B3yond the Report 2.17.09

Posted by Derek Robbins on 02.17.2009

In the latest edition of B3yond the Report, 411’s Derek Robbins discusses Metal Gear Solid 4 going Platinum, new info on the Harmonix Beatles game, Panasonic opening a 3D Blu-Ray lab, B3yond the Cinema, your weekly PSN update, B3yond the Tabloids, the One Man Water Cooler and more! Check out the full column for all the details!

Hello and welcome to B3yond the Report. This is a relatively news-light week, but let's see what we've got. Here we go!



New Info on the Harmonix Beatles Game

While I've been fairly critical of the music games in the past, it's really hard for me to deny that they are a blast. When you play them with friends, it's about impossible not to have fun. So, with that said, the news of a Rock Band Beatles game has me pretty excited. I mean, I love the Beatles and I love playing this kind of game with friends. Still though, the prevailing question is: "What will it be like?" Will you be touring around as a Beatles cover band? Well, Paul McCartney has our first bit of information!

It will feature different periods of the band — you get early days, Liverpool, then psychedelic, and on from there. It's very cool. And I like the idea that the game introduces kids to music, you know?

Yes, I agree. I'm glad younger kids get to experience Beatles music. After all, they are one of my favorite bands ever…and if I like them, it means you have to as well! I have great taste! Now, in regards to periods…this news has me happy. My problem with the Guitar Hero band games is that, while they feature a large number of tracks from the band they feature, they also have a lot of "like-sounding" stuff. From the looks of it, they just plan to make this game "just Beatles". This is great news because they may be able to fit all of their desired songs onto one game and not make a sequel! This could be potentially awesome.

I believe that these time periods will have you playing in various places that many associate with the Beatles, such as Abbey Road. Not that the level you play in really has a big effect on the game as a whole, but in a game like this…the ambiance can mean a lot. So, if they capture the mood just right and include superb locations we could have a very memorable rhythm game. Though, I'm not sure how a lot of people feel about rhythm games associated with primarily one type of music.

What I'm wondering is how the single player mode will work? The easy way out would be to just copy-and-paste what occurred in Rock Band 1 and 2, but for whatever reason I just don't see that happening. I think they're going to try and make this experience something unique, so maybe you'll get to re-live the entire Beatles Experience through their shoes? I know nobody will really give a crap about a rhythm game's story, but I think it'd be super neat to live out those experiences.

I just hope they include some of the solo songs they did as well. If Imagine doesn't make some sort of appearance in the game, I imagine I will be quite sad. Dahh…



Metal Gear Solid 4 to go Platinum

Are you a Playstation 3 owner who doesn't have Metal Gear Solid 4 yet? Well, you're probably the only one out there, but I'm sure there is at least one! Don't think Sony has given up on prying those last few dollars out of your hands though. You see, Konami sent out a press release saying that Metal Gear Solid 4 will be for sale as a platinum game on March 5th. This is great news for you, because if you're new to the industry, that means one of the finest games of this generation is about to get cheaper! In this economy, ya' gotta love stuff like that.

Don't think Sony is just slapping this tag on Metal Gear Solid 4 just because though. You need to sell a certain number of copies before you can get that honor. So, Metal Gear Solid 4's 4.5 million copies appears to be more than enough for Sony to apply this label. For those wondering why I am using the term "platinum" and not "Greatest Hits", is because this news really has only been confirmed for the other side of the pond. As of right now, no plans have been announced to make MGS 4 a greatest hit title in North America.

The Metal Gear series has been quite the successful one. At first I thought it was kind of an odd series to revive after the NES days, but as of today Metal Gear has grossed over 26.5 million dollars. While not exactly enough to purchase a replica of Shadow Moses Island, it's hardly something to sneeze at. Gamers really like their totally ridiculous stories and over-the-top action.

I'm really glad this game is getting a price cut. I don't know why some people would still be holding out on it, but I think it's a game that you at least need to try. While the ending for four kind of put a damper on the rest of the plot for me, if I just ignore that and focus on what happened before the credits started to roll, I probably enjoyed myself more in that game than I did with any other of last year, including my 2008 GOTY Fallout 3. That's why a game's ending is important when reviewing. If one can alter my opinion of the entire experience even slightly…it proves some importance.

The new price of MGS 4 will be ˆ 29.99 which equates to $38 over here. So if you haven't already, hop on board the Metal Gear train!



