The online pass is something that has really caught on after EA first introduced the system for some of their games’ online options. The latest game to require an online pass is Codemasters’ upcoming racer, DiRT 3, new copies of which will come bundled with a multiplayer code that unlocks five extra cars and allows online play. This means people who pick up the game second hand will have to fork out extra if they want to play online.
It’s done to allow the developers a share of the profit from pre-owned sales and prevent retailers from taking all the earnings, but, all the same, it is annoying for those impartial to picking up pre-owned games on the cheap. They also say that it will help fund Codemasters’ plans to manage and look after the online mode post release.
Motion capture is the way of the future, according to game developer Naughty Dog, and judging by the success of their Uncharted franchise they might not be far off the mark. In a recent showcasing of some of the mocap technology currently being used by the studio, Amy Hennig, Uncharted 3’s Creative Director talks via the official Playstation blog about the franchise and what to expect from their upcoming titles. She explains how Naughty Dog have developed a “unique process for motion capture and for performance capture in games”, referring to the studio as “ahead of the pack”.
The first game in the series, Drakes fortune was produced with in a very “outdated and uncomfortable place to perform”, something which would have severely hampered what the studio was trying to reproduce onscreen. Hennig tells of the ever important acoustics which were so poor that in-game speech had to be added independently at a later stage. She also emphasises the importance of casting, being quoted as saying “…if u cast well you can write any piece of crap and they’ll make it sound wonderful, trust me ive done it”. Lets hope this is not an indication as to the attitude taken with Uncharted 3, but im sure it was more an indictment of the importance of casting.
For the second game Naughty Dog sought the resources of House of Moves studios who provided them with the ability to simultaneously record dialogue and actors movements.
Following the enormous success of the second title, Naughty Dog has moved into their own state of the art mocap studio. Hennig and her team liken the experience to shooting television rather than film. Large scripts are looked over in favour of a basic outline with scenes written on the go, giving the team much more flexibility to adapt the story and write in characters.
The actor Nolan North who takes on the role of Nathan Drake has nothing but praise for Hennig and her team. He explains of the “freedom and beauty”, in being a part of the production process, as well as the growing trend for actors to want to be part of the video game mocap technology.
This looks like one epic game that will blow most others out of the water. Time to get out Among thieves and get re-acquainted before the release of this monster.
Google, the continually expanding and hugely innovative company made famous by its eponymous search engine, the Android operating system and everything in-between, have recently unveiled and began promotion for their long awaited and very exciting spin on the netbook formula; the Chromebook. Some of the game changing features it boasts are an entirely browser-based OS, exclusively cloud-based data storage, and a revolution in the way web-apps are distributed are used.
Those are the facts. From this point on all information is based on reasoning and speculation that, while sound, is unlikely to make me (or indeed this site) any friends among supporters of Google.
Science-fiction writer, programmer and intellect Neal Stephenson described in his book; “In The Beginning… Was The Command Line”, the gradual, but nonetheless drastic simplification of computers and particularly their methods of use over time. At the time of his writing, the simplification in question was the universal shift from terminal based user-interfaces, to the Graphical User Interfaces (or GUIs) that most of you will be extremely familiar with. Operating Systems like Microsoft Windows and Mac OSX are textbook examples of such interfaces, since they were the ones to make the use of GUIs so mainstream.
Like me, Stephenson felt that this was a needless dumbing down of the way we interact with our computers, and that by replacing something real and direct with a total illusion we had forever lost touch with computers at their very core. As these GUIs grew simpler and simpler, this effect became more and more evident. Knowledge of computers that I have possessed from a very early age, knowledge that was considered elementary just 20 years ago, was enough to alienate me throughout many of my early years of schooling, through no fault of my own.
I wasn’t ahead of my age. The rest of the world was going backwards.
For me, one of Stephenson’s most memorable pieces of writing, not only in this book, but across his entire works, is his analogy for the modern GUI, whereby he recalls his (then recent) visit to Disneyland, and the man he saw walking through the “Magical Town”, with a camcorder up to his face. In reflection on this Stephenson cleverly remarks; “Rather than go see a real small town for free, he had paid money to see a pretend one, and rather than see it with the naked eye, he was watching it on television”.
If this is the nature of the modern computer operating system, what then is the nature of Google’s creation, a computer with no operating system at all, and only a window of sorts, through which you can see data that is hosted on another computer, somewhere thousands of miles away. Well imagine this man in Disneyland, had then taken the recording and uploaded it to YouTube. ChromeOS is the equivalent of watching that video online. None of the content you see is yours, and neither is it on your hard drive, or even real. You are looking at a recording of a small town, that could be millions of miles away, that may not even exist.
