If you love classic games but feel the need to own things in order to bring some sense of stability to your life, GOG.com (that's Good Old Games) could be a good alternative to GameTap for you. The company recently announced that you'll be able to find out for yourself if you sign up for the beta before Sept. 8, at which point the gates will be opened to the masses, or at least the masses that signed up.
We love GOG.com's approach, with $5.99 and $9.99 DRM-free releases that you can download as many times as you want and don't need an internet connection to play, but we wish the selection was a bit better. But who knows? With a beefier roster GOG could be a real Steam contender.
Microsoft has long acknowledged that it considers $200 the "sweet spot" of console price points. Now that the manufacturer has finally hit that sweet spot with the new $199 Xbox 360 Arcade, we've been wondering exactly what kind of impact Microsoft can expect, historically, in its bottom line. Luckily, Matt Matthews over at Edge Online did all the heavy lifting for us over a year ago, looking at the effect of system pricing on sales numbers in the last generation of the console wars.
The results, as you can see above, are pretty clear. Only 13% of original Xbox systems sold at the $300 price point, and a plurality of sales came at an eventual floor of $150. Sony's PS2 similarly only sold a quarter of its eventual installed base at a price greater than $200 (Nintendo's Gamecube never sold for greater than $200).
Of course, history is an imprecise guide here. The original Xbox dropped under $200 within six months of its initial release, while the Xbox 360 went nearly three years (exactly 1018 days) before hitting the sweet spot. And while the original Xbox also had competition from Sony and Nintendo, it didn't have to compete with "premium" configurations offered by Microsoft itself. Still, we can't imagine being the first current-gen system to be available for under two Benjamins will hurt sales of the system. For now, the unanswerable question remains: Exactly how much will it not hurt?
No matter how many times Rare tries to tamp them down, rumors about a continuation of the Killer Instinct franchise continue to surface periodically. This time the rumors come from fan site MundoRare, which received the above photo of purported Killer Instinct 3 sheet music from an anonymous "someone at Microsoft."
Of course, this shot doesn't really prove anything -- that header at the top could just as easily read "ULTRA Punch Out!!" or "The MORE Fantastic Adventures of Dizzy" and work just as well. We're sure some photoshoppers out there will have their own ideas of what other big name sequels this photo could possibly confirm. What we're really interested in, though, is what this purported music actually sounds like. Anyone out there with some MIDI sequencer skillz want to help us out?
[Update: The community comes through! Check out the alleged theme as either a MIDI (thanks Dan H.) or a violin synth MP3 (via Giant Bomb)]
J!NX unveiled its new fall line of clothing (read: mostly geek shirts, and a few hoodies) during the clamorous din of PAX, and we thought we'd pass it along to you. They don't have much directly in the way of video gaming except for the old-school shirt above, but it's pretty darn 8-bitty.
So, it's you're looking for more geekwear, hit the link and start shopping. Although, are geek t-shirts about to hit the "enough already" stage? It seems like everywhere you go there's a "Wish You Were Beer," or a "Darth Vader Does It On The Dark Side" shirt. In the future, archaeologists will dig up people clothed in these shirts and think we were either highly evolved, or incredibly stupid.
Apparently convinced that it can no longer make loads of cash from a 13-year-old PC game, publisher EA has combined motivated marketing with measured magnanimity and released real-time strategy classic Command & Conquer: Red Alert for free. Where? Right at the bottom of this Red Alert 3 promotional page, which also dangles a free copy of Red Alert 2 in front of your nose. To get it, all you need to do is pre-order the game's third, deliciously cheesy installment.
And hey, if you're not sure what all this Conquer and Command stuff is, now's as good a time as any to shake Hitler by the hand and irrevocably wreck the timeline.
Within 15 minutes, it was all over. After Tycho and Gabe revealed this year's final PAX 2008 Omegathon challenge, 1987's Vs Excite Bike, finalists Fallout (blue rider) and Geko (red rider) went at each other with all they had. Unfortunately, the close competition didn't last, as Geko won every round to become this year's best Omeganaut, winning an expenses-paid trip to Tokyo Game Show in October.
