Tag: Microsoft

GamerSushi Asks: Favorite Game of E3?

e3As I’ve said before in other places, E3 really is the pinnacle of the gaming year. It’s a magical time where gamers get to find out what they can expect for the next year and a half or so, gaming-wise. We’re able to speculate, drool and generally get excited about all the things we love.

The week saw a lot of crazy things. There’s Project Natal from Microsoft which actually looks to show some promise despite my earlier misgivings about it. There’s also the Team Ninja Metroid and Final Fantasy XIV for the PS3. Halo: Reach was a pretty big announcement, as well. On top of that, we got to see some gameplay for things coming out soon, like Assassin’s Creed 2, Mass Effect 2 and Modern Warfare 2.

My favorite game of the show though was probably Uncharted 2 or Splinter Cell: Conviction. I wasn’t expecting much from the next Splinter Cell at all, but they’ve really overhauled the gameplay since the last time we saw the game, and for the better.

So what about you guys? What was the most impressive E3 thing you saw this week?

GamerSushi Asks: What Would You Do If You Ran Sony/Nintendo/Microsoft?

consolewarWith E3 just around the corner, everyone seems to have an opinion about what’s going to happen or what should happen. So I got to thinking: what would I do if I were running any of the Big 3?

Honestly, for Nintendo, I would keep doing what they are doing, but also I would try to get more of the classic Nintendo franchises out there to lure the hardcore gamers. Wii sales are finally tapering off, so if you can lure in those older gamers with a solid library then I think they will really show their dominance. Also, more Virtual Console games. One game a week ain’t cutting it.

For Microsoft, I would give up any hope of competing with Nintendo using motion controllers and stick to what works: hardcore gamers and buying exclusives for the 360. Microsoft doesn’t have nearly the number of Triple A exclusives for this year that Sony does so if they can hold their lead they will likely reload for next year. Look for a new Gears game to be announced at next years E3. I would also dump Rare. Their time in the sun is gone and I think they will only cost Microsoft money now.

Sony, despite the constant negative press, is not as far behind as you might think. They are only 6.5 million consoles behind Microsoft and since they started a year later, that isn’t too big a lead. 2008 was not Sony’s year for exclusives, but 2009 is. Killzone 2 and Infamous have already landed and more are on the horizon, including Heavy Rain and what the hell Kojima has planned. I have heard rumors of a MEGATON announcement that Sony has planned at E3, but I have no idea what it is, if anything. Sony needs to keep adding to the PSN and getting franchises that people associate with Sony, like God of War, Gran Turismo and Final Fantasy. If it means shelling out the big bucks, then I would do it.

What would you guys do to crush the competition?

Last Year’s E3 Promises

e31We all know what E3 means. It’s the time of year when we get sandwiched by video game news galore, and announcements from every corner of the gaming kingdom. Not only do we hear from the developers we enjoy, but also from the big 3 of the console wars: Microsoft, Sony and Nintendo. Each year, they regale us with tales of things to come. So how truthful are they?

A writer over at Kotaku took the time to analyze last year’s E3 promises from each of the major console makers, in order to see who told more fibs and who did the biggest exaggerations. Surprisingly enough, it seems that all of them did a pretty good job at predicting the things to come. See for yourself:

  • Microsoft E3 2008 promises
  • Sony E3 2008 promises
  • Nintendo E3 2008 promises

    • So, how do you think they all did? And who had the best year? Personally, from the looks of it, it seems that Sony may have edged out the competition in terms of truth-telling, and they’ve even given us several great reasons to pick up their new console since then. Thoughts?

    Source- Kotaku

    GTA IV Sales About “50-50” Between 360 and PS3

    gta4Take-Two said in a press conference that sales of its mega-ultra-super-shiny juggernaut Grand Theft Auto IV (the one without the digital ding dong) were split about even between the 360 and PS3. They did not give any other specifics or release any actual numbers, but fanboys on both sides are freaking right out, while Wii fanboys wave a plastic remote in the air cause they just don’t care.

    GTA IV sold 13 million copies worldwide so if they sold even down the middle on both systems, this means that more of the PS3’s installed base bought the game than the 360’s, which is odd and just a little surprising. The PS3 has sold 21.3 million worldwide and the Xbox 360 has sold 27.93 million worldwide. Maybe its due to the PS3’s demographic skewing older? Maybe people just preferred getting it on the PS3 because thats what the old GTAs were originally on? If this is accurate and Take-Two is not just having a laugh at us, it also means that Microsoft’s much vaunted exclusive DLC did not play much of a factor in people’s decision, which is even more odd. If I had a 360, I would have got it on that for the DLC. As a PS3 owner, I am still hoping it is simply a timed exclusive.

    What did you buy the game on and if you have both systems, why? What do you make of this surprising news?

    Source: SeekingAlpha.com

    Homophobia On Xbox Live (and PSN)

    9609The Consumerist is reporting that a woman who identified herself as a lesbian on her gamertag profile was banned from Xbox Live. In order to prevent offensive actions or harassment, Microsoft bans certain words, regardless of how they are used. This policy makes a certain degree of sense, but wasn’t the case:

    The woman, who only goes by “Teresa,” claims that she was harassed by other XBL users. “They followed me into the games and told all the players to turn me in because they didn’t want to see that crap or their kids to see that crap. As if xbox live is really appropriate for kids anyways!” She goes on to say that her account was suspended. When she brought the issue up to Microsoft, the response was that other users found it “offensive.”

    Simply saying you are gay, which has no affect on anyone you are playing online with, causes this kind of hatred. I think its really sad and it makes me ashamed that gamers treat people like this. Microsoft told MTV they are reconsidering their policy towards offensive words, which is good news.

