Heavy Rain will finally surface next month, but some folks are already upset over the art that's been picked to represent Heavy Rain on store shelves -- well, the one for North America. The consensus seems to be a preference for the more minimalistic UK box art for Heavy Rain.
Luckily, Sony Computer Entertainment America is striking a compromise. According to a comment from Sony on the PlayStation Blog, the UK cover will be made available as a downloadable PDF.
You'll have to print out the cover yourself, but at least it's an option. Hurray, compromise!
The classic walkman is back! This time, Sony brings you the X Series Walkman Mp3 player. Kevin Pereira and Olivia Munn review the digital media player with its Wi-Fi connectivity, 3" OLED touch screen and 33 hour battery life. Find out if this "walkman" can satiate your music needs for only $260.
Check out the full Attack of the Show review after the cut.
What You Need to Know
It’s not as sleek as the Zune HD or iPod Touch, but it's still pretty small.
The player is 0.4” thick.
It weighs about 3.5 oz., which is less than an iPod.
It’s just under 4” tall, making it fit easily in your pocket.
It has the smallest screen, 3”, among the three.
The OLED display is extremely bright and clear.
The touch screen itself works really well: very accurate tapping and scrolling, but no multi-touch.
The interface is kind of boring, because you're staring at gray icons a lot of the time.
Sometimes you'll find yourself deep in menus, like a lot of Sony products.
It has no accelerometer, so you can't resize pictures or video.
The device’s version of cover flow is interesting, but overall, this interface is not as fun as the Zune's or as simple as the iPod's.
It has Wi-Fi and its own browser, but it's very minimal; entering a web address is a pain since it's only alphanumeric.
The Slacker radio app allows you to refresh your stations through Wi-Fi and then take all of that free music with you even if you're not near a hotspot.
You can subscribe to podcasts, so you can refresh those without connecting to a computer.
It includes a YouTube player and an FM radio.
You can look at your pictures and video.
The player has noise canceling technology built-in, as well as their own noise-canceling headphones; this means audio quality is terrific, especially with all the equalizer settings.
The Walkman can't match the features of either the Zune or the iPod, but it does sound better than both of them.
A ton of details of Halo: Reach are revealed in February's Game Informer magazine. The 10-page feature drops some amazing details about the upcoming game. Here are some of the stand-out points:
The protagonists are The Noble team, a six-person squad with different looks and weapons specialties.
The color palette will be darker than previous Halo games, reflecting a darker emotional tone.
The Covenant will be scarier in this Halo, and will feature deep, creepy voices.
The game will support battles with up to 40 AI opponents, twice as many as Halo 3.
Health will not replenish, like in the original Halo.
New weapons include the marksman rifles (mix of a sniper and battle rifle) and the "needle rifle" that will blow people up if they're hit by a number of shots in a row.
Armor will provide special abilities. Stealth and extra-speed are mentioned.
Multiplayer will offer all the options of Halo 3, and add some as-yet undisclosed new wrinkles in the game.
There are a bunch more details in Game Informer, of course; so check your newsstand for it. Halo: Reach is a 360 exclusive that comes out this fall.
Denzel Washington's The Book of Eli comes out this Friday, and we're all obviously excited by the prospect of Denzel kicking ass and/or taking names in a post apocalyptic wasteland. But take a look at the Book of Eli trailer...
...and tell me: Does that remind you of anything? It reminded me of Fallout 3. Check out the similarities:
Both are set in a post-apocalyptic wasteland.
Both feature a mysterious wasteland wander who holds the key to saving his civilization.
Both feature a megalomaniac leader attempting to seize power by offering to rebuild the world.
Art direction is very similar. Same muted colors, dusty, filtered look.
Both feature destroyed highway overpasses prominently.
Both feature the main character taking on a henchman.
Speaking of V.A.T.S, Eli must be using it to fight. He takes on 5 post-Apocalypse baddies without getting scratched.
The grenades, arrows, knives, shotguns, and handguns in The Book of Eli indicate a variety of weapons, just like in Fallout 3.