Following Geko's winning victory, Tycho and Gabe picked up the Famicon controllers to challenge each other as the blue and red riders, respectively. The race was once again painted red, as Tycho kept overheating his bike and crashing after the ramps. He managed a victory in the 3rd round after knocking down Gabe twice in a row, but every other round went to Gabe and red rider, giving the Penny Arcade co-creator a two-win streak after his 5-2 Halo 3 victory last year. After the race was over, Tycho and Gabe stood up to thank the crowd, who promptly began to shuffle out and away from the now-concluded convention. Geko took the stage one final time, plushMarissa's bunny in tow, to talk to the few who stayed behind.
Stay tuned, we'll have more on the pre-Omegathon "puppet troupe" later today. Gallery quick-jump:
Well, this is certainly a great surprise for Labor Day. We're pretty sure one of these Virtual Console games needs no introduction or description. It just needs your money.
Clu Clu Land (NES®, 1-2 players, 500 Wii Points): Obviously the greatest game about a sea urchin ever conceived. Obviously.
Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars (Super NES, 1 player, 800 Wii Points): A little-known collaboration between small developer Square Enix (at the time an even tinier Squaresoft) and struggling console maker Nintendo. The game is virtually unknown in all parts of the world.
Let's destroy your dreams now: Our friend KennyL did not talk about BioShock 2. Instead, Ken Levine kicked off Penny Arcade Expo by talking about his journey from from sex-intrigued comic nerd to Hollywood scribe and back to geekdom (which may in fact be the future plot of BioShock 2, but that is as of now unconfirmed). Regardless, Levine's keynote was a hysterical, vulgar and self-deprecating tribute to puberty and gaming.
Levine broke up into three acts, each different parts of his life. In part one, Levine described how he discoverd the adult with science fiction, from his dream to sleep with The Scarlet Witch to his dream to sleep with Jessica-5 from Logan's Run (both the comic book character and the film version's actress). "I wanted to smoke cigarettes and listen to Deep Purple," he said. "I didn't want to go to bed [thinking about Battlestar Galactica], but I did."
Act 2 was on the discovery of tribes, and how how his Dungeons & Dragons group moved onto girls. "The truth is, my tribal brothers were simply ahead of me in the game." In Act 3, in which our friend is a failed movie scribe, Levine ends up at Looking Glass Studios (System Shock). The rest, as you know, is history.
In his near-final last words, Levine offers a thanks to Tycho and Gabe, "We are united by a common element. Its not the color of our skin or our ideology or where we come from. No it's that we're a giant bunch of fucking nerds," he said to a roaring applause. Listen to it yourself:
Can we make a formal request? Can Sony hire Itagaki to take Ken Kutaragi's old job? No, we know, Kaz technically has his old position, but Sony really needs someone out there saying crazy things about the PS3, and we think Itagaki's the man for the gig. Here's what he recently told 1UP: "I don't think that developing for the PS3 is hard at all. It was much harder developing for the Famicom. It's true. I mean, give someone who's developing for the PS3 a Famicom and see if they can make a game for it. They won't be able to. Yeah, that'll prove it. We'll bet a drink on it."
Bam! Crazy! Can you imagine getting that kind of stuff day in and day out from PS3 HQ? C'mon, Sony give that man whatever he wants ... and we do mean whatever.
It's a shame to see someone ditching their Nintendo 64 on the railroad tracks next to broken dreams and two empty Sprite bottles, especially when there's 17 versions of Rock Band 2to look forward to.
Nintendo's WiiWare service has apparently sparked a renewed interest in developing games with one pixelated foot rooted in the past. Following both Capcom and Konami's head start, Hudson has likewise decided to dip into its archives, returning with news to bring the Wii-make of its TurboGrafx-16 sci-fi pinball game, Alien Crush, to North America.
