Sorry that your wife doesn't "let you" (pffft) play games.
Not that I'm trying to make you jealous or anything... But my wife bought me a Neo Geo arcade cabinet. Now it's difficult for me to get play time on the cab! She's a Magical Drop zombie.
I'd just play the games, man. I mean, your woman HAS to know what she married, right?
There needs to be a Kahn class that allows you to control other players with brain bugs (as a skill, of course). Additionally, you could master the skills of stealing ships, making unstable planets with Genesis Devices, using famous quotes, etc.
Every time ANY ship fires in the game, the camera system MUST zoom in on a shaking captain grunting the word "FIRE!" through clenched teeth and shaking his fist.
Mechanical skills will be completely unnecessary for the Engineer class, but Irish/Scottish accents will be mandatory.
Likewise, medical skills will be completely unnecessary for the medic class, but their "quirky" trait must be off the charts.
All science officers get horny at exactly the same time, once every 7 game years. Their super strength and berserker mentality will make them able to take over ships at will.
Machines should fail when most needed. Teleporters should only have a 1 in 50 chance of working.
All intergalactic wars must begin with some ridiculous premise that makes us think about today's society.
Every patch should cause all rules to be completely re-written. If one race is bitter enemies with another race, that should be flip flopped causing them to be friends. If the Prime Directive was followed last revision, it must be "loosely interpreted" in the new patch.
"'you need to be pretty proactive on the boards,' he says. Vogel recommends that MMOG developers define their mission or goal, which needs to be somehting that inspires passion. Early adopters of the game will be equally passionate, and the developers need to be in tune with them. The goal can be contained in a simple, short slogan."
Proactive, eh? I call it "Drop the banhammer on the fuckwads".
Missions and goals, early adopters, passion, being "in tune", and a mission / vision statement...
Just as an FYI, a high resolution SMB 3 did come out for the Game Boy Advance, and it sold like hotcakes. And being for the GBA, it did keep the same game play. It even added the ability to save your game, at any point. To me, that added a lot of value.
I know, I know, not your point. Just thought you'd like to know there's a REALLY kick ass version of Super Mario 3 out there that you should check out.
First, the concern here is that it dips below 30 ACCORDING TO A JOURNALIST. Now, they don't have a "frames per second meter" that they can hook up to the kiosk's LCD, now do they? So, this is shorthand for "this game is choppy."
Second, many people most certainly DO have a TV that displays more than 30 frames per second. That's a property of progressive scan. In interlaced modes, 30fps (actually 60, but each frame is only HALF the screen), in progressive modes, 60fps. Look it up. This is a high def gaming system, designed for progressive scan TVs. You bet people are going to notice.
Besides, the term "framerate" in games refer to how quickly the hardware can draw changes to a scene. The difference is in quick turns, enemies moving quickly, etc. In a lower framerate game, frames are repeated rather than new, and because there is no motion blur, you see lag (or worse, frame frops / stuttering).
To ask for royalties on used games is perposterous. It's completely contrary to the Doctrine of First Sale.
Even if by some miracle it wasn't, how do you expect to expand that model? If we sell our game as an individual, we have to make out a tiny little check to Epic? No? Then a small company does? No? Well, where do you draw the line? It's all in a scary realm which trounces on a company's ability to do business, and introduces unfair competition.
Perhaps they could make the margin proposition more attractive for retailers, encouraging them to slow down or eliminate their used game sales.
Perhaps they could eliminate support for "used" / transferred games - like MMOs and such already do.
Or perhaps they could just suck it up and keep their noses out of other peoples' bottom line.
4 Player Split Screen?
on
GoldenEye:Source
·
· Score: 3, Interesting
Hey, let me dream here for a second. I have enough USB ports, and enough friends (shocking, I know)... So, how about a 4 player split screen mode? Heh? Heh?!?!
Oh, or... They could make a 4-player split screen mode where all your Internet buddies see your screen and visa versa.
A surprise announcement of Halo 3 at launch would be a pretty bad marketing move. Here we are, two months from launch, with many pre-orders already "locked and loaded", so to speak. Many stores are no longer committing to pre-orders (EB and GameStop in my area), so it wouldn't help sales until after launch. So, why kick the game out at launch?