Panasonic Opens 3D Blu-Ray Labs

Sony was able to get people talking when they unveiled their stereoscopic 3D display at CES last month, but it also disappointed just as many people when they said that the tech would not be unveiled to the general public just yet. They cited the need for the proper hardware to run it. You know, because not everyone is super up to date with technology it seems. Well, luckily for those of you who ARE ready for this technology, Panasonic is here to the rescue!

The company is opening its own 3D Blu-Ray lab which has a goal of unleashing 3D Full HD to the general public in 2010. So, really, you could be watching movies in full-3D while still waiting for Final Fantasy XIII to come out! Joy!. Panasonic will be working with Hollywood studios in making 3D Full HD (Henceforth referred to as 3D FHD) titles which means that 3D FHD video games can't be terribly far behind. How exciting that could be!

Conveniently enough Panasonic will also be releasing the hardware needed to run this stuff. They'll be making a Plasma 3D FHD home theater system, a 3D-ready digital cinema projector (Theatrical Dolby 3D system) with a 380-inch screen theater for 3D HD picture quality evaluation, and a 3D ready MPEG-4 AVC High Profile encoder. So basically, if you're a movie junkie who wants even better picture quality, I imagine that Panasonic and you are about to get more richly acquainted.

This means that, no, the Playstation 3 could not run this crazy new technology. So don't be expecting Final Fantasy XIV to jump right off the screen at you. I think I mentioned sometime last year that the Playstation 3 was capable of moving into the 3D realm, but apparently this move proves that point wrong. If you need entirely new hardware to do all of this…well, it must be pretty advanced. I wonder if Sony or Microsoft will pay Panasonic for the technology and implement it into their next console? After all, Sony has been working on just that, so would it be a surprise to see it in the Playstation 4? What about the Wii's sequel? Even my dark soul will admit that a 3D FHD waggle fest would be awesomely fun.

I have to question whether getting this out to the public is a great idea though. The economy is pretty dour right now and we've been pretty reluctant to embrace the Blu-Ray. Bringing in yet another technology to people who don't really know the difference between Blu-Ray and DVDs is kind of a hard sell to me. Yeah, it's most likely going to look phenomenal, but how will you be able to sell it to the average person? This should be pushed back a couple of years until we're either more stable or…the Blu-Ray technology completely flops. I just don't see this being a success, even if it's in the next X-Box and Playstation units.

Still though, it can get ya' thinking. 3D FHD gaming would be an absolute blast for everyone involved.



Your Weekly PSN Update

Last week was kind of meh outside of the downloadable games. Can this week improve on it?


Qore
• Qore Annual Subscription (US$ 24.99)
• Qore Episode 09: February, 2009 (US$ 2.99)
PULSE
• Pulse 2/12 Edition (free) (also available from the PSP storefront)

Downloadable Games
• Flower (US$ 9.99)
Add-On Game Content
• NBA Live 09 All Star Weekend (free)
• LUMINES Supernova Classic Pack (US$ 4.99)
• Disgaea 3
o Disgaea 2 Sacrebleu Set with Free Theme (US$ 5.99)
o Priere (US$ 1.99)
o Tink (US$ 1.99)
o Yukimaru (US$ 1.99)
• Rock Band
o "Creepin' Up the Backstairs" - The Fratellis (US$ 1.99)
o "Flathead" - The Fratellis (US$ 1.99)
o "Henrietta" - The Fratellis (US$ 1.99)
o The Fratellis Pack 01 (US$ 5.49)
• Guitar Hero World Tour
o "Wonderwall" - Ryan Adams (US$ 1.99)
o "New Slang" - The Shins (US$ 1.99)
o "Drive" - Incubus (US$ 1.99)

PlayStation Store for the PSP

Game Videos (Free)
• Pulse 2/12 Edition (Free) (also available from PS3 storefront)
• LocoRoco 2 trailer


Ah, so that crazy Qore is still running eh? It's a shame, what a shame. After seeing the free December issue, I'm really not sure paying money for this sort of thing appeals much to me. Still, if you're interested, you can get that or a year's subscription for what seems like a reasonable price. I suppose. For those wondering about Pulse, it's a free guide to the happenings of PSN. So, really, it's like a visual B3yond the Report. Reading is for squares anyhow.

If you believe the hype surrounding Flower, it could very well be one of the best PSN titles released yet. You see, in this game you navigate through the dreams of flowers. Your method of control is using the six axis to guide your pedals through the wind. Apparently the game is a very beautiful one – both in atmosphere and in visual qualities – so it's probably worth a shot. Thatgamecompany apparently did a nice job and it's only $9.99. So why not?