    Xbox Live and PSN are full of people who shout “faget” and other racist and homophobic terms. Gamers get so offended when someone portrays them as mouth-breathing neanderthals or violent-loving sickos, but this kind of portrayal doesn’t seem to bother most. I think its really wrong when people play a GAME and can’t even enjoy it without hatred and vitriol spewed at them.

    This is Anthony, getting off his soapbox, in a bad mood because Morrissey canceled his concert, which was Anthony’s birthday gift.  We now return you to your regularly scheduled life.

    A Gag-Worthy “Best Of 360” List

    I have a weird love/hate thing with “best of” gaming lists. They’re addictive as anything to read, but a lot of times you want to just slap the writers of them in the face for the way they have ranked the games. While a lot of that is expected and just typical subjectivity, sometimes dudes just get it wrong.

    Take GamePro, for instance. While I’m sure they mean well with their new “Best of XBox 360” list, they are sadly, horribly, woefully misguided in the way they’ve placed the appropriate titles. There should be terrible punishments for people that are this far off.

    Continue reading A Gag-Worthy “Best Of 360” List

    Castle Crashers and Braid Bring Joy

    So this weekend my goal was to get through a couple of new XBLA games, Castle Crashers and Braid. I’ve been hearing a lot of great stuff about both of these games, and I wanted to check them out, with hopes of reviewing them sometime in the next week or so.

    As of right now, I’m completely thrilled with and loving both of these titles. It’s funny, because they’re the exact opposite of one another in terms of their playing styles. Braid is a puzzle game and Castle Crashers is an old school arcade beat-em-up a la The Simpsons or Streets of Rage.

    Continue reading Castle Crashers and Braid Bring Joy

    XBox 360 Elite from Amazon

    Tempted yet?

    First there’s the price cut, now Amazon is offering a $60 gift card on all XBox 360 Elite purchases. Not to mention the fact that any purchases over $25 get free shipping, this certainly isn’t a bad deal. Just thought I’d throw this out there for any of you who are on the fence about getting an Xbox 360 and love to do some shopping around at Amazon.

    Source- Amazon

    XBox 360: A Sordid History of a Broken Console

    I’m not sure how many of you guys that own 360s have had the RRoD (Red Ring of Death for those of you who, like ostriches, have buried your heads in the sand and missed the acronym), but I have experienced 2 myself. Yeah. Dos.

    Being on my 3rd Microsoft XBox 360 has left kind of a sour taste in my mouth, and I wouldn’t tolerate it save that it’s probably the most played console I’ve had since the original Playstation. It’s kind of weird because out of all the consoles I’ve ever owned, only 3 have broken. All were Microsoft products.

    Continue reading XBox 360: A Sordid History of a Broken Console

    Microsoft: Wii Wins, We Won’t

    Looks like MS has accepted along with everybody else that Nintendo has won this round, and is now shooting for 2nd place in the console war over Sony’s Playstation 3. Essentially, they’ve figured out what everyone else knew almost a year ago.

    Don Mattick, senior VP of Microsoft’s interactive entertainment division, recently told Business Week that even with the new Xbox 360 price drop, they don’t figure that they’re in any place to catch Nintendo at this point. And let’s face it, the Wii is essentially a Benjamin factory for Nintendo these days.

    Continue reading Microsoft: Wii Wins, We Won’t

    Cheaper XBox 360 Confirmed

    Even though the rumors have been all over this for months, Microsoft finally confirmed that the 360 is dropping in price.

    Here is the rundowns of the new pricing, as of September 5th:

    • Xbox 360 Arcade $199
    • Xbox 360 $299
    • Xbox 360 Elite $399

    Now you won’t feel quite as bad when you get RRoD-ified. Still not as cheap as the Wii, but this probably will make just a few buyers think twice when trying to choose between the two systems. Does this move any of you guys that don’t have one closer to buying?

    Source- XBox

    PAX: Saint’s Row 2

    Even though I’m a bit of an XBox junkie, I’ve never actually played the original Saint’s Row for the 360, though I’ve consistently heard good things about it. The Saint’s Row 2 booth at PAX is almost impossible to miss, given that it’s got a giant gangsta’s head about twenty feet in the air, with 3 large HDTV’s plastered to the walls for people to play.

    I’m a fan of open world games (too much of a fan), so I was pretty excited to see this one here. I stepped up to an open controller, wondering if it was going to be a thugarific good time, or just a GTA clone. I got a little bit of both.

    Continue reading PAX: Saint’s Row 2

    PAX: Gears of War 2

    As many of you know, Gears of War 2 was playable in multiplayer form here at PAX for the weekend. While I somehow missed the Microsoft booth in its entirety yesterday, I got over there as soon as possible today to check out a number of games, most notably Gears of War 2, both multiplayer and single player campaign.

    Continue reading PAX: Gears of War 2

    Let’s Talk Dyack

    Ah, more about Denis Dyack, the mind behind Too Human for the Xbox 360. The alternate title to this post could also read “Why the flip is everyone making such a fuss over the creator of such an underwhelming game?” Perhaps we’ll never know the answer to that question, but what we do know, thanks to MTV Multiplayer, is what Dyack is like according to the dudes that work with him.

    Continue reading Let’s Talk Dyack

    Rumor: Halo by Who?

    Big goings-on on the Interwebz. Rumblings, some would say. According to OXM, the next installment of the Halo franchise (Halo 4 for those keeping the score at home) is being developed by Gearbox Software, the fine minds behind Brothers in Arms: Hell’s Highway, Halo PC and the upcoming Aliens: Colonial Marines.

    Continue reading Rumor: Halo by Who?