At best, Halo 3 would canabilize the sales of other bits of software, rather than generating new sales. People would switch their pre-reserves. Bad news for Quake 4, CoD 2, Condemned, etc.
Also, Microsoft would have to get the advertising engine rolling pretty quickly.
Finally, Bungie itself won't confirm that they're even WORKING on the title:
"Bando asks,
Frankie, why all the coyness re: Halo 3? We all know the "project" you and the rest of the crew at Bungie are all working on is called Halo 3 and it is going to be released the same day the PS3 is released. Come on, fess up!:)
Har. Well, for one thing, we haven't announced what our next project is going to be. And for another, you really think Ken Kutaragi is going to call up and say, "Hey, Frankie, here's a heads up - the PS3 will be available on September 14th, 200X. So now you have a schedule to work to." Because, like, he probably won't do that.
"
The Chat's Response = negative (400+ comments!)
on
J Allard Interviewed
·
· Score: 1
And why are we focusing so much on how a game looks, anyway?
Well, because graphics sell consoles (or at least have sold consoles). Sometimes, it's a sign of how much a developer's vision is limited by hardware.
Lots of current generation games on the PS2 and GameCube had their graphics engines made and used once... Do you think it won't have engine enhancements from the PS2 version?
There goes my point! Oh... you missed it.
See, the parent poster went on and on and on about how the graphics are lousy on the X360, and it was going to be a disaster, and on and on. I was telling him to chill - once all the cross platform engines are in place, the graphics will be about equal.
The Unreal 3 engine (and several other engines) will power some of the games on both systems. The visuals they produce will be more or less equal on both systems - maybe with some minor differences. Madden looks about the same on all the systems, for instance. Same thing here.
I know some perfectly good PS2 games that have almost no 3D graphics in them
Not to mention the XBox variants of the same games, like SNK's classic Metal Slug series (or GC - Viewtiful Joe). I'd love to see more, too.
But graphics, online play, and multimedia are big selling points for this generation. You're not going to see anyone (except Nintendo) bragging on the ability to play old 2D games.
And for 2D, well, that just reinforces my point further. The systems are VERY hard to tell apart if you're looking at old school graphics.
I'm a fan of PS3. I'll own one when it comes out. I'll own a Revolution, and yeah, I've got the XBox 360 on reserve. I'm a game fan, and have been from the get-go.
I can tell you - a few poor games don't make a system. Launch titles can be cool, but are generally worthless as indicators of a system's power or future in the market. That picture changes within a console's first year of release. If you don't have anything cool within a year, you're hosed.
I don't think XBox 360 falls into this category. There will be many cool games for the system within a year.
Further, I wouldn't agree with your assesment - have you seen the changes to Call of Duty 2? It's a better game now than it was.
As far as games hitting the streets following the initial release...
Both these systems will be running the Unreal 3 engine in several games, and hence, the systems won't be that different in style or effects. Graphically, they're equal.
Gears of War looks identical in complexity when compared to the UT 2007 video shown on the PS3.
Huxley looks as good, but with killer online elements, something that the PS3 simply hasn't shown.
As far as OTHER engines go...
Resident Evil looks exactly the same on both systems.
Quake 4 looks just as good as its PC counterpart.
IT'S ALL ABOUT THE ENGINE. Not the tech specs.
Think about your PC. How many titles really push the highest end cards? A few. How many titles are rushed to market on either a low budget or from artistically devoid studios? Why would you expect anything different on consoles?
Not to worry you... but not everything on PS3 is going to come up roses, either - it will have its share of bombs.
I really don't see where you're counting on Revolution - nothing is known about the system! It could be a giant mass of crap, you don't know.
"There has never been a worse unveiling for a console ever."
There have been TONS worse, both from successful vendors and from failures.
People misunderstood this launch, which is definitely a MS problem - as the article states, Microsoft is all about the middle layer - Live and the XNA tools, and the home entertainment. We'll see how well the all-in-one approach works to sell systems. I know that I'm in. And PS3? Cool.
People might not "get" this generation now, but man... I'm here to tell you, they will. Even at its most basic level, it's going to rock your socks off - I can't wait for the media capabilities (coupled with ease-of-use).
They're sueing, and I would too, given Microsoft's willingness to pay companies upon "stealing" a name.
