If it wasn’t for Halo, First Person Shooters wouldn’t be as big a hit, everyone knows this. At the time of its release, there was nothing else like it on the market. This without doubt helped it on its success. Most every gamer from last generation played Halo and played it for consecutive hours straight, since there was less fanboys last generation. Now all you here about is whose selling more and “that game sucked because it only sold so and so amount”, but this doesn’t justify a game being bad; the media however doesn’t know much, and it is apparent to them the sales numbers means how good a game is. Excuse me for getting off topic a bit, anyhow; Every shooter to be released after Halo: Combat Evolved would be pit against the Halo series, and when every game was released, it would crash and burn, though we can’t say for certain the same about future games. For every new shooter that was a success after Halo, we have Bungie to thank, because no one would feel the competition to make a great game. Halo 2 & 3 being no different, both being a commercial success and a success with many fans, the sequels may have lost a few original Halo fans for some odd reasons, but there is no denying that it gained a lot more fans than it lost. Halo universe would only expand. However, the war is now over. Will we continue to see spin offs i.e. Halo Wars and DLC like Halo 3:ODST (Orbital Drop Shock Trooper)?
While I have no problem with expansions, I am not a big fan of spin offs, specially one that changes the aspect of the game such as Halo Wars, what I mean is Halo series is a FPS genre, while Halo Wars is an RTS. If I have learned anything since console gaming was introduced, its that people don’t really like RTS titles, but given the name of Halo, and it will sell. Expansions can be good if they don’t release to many for an old game, in that case, they should just release a new game. But ODST is looking to be great.

(Possible spoilers) If you don’t know what Halo: ODST is about, I’ll tell you. In Halo 3: ODST, the player does not assume the role of the Master Chief as in the Halo trilogy. Instead, the player controls a lone soldier in the city of New Mombasa, Kenya. Since the soldier, known as an ODST or Orbital Drop Shock Trooper, does not possess Master Chief’s advanced armor or strength, he is more vulnerable to weapons fire; players are forced to act more cautiously. While the game is not focused on stealth gameplay, elements of stealth will be incorporated. It will also include an open world environment like seen in previous Halo games.
The main objective of ODST is to lead the soldier through the ruins of New Mombasa and discover what happened to his missing teammates. After finding a piece of evidence left behind— a helmet half buried under dirt, for example— a flashback is triggered and the player assumes the role of the missing soldier.
This seems like it will be a great story with good action.

There is no doubt Halo series put Xbox on the map as well as FPS (First Person Shooters), but will Microsoft announce a new Halo i.e. Halo 4, or squeeze the lemons of what they have now. Only time will tell, hopefully at GDC there will be the unveiling of a new smash hit Halo from Bungie (Crosses Fingers). Again, all shooters, more specific, all first person shooters can thank Halo for their greatness, because no one would feel the competition to make a great game.

Again, I am only talking about console gaming, and don’t bring up 1997 games, and also i am talking about last gen… not 30 generations ago… (exaggeration) P.S. if your wondering why I used Definably, ill have you know i didn’t mean definitely, i did mean definably, as in it defined what a FPS should have been from that point on… I also want to add, that yes, there was other games worth mentioning, but im only talking about last generation, and Halo was the biggest game to make an impact…

In an email sent to none other than hiphopgamer, Aaron Greenberg admits Sony is competition. The email reads
“Hey man, That track was dope and love your flow man! Let’s plan on doing round two at E3 for sure. Our goal this generation was to beat Sony and amazing that we are doing it, truly amazing. But yeah, a little competition is good for everyone, keeps us sharp.
One Love!
Aaron”
Listen to the track Aaron was talking about here. With Killzone 2, it’s understandable why the Halo bundle is coming out on the same day as Killzone 2. GTA4 DLC is coming out on February 17 and the second DLC for Fallout 3 is to be released on February as well, Microsoft is throwing heavy hitters at Sony to prevent the shine of Killzone 2. Microsoft as of 2009 has an 8 million lead on console units sold and if Halo Wars is everything people want it to be, it will get a good increase in console sales, seeing how the Euro gamers can get it earlier than the actual release of the game in the “Best of Halo” bundle. But if I have learned anything since console gaming was released, its that many people don’t like RTS games on consoles, but prefer them on PC; will console sales increase or will Sony cut a big gap in the console units sold? We will have to wait and see.