Descriptively titled Alien Crush Returns, the download was released today in Japan and is based on the 1988 classic, which itself is available on WiiWare's sister service. While a date for the game's North American debut has not yet been announced, Hudson notes the follow-up will again be played across two screens and an unspecified number of boards, each no doubt filled with galactic baddies with a lust for silver balls. Most interesting, however, is news that Alien Crush Returns will support two-player online play as well as include online leader boards, with Hudson promising multiple online tournaments for the pinball-obsessed to throw down with their E.T. crushing skills.
Sometimes being the World's Most Dedicated Video Game Blog isn't easy. Like when we have to read a long, dense response from Douglas Edric Stanley, the artist who created the controversial Space Invaders/World Trade Center piece that you've been reading about all week. Oh, and it's just barely 9 a.m. Joystiq Time (and did we mention it's long?). You know what that is? Dedication.
What'd we learn from the admittedly well-reasoned response? Well, in (very) short, Stanely's piece (see the video after the break) appears to be a way for him to understand, to contextualize what happened on that September morning, attempting to find some sense in a senseless act. While we appreciate Stanley's urge to add context to the inflammatory piece, it kind of makes us sad that he had to explain it at all. And, perhaps more troubling, it doesn't really answer the big moral question: Where's the promised four-player online co-op?
How nice of you to join us. Do you have any idea what time it is? We were expecting you weeks ago! Well, no matter, go and take your seat with the rest of the Virtual Console class so we can begin.
Samurai Shodown 2 (Neo Geo, 1-2 players, 900 Wii Points): SNK's 1994 follow up to Samurai Shodown finally slices and dices its way onto the Virtual Console this week, bringing back most of the original's weapon-wielding cast, as well as several newcomers vying for the opportunity to skewer anything that moves with a pointy blade and sharp Engrish wit.
Ys Book I & II (TurboGrafx 16 CD-ROM, 1 player, 800 Wii Points): Nihon Falcom's enhanced remakes of the first two titles in the Ys saga finally levels up for the US Virtual Console. Offering roguelike-style combat and music we still find ourselves humming at the dinner table, this is a download not to be missed by role-playing fans with eyes for the classics.
If you're still downtrodden at hearing that Activision won't be publishing the classic Sierra adventures of yesteryear, we have great, great news: The saints at AGD Interactive have just released the (free) VGA remake of Quest for Glory II: Trial By Fire, a labor of love in development off and on for nearly seven years.
Finally you'll get to meet Rakeesh, Uhura and Ad Avis in their 256-color glory, as well as get the chance to navigate a much simplified alleyway system. If that last bit didn't make you breathe a sigh of relief, you should click here immediately and get educated. If it did ... well, we assume we've already lost you to the "Source" link.
Taito has released a very official-sounding statement, charging Mr. Stanley and the exhibitors of the controversialSpace Invaders art installation, featuring a simulated attack on the World Trade Center, with unauthorized use of its intellectual property:
"Taito Corporation, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Square Enix Co., Ltd., today stated unequivocally that the 'Invaders!' installation by Douglas Edric Stanley and displayed at the Games Convention held in Leipzig, Germany was produced entirely without Taito's knowledge and that the use of the world-famous Space Invaders content was wholly unauthorized. The 'Space Invaders: Die Jubiläumsshow!' ('Space Invaders: the Anniversary Show') exhibition of the Computer Game Museum Berlin hosting the installation was likewise planned and presented without Taito's knowledge and authorization.
"Taito is seriously considering all available options -- including legal actions against the infringer and, if necessary, the Games Convention exhibitor involved -- in order to end this unauthorized and impermissible misuse of the Space Invaders content and to protect Taito's intellectual properties."
Posts in category retro
Can we make a formal request? Can Sony hire Itagaki to take Ken Kutaragi's old job? No, we know, Kaz technically has his old position, but Sony really needs someone out there saying crazy things about the PS3, and we think Itagaki's the man for the gig. Here's what he recently told 1UP: "I don't think that developing for the PS3 is hard at all. It was much harder developing for the Famicom. It's true. I mean, give someone who's developing for the PS3 a Famicom and see if they can make a game for it. They won't be able to. Yeah, that'll prove it. We'll bet a drink on it."
_thumbnail.jpg "i am 8-bit: 2008")