You might not remember, but when XBox came out, there was quite the hubub locally (where I'm at). The XBox name was in use here by a firm in Michigan, at least a few years before the XBox's release (1999).
According to this link the Proxima Ovation 944+ is 8 grand new. Not that anyone would pay that, right? Well...
None are listed on eBay.
Finished auctions on eBay list at about 300. That's fine, but try to find one!
Kind of eliminates the ability to do this project, doesn't it?
I don't understand why all of these DIY projects have to use some amount of unobtainium. Why not price out some NEW parts, ones that are currently on the market? Leave it as an exercise for the reader to find used or discounted products.
Only then can you make a fair assessment of whether or not one of these projects is "do-able."
I would love to see some names / brands of recommended overhead projection panels - but unfortunately, THAT is left up to the reader. I thought making these recommendations was a key part of a DIY article. After all, look at Woodworking magazine or any other DIY magazine - they all list the parts, the specs of the parts, and typically, a price or two with each.
Agreed that the first one was the best. But Tetris is still available at retail for any system you could want it for (save the PSP, but give that some time, it'll be there too). In the latest incarnations (like Worlds) you don't have to play with all the new modes, but you can.
My point was more along the lines of "hey, this guy is talented, and he could make more than one game." The sequels to Tetris may not be as classic, but they are new and different - if you're looking for Tetris 2 you're looking for a different type of game than Tetris. But both can be available to consumers at the same time. It's a product franchise, not just a game.
I'd like to see what else is up this guy's sleeve. I don't want to see him making the same game for 10 years.
Hey, I'm all for simple games, but even TETRIS has evolved throughout the years. I must say, I'm a little dissapointed that the game hasn't changed much.
Here's what you get in the new version: *Bonfire mode (don't put your ball in the water) *Race mode (go fast) *Underwater (go slow) *Snow man and night (different visuals) *Co-Op mode (seems like a good way to get frustrated at your friend)
It sounds neat, if you don't have the current version.
They won't get me to buy the game because of the new story, I'll tell you that.
If you're playing Katamari because of the story, you're barking up the wrong tree. It's lengthy and hallucinogenic - as in, you have to press X over and over again to skip the largely meaningless, rambling, nonsensical text. I wish there was an option to make the King just shut the hell up.
In fact, if there is an option to "never talk to the king or show stories" in the new game... I'd probably buy it just for that "feature".
Re:Surround Sound (finally?)
on
DivX 6.0 is Out
·
· Score: 1
The DivX site and the Tom's Hardware article are about the DivX suite of products (the Create and Play bundles, respectively).
My comment was directed toward the DivX Create bundle. BUT...
Theoretically, it should eventually be a "soup to nuts" solution in hardware. "Mini-DVDs" if you will. According to DivX Networks, they want all these advanced features embedded into devices. Many of these device manufacturers already have MP3 licenses, so adding the surround sound bit shouldn't be a big deal (licensing-wise).
I view DivX as a solution set - it's not complete without talking about the whole package. After all, if you make a movie for someone, it's not usually a silent film!
Surround Sound (finally?)
on
DivX 6.0 is Out
·
· Score: 2, Interesting
With MP3 surround sound, we'll no longer be wasting space with AC3 files (at 120MB per hour!)- meaning that the days of the 2CD rips could be over!
Well, I guess I can't say that - I don't know how small the new format can do surround sound, but I'll sure be looking for it. And... we'll have to wait for hardware support, I'm sure...
I'm willing to bet that the new method of encoding files is far more friendly and less time consuming as well. Just a guess...
Trademarks are enforcable on fictional characters. Witness Disney forcing a day care center to remove its characters from its walls.
It's not a position of advocation. It's a statement of fact. If you want to protect your works, which is what is at issue here, than there are means to do so. They are more powerful means than the Creative Commons (copyright bound) licensing scheme.
A company should trademark their name, because if they don't, SOMEONE ELSE WILL. Maybe this doesn't apply to fictional characters, but it does apply to names - and all SIMILAR names within your industry's category. It's simple - don't trademark, and you'll have your rights taken away from you.
