The Negative Edge News Report 09.13.06
Posted by Tommy Coloma on 09.13.2006
Microsoft's new gameplan in Japan, Kutaragi's admission, Apple's first attack and more!
I was reading Jamar Delucha's The Vintage DVD Review the other day and I noticed that something that he wrote sort of relates to what I've been working on for the past few weeks. Basically, during the intro to his review for Ong-Bak: The Thai Warrior, Jamar gave a definition of the word "vehicle." The Hollywood definition he used is as follows - A "vehicle" is used to propel a star into the spotlight and is basically an exhibition for said actor's talents. If you've been paying attention, you've probably noticed that my news column has been pretty inconsistent as far as quality goes. Sometimes I'll have a lot of content and sometimes it just looks like I threw everything together at the last minute (or at least that's how I see it). My excuse is that I am working on my own vehicle of sorts. If I haven't mentioned it already, I program for a living. Unfortunately, all of the projects that I have worked on are fairly boring looking educational programs - nothing that really shows what I can do. So, for the past few weeks I've been designing and putting together projects that actually show what I am capable of doing. This column has sort of fallen by the wayside as I've dedicated more and more of my time to making something that's actually decent. So, if you've noticed that my column has been a little lacking in the quality department, now you know why. I should be done soon and after that I can devote more time to making this column whole again.
On the 2nd of November Microsoft will start selling the Xbox 360 Core Pack along with Ninety-Nine Nights and Project Gotham Racing 3 for around $250 in Japan. The system is currently only being sold over there in the Premium Pack configuration. Microsoft will also start selling the hard drive, universal remote, and wireless headset separately.
If Microsoft was actually paying attention, they'd know that Ridge Racer 6 sold way more than Project Gotham Racing 3 in Japan. It would have been better if they had made a deal with Namco to have RR6 as a pack-in instead. Is Microsoft just trying to get rid of all those unsold stacks of PGR3? I guess it's better than burying them in the desert...
Ken Kutaragi Almost Redeems Himself
After it was announced that the PS3 would be delayed in Europe until March, Ken Kutaragi made the following admission - "If you asked me if Sony's strength in hardware was in decline, right now I guess I would have to say that might be true."
It's a start, but he doesn't completely give in and admit that things aren't going exactly as Sony had planned. How hard is it to say "we know that we're screwing up but now that we realize that we make mistakes we're willing to do whatever we can to make things better" or something along those lines?
Apple Sends Microsoft A Message
Fifth generation iPod owners can now download Tetris, Mahjong, Mini Golf, Pac-Man, Cubis 2, Bejeweled, Zuma, Texas Hold'em, and Vortex from iTunes for $4.99 each.
The upcoming competition between the iPod and the Zune can only mean good things for the consumer. For one thing, the price will (hopefully) be driven down for both products. Also, the quality of both should improve quickly as both companies compete with each other. I just hope that Apple creates a better control scheme if they intend to make gaming a significant part of the iPod. Tetris on a Click-Wheel looks like a nightmare waiting to happen.
I played the first game a lot when I was younger. Too bad I couldn't afford to buy the rest of the games in the series. Well... Now I can. Maybe I should fork over some $$$ and see what I was missing...
Though I've read a lot about the Dopefish, I actually don't remember seeing it in the game. I think that it was in one of the sequels that I never got a chance to play.
I was going to post this last week but it was out of stock at the time. Right now it seems that Play-Asia is continually getting more stock in so I figured that I should post it for those that don't mind waiting. According to CAG, a new shipment is supposed to come in on Thursday or Friday. If you order now you might be among those that get their orders shipped by the end of the week.
Alright. Time for more fun with zeroes and ones. Oh yeah!