If you don’t believe us, too bad, if you do, good. Of course you can’t take our word that the email is legit, but then again, you can’t take word from Kotaku or IGN now can you, they have no proof either, they say “We received this email” and you believe them, why? Because there bigger than us? Thats serious ignorance and disrespect for no apparent reason!

For the many people that experienced Resistance 2, you know that it wasn’t the end! For one, It left to many questions unanswered; second, there is the never ending dispute of what really happened to Nathan Hale; and three, its Insomniac, they always have something up there sleeves.

To re-cap, (again spoilers) Nathan Hale has been shot in the head, presumed dead. Insomniac hasn’t released word on whether or not that one bullet killed Hale, and fans very on both sides disputing he is dead, while others say no! I would have to agree that he isn’t dead. My reasons being, because Hale never died with one bullet throughout the game, and even if the scene showed a hole through his head, his powers increased after absorbing Daedalus, meaning that most likely it didn’t kill him! For the plot, I would guess, knowing Insomniac, they want to rap the story up by possibly having Hale wake up, and he is confused about whats right and whats wrong. This would inevitably cause him to join the Chimeran ranks; this would be good because it would most definably answer the questions of who are the pure blooded Chimera and what they are doing on Earth, I wouldn’t be surprised if They introduced a new Alien life form, which would answer this question as well; the Chimera have returned to earth to retrieve their weapons and their equipment, but upon arriving on Earth, they realized it was inhabited by creatures in the eyes of the Chimera (humans). They seized this opportunity to capture and utilize their prey against the other Alien life force! Now it has become a three way war! or maybe a team of Earth and this new Alien life force will be created to defeat the Chimera. Although no official word from Insomniac has been mentioned, this would seem right on the spot. Other possible plots include Capelli fighting on the humans side fighting against Hale.

What I would like to see in R3 would be many things, although I loved R1 and R2, I want to see more time put into R3. Resistance 2 had good graphics, but could have improved, if only Insomniac spend more than one year on there games; this however would mean you wouldn’t see any other titles from them until its release i.e. Ratchet & Clank Future 2. Also, don’t be ashamed to borrow the Killzone 2 engine. It would be nice to see R3 with as good or even better graphics than Killzone 2. They should spend more time on the audio, the shots fired by weapons were surprisingly low on R2 even when near a gunfight, R1 had the right idea; I used to love standing next to snipers just to here them go off wit me surround sound, now unfortunately, it isn’t as good anymore! I would also like to see the return of the L11-2 Dragon, the Splitter, the Arc-Charger, and the Reapers (given they take out the auto aim), and all other weapons from R2 excluding the Pulse Cannon. Also, as good as the new online dashboard looks, its missing one thing I loved from R1, you could send messages to people through inside the game, and you had a separate friends list for in-game! All this put into perspective, and R3 will be a major success.

What would the fans of Resistance like to see in the third installment?

Naughty Dog claims to be fully utilizing the SPU’s (Synergistic Processing Unit)on the ps3 and pushing the hardware even further than guerilla games. If true, this will be incredible seeing how Killzone 2 only uses 60% of the PS3’s SPU’s! This not only would give Uncharted the chance to capitalize in graphics but also in FPS (Frames Per Second). There is noting better than a good looking game that runs smooth and has great graphics. The pre-rendered trailer shown at the AVG awards was only a taste of the how the game will look; and not at the actual quality of the game, but much lower. Naughty Dog will improve the graphics and is working hard to improve the graphics.

Uncharted 2 Among Thieves is bigger than the first with a deeper cover system that may even surpass that of Gears of War 2. Cliff Bleszinski said himself, that he admires the Uncharted cover system and wished that gears could’ve been a bit smoother. If you have not yet experienced Uncharted: Drakes Fortune, rent it or buy a used copy, the game still has very good graphics compared to others that came out months later or even a year later; you can find a many games from 08, and maybe even a few from 09 that don’t compare to its likes. Many people complained that the first Uncharted was just a mere jungle, however Naughty Dog says Among Thieves is no jungle, nor focus’s on one area. The trailer shows our hero Nathan Drake in the mountains around snow and screen shots show him in a beautiful (graphic means) abandoned city. There is no doubt that this is going to be a success. Drakes Fortune sales were a bit slow near the beginning, as are many new IP’s, but the game has managed to sell over 3 million copies as of 2008; thats a one year life span. A great year for Sony, to Open with an already solid title, Killzone 2, and close the year with another AAA blockbuster hit, Uncharted 2: Among Thieves.

