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Valve Announces Left 4 Dead DLC

Zach Lott — Thu, 05 Feb 2009 18:37:47 -0600

News has arrived via 1up that Valve has announced that DLC for 360 and PC shooter Left 4 Dead is in the works, offering a new "Survival" mode, two new campaigns for Versus mode, and, if you're a PC gamer, the ability to create custom campaigns with the Source Software Development Kit.

In addition, a Critic's Choice Edition of the game will include the content and will arrive on store shelves around the time of the release. Prices for the content or what to expect from the new mode and campaigns aren't currently available, but we'll keep you updated.

Rockstar Releases Second GTA IV PC Patch

Zach Lott — Mon, 26 Jan 2009 10:29:27 -0600

After facing harsh criticism over the PC version of Grand Theft Auto IV's bugginess at launch, Rockstar has put together a second patch that, among other things, offers graphical and crash fixes while correcting errors with the first patch.

You can grab the patch at Rockstar's website or by signing into Games for Windows Live. Follow the link to check out the patch notes.

Free Radical to Close Down (Update)

Zach Lott — Thu, 18 Dec 2008 13:36:06 -0600

Bad news for those of you who are looking forward to TimeSplitters 4: GamesIndustry.biz is reporting that Free Radical, the developer behind the TimeSplitters series, Second Sight, and Haze (pictured above), is closing its doors.

The report claims that staff arrived at work only to find the doors locked with instructions to meet at a hotel for a final meeting, and office phones aren't being answered.

Also, the unnamed project that Free Radical was working on, believed to be Star Wars: Battlefront 3, may have been sent to Rebellion, the developer of the PSP Battlefront game. TimeSplitters 4's status is currently unclear.

Since an official announcement hasn't been made about the closing, file this one in the "rumor" category until more information is available.

Update: Confirmed.

Persona 2: Eternal Punishment Now Available...Again

Shiva Stella — Thu, 13 Nov 2008 14:07:06 -0600

In celebration of Persona 4's ever-nearing release date, Atlus has reprinted limited copies of Persona 2: Eternal Punishment in the original PlayStation format; rest assured that it will also play on your PlayStation 3 (or so I'm told). You can only pick up this gem at Amazon.

The cost is a bargain at $39.99, which should qualify you for free shipping if you're on a holiday budget (which should be all of you given the current state of our market economy). This may also be a good time to spend those $10 gift cards that Amazon has been giving out with preorder deals lately.

I would like to take this moment to laugh at everyone selling their copy on ebay at outrageous prices--this is $300 you will not be getting.

Valve Unleashes Left 4 Dead Intro

Tim Grube — Sat, 01 Nov 2008 21:18:14 -0500

Valve has released the introduction video for its zombie shooter Left 4 Dead. Left 4 Dead will is expected to hit the Xbox 360 and PC on November 18.

The demo is scheduled for release on November 11. Expect more soon...

Rumor: PS4/Wii HD Planned for 2011.

Ryan Fulton — Wed, 01 Oct 2008 17:41:01 -0500

I never thought I would say this, but I think technology is moving too fast. Perhaps I'm growing old, but it seems as if this generation has hardly learned to crawl and already there are rumors of the next generation of consoles due in 3 years.

Within the last 24 hours, rumors for both the PS4 and Wii HD have surfaced on the web. Just for safety's sake, they're rumors, again, rumors. That being said, it's not implausible that both are interested in getting onto the market first after seeing how much having a first place spot helped the Xbox 360 and PS2 (Let's ignore Dreamcast for argument's sake.)

The PS4 is said to use a similar cell architecture with slight improvements and will be ditching the faster XDR RAM in favor of a more conventional form of RAM. Supposedly Sony has been mentioning the proposed specs to third parties. Other than that details are scant.

The Wii HD rumor is slightly more fleshed out citing rising R&D expenditures and various other tidbits. The tech end of it leaves much to be desired.

Maybe I'm just being cynical, but I'm not sure these tired bones can hope to keep up at this rate. The world seems to have gotten itself into a big damned hurry. Maybe the companies should work on maxing our their current product or providing enough to meet demand before they get too involved in producing what's next.

Thanks for both goes to NeoGAF for finding the information, and the respective sources found therein.

Atlus Confirms Pre-order Bonuses for Persona 4, Other RPGs

Shiva Stella — Wed, 17 Sep 2008 15:01:53 -0500

Everybody loves a good treat, and Atlus has definitely been known to "spoil" its hardcore fans with numerous pre-order goodies and special collections. This holiday season Atlus will be doing the following pre-order bonuses for three anticipated RPGs, including:

Persona 4 (PS2) - bonus CD soundtrack included in every copy; Persona 4 Visual Data, full color, 100 page 7''x10'' art book included in pre-orders
Luminous Arc 2 (DS) - bonus CD soundtrack included in every copy; Luminous Art book, full color, 7''x10'' featuring characters from the entire series included in pre-orders
Eternal Poison (PS2) - bonus CD soundtrack included in every copy; Librum Vespera full color, 5''x8'' art book included in pre-orders

So far the pre-order bonuses only apply to Amazon, GameStop, EB Games, and Game Crazy. Feel free to hit the link below to take a peek at the whole collection.