There are obvious differences too, of course. There's no Bible (that I've found) in Fallout 3, and the whole 1950s kitch thing is missing from Eli, but the similarities are pretty unmistakable.
I'm not saying Eli is stealing from Fallout, though; only that both works seem informed by the same artistic and cultural influences. Book of Eli was written by Gary Whitta, a former editor of PC Gamer magazine, and was a behind writer on Duke Nukem Forever, Prey, and Gears of War, so the gaming influence is bound to be an integral part of The Book of Eli.
What do you think: Does Eli look like a movie version of Bethesda's Fallout 3, or am I barking up the crazy tree here? Notice any other similarities that I missed?
When you think of frenetic zombie shooters, the first game that probably comes to mind is Valve’s Left 4 Dead series. However, had Irrational Games (formerly Boston 2K) had their way back around 2005, the zombie first-person shooter landscape would look mighty different, thanks to an unpublished title called Division 9.
Thanks to Game Informer, we not only have a bunch of details about what this Left 4 Dead a few years before Left 4 Dead could have been, but we also have an impressive video demo of the game in action. Apparently, Division 9 started out as a joke version of the developer’s (when they were Irrational Games the first time) then forthcoming SWAT 5, only with zombies thrown in for good measure.
It’s a fascinating story, and based on the gameplay footage, it looks like the game would have been crazy. Poor us.
Just a little heads up for all you Dragon Age: Origins lovers out there: "Return to Ostagar,” the latest downloadable content for BioWare’s fantasy epic, is now available on Xbox Live.
400 Microsoft Points is all it takes to embark on the all new adventure (PC owners can also pick up the DLC today for $5, while PlayStation 3 players can expect it in the coming weeks.). In case you were wondering what to expect from the new chapter, here’s a little official description action for you:
"The battle of Ostagar laid waste to your order and claimed the lives of many great men and women, including the brash King Cailan and your mentor, Duncan. Now, there are rumors that a fellow survivor of the battle has escaped from captivity and is seeking the Grey Wardens' help. The time has come to make your return to Ostagar and exact revenge upon the darkspawn.”
Laughter is one of life's greatest joys and we've made it our mission to bring more of that joy into your life by way of creepy, small town politicians, death metal roosters and bad vice-presidential role models. That's what ATN was created for.
Find the direct video links from Around the Net on Attack of the Show after the jump.
Microsoft and Remedy Entertainment's Alan Wakesurfaces new screens showing more of the creepy, atmosphere of the psychological action thriller. Alan makes his way through the dark woods demonstrating his use of light as a weapon in the game.
Looking good. Can't wait to see more for whenever Wake comes out this year.
Project Natal might have a release window of during the holidays, but that doesn't answer the litany of questions that remain about Microsoft's entry into motion gaming. Since its E3 reveal, we've seen tech demos and examples of how Project Natal can graft onto existing gaming experiences, but Microsoft and third-parties have remained quiet on games developed for the ground up for Project Natal.
I asked Xbox group product manager Aaron Greenberg about this problem at CES last week, proposing that users can only remain interested in the possibilities of Project Natal for so long.
"I would say that right now the team [at Microsoft] is working really hard on making, bringing those experiences -- doing the development phase of that," said Greenberg.
Okay, so when will we see the games?
"I would expect at E3 we'll share a lot more of those types of details," he confirmed.
That makes sense. E3 it is, then. But potential must be realized. It's difficult to imagine a world where Nintendo didn't launch Wii with Wii Sports, bundled with the hardware or not. Wii Sports translated the potential of Nintendo's motion dreams into a simple, tangible, easily demonstrable product. As games start coming together for Project Natal, Microsoft must be in search of its Wii Sports equivalent.
I asked Greenberg whether Microsoft had found its Wii Sports for Project Natal.
"I think we've seen some stuff recently that has the team really excited," he said in an understandably vague tone, given Microsoft's continued secrecy about actual games for the add-on. "There's a -- this is going to sound kind of cheesy -- there is a magical feeling with some of the stuff. I think a lot of people always have that skepticism around when you see anything like this. You're like 'it sounds amazing, the video was incredible, the demos on stage were great, but does it really work?'"