By the way, Uncharted 2: Among Thieves? A bit long, no… lets call it U2AT! I don’t believe there is any other titles with that abbreviation.

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The demo is only available on Xbox Live right now, but it should be on the psn next week. So please comment and enjoy.

PART 1:

PART 2:

PART 3:

incgamers.com

how many of the brands were Vitrue clients, Bradford replied “Some are, some aren’t, and many more clients didn’t make the list.”

The list in full:

iPhone
CNN
Apple
Disney
Xbox
Starbucks
iPod
MTV
Sony
Dell
Microsoft
Ford
Nintendo
Target
PlayStation
Mac
Turner
Hewlett-Packard
Fox News
BlackBerry
ABC
Coke
LG
Best Buy
Honda
eBay
Sharp
Lincoln
NBA
Pepsi
General Motors
McDonald’s
General Electric
Walmart
NFL
Mercedes
BMW
Samsung
Nike
Subway
Dodge
Pandora
CBS
Mercury
NBC
Disneyland
Last.fm
Toyota
Cadillac
Chevy

arstechnica.com

Few games of this entire console generation are has highly-anticipated as Final Fantasy XIII. As one of the biggest entries in the series and the first multi-platform one (not counting the online-only Final Fantasy XI), Final Fantasy XIII has an almost incalculable amount of hype to live up to. While the game still remains largely shrouded in mystery, Square-Enix has released some clear gameplay footage from the game which showcases the new battle system.

Wednesday, Square-Enix released a new trailer for the much-anticipated game on the game’s official website, showcasing for the first time actual, watchable gameplay footage. The company’s fans will note that this typically marks a significant milestone for the development of a Final Fantasy game, as Square-Enix has long been protective of its games’ battle systems.
Frank Caron

While the video shows but two dozen or so seconds of footage, forums were alight yesterday night as gamers around the world speculated and discussed the new system—and we couldn’t help but get caught up in the dissection. We’ve gone over the video a few times and have attempted to break down the battle system.

In a very real way, it appears that Final Fantasy XIII is actually a major regression from Final Fantasy XII in terms of battle system—and that’s something a lot of fans are already ecstatic about. For those who don’t recall, FFXII eschewed the time-tested ATB system for one more akin to an MMORPG. From the limited footage released so far, it’s clear that FFXIII brings the series back to its roots—at least to a certain extent.

I say “to a certain extent” because, upon closer examination, there are a few telltale areas where the battle system of XIII actually bears a resemblance to the one Final Fantasy game that was perhaps the most detested: Final Fantasy X-2. If any other system is to be considered the predecessor or perhaps inspiration for XIII’s, it looks to be X-2’s.

Before we get into that comparison, though, take a look at the screenshot below. This shot, captured from the trailer, illustrates the basics of the game’s interface and gives some clear visual clues about how battles play out in FFXIII. First and foremost, note the return of the ATB bars: this particular shot showcases a battle with three characters, two of which have not yet been revealed. Each character has a certain amount of HP, noted with the small number above the bar (much like Final Fantasy VIII) and an ATB meter. When this bar is full, the user can input commands. What does that mean? Well, it means that the game has returned to a more traditional, albeit still extremely fast-paced, turn-based system. In spite of the new graphics, the actual battle system banks on the fundamentals established by the series over the last decade and beyond.

It also appears that, like Final Fantasy VIII before it, there are no mana or magic points in Final Fantasy XIII. Instead, each character has a limited number of Action Points which they can use to execute a certain number of moves in a given turn. In this shot, we see that the current character has three Action Points, and his abilities, which include Attack and a few magic spells, range from 1-3 AP in cost. While this particular type of AP system is a bit different than anything an FF game has had in the past, it will likely add a nice dimension of strategy to the game; having enough mana won’t be a concern, but picking the right combination of moves in a single turn will play a much larger role in the overall combat.

So what of the Final Fantasy X-2 comparison, then? Well, this is where things get a bit tricky to see in the video. Those who watched the trailer closely will note that more than one character is moving at a given time. Aside from Final Fantasy XII, only one other game in the series has had this kind of fast-paced, transitioning combat and that’s X-2, which also had a basic combo system. See the combo meter up at the top of the screenshot? Both the meter and the speed of the battle, combined with overlapping character action execution, played a key role in the combat of X-2. Likewise, the trailer also shows some semblance of positional relevance for characters in battle, which was another subtle aspect of the combat system in X-2.