Left 4 Dead Demo Coming

Zach Lott — Wed, 10 Sep 2008 23:37:37 -0500

If the wait for Valve's upcoming zombie-killing FPS Left 4 Dead is driving you crazy, then listen up: Videogamer is reporting that demos for both versions (360, PC) of the game are in the works.

"We will be releasing demos for both the Xbox and for the PC. I don't know what the date is for release on that, though. I think it's going to contain the first part of one of the campaigns. I think it'll probably be Hospital but I'm not sure. That's a decision that Doug Lombardi is making," said Gabe Newell, managing director and co-founder of Valve.

The demo will feature single player and online co-op play and will likely hit shortly before the game is released on November 21. We'll let you know once a date has been set in stone.

GB Review: Battlefield: Bad Company (PS3)

Brian Mohr — Sun, 10 Aug 2008 14:07:13 -0500

Battlefield: Bad Company may not completely revamp the war game experience, but it does modify it enough to keep you interested throughout both on and offline. The biggest new feature clearly is the ability to blow buildings apart -- and visuals are spectacular, but the game features more than just that. For once, it features an entertaining single-player experience with a meaningful storyline. Of course, it brings a quality online experience as well to keep you playing for some time.

Click here for an explanation of our review and scoring format.

War games are so common today that in order to stand out from the crowd, the game really has to do something different. Battlefield: Bad Company may not revolutionize the genre by any means, but it does add some nice improvements to the next-generation experience to make it fun and interesting.

Easily the biggest new improvement to the series is the impressive visuals. Worth noting is that it is in first-person. Running through the levels, your player shakes and vibrates. The visuals of guns and various weapons on screen are very realistic.

Those are all well and good, but what really catches your eye the most is the incredible detail of the environments with fires, special effects and more. Even more notable than that are the destructible environments, explosions look incredibly real with chunks of rubble exploding around you. Hiding in a building is far from safe anymore, and can be a bit nerve-racking, as a tank can blow the roof off, literally.

The game features more than just visuals though. The sound is very good with impressive war sounds, the guns are very realistic and explosions are incredible too. The musical score works with the various environments and moods and the single-player experience actually has some good dialogue with character.

Did I do that?

Speaking of the single-player experience, it puts you in the role of the new player in Bad Company. A group of problem soldiers who take on the worst of assignments in order to score money in the form of gold bars. Although youre not able to command your teammates, the action is exciting and the missions are interesting. The game features a number of weapons to play with as well as explosives and health injectors to gain life. There are side goals as well as numerous vehicles including helicopters, boats, trucks and more in the seven-level offline campaign.

As for the control scheme, its very user friendly with the use of the triggers and sticks. If youve played a first-person shooter before it will take little time to adjust. The only difficulty was flying helicopters, which takes some getting used to.

Not to be forgotten from any Battlefield experience is the online component which is once again solid. It features up to 24 players per map, all vehicles in the single-player mode including tanks, jeeps, boats, helicopters and hummers, a variety of weapons including turrets, cannons and rockets on the field as well as five arm sets to choose from, each group features unlockable bonuses too. While the conquest mode that Battlefield is known for isnt featured yet, the online option is solid nonetheless.

Left 4 Dead Headed To PS3?

Zach Lott — Sun, 03 Aug 2008 20:11:01 -0500

If you're bummed that Left 4 Dead hasn't been announced for the PS3, here's an interesting bit for you: Joystiq is reporting that the Official Playstation Magazine's latest issue claims that the game is hitting the PS3 but will be developed by EA instead of Turtle Rock Studios. However, the mag doesn't disclose its source for the information, so you might not want to get too excited until an official confirmation is made.

If true, EA will be under pressure to deliver a strong port, as their PS3 port of the Orange Box angered many PS3 owners because of its numerous bugs, framerate issues, and other technical mishaps. Let's hope that this one turns out better.

E3 2008: Left 4 Dead Screenshots

Aaron Dunlap — Tue, 15 Jul 2008 12:27:29 -0500

EA has released these new screenshots from Valve's upcoming co-op survival horror shooter, Left 4 Dead, coming to the Xbox 360 and PC.

Launch Gallery: Left 4 Dead E3 2008

(9 images)

Persona 4 Set For December Release

Zach Lott — Mon, 07 Jul 2008 15:50:02 -0500

Hot on the heels of the release of Persona 3: FES comes some exciting news for Atlus fans: Persona 4 will be hitting the PS2 on December 9 at the low price of $39.99. Those who pick up the game will receive a complimentary soundtrack CD containing tunes from the game.