The free NBA DLC makes me happy, but the rest of it makes me sigh like usual. First, let's talk about Disgaea 3 DLC. Again. Look, I loved Disgaea 3. It may not have been one of the best games of last year, but as a tactical RPG junkie it gave me everything that I wanted it to give me, if not more. When I heard there was DLC for the game, I thought maybe we could experience a couple of new chapters of gameplay. You know, that'd be nice, playing through more story. I would have jumped right on board! The fact is, they're charging $2.00 for playable characters. Sorry, that's just too much. Unless the characters do something besides fight, the odds of me buying one of these is ridiculously low. Though, I do really love Prier…

The Lumines DLC is probably alright. I guess you can't go wrong with even more trippy, weird music. Hey, don't get the wrong idea, the game had good music…but man, it got a little weird sometimes. The other music game DLC is pretty vacant this week. Three songs from each game and only one decent one amongst the group (The one by Incubus). I guess it's nice that they're taking a break from releasing five or so in rapid succession, but at least include some better music, eh?

It's also kind of sad to see the PSP store without much there. It's interesting that there was like a week where I thought Sony had plans for the PSP store, but if you look over the past several weeks I guess that wouldn't be the case. This week you can watch an episode of Pulse or you can watch a trailer for Loco Roco 2. Baaaah, is that it? You know what would make a killing on PSP PSN? Re-release some dreamcast fighters over the service. Do that and I promise you Sony, my money is yours.

Yow, pretty shitty week. Maybe next time. Flower is the lone shining point.



B3yond the Tabloids

There's a rumor going around that Bend Studio is developing a fifth installment in the long-dead Syphon Filter franchise. Really now? Apparently they release job listing wanting to find a games tool programmer with experience on both the PS3 and X-Box 360. Conveniently PCB Productions, a digital content studio in L.A., posted facial motion capture credits for Syphon Filter 5. Due to this, a lot of people believe Syphon Filter 5 is coming. Well, let's hope.

Journalists, fans and bloggers will be interviewing the director of "The Watchmen" as well as the artist of the graphic novel Dave Gibbons over Playstation Home. The interview will be broadcast with lots of scenes from the movie. This is apparently part of Sony's plan to hype the up-coming movie. Hey, if HOME can give you more access to movies you really want to see, then great. I support this.

What's better than owning a copy of Resident Evil 5? Owning a copy of Street Fighter 4. Less than 24 hours from now I will have my own! Owning Resident Evil 5 and ALSO getting a cool little sand globe with it. If you reserve the game at Game Crazy, you get a free sand globe that you can proudly display wherever the hell you want. I wish I had a game crazy in town, suddenly. I'll just have to settle for my Ryu headband that comes with Street Fighter I guess.

Well, there was this guy who proposed to his girlfriend using a Little Big Planet level. She said yes, but that's not the end of the story. The two will be holding their wedding, yes, their WEDDING over the game and broadcasting it for anyone who wishes to see it. That's cute and all but really? Here's what the guy said if you wish to know: Remember the level I made where I got engaged with a LittleBigPlanet level? Well now I made a level inviting you all to our wedding in LBP! We are going to have the actual ceremony inside of little big planet with a level on April 11th. You will be able to check out the level online, and the ceremony on a video come April 11th. So yeah, April 11th.
More instances of Activision being fucking Activision. Word on the street is that they're mulling over whether they should sue EA over picking up the property that they dropped, Brutal Legend. Activision doesn't actually want to make the game due to the fact that they fear it won't make as much money as something like Call of Duty, but they don't want EA to make the game either. That's…that's just wacky. Sorry that somebody wanted to make an original game, Activision. Not everybody is okay with just dumping sequels everywhere. And yes, I do realize the irony in this situation. EA has changed though!

Bad news: Street Fighter IV hasn't sold well in Japan. Good news: That's because it's sold out. Apparently Capcom can't keep up with the demand for the game and literally, they have no copies of the game left. That's kind of wacky. They did say they have some in storage that will be shipped out on Monday, but currently…it's impossible to find in Japan. Well, err, I hope that doesn't happen over here. I have my copy reserved, the collector's edition no less, so I damn well BETTER get mine.

Remember the first God of War III trailer that we saw? The universal reaction to that one was: "Meh". Well, well, well…now it appears that we're all eating crow because the most recent trailer unveiled is flat out awesome. If you want to see it (and for whatever reason haven't already), scroll on down to the cinema section for your fix.

