Living LIVE News Report 07.25.11
Posted by Trace Aber on 07.25.2011
News and thoughts on Halo: Anniversary's latest details, Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3 being announced, 007: GoldenEye getting Reloaded, the Modern Warfare 3 hoax website's owner getting revealed, Street Fighter III: 3rd Strike Online Edition's release date and more!
REPLY POSTED
I tried the trial of an Indie Game, Fatal Seduction and although it was a basic side scrolling action game, I purchased it for the pricey sum of 80 pts. The story hooked me as it was apparently based on a true story.
Furthermore what does the writer think of persistent rumours regarding the development of the next gen xbox? I think that the 360 still has a good number of years left in it with the launch of Kinect but I would expect to see a new console announced either 2013/14.
Posted By: el_pieablo (Guest) on July 20, 2011 at 02:42 AM
I'll have to give Fatal Seduction a shot. Seeing as how it's made by Silver Dollar Games I would imagine it's a fun timewaster worth the buck, like most of their games. Sure, they have some shitty games, but it's pretty apparent which ones they are just by looking at them.
As for when the next Xbox will come out, I think 2014 is more likely than 2013. Microsoft has said that the Kinect is pretty much their "new" system and with as hard as they're pushing it I see them giving it plenty of time to shine. Of course, this all depends on when Sony decides to release the PS4. I can almost guarantee you that Microsoft (and Sony, for that matter) are working on their next console, but that doesn't mean they're planning on releasing it anytime soon. For an announcement, probably E3 2013, with some leaked rumors around late 2012. Seems to be the way these things go nowadays.
Though AMD did say that the next Xbox will be able to render graphics as good as sci-fi flick Avatar. No window of release, but I could easily see that if they wait until 2014. I am curious about their next line – the A.I. used next generation will enable every pedestrian in a game like Grand Theft Auto to be able to have their own personality and act differently. Who would want to code all of that?
Welcome everyone to another issue of the Living LIVE News Report, and as always, I'm your host for the evening, Trace Aber.
Hoax Modern Warfare 3 Website Owner Revealed
Website ModernWarfare3.com is not owned by Activision, as you would expect. Instead, it was owned by an unknown person who would post negative comments about the game. Comments such as "Pre-Order Call of Duty MW3 Today for Xbox 360, PS3, and PC to secure exclusive bonuses only available online for Modern Warfare 3 fanboys who don't know that Battlefield 3 is the better game" littered the website.
After growing tired of mocking Call of Duty fans looking for information on the next game, the owner decided to simply have the website redirect visitors to the Battlefield 3 website, which I'm sure confused plenty of people unaware of the scam. Even worse, some people thought EA was behind the website, which they immediately denied.
The website is currently down thanks to a complaint filed by Activision with the National Arbitration Forum in the hopes of them getting ownership of the domain. Unfortunately, the owner of the website is a mystery as he registered through a proxy. That is a mystery no more, however. Go Daddy revealed the name recently in order to deal with Activision's complaint, per their Uniform Domain Name Dispute Resolution Policy.
It turns out that Florida resident Anthony Abraham was behind the website, and it turns out this isn't the first time he's done something like this. Back in 2008 he opened up a website called ZReactor, promising to let users download music from Zune. Not surprisingly, the website turned out to be a complete scam with zero contact information listed.
Not sure what's going to happen to Abraham, if anything though. At worst he'll be forced to give up the domain, but might possibly get paid for it. It isn't a crime to register a domain name, and I can't see Activision suing him or anything. Well, maybe I can, but I'd like to think not.
What do you guys think? Should any action be taken against Anthony Abraham, be it taking the domain or suing him? Furthermore, do you think the site will put even the slightest dent in Modern Warfare 3's sales? I'd imagine not.
Halo: Anniversary Details Released
The original Halo is getting an HD upgrade but will include more than just pretty graphics. It promises to represent "10 years of gaming evolution," which is a pretty tall order for one game.
What they actually mean by that is that you'll be able to switch from classic to updated graphics on the fly. Some arcade games have done this in the past, but nothing on this scale. The game will essentially be running two different sets of code – the old and the new. Frank O'Connor, developer, explained that you'll have "the updated presentational code, and the enemy and squad AI from the original. It's about reliving that experience of playing Halo 1 for the first time."
Initially the ability to switch was relegated to a pre-mission screen option, but apparently developers had a great time switching back and forth while playing. I agree with this sentiment, as I tend to do that with games that offer the option. It's nice to see what used to be and what is today. When the feature was presented there was a slight delay, but O'Connor assured everyone that it was just an early build and would be fixed.