Simply put, this is the beginning of the end. For now, further “advancement” of such technology is impossible, because there is simply no conceivable way for the user to become any further removed from the actual process. The dice have been cast, and there is no turning back. If such technology becomes mainstream then mankind will have lost but all connection and understanding with its finest creation, leaving only eccentric and ostracised people like myself to simplify the relationship even further.
Look at all the Kirby! Nintendo of Japan have just revealed the cover art you see above for the newest title in the series, Gather! Kirby will have the player control 10 different Kirby (clones?) at once using the stylus in a brand new adventure. As you can tell by the cover above, this Kirby game is looking (not confirmed though) to have ten personalities attached as well, which is a concept I would love to see.
Now it is time to play the guessing game at when Nintendo of America will make a reveal for Gather! Kirby and what name it will receive for localization. I am thinking E3 will hold more answers about this and the expected Wii title the pink mascot will grace this year, but for now this cover is certainly a tasty appetizer of what is to come.
Well, it’s May 22, and I for one am a little disappointed with the apocalypse yesterday. Movies, books, comics and games have been telling us what the end would look like for decades, and now that it’s here, it’s pretty dull. So rather than admit that, maybe, Judgement Day didn’t occur yesterday, I’ll present my list of games with much more interesting post-apocalyptic worlds than ours.
Fallout
Type of Apocalypse: Nuclear War
Set in a future that isn’t ours, stemming from a past that shares elements with ours, the post-apocalyptic world of Fallout is one of the most interesting worlds of any game.
Diverging from our reality after World War II¸ Fallout presents a world that contrasts the Atomic Age optimism about nuclear power with the cold-war fears of the 1950s. A nuclear war with China ends in 2077 with an atomic bombing that devastates much of the U.S. (no word on the rest of the world’s condition, but then America is the only place that ever seems to matter). Many residents retreated into the apparently safe havens of underground Vaults, but were subjected to various social experiments.
Playing as characters from various backgrounds through the series, the gameplay mostly involves wandering these post-apocalyptic wastelands, visiting towns, raiding ruins for supplies and helping (or hindering) various factions. As the frequently uttered saying goes, “war never changes”, and players will witness clashing factions, and can freely choose their allies. Mutated humans and animals stalk the wastelands, as do greedy raiders and other selfish clans. But for all the fighting and corruption, hope and humour can also be found readily, as the player witnesses many creative means of survival, and encounters some fascinating characters along the way.
Left 4 Dead
Type of Apocalypse: Zombie infestation
The zombie apocalypse genre is well represented in games, and it was hard to narrow it down to one ambassador. Resident Evil almost got the title, until it was decided that the extent of the damage in that series wasn’t quite of apocalyptic proportions; each game deals with one infected region.
Anyway, Left 4 Dead shows us a world where the majority of the human population have transformed into the brainless brain-eaters, and all but forces the four survivors to work together to navigate the path to safety. Teamwork isn’t merely encouraged; it’s essential, as it’s all too easy for a lone survivor to be pinned down by the horde of zombies or one of several species of Special Infected. The survivors must pass through many locations familiar to fans of zombie films, such as hospitals, subways, malls, shanty towns, sewers, airports, cemeteries and carnivals, all desolate and populated only by agile swarms of the undead.
A world overrun by zombies may seem like more fun than our current post-apocalyptic state. Just make sure your zombie survival plan is ready to go. Although personally, I’ve never understood how human teeth would be a threat to the sturdy human skull. Biting alone isn’t gonna get them any closer to the squishy cerebral goodness they crave, and they don’t seem smart enough to use tools.
Resistance: Fall of Man
Type of Apocalypse: Alien invasion
If sci-fi has taught us anything, it’s that the most likely form of global destruction will be alien bullies bringing the hurt to us under-prepared Earthlings.
Another alternate history game, Resistance explains the mysterious Tunguska explosion of 1908 as aliens hitching a ride on a meteorite, who then proceed to slowly envelope Russia and eventually Europe. These aliens, known as the Chimera, use a virus to turn humans into super-soldiers to fight against their own kind. Players take control of Sgt. Hale as he fights alongside the human resistance to rid Britain of the invaders.
The game features technology drawn from real tech of the time, as well as some futuristic versions of these technologies. The world it presents is a cold, ruined vision of Britain, with a strange mix of past and future. It’s not all bleak though, as hope and determination for the future are strong themes throughout.
Darksiders
Type of Apocalypse: Religious Armageddon
While the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse missed their supposed appointment yesterday, Darksiders shows us the consequences of them appearing too early. Unlike the other games in this list, the player is tied directly to the apocalypse; you control War, one of the Four Horsemen.
