Update - as has been snootily pointed out in comments, it's since been revealed that the pic's just a teaser for an eventual About page on Psychonauts. The image on the site has been fully-colourised to reflect this. Boo. I would say that Double Fine probably shouldn't have stuck a mysteriously darkened image on a page previously only containing a link to a press release about an upcoming game, however.
(Tinfoil hat)Either that it or it was a secret experiment to gauge interest in another Psychonauts game...(/Tinfoil hat)
Dammit. BTW - if you don't own it, and you should - it's FUN. Yeah yeah yeah. Platformer, Adventure game, etc, etc. It's fun. The most fun I've had in games recently, the stupid-grin-on-your-face-when-you-tell-people-about-it, besides Portal & Sam&Max, is Psychonauts. Brilliant level design (Velvet Bullfighter), memorable characters ("My milk is cold and delicious"), etc. Translation: fun fun fun fun fun.
Anyhow, it's available on Steam. I also saw copies at Half-Price books (which I may buy to give people as Xmas gifts), but they probably get more money via Steam.
Given that several friends paid $60 for Halo, which is also finishable within 4 hours, I think the price is acceptable. I paid without a thought - at $30 I would've thought about it, then probably paid anyways. Lots of games recently have been short, but still charge full price. And, to be honest, I view this as helping ensure a Portal 2.
Actually, his comment is more about the Smart Playlists. While that one seemed a bit much, I have several like that. Being able to create a playlist with "music you haven't listened to in 6 months over 2 minutes long that's either unrated or rated highly", is actually quite nice. Means that everytime I load up the ipod, I get new stuff.
Yes, I'm in camp A. Want me to describe what genre it is? FUN. That's the genre. Yes, there's adventure elements. Yes, it's a platformer. Yes, there's shooting. But, primarily, it's FUN. Funny as hell, Fun as hell to play - it's one of those games that when people who game don't own it, I (a) try to hard-sell them on it, and (b) wonder what's wrong with them that they didn't get it originally. When you play it, there's this goofy smile on your face. Why it didn't sell better is beyond me - I bought it after trying the demo ("a platformer? Meh. Waitaminutethisisreallyfun...."), and I thought it would sell tons.
The first rule of PSP: don't upgrade the firmware. The latest greatest (3.4?) hasn't been hacked yet, but up through 3.1 has been (last I looked, 3.03 is the last safe one - i.e. easily downgraded). The older it is, the better off you are. There is software that will let you load the newer firmware temporarily, so you can still get the benefits.
What gets me is that people think it's an iPhone competitor. They do a fair job with the design, but it's the same basic setup of the old WinCE devices (ex: http://www.mobilegazette.com/images/vodafone-perso nal-assistant.jpg, which is actually a Windows phone from 3 years ago) - mediocre screen (look at the actual size... they did a good job framing it, but it looks like the same size as my example). It has the buttons on the bottom. Not just YES/NO, or A/B, but the 4-way. All it's missing are the application buttons. Whoop-de-do.
Let's see, what have we gotten out of this latest (re)incarnation of the Doctor?
3 series of Doctor Who (with at least another one to come)
1 series of Torchwood (with at least another one to come)
The Sarah Jane Adventures (series to come)
Honestly, I'd rather see it take a 5 year break and it come back GOOD, rather than watching it die a painful death and then having to wait almost 20 years for another.
If you're that tied to it, get a subscription to the Big Finish Productions audio shows - there's been over 90 "episodes" so far, with several dozen spinoffs including "Dalek Empire", "Gallifrey", "Sarah Jane Smith", "Cybermen" and "UNIT". Original cast (4 Doctors and ALL their sidekicks save one), original writers, original scores, new sidekicks, new villians, full sound effects, etc, etc.
The question is, why didn't he license it? Was it because he's a dick? Did he not see the point? Was the money offered too little? Were the grill companies dicks about it? The law gave him several decades to market this - the reasons why it wasn't licensed don't matter. Fortunately, the law then says that anyone can play with it - and they are. Maybe he just needed a better agent - anybody know for sure?
Okay - I used to play FPSs. Still do, occasionally. But honestly, Portal looks like a hell of a lot of fun. Team Fortress looks fine, but not my thing. Same with HL Ep2. Will I be able to _just_ buy Portal? Several of my friends are the same way - that looks different or cool, but is it worth the $40 that the "Black Box" is going to cost? And if we can't buy it separately, why not?
I'll third it. The explanation I've heard, as to why it's so good (besides the fact that you can easily adjust the strength) is that the hot water puts the oils in your coffee cup. The Cold-water extraction leaves the oils behind, causing a much less bitter brew.