The updated version will also include information terminals like the ones seen in the subsequent games. These terminals will help add depth to the story of the game as well as remind players what's going on in the world at the time. They do not, however, seem to add any new objectives to the game.
Honestly, I'll probably check this out. I've only played the third one and wasn't impressed. Still, I'm not quite as cynical as I was last time I played a Halo game, so maybe starting from the first game isn't a bad idea. I still don't expect to be blown away, but I'd settle for simply being entertained.
007 Gets Remade, Reloaded
Last year the Nintendo Wii got pretty much what fans have been begging for years for – a remake of the classic 007: Goldeneye first person shooter. It was the game that defined the genre for the modern era and while it hasn't aged terrifically (though I still play the original N64 version), it's still an important milestone in gaming. Both the Xbox 360 and PS3 will be getting updated ports of the updated port this fall, but it'll have even more new stuff. Up to you to decide if that's good or bad.
First off, the game doesn't star Pierce Brosnan but instead Daniel Craig, who is the most current James Bond. Don't go expecting a level by level remake, but instead "homages" to those levels. I know this is upsetting to some people, but honestly the levels just wouldn't work as well today to the mainstream audience. If you played them on the N64 then yeah, that's what you want. But for a new fan it might be a turn off.
Reloaded will run at 60fps and will feature motion control support for the Playstation Move, but not the Xbox Kinect. I am completely ok with that decision, by the way. You'll also get to play through some new missions called Mi6 Ops Missions. They are distinct from the main campaign and feature more varied environments that require you to complete a level in different ways. Multiplayer will also be improved featuring up to 16-player online games, new maps, weapons, characters and modes. For comparison, the N64 version only feature four player multiplayer and the Wii version supported 8 players. Guess the next remake will support 32-player online games.
News and Notes Ultimate Marvel Vs Capcom 3 was officially announced and will feature twelve new characters, new alternative costumes, evil versions of characters, and the usual pre-order bonuses. Amazon has it listed for $39.99 and a release date of November 15, 2011.
Street Fighter III: 3rd Strike Online Edition continues the tradition of long-winded Street Fighter remakes, releasing on August 24 for 1200MP. It will feature three different visual modes: Classic, arcade of widescreen HD. A new tournament mode supporting eight players is accompanied with a trials mode, as well as the ability to upload replays and live games to YouTube.
Despite Epic Games' Bulletstorm not being a moneymaker, though developer People Can Fly is not in any heat over it. Epic plans to continue working on the studio, as they were quite happy with the game itself.
Mortal Kombat will be seeing it's fourth DLC character released on August 9, and it will be none other than Freddy Krueger himself. Video below:
Signing Out
That does it for me this week. Be sure to check back next week as we discuss all of the latest Xbox 360 news, including releases, rumors and reviews! Also, don't forget to bookmark 411Mania! And a note to all of the Indie Game developers out there – if you have an upcoming title that's going to be released soon drop me a line at traceaber@gmail.com and let me know. I'll write a full review of your game to be posted on 411Mania.com, which is a great way to get your game promoted!
Goldeneye on the wii is one of the worst games I've played in the last 20 years. And no people, I'm not exaggerating
Posted By: Guest#8060 (Guest) on July 25, 2011 at 07:17 AM
Goldeneye on the wii is one of the worst games I've played in the last 20 years. And no people, I'm not exaggerating
Posted By: Guest#8060 (Guest) on July 25, 2011 at 07:17 AM
Agreed. Completely awful.
Posted By: Guest#8651 (Guest) on July 25, 2011 at 06:58 PM
"the A.I. used next generation will enable every pedestrian in a game like Grand Theft Auto to be able to have their own personality and act differently. Who would want to code all of that?"
It wouldn't really need to be that much work. For each input from the gameplay world (car crash nearby, gunfire nearby, etc) the AI reacts a set way. They could just give each reaction three or four possible reactions, each flagged a specific way. When a pedestrian is generated, randomly flag it.
If they want to get crazy, have random flags specific to pedestrian types. One set for normal civilians, another for criminals, another for undercover cops, etc... Then you'd really have truly random reactions, and maybe some additional gameplay elements like stopping pickpockets or running into undercover cops.
Posted By: RodOracheski (Guest) on July 25, 2011 at 10:09 PM
That's a good point Rod, and I agree. While daunting at first, it can become quite easy over time
Posted By: Guest#6179 (Guest) on July 26, 2011 at 12:47 PM
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