Sony continues their assault against the X-Box this week. You see, one of the most obvious selling points of the PS3 is the fact that their online play is free. Essentially, Sony says that you pay $50 to even get online with the 360. Why not pay $50 on PSN and get $50 worth of actual content? Decent argument, sure, but when your rival is cheaper by more than $50, maybe you should…not talk about it? Anyhow, here's the stuff they tell you to get for your fifty:

• PAIN ($9.99)
• Elefunk ($4.99)
• Guitar Hero Classic Rock Track ($6.25)
• LittleBigPlanet™ Metal Gear Solid® - Level Kit ($5.99)
• Episode of Afro Samurai | Season 1 ($1.99)
• The Dark Knight Movie ($14.99)
• Samurai Sword Rack, Diesel Tiamallo Blue Hooded Top, Ligne Roset Alster Chair for PlayStation Home ($4.47)
- or -
• Super Street Fighter® II Turbo HD Remix ($14.99)
• Burnout™ Paradise (Full Retail Game) ($19.99)
• The Hoff Character for PAIN ($1.99)
• LittleBigPlanet™ Ryu of Street Fighter® II ($1.99)
• Robot Trooper and Basketball Boots for PlayStation Home ($.98)
• Savage Moon ($9.99)

I'll take option B, thanks.

Here is some Square Enix news to end the tabloids section. It turns out that the delay of Dragon Quest IX (due to some sort of bug found in the game) could in turn delay the release of Final Fantasy XIII. Nothing is confirmed, so don't worry about that. Just…what if the game slid to a US release date of 2011? Jees louise that's a long wait. As sad as that is, apparently Square Enix means to mend your tears with some exciting news! They've acquired Eidos. Does this mean that their talent will be leant to a new Tomb Raider game? That could be interesting. I am feeling optimistic, hehehe.


B3yond the Cinema



Here's that trailer I mentioned. Doesn't it look awesome?



If you're not sold on Flower yet, maybe this will do the trick.



Resident Evil 5 footage. El Gigante is back I guess. He doesn't look much different than his RE 4 brother though.



MLB 09 The Show is a game apparently you guys like. I still vastly prefer MVP 2005, but hey! It's not about me!



For the final time: Your weekly Street Fighter IV dose. This week it's Chun-Li and Gen closing us up. I'm sad to see this part of the cinema section go, but on the other hand I'm verrrrry glad that SF IV is coming out tomorrow. Conflicted feelings, eh? Well, be sure to get the game on the PS3 so you can play me! Imagine the crazy fun we could have. You just know it'd be fun to kick the writer of B3yond the Report's ass.

Special Note: There is no Water Cooler this week. I started writing B3yond the Report too late tonight and don't have the time to sew one together. Don't worry though! It will be back for next week. Better yet, I'm working on a new little section (If you've ever heard of "Let's Plays" you'll know what I'm talking about) that I think you may enjoy. Not sure if that's debuting next week though. That said, no Water Cooler this week. Sorry for the inconvenience and thank you for understanding. Next week, expect it to be Street Fighter IV opinions based feature. I mean, God knows I've been waiting to play that game for ages…I deserve some reaction space!

B3yond the Mail



Well, let's see what y'all had to say regarding last week's column eh?

Mike Minotti of the Exploding Barrel Podcast wants to check in with his thoughts on FF IX:

You know that I was a big fan of FFIX. It was easily the best looking PS1 game I've ever played, with a traditional battle system that worked great, an amazing score (one of Nobou's best), and a surprisingly good plot.

A lot of FFIX's stigma comes from back when it was announced on the same day as FFX and FFXI. A lot of people just sort of skipped over IX and waited for X. Their mistake. I think as time passes, FFIX will be looked back on more fondly

You're probably onto something there. Honestly, when you look at the way the game was built up, it almost felt like an afterthought. Obviously, having played the finished product, this was not the case…but I could see how a lot of people might have decided to avoid the game. I hadn't owned a Playstation 1 for a terribly long time when FF IX came out, so it was a game I absolutely needed to own. I loved VII and VIII and needed some IX lovin'. In my opinion, it's the apex of the PS 1 library. You're right, it is the best looking PS1 game out there. Sure, the graphics are a little blurry, but they don't even look that bad today.

