, but three times.

I don’t have a better way to put what happened so we’ll refer to Kotaku’s hilarious methodology.

“…On her third try, driving up from North Carolina, for some reason she brought her dog, Gogi, who looks like a corgi mix. It’s not a working breed, but even if it was I doubt “kidnapping humans” would be in the job description. Somehow Jernigan managed to cut a screen and get inside Mr. Lion’s home, waiting for him to get home from work. But Gogi wouldn’t stop barking, and so Jernigan bound the dog and locked him in the bathroom.

When Simba got home, she had a pair of handcuffs and a laser pointed at him. I guess the laser made things a little too kinky, because he bolted. She fled, leaving Gogi behind. Jernigan was captured at a turnpike rest stop in Maryland (The Chesapeake House).”

[ Delaware Online via Kotaku ]

With emphasis added on not, it has come to our attention that Sony Computer Entertainment has stated that they will not be region locking LittleBigPlanet. All shared levels will be available in the game worldwide, regardless of which region your console is from. From Sony:

Hi all, as many of you may have heard already in an interview at Leipzig the senior producer for LittleBigPlanet announced that the game is region locked. This is in fact not the case, and all shared levels in the game will be available worldwide. The confusion arose out of regional differences in how moderation will work as there are different legal rules each region have to play by, and at one point this looked like it may require the game to be independent in each region - however this has been worked around and there will only be one region for the game…. a LittleBigRegion.

Apologies for any confusion over this issue, however I’m pretty sure you’re happy with the result.

Unfortunately, as some know, the Xbox 360 release of Alone In The Dark came packaged with not the best control’s and a shoddy camera system. According to Kotaku, developer Eden Studios has heard the complaints and is addressing the issue. The upcoming PlayStation 3 release will feature the fixes straight out the box while the 360 version will be graced with an update which, according to Eurogamer, “will implement most of the changes that have been made to the upcoming PS3 version.” Eden Studios opened its Alone In The Dark presentation at Leipzig by detailing the shortcomings of the 360 version. “We have absorbed and taken every piece of criticism about the game that was constructive and would help,” a representative stated.

No word as of yet on when the patch will be released.

[ Eurogamer via Kotaku ]

Microsoft’s Xbox 360 has, for the first time ever in Japan, sold out. Due an interest in the Tales of Vesperia video game, Microsoft managed to move 25,000 units. In response to this, a Microsoft Japan representative had the following to say:

“Currently, the Xbox 360 is sold out, and retailers are unable to restock their supply. This is a result of our own sales targets being exceeded by the actual customer sales. We deeply apologize for this inconvenience to our customers, retailers and business partners.”

Peter Moore, former president and COO of Sega of America, Corporate Vice-President of Microsoft’s Interactive Entertainment Business division, and current head of the Sports division at Electronic Arts, said recently in a statement that he does not agree with filing suit against File Sharers.

“I’m not a huge fan of trying to punish your consumer. Albeit these people have clearly stolen intellectual property, I think there are better ways of resolving this within our power as developers and publishers.Yes, we’ve got to find solutions. We absolutely should crack down on piracy. People put a lot of blood, sweat and tears into their content and deserve to get paid for it. It’s absolutely wrong, it is stealing.

“But at the same time I think there are better solutions than chasing people for money. I’m not sure what they are, other than to build game experiences that make it more difficult for there to be any value in pirating games. If we learned anything from the music business, they just don’t win any friends by suing their consumers. Speaking personally, I think our industry does not want to fall foul of what happened with music.

For those hoping to get another taste of the Necromancer, Paladin, Sorceress, Druid, Assassin or the Amazon, you may not get to realize that. According Diablo III lead designer Jay Wilson, those classes may not return, and we can tell you right now that the Necromancer is out.

According to Jay Wilson, The Barbarian in Diablo II could’ve been better and that there was “room for improvement”. As for the Necromancer, Wilson says that it was just simply a victim of its own success. The Necromancer turned out to be too perfectly a put together character and needs no further development. While I personally was never too big a fan of the Necromancer, those whom are fans of it probably will not appreciate this bit of news.

We expect we’ll have to wait till BlizzCon to garner further news in regards to Diablo III.

[ Kotaku ]