It's not copyright that's the big limiting factor here. Any Web Comic with enough of a following to generate fan art should have its characters and logos trademarked. We're talking about leaving the realm of "doing something neat" and entering the realm of "making a living".
As far as trademark law is concerned, you either defend it or lose it. Fan art can exist in this realm, as it does with Lucas' properties, but Creative Commons isn't some panacea for all that ails these artists.
If they want control whilst allowing variations, they need to first pursue trademark protection.
The endless delays to launch will be nothing...
on
The Phantom...Lives?
·
· Score: 1
Compared to the endless wait you'll have when you try to download a 3+ Gig game over a secure connection.
What's that, you say?
The Phantom will leech bandwidth all day and night to "pre-load" the hard drive with games you'll never buy?!?
Whoo-hooo! I didn't need low ping times or quick downloads for work or more important stuff like games that function...
I don't care if each console comes with a complementary hooker, I'd never buy from these dirt balls.
PS - Hey, G4. Way to go on those hardball questions! You're like Barbara Walters LITE mixed with Dr. Phil. "So, like, there were some law suits and stuff, but you're like, real, right?" Wow, way to explore the fact that IL is on your show to try to drum up more funding! If that bit manages to secure 11 million, you can BET I'm making a stab at guest starring on AOTS.
Slashdot Mirror
Sorry that your wife doesn't "let you" (pffft) play games.
Not that I'm trying to make you jealous or anything... But my wife bought me a Neo Geo arcade cabinet. Now it's difficult for me to get play time on the cab! She's a Magical Drop zombie.
I'd just play the games, man. I mean, your woman HAS to know what she married, right?
There needs to be a Kahn class that allows you to control other players with brain bugs (as a skill, of course). Additionally, you could master the skills of stealing ships, making unstable planets with Genesis Devices, using famous quotes, etc.
Every time ANY ship fires in the game, the camera system MUST zoom in on a shaking captain grunting the word "FIRE!" through clenched teeth and shaking his fist.
Mechanical skills will be completely unnecessary for the Engineer class, but Irish/Scottish accents will be mandatory.
Likewise, medical skills will be completely unnecessary for the medic class, but their "quirky" trait must be off the charts.
All science officers get horny at exactly the same time, once every 7 game years. Their super strength and berserker mentality will make them able to take over ships at will.
Machines should fail when most needed. Teleporters should only have a 1 in 50 chance of working.
All intergalactic wars must begin with some ridiculous premise that makes us think about today's society.
Every patch should cause all rules to be completely re-written. If one race is bitter enemies with another race, that should be flip flopped causing them to be friends. If the Prime Directive was followed last revision, it must be "loosely interpreted" in the new patch.
I think that about covers it...
"'you need to be pretty proactive on the boards,' he says. Vogel recommends that MMOG developers define their mission or goal, which needs to be somehting that inspires passion. Early adopters of the game will be equally passionate, and the developers need to be in tune with them. The goal can be contained in a simple, short slogan."
Proactive, eh? I call it "Drop the banhammer on the fuckwads".
Missions and goals, early adopters, passion, being "in tune", and a mission / vision statement...
Wow! I think I just won buzzword bingo!
No WONDER Star Wars Galaxies is in the dumper.
Just as an FYI, a high resolution SMB 3 did come out for the Game Boy Advance, and it sold like hotcakes. And being for the GBA, it did keep the same game play. It even added the ability to save your game, at any point. To me, that added a lot of value.
I know, I know, not your point. Just thought you'd like to know there's a REALLY kick ass version of Super Mario 3 out there that you should check out.
First, the concern here is that it dips below 30 ACCORDING TO A JOURNALIST. Now, they don't have a "frames per second meter" that they can hook up to the kiosk's LCD, now do they? So, this is shorthand for "this game is choppy."
Second, many people most certainly DO have a TV that displays more than 30 frames per second. That's a property of progressive scan. In interlaced modes, 30fps (actually 60, but each frame is only HALF the screen), in progressive modes, 60fps. Look it up. This is a high def gaming system, designed for progressive scan TVs. You bet people are going to notice.
Besides, the term "framerate" in games refer to how quickly the hardware can draw changes to a scene. The difference is in quick turns, enemies moving quickly, etc. In a lower framerate game, frames are repeated rather than new, and because there is no motion blur, you see lag (or worse, frame frops / stuttering).