Regarding the score: as far as the PS1 is concerned, the only one that compares is Chrono Cross. Chrono Cross, for those who don't know, has probably the single greatest OST in video game history. FF IX's soundtrack doesn't seem to get the same love that VII's does, which is a shame. I guess people like to fawn over Latin.

Tim continues this FF IX chain of conversation.

Final Fantasy IX is by far the most underrated FF there is. I have no idea why as it's better than VIII in every single regard. I think it's the 3rd best FF behind VI and VII. The main characters in IX were so deep with Vivi being one of the greatest videogame characters ever created. However some of them like Freya don't get any development in the second half of the game sadly and Ammarant is just horrible.

My only problem with IX, other than the card game which I hated, was that the whole thing was far too simIlar to VII. The battle system, the characters, the plot. People want a VII remake- well they already got one called Final Fantasy IX.

However IX is from start to finish- pure fun. It boggles my mind people prefer the VIII, X and even XII over it. Crazy people.

You're right about it being better than VIII. While I like FF VIII, the game has an awful lot of faults. Seriously, it features one of the single freaking worst plot twists in video game history. Wait, you mean you guys knew each other the whole time? Fabulous. In regards to the characters: I find it ironic that you mention Freya. I agree with your point, but she seems to be a character that is universally loved. Kind of a shame, but…I guess I can't judge how people evaluate characters.

You hated the card game? Man, I really loved it. I was super addicted. It's a shame you don't. At least you admit that it's fun from start to finish. It's one of the most replayable Final Fantasies out there. That's saying a lot, because getting someone to replay a 20+ hour game can be like pulling teeth out.

aussiegamer clarifies something for me:

Dead Rising on PSN? don't count on it.

THQ put Saints Row 2 on the PS3 despite the original Saints Row not being on it, so it does happen.

Also I can't see Mass Effect being ported to PS3 despite rumors that the sequals will be multiplatform

Well, the reason I think Dead Rising will find its way to the PS3 is because Capcom, generally speaking, is pretty good about this sort of thing. Remember how Resident Evil 4 would never, ever leave the Gamecube? I see what you're saying and there is precedent, but I think Capcom's un-dieing love of money will come into play here.

Regarding Mass Effect, I think you're probably right. They could decide to release the game at $19.99, but I don't see that happening. That's the only way it would sell, too. You know, since that's how much the PC version costs. We'll wait and see. I think Mass Effect's story is pretty important though, so it'd be weird to see them just not port it to PS3.

Tito continues this much loved FF IX love train:

Final Fantasy IX was awesome beacause it was old school. From Vivi as a main Character to the numerous references to all the old games ( When Garnet/Dagger jumps out of the castle window, she's dressed like an old school white mage) I personally put this game above VIII for overall enjoyment. I haven't played it in years but I've been meaning to go back to it one of these days.

Favorite Scene : Bahamut laying siege to Alexandria

You really need to go back and replay the game. There are a lot of neat little touches you may not notice on your first play through. In my opinion, FF IX is kind of a love letter to old school Final Fantasy fans. I am glad you agree that it's above VIII and I think at this point in time, a lot of people would agree with you. I think as a whole, VIII was a black eye on the franchise. I like the game, I do, but dear lord does it have some problems.

Also, that is a VERY good scene. One of the most memorable. My favorite scene is still the ending though. It made me cry. The fact a game can elicit those emotions from me is nothing short of impressive.

Mark Salmela concludes the comments this week:

Derek, as someone who hates RPG's *and you*, I must say that I am in love with Valkyria Chronicles. The game freaking rocks! That is all.

H-how could you hate me? So terrible! I am very pleased that you saw the light on Valkyria Chronicles though. I thought I would never see the day when you played the game! SEGA, are you reading this? Come on, give me a letter of thanks for all the pimping I did for that game. I was chronically wearing the color purple. I want to love you Segaaaa!

As always, if you wish to leave me feedback, simply comment down in the comments section or send me an e-mail at [e-mail]. Every bit of feedback helps me become better at what I do, which is a good thing. Thanks for everything. Sorry about the watercooler again, but no worries. I won't start so late next week and we'll be getting that sucker right back.

The 411mania Empire


Joe Roche writes The Full-Circle 360 News Report

Theo Fraser writes the Nintendophiles

Chris Vicari writes The PC-Spotlight

I write The 10th Hour

Drew writes Three Player Co-op

AJ and Mike Minotti voice the Exploding Barrel Podcast

Well, that's it. I'm out.

'til the crossroads