Last week's Reply to All went swimmingly, thanks to your wonderful participation and potentially disgusting recipes for chocolate chip grilled cheese, which I haven't been able to attempt yet, but I do need a dinner menu for tonight. Let's keep the party going this week. Remember, anything (and anyone) is fair game for conversation, and submissions do not necessarily need to be in form of a question.
Starter topics? How about Conan vs. Jay (vs. Dave vs. Jimmy vs. Craig), Bayonetta and Army of Two: 40th Day, NBA Jam being for the Wii, and any other amazing recipe, be it good or bad, that you think I should try.
And, as always, Lost is open for discussion. I'm in the first third of season 3 of my rewatch. Pretty interesting going back and remembering how angsty we all were wanting answers, and then realizing that they were indeed giving them to us...even if it wasn't as fast or as clear as we wanted. And sorry about the lack of a spoiler warning last week, but you can go ahead and assume that any Lost discussion in the mailbag is going to have spoilers in it. I'll try to be better about specific warnings.
Submit your correspondence here, or fire off an email to webmaster@g4tv.com!
(Try to think of something today, if you can! I'm being sent up to San Francisco tomorrow on assignment so the schedule's being bumped up a bit.)
It seems like everyone is talking about 3-D these days. Between the success of Avatar to all the new 3-D TVs shown off at CES 2010, one might think that it's the next big thing. Will games start going into the third dimension? The Sess doesn't think so, which is why he used this week's Soapbox to talk about his perspective on the expected 3-D revolution. Would you like to play games while wearing prism glasses that make it look like things are flying towards your face? Or are you happy with the current state of gaming technology? Let us know in the comments.
Also, don't forget that as of next week, Sessler's Soapbox will be posted on Tuesdays instead of Wednesdays. That means you get to listen to Adam's golden opinions a day earlier each week. Score!
Rounding out the class-series of Mass Effect 2 trailers, we come down to the no-nonsense Soldier. Fans of the gun-toting class will love to know what BioWare has in store for them in their sequel and what easier way than a simple click of a play button below.
Human Target, the DC comic book and graphic novel, comes to Fox this week and Executive Producer McG with star Mark Valley stop by the AOTS studios to talk about turning the series into a live-action drama series. The show follows Christopher Chance, a private detective/body guard who impersonates their clients against murder threats.Now that sounds like an easy job to take on.
The interview airs tonight on G4 at 7:00p so don't miss out!
It remains to be seen if first partnership between director James Cameron and Ubisoft, Avatar: The Game, becomes a success story, but when I spoke to Cameron just before Avatar opened nationwide back in December, he was optimistic about his future relationship with Ubisoft.
"I've got a lot of stories and I don't have enough time to make 'em all as movies," said Cameron. "That's something I'm exploring with Ubisoft, to see if there's maybe a relationship around just getting some of these story and world ideas into games just completely independent of movies. Good ideas and good visuals are exactly that."
I spoke with Cameron before Avatar became a worldwide phenomenon. Even though he professed an interest in making more Avatar films and further exploring Pandora, if the movie didn't interest people, what would be the point? But if just the game clicked, he admitted Avatar could live on that way.
"If the game's a hit, the game has its own life," he said," and so you do subsequent titles and hopefully I would continue to be involved in that, regardless if we go forward with the movie franchise."
Cameron has since revealed he's moving forward on Avatar 2, while we wait for news on Avatar: The Game. Ubisoft reported "lower-than-expected" earlier today, however, which should lower expectations. Whether the sales of Avatar: The Game changes the future of the relationship remains to be seen.
Square-Enix drops new images of their upcoming action-RPG, Nier. Illustrating traditional RPG activities such as: tavern hopping, giant beasts, powerful attacks and... daddy-daughter time?
According to a statement released to the press, Sony says GT5's new release date is "To Be Announced." At this time, Sony isn’t saying how this will impact the release of the game outside of Japan or what caused the delay in the first place, but I’m currently waiting to hear back about both issues, so stay tuned.