See this article: http://www.daniele.ch/school/30vs60/30vs60_1.html (it's older, but still quite valid)
Hey, where is my backwards compatibility announcement? If it was GOOD news, don't you think they'd be announcing it during the keynote?
What are they waiting for?
How about reports from real gamers about Perfect Dark Zero?
IGN says they HOPE the framerate will get all the way up to a whopping 30 FPS?
WHAT?
To ask for royalties on used games is perposterous. It's completely contrary to the Doctrine of First Sale.
Even if by some miracle it wasn't, how do you expect to expand that model? If we sell our game as an individual, we have to make out a tiny little check to Epic? No? Then a small company does? No? Well, where do you draw the line? It's all in a scary realm which trounces on a company's ability to do business, and introduces unfair competition.
Perhaps they could make the margin proposition more attractive for retailers, encouraging them to slow down or eliminate their used game sales.
Perhaps they could eliminate support for "used" / transferred games - like MMOs and such already do.
Or perhaps they could just suck it up and keep their noses out of other peoples' bottom line.
Hey, let me dream here for a second. I have enough USB ports, and enough friends (shocking, I know)... So, how about a 4 player split screen mode? Heh? Heh?!?!
Oh, or... They could make a 4-player split screen mode where all your Internet buddies see your screen and visa versa.
Ummm... Look-at-your-buddy's-screen cheating goodness!
Oh come on. Don't act like you've never done that.
A surprise announcement of Halo 3 at launch would be a pretty bad marketing move. Here we are, two months from launch, with many pre-orders already "locked and loaded", so to speak. Many stores are no longer committing to pre-orders (EB and GameStop in my area), so it wouldn't help sales until after launch. So, why kick the game out at launch? At best, Halo 3 would canabilize the sales of other bits of software, rather than generating new sales. People would switch their pre-reserves. Bad news for Quake 4, CoD 2, Condemned, etc. Also, Microsoft would have to get the advertising engine rolling pretty quickly. Finally, Bungie itself won't confirm that they're even WORKING on the title: "Bando asks, Frankie, why all the coyness re: Halo 3? We all know the "project" you and the rest of the crew at Bungie are all working on is called Halo 3 and it is going to be released the same day the PS3 is released. Come on, fess up! :)
Har. Well, for one thing, we haven't announced what our next project is going to be. And for another, you really think Ken Kutaragi is going to call up and say, "Hey, Frankie, here's a heads up - the PS3 will be available on September 14th, 200X. So now you have a schedule to work to." Because, like, he probably won't do that.
"
Here's a Coral cached link to the article's comments. Most of them are seething mad, still.
Have you guys seen this article at GameSpot??
So, for $99, you can buy the hard drive seperately? Uh... NO. That's a $30 profit, easy, not even buying in bulk!
The wireless networking adapter is another $99? Uh, looks like I'd be going wired for this version of the XBox.
$50 for a controller? Are they out of their skulls? Controllers, even near LAUNCH, retail at $35, best! The S controller is $25 for the XBox!
$20 for a headset that's $5 for the regular XBox? $30 to $40 for cables that should be half that, at best?
Hell, even the memory card is $40. You've got to be kidding me!
While I appreciate the site link mongering, wouldn't it be better to just link the LA Times???
It's certainly more authoritative.
Everytime you masturbate, a Slashdot dupe is posted.
So, basically, A LOT.
And why are we focusing so much on how a game looks, anyway?
Well, because graphics sell consoles (or at least have sold consoles). Sometimes, it's a sign of how much a developer's vision is limited by hardware.
Lots of current generation games on the PS2 and GameCube had their graphics engines made and used once... Do you think it won't have engine enhancements from the PS2 version?
There goes my point! Oh... you missed it.
See, the parent poster went on and on and on about how the graphics are lousy on the X360, and it was going to be a disaster, and on and on. I was telling him to chill - once all the cross platform engines are in place, the graphics will be about equal.
The Unreal 3 engine (and several other engines) will power some of the games on both systems. The visuals they produce will be more or less equal on both systems - maybe with some minor differences. Madden looks about the same on all the systems, for instance. Same thing here.