The Four Horsemen are cast as mediators in the battle between the armies of Heaven and Hell, and are to be sent to Earth during the final apocalyptic battle between them. When War is summoned, he realises the other Horsemen weren’t, and is accused of triggering the Apocalypse too early. In his defense, he vows to hunt down those responsible.
By the time War returns to Earth, the armies of Hell have taken over, and the human population has been killed off or zombified. Players roam the world on various missions, fighting demons and angels, and strangely, platforming.
The post-poc world shown here is probably not the kind you’d want to experience – you’re either dead or a zombie. Unless you’re War, who’s likely having a ball.
MotorStorm: Apocalypse
Type of Apocalypse: Natural Disaster
This is an interesting title, being a departure both from the others on this list, and the other games in the MotorStorm franchise.
An ongoing series of natural disasters has done little to deter revheads from racing around – if anything, it seems to have made the terrain more fun. The other games in this list task players with surviving, helping others or rebuilding society, but MotorStorm: Apocalypse cares not for such noble deeds. Just race.
Players race around a city that crumbles in real-time, as buildings collapse or drop debris onto the track, bridges buckle, chasms open up in front of you, and survivors impede your progress. It’s like Mario Kart, with the environment throwing shells and bananas at you.
This post-poc world could be fun, if you’re into cars. If not, it could still be a laugh to be one of the guys who get in the racers’ way, with their looting, fighting on the tracks, and stealing cars.
Ever wondered what it would be like to control all of the magic in the world in the palm of your hand, or at the ends of your fingertips? Ever had the urge to set someone or something into flames? You can now see what it would be like to have those desires met in the new trailer that has been released for the game Rift. In this trailer viewers are shown what it is like to be a Mage character in the game.
In Rift, Mages control the 6 elements in Telara, the world the game is set within, and this makes them quite a worthy adversary and an even better ally. Mind control, burning flames and even healing effects, Mages have it all. Useful in both PvE and PvP, it is always handy to have a mage with you.
Now that it is safe to come out our bunkers, it is time to party right? Turtle Beach has just announced the perfect way to get your video game hurrah started. Now available for registered users free of charge, the PX5 headset preset downloads are now available to try. This download gives customers and developers opportunities to finely customize their audio. Visceral Games is the first dev to try this out and they have released 5 presets for early adopters of the headset to try out in Dead Space 2.
According to Turtle Beach: “Two were created with multiplayer action in mind. The first of these gives the player the sound and feel of playing from inside the character’s helmet, literally putting them in the suit for the duration of gameplay. The second will give players the audio landscape as heard from the enemy’s POV. For the first time, players will be able to hear exactly what it sounds like to be reshaped into the form of these horrifying creatures that hunt down their opponents.
The final three presets have been created with the single player experience in mind. The first preset known as “Reference” allows players to hear gameplay exactly as the audio developers intended, in all of its bloodcurdling glory! The second is called “Ambience Enhance” and dials up the creep factor to 11 by accentuating every terrifying nuance. The third known as “Stompinator” lets you feel every bone chilling crunch as you stomp your enemy into submission.” Sounds fun!
If you read my review of Brink then you will know that the game suffers some game breaking lag at times, and this happens so often that you will be hard presssed to find a full match where you won’t be jumping all over the map. But that may not be the case any longer because Bethesda has stated that next week they will be releasing a new patch for the lag problems with Brink.
PC users will be seeing a whole lot of different fixes that will fix everything from graphical performance to game performance. The full details of the patch can be seen on Bethesda’s blog. PS3 owners won’t have a patch released quite yet as Bethesda has only had a limited amount of time to test user problems on the PSN. Hopefully this patch can fix the lag issues on the Xbox 360 as well as the PC.
If you turned on L.A. Noire today you may have noticed that you received an update for your game. That is because Rockstar Games has made it official that a title update went live today on the PS3 and 360. This update 1.00 improves the statistic tracking for the game’s RockStar Social Club function as well as adding an age verification for any DLC purchases in the game as well as a number of “minor gameplay bugs and graphical issues” and a few plot, conversation and objective issues.
So far I have yet to find any of these problems showing up in my game before this patch and as you can see in Kelly’s review that the game is practically flawless. Though if anyone did have an issue with these bugs you won’t have to worry about it anymore because they most likely have been fixed now.
Every so often we here at Capsule Computers are lucky enough to get a sneak peek at up and coming games, and even luckier when ‘said games’ we’re previewing are from game developers American McGee and Suda51. Legends in their own right, their video games have greatly contributed and influenced the games of today, with many of them regarded as classics of gaming.
