More Red Steel images(updated)

Game is looking good, I think the detail in the faces is best part so far. I would like to see another level though, it seems we have been stuck in the same one since the beginning. Still looking forward to it!

Link

My Saturday Comic-Con 2006 trip

Well besides being 113 degrees in the inland valleys(where I live in San Diego), it was a really good day. I took a drive downtown to the Comic-Con at the San Diego Convention Center. I Got to meet Charles Martinet(voice of Mario) and a Nintendo programer that works on translating all Pokemon games to english. I met some Playboy Playmates too.....they were nice.

I said "hey bro, where's the Wii?" The programer(forgot his name) jokingly told me that they didn't want to take away the business from all the other vendors there. Makes sense because if E3 is any indication, the Wii would have caused an uproar and no one else would have gotten any attention.

Charles Martinet was busy signing autographs to a huge line of fans(mostly kids) but he(kidding) told me that he wished the Wii was there at Comic-Con, it would've made his life easier! He was a really nice guy, and his voice had a slight high pitch to it, so you can see that its no problem for him to do the Mario voice because of it.

The Playmates I met were Tiffany Taylor(below), and Angel Boris(top). I don't need to tell you that they were hot because you already know that. I felt sorry for Angel because someone stole one of her Playboy mags that she was selling. She was sweet enough though to let me take a picture of her. Tiffany was nice too, but she didn't have much time to talk to me since she was being horded by guys from all angles. I took some pics of some other girls too.

I had a great time!

Important news to those who use Myspace!

MYSPACE CAN GIVE YOU SPYWARE

"Those who fell victim were bombarded with pop-up adverts and had their net browsing habits monitored by the malicious software.
Reports suggest the advert has been running on MySpace for about a week.
The discovery of the rogue advert is only the latest in a series of security problems MySpace has suffered.
Security lapse
Only those who use MySpace via Microsoft's Internet Explorer browser and have not patched - or fixed - that program against the so-called Windows MetaFile (WMF) bug are vulnerable to the rogue advert.
The WMF bug was discovered in January 2006 and Microsoft produced a downloadable fix for it soon after. However, not all Windows users will have installed the patch and many people are likely to be vulnerable.
US computer security firm iDefense discovered the dangerous banner advert that has been seen on many MySpace pages. The code hidden in the advert exploits the WMF bug which preys on a weakness in the way Windows handles images.
On an unpatched browser the dangerous advert silently installs programs that pipe pop-up adverts to users and watches what they do online.
Digital detective work by iDefense and reported by the Washington Post uncovered computer servers which logged how many times the adware was installed.

read the rest here at bbc news

This is pretty scary if you ask me. I have a Myspace account, but I've never had spyware installed from it. I will either close the account or examine this closer with it. Just giving you guys a heads up on this.

*Now false?*Crash Bandicoot confirmed for Wii in 2007

" Vivendi has announced that Crash Bandicoot has found a home on the Wii, and will be gracing the console at some point in 2007. What Vivendi wouldn’t talk about was the gameplay involved in the next Bandicoot outting. As we all know, Vinvendi is overseeing the Crash Boom Bang project on the DS, a Mario Party style game using Crash Bandicoot characters. A comment was made stating that a party type game would work extremely well on the Wii, but that wasn’t necessarily the shape the next game would take. I eagerly await more info on the next Crash outting, and will keep my fingers crossed for a true next-gen sequel to the platforming series."

Link

I liked the first game on PS1 but kinda lost track of the series after that; Goldeneye and Perfect Dark took up a good 4 years of my gaming life back in the late 90's and early 00's. I say the more games the better. Good news.

Update from IGN Wii:

The rumor started shortly after a Vivendi-held European games summit. Within hours, an overseas website was reporting that Crash Bandicoot would hit Wii sometime in 2007. We called Vivendi for clarification and it turns out that the rumor is false. During a question and answer session, a Vivendi representative was apparently asked about next generation development and replied loosely that the publisher was looking into all consoles. The rumor snowballed from there. A Vivendi spokesperson flatly denied the Crash Bandicoot Wii rumor, calling it "rubbish."

*Announcement* My Profile will be updated with Friend code

I will update my profile later tonight with my Mario Kart DS friend code, and Metriod will follow. Keep an eye out for it.

Interesting Red Steel comment

An intriguing Red Steel multiplayer detail recently surfaced during GamePro's interview with Ubisoft creative director Nicolas Eypert. When asked about the game's multiplayer, Eypert had this to say:

"[You'll] have up to four players. If they play together in split screens we can only say that the fight will not be only on screen."

While the 4-player figure is underwhelming by today's standards, we're certainly curious about the off-screen activity Eypert has hinted at. Cross-room shootouts? Mock swordfights? Could be groundbreaking ... could be awful -- it will most certainly be embarrassing.

Link

Fighting off-screen? How could they do that one? Interesting to say the least.

Another new button on Wii remote?

Link

This is from the August Nintendo power, and it shows a little blue button the side of the Wii remote. What could this be for? Ignite your lightsaber? It could just be another option for new functions we don't know about yet. Any guesses?

"My Dog ate my DS"

Link

I don't normally post things about the DS, but this was too funny to pass up. Notice how it still works......