I know some perfectly good PS2 games that have almost no 3D graphics in them
Not to mention the XBox variants of the same games, like SNK's classic Metal Slug series (or GC - Viewtiful Joe). I'd love to see more, too.
But graphics, online play, and multimedia are big selling points for this generation. You're not going to see anyone (except Nintendo) bragging on the ability to play old 2D games.
And for 2D, well, that just reinforces my point further. The systems are VERY hard to tell apart if you're looking at old school graphics.
I'm a fan of PS3. I'll own one when it comes out. I'll own a Revolution, and yeah, I've got the XBox 360 on reserve. I'm a game fan, and have been from the get-go.
I can tell you - a few poor games don't make a system. Launch titles can be cool, but are generally worthless as indicators of a system's power or future in the market. That picture changes within a console's first year of release. If you don't have anything cool within a year, you're hosed.
I don't think XBox 360 falls into this category. There will be many cool games for the system within a year.
Further, I wouldn't agree with your assesment - have you seen the changes to Call of Duty 2? It's a better game now than it was.
As far as games hitting the streets following the initial release...
Both these systems will be running the Unreal 3 engine in several games, and hence, the systems won't be that different in style or effects. Graphically, they're equal.
Gears of War looks identical in complexity when compared to the UT 2007 video shown on the PS3.
Huxley looks as good, but with killer online elements, something that the PS3 simply hasn't shown.
As far as OTHER engines go...
Resident Evil looks exactly the same on both systems.
Quake 4 looks just as good as its PC counterpart.
IT'S ALL ABOUT THE ENGINE. Not the tech specs.
Think about your PC. How many titles really push the highest end cards? A few. How many titles are rushed to market on either a low budget or from artistically devoid studios? Why would you expect anything different on consoles?
Not to worry you... but not everything on PS3 is going to come up roses, either - it will have its share of bombs.
I really don't see where you're counting on Revolution - nothing is known about the system! It could be a giant mass of crap, you don't know.
"There has never been a worse unveiling for a console ever."
There have been TONS worse, both from successful vendors and from failures.
People misunderstood this launch, which is definitely a MS problem - as the article states, Microsoft is all about the middle layer - Live and the XNA tools, and the home entertainment. We'll see how well the all-in-one approach works to sell systems. I know that I'm in. And PS3? Cool.
People might not "get" this generation now, but man... I'm here to tell you, they will. Even at its most basic level, it's going to rock your socks off - I can't wait for the media capabilities (coupled with ease-of-use).
They're sueing, and I would too, given Microsoft's willingness to pay companies upon "stealing" a name.
You might not remember, but when XBox came out, there was quite the hubub locally (where I'm at). The XBox name was in use here by a firm in Michigan, at least a few years before the XBox's release (1999).
Microsoft quietly handed this company a rather sizable sum of money. The company founders were millionares many times over (the rumors place the settlement in the low 20 million range).
If I was a member of the "Vista" board, I'd go after Microsoft, too! It's free money!
According to this link the Proxima Ovation 944+ is 8 grand new. Not that anyone would pay that, right? Well...
None are listed on eBay.
Finished auctions on eBay list at about 300. That's fine, but try to find one!
Kind of eliminates the ability to do this project, doesn't it?
I don't understand why all of these DIY projects have to use some amount of unobtainium. Why not price out some NEW parts, ones that are currently on the market? Leave it as an exercise for the reader to find used or discounted products.
Only then can you make a fair assessment of whether or not one of these projects is "do-able."
I would love to see some names / brands of recommended overhead projection panels - but unfortunately, THAT is left up to the reader. I thought making these recommendations was a key part of a DIY article. After all, look at Woodworking magazine or any other DIY magazine - they all list the parts, the specs of the parts, and typically, a price or two with each.
Agreed that the first one was the best. But Tetris is still available at retail for any system you could want it for (save the PSP, but give that some time, it'll be there too). In the latest incarnations (like Worlds) you don't have to play with all the new modes, but you can.
My point was more along the lines of "hey, this guy is talented, and he could make more than one game." The sequels to Tetris may not be as classic, but they are new and different - if you're looking for Tetris 2 you're looking for a different type of game than Tetris. But both can be available to consumers at the same time. It's a product franchise, not just a game.