Two of the more interesting game developers working in the industry today were in town and we were able to check out both Alice: Madness Returns and Shadows of the Damned at an EA Games Preview Event in Sydney. Games developers American McGee and Suda51, both gave a presentation on their respective games. Suda51 opted for a more theatrical take on his presentation, opting for a costume change a few minutes in switching from his elaborate golden jacket to an equally, if not more badass Garcia Hotspur leather jacket. Garcia Hotspur if you don’t already know, is the protagonist in Shadows of the Damned and what a game it is.
In fact, both Shadows of the Damned and Alice: Madness Returns honestly blew me away. I’ve been playing alot of first-person shooters (Call of Duty: Black Ops mostly), so coming here and playing these new fresh games that try to break the mainstream mould really does give me a breath of fresh air. I’ve seen a little bit of both games on the internet already, just few screen shots and a bit of concept art and video but seeing and playing the games hands on is a completely different experience.
First up I was really looking forward to playing Alice: Madness Returns. The original Alice, released more than a decade ago in 2000, was one of the those games that I unfortunately missed out on playing growing up but heard alot about at school where I can distinctly remember my friend telling me about a game where you play as Alice from ‘Alice In Wonderland’, and go around murdering the inhabitancy of Wonderland. Now it’s not quite as like how my friend put it, but America McGee’s Alice and its sequel is certainly a very dark and twisted take on Lewis Carroll’s literary masterpiece. Ten years on and Alice finally returns, bring back both what made the original so unique and critically acclaimed to this current generation.
Alice: Madness Returns will be partially nostalgic to anyone that’s been remotely interested in ‘Alice In Wonderland’, whether that be the original books or through its many adaptations, American McGee’s Alice or films (and hopefully that’s Disney’s 1951 animated classic and not the recent 2010 adaptation *facepalm*). The game holds a very strong dark and twisted art style and direction, from the character models to the vivid environments in Wonderland.
Gameplay wise the game blends both action and platforming, this partially struck me as quite interesting. I couldn’t quite put my finger on it but it somehow reminded me of playing the original Crash Bandicoot and Spyro the Dragon games from way back in the late 90s. I mean this in a good way, for once here a game that has been developed for a ‘mature audience’ but still holds simple yet very effective game mechanics – all in a very stylishly cartoony world. For example in combat, you won’t have to worry about remembering lists of combos like in God of War 3 nor is it completely dumb down to one-button hits as seen in Fable 3. Dodging, switching between weapons, melee and long range attacks are all very fluid and easy to pull off with just a few taps and is very satisfying when up against a range of different enemy types.
Now moving across the room to a completely different game Shadows of the Damned, which if you’ve seen anything about the game or even better haven’t, in short it will melt your mind. Suda51 describes it as a “Punk-Rock Adventure” and that’s as best as I can probably describe it as well. Think of the most B-grade horror movies, mixed in with a punk rock soundtrack topped with some bad taste and political incorrectness – All that turned in to a video game and you’re close to what Shadows of the Damned is like.
You play as self-described badass Garcia Hotspur, with a name like that your sure to expect something really insane on his journey through Hell to rescue his lover Paula. I think even this game pushes the boundaries on what you’d come to expect from Suda51. Sure Killer7 was very weird and No More Heroes perhaps even more so but Shadows of the Damned, I think it’s on a completely different field. Underlying the game is a very tongue-in-cheek boyish teenage humour. For starters your flaming skull demon companion is named Johnson who transforms into a variety of weapons one of them is called “Boner” well…it does shoot out bones.
Shadows of the Damned’s style and overall presentation is unique, its interpretation of Hell is one that has to be seen to be believed. Fundamentally the game is at heart a third person shooter much in the same vain as Resident Evil 4 or Alan Wake, sort of if those games where plunged into Hell itself and ramped up to 11. In Hell, you’ll be fighting a range of enemies and puzzles that both revolve around the use of light and dark. Segments of the game take place in ‘Darkness’ with Garcia slowly losing health and enemies significantly becoming tougher. These segments require players to quickly locate a source of light before taken out several enemies. Massive boss battles are hallmarks of Suda51 games and Shadows of the Damned doesn’t shy away from them featuring its fair share of twisted, bloody demonic beings.
Overall, in the short time I had with these two games and meeting with their legendary game developers American McGee and Suda51, I was left feeling very much impressed with what I had not only just seen, but experienced. Perhaps Shadows of the Damned more so than Alice: Madness Returns, but both games equally brings something new to gamers out there. They are both very unique, fresh and exciting games that players can certainly expect to play in the near future.
Alice: Madness Returns is set to release on Xbox 360, Playstation 3 and PC on June 16th & 17th in Australia and New Zealand with Shadows of the Damned releasing a week later for Xbox 360 and Playstation 3 on June 23rd & 24th in Australia and New Zealand as well.