*Rumor* Square making a Secret of Mana MMO for Wii?

These are a list of rumors from the latest issue of EGM, the mag is not out yet but a good source confirms that they are real. Read on:

-Nintendo will release an earthbound compilation for the DS, complete with touch screen functionality
- Square Enix is working on a MMO Mana game for the Wii
- If Dragon Quest DS (Joker) and Dragon Quest Wii sell well, DQ9 will go on the Wii

Link

Could these rumors that are supposed to be rumors in the latest EGM be true? I'm not too familar with Dragon Quest, but I am with the Secret of Mana games. Lets just hope.

New Project H.A.M.M.E.R. screens

Click on title for link

I am using Mozilla for my browser to post now. Internet Explorer just was not working for posting pics for me. Now, I've seen these pics on both Mozilla Firefox and Internet Explorer and they look way the heck better with Mozilla, they look like crap on IEX.

This looks like the E3 build still, I don't really see much improvement in these pics. Not bad though.

Call of Duty 3 impressions and very little Wii info

Read on and just look at all the incredible Wii info, you won't believe your eyes:

Wii controls are still being ironed out at this point, but it was mentioned that aiming would likely be controlled by moving around the Wii-mote. Battle Action sequences will also take advantage of the Wii's unique control aspects, though specifics were not revealed.

Read the whole thing here

MY THOUGHTS:

On IGN Wii's homepage they have the Call of Duty 3 title to click on for impressions. When you get inside the story you see that you must be a paid IGN Insider to see the details and "screens" of the Wii version of the game. What you don't realize is that the screens are old and have been on the internet from magazine scans from weeks past. Whats more is that the info on the Wii version that IGN has is bonehead at best. The Wii will use the remote to aim and shoot in COD3. Really? I didn't figure it would, I thought we would just use our Gamecube controllers....

This is a very bad and horrible trick to those who paid to join just to see something they already saw and to hear something they already knew. We all know that the game will use the Wii remote! How painfully awful this is for anyone who bought into IGN's latest bull.

Its not just a fluke that it was Insider only, it was planned and executed well by them because they knew that hungry Wii fans would take the bait.

Shame and disgust to them.

How do you feel as a Nintendo fan by this?

Edit: IGN Wii has now lifted the "Insider" stuff and now you can see the entire article with the screens. A little late though if you ask me.

2nd console of choice? Why not 1st?

"As I rush off for the bus again, I'll leave you with this thought. The Wii is going to possibly dominate the gaming market if it appears in the way we just saw it do today. You'll be able to purchase two wiis for the price of a PS3 and that alone is going to put Wii in a very strong position in the market. Expect the claws to fully come out though and Sony/Microsoft to defend themselves. This isn't over yet, but Nintendo have come from nowhere to everywhere with a very firm hand on the future of our video gaming. Watch this space for more news."

Link

That was from the latest UK publication regarding the Wii after they got a chance to play it for themselves. Everyone keeps saying that people will buy the Wii second, but do you really think people are going to buy the PS3 first? With that price I don't see why.

New Red Steel pics

Link

I'm not sure if this is a new build of the game or just much better quality screen shots of the same version at E3. Either way I think it looks a lot better than the stuff we've been seeing of it lately. Here's hoping Ubisoft keeps up the good work and gives us an option for the right control that fits each one of us for the sword fighting.

Sony: Trying to sell Wine to people that only buy Coke?

"DFC Intelligence, which provides game industry research, has released a new article citing the possibility that Sony could go from first to last place in home console market share. The article claims that despite Sony's strong brand awareness and current market position, the launch purchase price of $500-$600 combined with a lack of "killer application" game titles could hurt the company's chances of continued success.From the report: "It is our view that the PlayStation systems have been successful not because of hit software but mainly because of software diversity and third-party support... With the PlayStation 3 the company is going after the high-end power user.

It is almost as if Coca-Cola not only decided to go with a new formula, but also decided to exit the low brow soft drink business to go into high-end wines."The research group concludes that if Sony wishes to drive unit volume in 2007, it needs to not only cut the PS3's price, but cut it drastically before there could be a new market leader."

Link

This article makes a lot of sense to me. Sony seems to be stepping out of the "everyone can play" market and going into a upper class market that is really not mainstream at all. Sony does need to lower the price if they don't want to be last this go around. This leaves the door wide open for the Wii to sell this year and the next. Market leader? If the Wii does become it, it will do it without people even realizing it.

PC owners planning on buying only a Wii take note

"A PC version of Gears of War has been confirmed by Epic Games, possibly featuring some bonus content not seen in the Xbox 360 version. However, with the PC port not taking place until after the Xbox 360 version's release (expected in late 2006), its likely that we won't see Gears on the PC until 2007." -BeyondUnreal

Link to beyond Unreal

Well now its confirmed, Gears of War a 360 exclusive no more. It seems that most Xbox 360 games get ported to the PC eventually, even the Halo series. This is good news for us PC owners who might have been thinking about buying a 360 because of this game. Alot of PC owners want the Wii because of the exclusive games and new control, the Xbox360 has the same games as the PC but worse control(no mouse). So this announcment should make choosing this holiday easier for those ones.