All I know is that I grab a pound of Community Coffee once a month, "brew" it using cold water, then put the resultant liquid in the fridge. 1 Shot per mug, and I get a month's worth out of it. Beware, however: while adding cream & sugar in equal ratios with the coffee concentrate results in liquid heaven, your boss may call your wife after you bounce off the walls at work. (Oops)
2. Performance - xen wins noticably, i can get away with running 8 virtual machines with 1/4 the hardware that VMWare required for 6.
Tell me more, please. Looking at the Xen performance paper, it looks like Xen & VMWare are pretty close, performance-wise. The most they ever show is a 23% boost on a couple tests - nowhere near the "1/4 the hardware". Not trying to bait, but honestly curious.
is telling. I think this affects me - while I don't often buy used CDs (sorry - my desires are too damn eclectic to be satisfied locally), I want the option. Does it affect others here, or are we all buying them off ebay, buying the tracks off iTunes, or simply downloading them?
Is this the RIAA trying to curb rights? Is this Garth's revenge? Or is it something less? And, anybody know where in Florida the police were investigating? Is there any way to have this looked at by the media? I think most people would care if the local news did a nice little piece about how their hard-earned tax dollars were being spent making sure Johnny couldn't buy a used CD, rather than #insert EVERYBODYPANIC.h
Ars, thanks for bringing this up. (and hey, someone else comment - I can't believe that so few people care)
The company doing this is paying to install digital DLP projectors - 2 per screen, actually. So if your enjoying the "DLP" experience at a theater that just went DLP, thank them. Cool seeing them take a risk - my wife loved "Monster House" in 3D - I hope they make it.
I haven't turned it on in months - between the horrific performance and the plethora of bugs (plus friends having the game crash in Act 2/Act 3), I figured I'd wait until it was stablized, then start playing.
So is it playable, or are they just trying to get more money from us for an unpatched game?
Slashdot Mirror
Update - as has been snootily pointed out in comments, it's since been revealed that the pic's just a teaser for an eventual About page on Psychonauts. The image on the site has been fully-colourised to reflect this. Boo. I would say that Double Fine probably shouldn't have stuck a mysteriously darkened image on a page previously only containing a link to a press release about an upcoming game, however.
(Tinfoil hat)Either that it or it was a secret experiment to gauge interest in another Psychonauts game...(/Tinfoil hat)
Dammit. BTW - if you don't own it, and you should - it's FUN. Yeah yeah yeah. Platformer, Adventure game, etc, etc. It's fun. The most fun I've had in games recently, the stupid-grin-on-your-face-when-you-tell-people-about-it, besides Portal & Sam&Max, is Psychonauts. Brilliant level design (Velvet Bullfighter), memorable characters ("My milk is cold and delicious"), etc. Translation: fun fun fun fun fun.
Anyhow, it's available on Steam. I also saw copies at Half-Price books (which I may buy to give people as Xmas gifts), but they probably get more money via Steam.
No PC, no buy. Thank you.
Perhaps some faction at Apple truly thought that web-apps would be enough.
Nope - otherwise there wouldn't be that gaping hole in the middle of the screen. They would've just made the icons larger.
Bull - last night (and I bought it the day it came out) it said it was calling home to verify Portal.
Given that several friends paid $60 for Halo, which is also finishable within 4 hours, I think the price is acceptable. I paid without a thought - at $30 I would've thought about it, then probably paid anyways. Lots of games recently have been short, but still charge full price. And, to be honest, I view this as helping ensure a Portal 2.
You think you're being funny. But you're not.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spaceballs:_The_TV_Series
Actually, his comment is more about the Smart Playlists. While that one seemed a bit much, I have several like that. Being able to create a playlist with "music you haven't listened to in 6 months over 2 minutes long that's either unrated or rated highly", is actually quite nice. Means that everytime I load up the ipod, I get new stuff.
And I just bought a refurb'd 20gb HP iPod for $100 from Woot! Oh, the horror, the horr.... eh, maybe not.
NP: the tapping of my feet as I wait for my iPod.
Yes, I'm in camp A. Want me to describe what genre it is? FUN. That's the genre. Yes, there's adventure elements. Yes, it's a platformer. Yes, there's shooting. But, primarily, it's FUN. Funny as hell, Fun as hell to play - it's one of those games that when people who game don't own it, I (a) try to hard-sell them on it, and (b) wonder what's wrong with them that they didn't get it originally. When you play it, there's this goofy smile on your face. Why it didn't sell better is beyond me - I bought it after trying the demo ("a platformer? Meh. Waitaminutethisisreallyfun...."), and I thought it would sell tons.
Go buy a copy. Help Tim make more original games.