I'd like to see what else is up this guy's sleeve. I don't want to see him making the same game for 10 years.
Tetris 2 (SNES and NES) was totally different from Tetris - it relied on color matching as much as shape manipulation. In fact, it was much closer to Columns than the original Tetris.
Hatris (PC) did shape matching, not shape alignment.
Weltris (PC) was all about the different angles, making you think in 3D.
Tetris Plus (Saturn) added a cool puzzle mode (you were in caves and got a spelunker to the bottom of the screen).
I could go on... Most "official" Tetris games offered up original features.
Hey, I'm all for simple games, but even TETRIS has evolved throughout the years. I must say, I'm a little dissapointed that the game hasn't changed much.
Here's what you get in the new version:
*Bonfire mode (don't put your ball in the water)
*Race mode (go fast)
*Underwater (go slow)
*Snow man and night (different visuals)
*Co-Op mode (seems like a good way to get frustrated at your friend)
It sounds neat, if you don't have the current version.
They won't get me to buy the game because of the new story, I'll tell you that.
If you're playing Katamari because of the story, you're barking up the wrong tree. It's lengthy and hallucinogenic - as in, you have to press X over and over again to skip the largely meaningless, rambling, nonsensical text. I wish there was an option to make the King just shut the hell up.
In fact, if there is an option to "never talk to the king or show stories" in the new game... I'd probably buy it just for that "feature".
The DivX site and the Tom's Hardware article are about the DivX suite of products (the Create and Play bundles, respectively).
My comment was directed toward the DivX Create bundle. BUT...
Theoretically, it should eventually be a "soup to nuts" solution in hardware. "Mini-DVDs" if you will. According to DivX Networks, they want all these advanced features embedded into devices. Many of these device manufacturers already have MP3 licenses, so adding the surround sound bit shouldn't be a big deal (licensing-wise).
I view DivX as a solution set - it's not complete without talking about the whole package. After all, if you make a movie for someone, it's not usually a silent film!
Now, I know that there were some "hacks" to give you surround sound with DivX before, but this release's best new feature is the MP3 surround sound support (in my book).
With MP3 surround sound, we'll no longer be wasting space with AC3 files (at 120MB per hour!)- meaning that the days of the 2CD rips could be over!
Well, I guess I can't say that - I don't know how small the new format can do surround sound, but I'll sure be looking for it. And... we'll have to wait for hardware support, I'm sure...
I'm willing to bet that the new method of encoding files is far more friendly and less time consuming as well. Just a guess...
Huzzah! Go progress!
Trademarks are enforcable on fictional characters. Witness Disney forcing a day care center to remove its characters from its walls.
It's not a position of advocation. It's a statement of fact. If you want to protect your works, which is what is at issue here, than there are means to do so. They are more powerful means than the Creative Commons (copyright bound) licensing scheme.
A company should trademark their name, because if they don't, SOMEONE ELSE WILL. Maybe this doesn't apply to fictional characters, but it does apply to names - and all SIMILAR names within your industry's category. It's simple - don't trademark, and you'll have your rights taken away from you.
It's not copyright that's the big limiting factor here. Any Web Comic with enough of a following to generate fan art should have its characters and logos trademarked. We're talking about leaving the realm of "doing something neat" and entering the realm of "making a living".
As far as trademark law is concerned, you either defend it or lose it. Fan art can exist in this realm, as it does with Lucas' properties, but Creative Commons isn't some panacea for all that ails these artists.
If they want control whilst allowing variations, they need to first pursue trademark protection.
Compared to the endless wait you'll have when you try to download a 3+ Gig game over a secure connection.
What's that, you say?
The Phantom will leech bandwidth all day and night to "pre-load" the hard drive with games you'll never buy?!?
Whoo-hooo! I didn't need low ping times or quick downloads for work or more important stuff like games that function...
I don't care if each console comes with a complementary hooker, I'd never buy from these dirt balls.
PS - Hey, G4. Way to go on those hardball questions! You're like Barbara Walters LITE mixed with Dr. Phil. "So, like, there were some law suits and stuff, but you're like, real, right?" Wow, way to explore the fact that IL is on your show to try to drum up more funding! If that bit manages to secure 11 million, you can BET I'm making a stab at guest starring on AOTS.