Our quick video tour of the X-2 and XIII similarities.

Breaking down the Final Fantasy XIII battle trailer from Ars Technica on Vimeo.

Judging by what the video shows, it seems safe to say that Final Fantasy XIII will essentially combine the best of Final Fantasy VIII and Final Fantasy X-2 when it comes to combat. Whether that remains true when the game releases is anyone’s guess, but that’s about the best understand we can garner with the current footage. Expect a further, and likely more accurate, assessment of the game’s battle system when the Japanese demo launches in April.

Gamestop sources have unveiled an E:mail sent to them by Sony that March 2010 is the current estimated release date for GOD OF WAR 3. View release date here. This may come to many as a disappointment, but not for me. I see this as extra time for Sony to polish up a great title that is already looking outstanding from the few trailers out so far. I see this a better opportunity for us gamers to get the full experience from a game; there already is a bunch of great Sony titles coming out in 09 and not to mention the multiplatform titles as well. i like buying all hot titles on launch day even if I haven’t beat the previous game played, its just in my nature. I will give the newer games a test run, but quickly return to my previous game to finish it. I don’t like doing it like that, so its good to see space between all these titles to be released in 09.

On a side note, Killzone 2 sets off the ps3 for 2009, just as GoW 3 will set it off in 2010. Killzone 2 has jumped from sales rank of 40th to 7th to 1st on overal video game sales which according to amazon represents a 1900% increase. The Increase percentage from 2nd to 1st shows at as 600% Increase.View its rank here. It has even bested the likes of Wii Fit, yesterday It was in second place, and I said I wouldn’t be surprised if it took the number one spot! However, It took it faster than I expected! This is great success for Killzone 2! Also seeing how Wii Fit should have had the advantage since it was out longer and always was on demand!

Edited 01/30/09

DLC FOR THE MAW WON’T BE AVAILABLE FOR SEVERAL MORE WEEKS

Twisted Pixel Squanders Use of Time Travel Equipment

AUSTIN, TX – January 29, 2009 – In the months since The Maw went into final testing and certification, Twisted Pixel has been working on creating additional levels for the game, incorporating new enemies, full cinematics, and additional gameplay into each one. They have also been busy squandering the capabilities of the time traveling car they jacked a couple weeks ago. Mike Henry, lead programmer on The Maw: “I haven’t had a soggy last bite of cereal since we got this puppy.” Asked about the possibility of using the technology to prevent world catastrophes or to send the new game data back in time to get incorporated into the original game, Henry pointed obstinately at his bowl. “Crunchy.”

Three new “Lost Levels” Offer New Content, Gameplay

Eschewing a vacation after completing The Maw, Lead Artist David Leung has been working on new models, animations, and cinematics for the upcoming levels. “I love the world of The Maw and am really happy to have the opportunity to make these levels that are much larger and pack as much personality and new gameplay types .” Leung divides his time between creating the over 100 new animations required for the levels and his side hobby, sport-hunting dinosaurs.

High Quality, Low Price Point

Each level will be available for 100 Microsoft Points ($1.25 USD). “We want to make these new levels as accessible as possible while still allowing the team to get paid for the time they are taking to make all this new content,” said CEO Michael Wilford. Asked why he didn’t use the time machine to win the lottery, Wilford pointed out the limited supply of plutonium. “We need to save our trips for important things – like when this pizza was first delivered, it was cold.” He held up a steaming slice and winked. “The first time.”

The Maw

The Maw is a 3D action-adventure game available on Xbox LIVE® Arcade for 800 Microsoft Points ($10 USD). It was honored with the PAX-10 Audience Choice Award and is a finalist for Technical Excellence in the upcoming 2009 Independent Games Festival. More information about The Maw can be found at www.WhatIsTheMaw.com

About Twisted Pixel Games, LLC

Founded in 2006 by industry veterans, Twisted Pixel is an independent game development studio that operates in two capacities: 1) Inventing innovative original IP concepts then developing them into premiere console titles; and 2) Providing top-flight contract games development work to leading publishers on their highly-anticipated titles. The company’s mission is to become a leading developer of digitally distributed console games with ambitious and inspiring games that exceed consumer expectations. Learn more about Twisted Pixel at www.TwistedPixelGames.com.