There was a story here a few days ago about them adding a "clear" pixel element to allow more light through. Sounds like the same premise.
to paraphrase Dennis Miller: "to put it in perspective... if there were one guy, he would have to pay one BILLLLLLION dollars."
The first rule of PSP: don't upgrade the firmware. The latest greatest (3.4?) hasn't been hacked yet, but up through 3.1 has been (last I looked, 3.03 is the last safe one - i.e. easily downgraded). The older it is, the better off you are. There is software that will let you load the newer firmware temporarily, so you can still get the benefits.
What gets me is that people think it's an iPhone competitor. They do a fair job with the design, but it's the same basic setup of the old WinCE devices (ex: http://www.mobilegazette.com/images/vodafone-perso nal-assistant.jpg, which is actually a Windows phone from 3 years ago) - mediocre screen (look at the actual size... they did a good job framing it, but it looks like the same size as my example). It has the buttons on the bottom. Not just YES/NO, or A/B, but the 4-way. All it's missing are the application buttons. Whoop-de-do.
What the hell are you talking about? Ah, you meant "by putting your boot drive on a RAID 0 volume"...
Honestly, I'd rather see it take a 5 year break and it come back GOOD, rather than watching it die a painful death and then having to wait almost 20 years for another.
If you're that tied to it, get a subscription to the Big Finish Productions audio shows - there's been over 90 "episodes" so far, with several dozen spinoffs including "Dalek Empire", "Gallifrey", "Sarah Jane Smith", "Cybermen" and "UNIT". Original cast (4 Doctors and ALL their sidekicks save one), original writers, original scores, new sidekicks, new villians, full sound effects, etc, etc.
Highly highly recommended.
The question is, why didn't he license it? Was it because he's a dick? Did he not see the point? Was the money offered too little? Were the grill companies dicks about it? The law gave him several decades to market this - the reasons why it wasn't licensed don't matter. Fortunately, the law then says that anyone can play with it - and they are. Maybe he just needed a better agent - anybody know for sure?
Cool. Thanks. And to the other poster - that IS the main attraction for me.
L. Ron Hubbard.
Okay - I used to play FPSs. Still do, occasionally. But honestly, Portal looks like a hell of a lot of fun. Team Fortress looks fine, but not my thing. Same with HL Ep2. Will I be able to _just_ buy Portal? Several of my friends are the same way - that looks different or cool, but is it worth the $40 that the "Black Box" is going to cost? And if we can't buy it separately, why not?
I'll third it. The explanation I've heard, as to why it's so good (besides the fact that you can easily adjust the strength) is that the hot water puts the oils in your coffee cup. The Cold-water extraction leaves the oils behind, causing a much less bitter brew.
All I know is that I grab a pound of Community Coffee once a month, "brew" it using cold water, then put the resultant liquid in the fridge. 1 Shot per mug, and I get a month's worth out of it.
Beware, however: while adding cream & sugar in equal ratios with the coffee concentrate results in liquid heaven, your boss may call your wife after you bounce off the walls at work. (Oops)
2. Performance - xen wins noticably, i can get away with running 8 virtual machines with 1/4 the hardware that VMWare required for 6.
Tell me more, please. Looking at the Xen performance paper, it looks like Xen & VMWare are pretty close, performance-wise. The most they ever show is a 23% boost on a couple tests - nowhere near the "1/4 the hardware". Not trying to bait, but honestly curious.
is telling. I think this affects me - while I don't often buy used CDs (sorry - my desires are too damn eclectic to be satisfied locally), I want the option. Does it affect others here, or are we all buying them off ebay, buying the tracks off iTunes, or simply downloading them?
Is this the RIAA trying to curb rights? Is this Garth's revenge? Or is it something less? And, anybody know where in Florida the police were investigating? Is there any way to have this looked at by the media? I think most people would care if the local news did a nice little piece about how their hard-earned tax dollars were being spent making sure Johnny couldn't buy a used CD, rather than #insert EVERYBODYPANIC.h
Ars, thanks for bringing this up.
(and hey, someone else comment - I can't believe that so few people care)
The company doing this is paying to install digital DLP projectors - 2 per screen, actually. So if your enjoying the "DLP" experience at a theater that just went DLP, thank them. Cool seeing them take a risk - my wife loved "Monster House" in 3D - I hope they make it.
I haven't turned it on in months - between the horrific performance and the plethora of bugs (plus friends having the game crash in Act 2/Act 3), I figured I'd wait until it was stablized, then start playing.
So is it playable, or are they just trying to get more money from us for an unpatched game?
That's a bit harsh to compare them to those drooling fools, isn't it? I mean, Jack _was_ living with 2 women simultaneously...