The long awaited PlayStation 3 exclusive has been seemingly in the works forever, and was scheduled for release in Japan this March. Sony hadn’t specified a release date for the game outside of Japan, but it was expected to be released sometime during summer 2010. Unless something drastic happens, that now seems highly unlikely.
Initially introduced as a typical video game teaser peep show for a new game based on one of the most beloved nerd franchises of all time, Transformers: War for Cybertron, finally receives a proper trailer. Bumblebee, Soundwave and a Peter Cullen-voiced Optimus Prime are always welcome additions to any Wednesday morning.
Please, please, please let this be epic, Activision and High Moon Studios.
Over at community site Capcom Unity, company head of public relations Chris Kramer linked to my story about an upcoming Project Natal game being produced by Capcom. At CES 2010, Capcom teased that it was working on a Project Natal game that wouldn't be released at Project Natal's launch, based on a brand "we haven't seen in a while." Readers immediately started guessing away.
"Dino Crisis," said ricky047. "Final Fight!" predicted jamesarc. "Mega Man," guessed SkylerZio.
Those could be right, but Capcom doesn't believe we can pin down what franchise it's based on.
"Honestly, you will never, ever, EVER guess which franchise it is," said Kramer, "but you will freak out when we finally announce [it]."
That just means we need to guess harder, readers.
Have something to share? Sitting on a news tip? E-mail me. You can also follow me on Twitter.
Ubisoft has been interested in introducing multiplayer into its hit Assassin’s Creed franchise for a good long while now, and it appears the publisher will finally get around to doing it sometime this year in the form of a new "episode" in the Assassin’s Creed saga.
Ubisoft made the reveal in its third-quarter financial report, saying that the “episode” will in fact include an online multiplayer mode.
When asked for clarification as to whether multiplayer will be included in upcoming downloadable content for Assassin’s Creed II, or whether the "episode" will be something new altogether, a Ubisoft PR representative told G4, "It’s an entirely new product."
What this new product will be is anyone's guess at this point, so speculate away, and stay tuned.
Not to be a buzz-killer or anything, but it's time you pulled your head out of that video game and got involved in something that will really help people who need it.
As I'm sure you've heard, the country of Haiti suffered an unimaginable tragedy yesterday when a major earthquake hit the nation's capitol city of Port-au-Prince. Right now, the estimates are are over 100,000 dead. Haiti isn't a wealthy nation, so donations for rescue operations, food, and emergency support are integral to helping the Haitian people.
We don't call for action much on TheFeed, but everyone here at G4 is sincerely and seriously imploring you to take action now -- we're all pulling out our checkbooks and credit cards, so should you.
Below are links to a number of relief charities. Please use them and donate as much as you can possibly afford to.
Save the Children. Donate at savethechildren.org or make checks out to "Save the Children" and mail to: Save the Children Income Processing Department, 54 Wilton Road, Westport, Conn. 06880
Red Cross. Visit redcross.org and click Donate, or call (800) REDCROSS. Or: text: GIVE to 2HELP (24357). Donations will appear on customers' monthly bills or be debited from a prepaid account balance. Message and data rates may apply. To opt-out, send "STOP" to 24357. Or text "HAITI" to "90999" and a donation of $10 will be given automatically to the Red Cross to help with relief efforts, charged to your cell phone bill.
Participating Carriers:
Alltel AT&T Sprint-Nextel T-Mobile U.S. Cellular Verizon Wireless
Salvation Army: Link to the direct donation page. Enter "Haiti Earthquake Relief" in the Specific Use field.
The U.S. State Department Operations Center has set up the following number for Americans seeking information about family members in Haiti: 1-888-407-4747
You've waited a long time to play Splinter Cell: Conviction, so you might as well remain patient a little longer, right? In Ubisoft's third-quarter financial results, the publisher revealed Splinter Cell: Conviction has been delayed from the end of February into sometime in April.
Additionally, Ubisoft's pushed back the release date of their new real-time-strategy game R.U.S.E. The company has not announced an updated release date for R.U.S.E., however.
