411 Games Fact or Fiction 03.15.11 Dance Hero, Kinect, Tomb Raider and More

Posted by Adam Larck on 03.15.2011

Will we see the new Tomb Raider movie? Is the Kinect selling 10 million units impressive? Is it a surprise that Activision is making a Dance Hero game? Is the NPD becoming irrelevant? 411’s Armando Rodriguez and Mathew Sforcina debate these questions and more on in this week’s 411 Fact or Fiction: Games!

Welcome back to another week of 411 Games Fact or Fiction. I'm Adam Larck, and I've been playing a lot of Dragon Age II and de Blob 2. Look for reviews of both of those in the near future. Also had a bit of time playing Full House Poker.

This week we have Armando Rodriguez going up against Mathew Sforcina. Let's see how much these two agree. Time for banner!





1.) It's no surprise that Activision may be making Dance Hero.

Armando Rodriguez - Fiction: I am surprised. I mean, I am not surprised that they are trying to cash in on the dance craze the same way they cashed in on the music genre. But I am surprised that they are coming out with a new Hero title after they pretty much killed the brand a few weeks ago. It seems like they can't make up their minds about that brand. However, there is no question about the fact that the Dance Hero game should be a high quality competitor in the dance genre.

Mathew Sforcina - Fact: After all, it's another popular genre Activision hasn't run into the ground with repetitive, barely DLC worthy game discs. Hey, maybe they could release a new version every year with slightly different accessories! Like, a dance mat the first year, then a slightly different dance mat the next year, then a special dancing hat, then a combo with slightly different versions of both, then a guitar peripheral on a swivel for 'Dance Hero: ZZ Top"! They'll make TRILLIONS!

Score: 0 for 1 - Whether the 'Hero' series is dying or not, it makes sense for Activision to try and cash in.



2.) Kinect selling 10 million units is impressive.

Armando Rodriguez - Fact: I thought Kinect was doomed from the start, but it proved me wrong. It sold a ton and created a genuine interest in the Xbox 360 as a casual games platform. It is even more impressive that it sold such a huge number with about two good games. It shows that the consumer is hungry for innovation and maybe it will lead to even more innovative games and peripherals in the future, which is not a bad thing.

Mathew Sforcina - Fact: Selling 10 million copies of anything in that time frame is pretty damn impressive. For something that hardcore gamers hated for a lack of buttons and something that seemed to be a year or so behind the Casual Gaming bandwagon that fueled the Wii's new dominance, it's even MORE impressive. I'd compliment M$, but given that I'm already something of a Xbox fanboy, I'll just shut up now.

Score: 1 for 2 - I may have one now, but when I first saw this I never thought it would sell this well.



3.) Microsoft is finally starting to look towards the next generation of consoles.

Armando Rodriguez - Fact: Do I expect a new Xbox before 2014? No. But I am certain that, not only Microsoft, but also Nintendo and Sony are looking already at the technologies they can implement for their next console and the features they will provide. If you are not looking at the advances in technology and planning for the future, then you are going to fall back in the console race.

Mathew Sforcina - Fiction: Yes, they've hired some people to start working on the 720. That's to be expected, that's not so much "looking forwards" as it is "practical necessities" so that when they DO move ahead, they have some ground work. But look up and read the previous question. Unless you consider the Kinect 'Next Gen', which it isn't, it's, at best, Current Gen V1.5, Microsoft will now ride that Kinect puppy as far as it possibly can. After all, what was everyone saying about the Wii when the Juggernaut began? "Oh well, the casual market is well and good, but where's our hardcore games?". Well, Microsoft now has both, they can get the Casuals in and the hardcores are already there. Why the hell would they switch to the 720 in a rush? They aren't Sega...

Score: 1 for 3 - Personally, I still hope we're at least five years away. I don't think everything has been explored yet on the 360, especially with the Kinect.

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4.) You would watch a rebooted Tomb Raider movie.

Mathew Sforcina - Fact: But only with the Rifftrax commentary. And/or if Ms. Croft spent most of the movie *heavily censored for your own sanity* with extra cheese.

Armando Rodriguez - Fact: I have a tendency of watching every video game movie, no matter how good (Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time) or bad (Tekken, Super Mario. Bros.) it turns out to be. I do hope the reboot ends up being good since the first two movies are among the best video game movies ever made (not that it means much) and we need some good video game movies out there. The question is.....who should play Lara? A bad casting choice can kill that movie faster than a bad plot could.

Score: 2 for 4 - I just hope the reboot follows the reboot of the series, and not just the thinking of a new director.



5.) You agree with EA that the NPD is becoming less relevant.

Mathew Sforcina - Fact: If only because it's North America only. Sure, it's still the dominate market, but it doesn't cover the rest of the world, which is more important now that you have games being sold online, both delivery and by download. Merely charting sales in the US, while still remaining somewhat useful, is less and less important as the rest of the world gains more power in gaming.

Armando Rodriguez - Fact: I don't know how relevant it was on the first place. We do need some transparency in the industry with the number of copies a game sells, but in a way the NPD has never been that transparent and independent organization we need. And besides those numbers, what exactly does the NPD do for the industry? People are not going to buy a game simply because it sells well....Review scores and aggregate sites like Game Rankings and Metacritic have a higher standing when it comes to affecting sales. Sp yes, I agree with EA.

Score: 3 for 5 - It was a bad call in the first place for the NPD to get rid of the detailed numbers, and not including digital sales is just hurting it more.



6.) The newest PS3 update will be hacked in less than a month.

Mathew Sforcina - Fact: There are a few things you just never do online. You never ask a Mormon how magnets work. You never pretend they said 18. You never badmouth Christian, Fallout or No Mercy. And you NEVER claim something is 'unhackable'. That's just asking for trouble, as the hackers don't see that as a threat, or a sign to stop. To them, that's a challenge. Unless this new firmware update sends a deadly electrical current out as soon as someone thinks about hacking it, it'll be hacked. Maybe not in less than a month, but the spirit of the question remains.

Armando Rodriguez - Fact: I am not certain if under a month, but I expect it to be hacked soon. I think that the future of the console (and maybe future consoles as well) will be a constant war between hackers and the company, with the company coming up with ways to cancel the current hack, the hackers coming up with a new hack, the company coming up with a new counter, etc. An endless tug of war.

Score: 4 for 6 - I look for more news about the PS3 getting hacked fairly quickly.



Bonus Question.) You got Bungie's MMO joke.

Mathew Sforcina - Fiction: In that by the time I came online and heard it, it was already announced as being a 'joke', so I never found out if I would have got it or not.

Armando Rodriguez - Fiction: I thought they were serious and until they come up with evidence stating otherwise (like showing us what the mystery game is) I will stand by it being a real game, someone slipping up and Bungie coming up with the "it was a joke" defense when the somewhat negative reaction hit.

Adam Larck - Fiction: I don't think anyone got Bungie's joke about the MMO. In fact, I'm still not completely sure it's not a joke. It could just be a quick cover as they weren't supposed to reveal it yet. Who knows. Hopefully, by E3 we'll know one way or the other.

The pair goes 4-for-6 this week. What do you think? Agree or disagree with their answers? Let us know. See you in seven!