As much as I've been anticipating Splinter Cell: Conviction, I'm also relishing the chance to have a little more time to catch up on the other big games that are releasing before it.
Have something to share? Sitting on a news tip? E-mail me. You can also follow me on Twitter.
According to Activision’s internal estimates, worldwide sales for Infinity Ward’s wildly popular shooter Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 have now passed $1 billion.
"Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 has exceeded our expectations and shattered theatrical box office and video game records," said Activision Blizzard CEO Bobby Kotick in a statement released to the press. "There are only a handful of entertainment properties that have ever reached the $1 billion mark, which illustrates the power of the Call of Duty franchise and mass appeal of this game."
The announcement isn’t all that surprising considering the game has been smashing sales records since it took in an estimated $550 million worldwide just five days after its release back in November, but it’s still mighty impressive.
According to a study by entertainment analyst group M2 Research, the cost of creating a major, cross-platform video game averages between $18 and $28 million, with some games soaking up even more cash -- The cost of Gran Turismo 5 is estimated at $60 million and Modern Warfare 2 is said to have cost around $50 million to make. Development of games on a single platform is a bit more reasonable, with costs hovering around the $10 million mark.
With a "guaranteed hit" like Modern Warfare 2, $50 million is practically nothing -- Activision Blizzard, Inc.announced today that MW 2 has already made a billion dollars worldwide -- but for smaller AAA titles, a huge price-tag like that is daunting, and helps to explain why movie tie-in games and sequels are so popular with publishers. Who wants to risk putting that kind of cash behind an entirely new franchise when investments can be protected better by re-hashing the same things we've already played?
Eventually, of course, the well will run dry, as people played out once-vibrant franchises, but I think it will be awhile before we see a resurgence in originality.
It's been strongly hinted for some time now, but today it was made official: Netflix streaming is headed to the Nintendo Wii this spring.
"The Wii console is the social hub around which friends and family members gather to play games and have fun," Nintendo of America president Reggie Fils-Aime said in a press statement. "Soon both new and longtime Wii owners will enjoy the benefits of Netflix – and a variety of informational and entertainment options – by being Netflix members and connecting their consoles to the Internet."
Netflix co-found and CEO Reed Hastings said of the partnership, "Joining forces with Nintendo, which has been so immensely popular with consumers since its introduction, is a very meaningful step" towards getting Netflix services in front of the eyes of as many current and potential subscribers as possible.
As with the PlayStation 3, Netflix streaming on the Wii will require a special instant-streaming disc to enable the service, and Netflix will provide subscribers with the disc for free. All you have to do to get one is sign-up at Netflix’s Wii page, and then wait for it to arrive sometime in the coming months.
Video games are good preparation for most jobs. You sit, stare at a screen and generally repeat the same thing again and again, like data entry with missile attacks. But judging from the American Idol clip embedded below, playing Karaoke Revolution Presents: American Idol 2 for Wii is not good preparation for an actual audition on the TV show... who could have guessed?
There is SO much going on in the newest trailer for Square-Enix's Final Fantasy XIII, I'm going to ask for a little help on this one. A hyper assemblage of cut-scenes, character dialogue, gameplay and a progressively louder Leona Lewis song that doesn't understand that I'M TRYING TO FOCUS on watching the trailer forces me to call out to you, the reader.
Please, make sense of it all while we wait for the March 9 launch date. Bonus +Thumbs Up for the most comprehensive breakdown.
Last week's Reply to All went swimmingly, thanks to your wonderful participation and potentially disgusting recipes for chocolate chip grilled cheese, which I haven't been able to attempt yet, but I do need a dinner menu for tonight. Let's keep the party going this week. Remember, anything (and anyone) is fair game for conversation, and submissions do not necessarily need to be in form of a question.
Not to be a buzz-killer or anything, but it's time you pulled your head out of that video game and got involved in something that will really help people who need it.
According to a study by entertainment analyst group M2 Research, the cost of creating a major, cross-platform video game averages between $18 and $28 million, with some games soaking up even more cash -- The cost of 
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