If you aren't familiar with the franchise, check out our review of Persona 3: FES and see if you're interested in jumping in.

Left 4 Dead Coming On November 4

Zach Lott — Tue, 24 Jun 2008 15:58:09 -0500

After enduring numerous delays, Left 4 Dead, the survival-horror FPS from Valve's Turtle Rock Studios, is finally coming on November 4, according to Big Download.

Left 4 Dead is built around four-player co-op in which gamers fight off hordes of zombies throughout several scenarios while also having the chance to play as zombie bosses. The game also features an A.I. "director" that changes the spawn points for enemy zombies with each play-through and controls the flow of the action.

You'll be able to pick it up on the Xbox 360 and PC.

Metal Gear Solid 4 Hits Store Shelves

Zach Lott — Thu, 12 Jun 2008 14:08:10 -0500

The wait for Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots is finally over, as Konami announced today that the game has shipped to retailers across the nation.

"Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots not only represents the height of the stealth-action genre, but it also defines what it is to be a next-generation game by setting new standards in gameplay, storytelling and graphics," said Anthony Crouts, Vice President of Marketing for Konami Digital Entertainment, Inc. "We are incredibly excited for fans and gamers alike to reunite with all their favorite characters from the Metal Gear Solid saga while experiencing a game unlike anything they have seen before. We truly believe Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots symbolizes a milestone for videogames, and will be remembered for years to come."

The game was developed by Kojima Productions, the team run by legendary game designer Hideo Kojima, and is retailing for $59.99. A special edition is available at GameStop for $84.99 while a MGS4 PS3 bundle can be purchased for $599.99 at Konami.com.

Metal Gear Solid 4 Receives Perfect Score From Famitsu

Zach Lott — Wed, 04 Jun 2008 13:08:35 -0500

It's not often that Japanese gaming mag Famitsu awards a game a perfect score of 40/40, but Kotaku has discovered via a Japanese blog that Metal Gear Solid 4 has become only the eighth game to ever earn this distinction. Gamers who have been worried about whether or not the game stands up to its predecessors will no doubt be pleased to hear this news.

Interestingly enough, 2008 marks the first time that Famitsu has ever awarded two perfect scores in the same year, the other time this year being for Super Smash Bros. Brawl.

Hit the link to see a scan of the review.

id Software Announces Doom 4

Zach Lott — Wed, 07 May 2008 18:07:45 -0500

It's been a challenge for id Software to stay on top of the game engine and FPS markets over the past few years, but it seems that John Carmack is ready to buckle down and begin work on his next big title, as id has announced that development for Doom 4 has begun.

The announcement was made in a statement issued today revealing that id is currently hiring a variety of designers and programmers to assist with the game's development. CEO Todd Hollenshead said that Doom 4 "demands the greatest talent and brightest minds in the industry" and that it is "critical for id Software to have the best creative minds in-house to develop games that meet the standards synonymous with our titles."

Joystiq expects the game to run off the new id Tech 5 engine, John Carmack's latest graphics engine that seeks to battle Epic's Unreal Engine 3, which has been used in numerous titles for the Xbox 360 and PS3, for dominance in the engine-licensing market.

A list of what job openings id needs to fill is available at their website.

Grand Theft Auto 4 Passes $500 Million

Tim Grube — Wed, 07 May 2008 10:25:21 -0500

Take-Two Interactive Software and Rockstar Games announced early this morning that Grand Theft Auto 4 has sold 6 million units of its criminal action game in its first week, with estimated retail sales exceeding $500 million.

Rockstar Games put $100 million dollars into the development process and quickly made all that money back and then some. Quite crazy how much game development is nowadays. It's pretty much the same amount of money to develop a hollywood movie.

The game is still selling at a whopping $60 a pop.

Konami Confirms Pre-order Bonus for MGS4

Shiva Stella — Thu, 28 Feb 2008 17:49:45 -0600

For those of us who already own a PlayStation 3 but would still like a nifty Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots bonus, Konami is launching a pre-sell program in April that'll include a Metal Gear Saga 2.0 DVD.

The DVD features character biographies, trailers, a 20th Anniversary special, and a code for accessing the Metal Gear Online beta test.

The game includes the Metal Gear Online "starter pack" that allows for up to 16-player matches and is set to ship on June 12, 2008.

If you don't yet own a PlayStation 3, Konami has also teamed up with Sony for an MGS4 console bundle (MSRP $499) that includes the 80GB unit, a Dualshock 3 controller, and the game.

As an aside, I have no idea what this image means.

Sony Announces MGS4 PS3 Bundle

Aaron Dunlap — Wed, 27 Feb 2008 11:02:20 -0600

Good news for the large chunk of humanity that's been waiting for Metal Gear Solid 4 to buy a PlayStation 3. Sony has announced a bundle that will contain an 80GB model, a DualShock 3 controller, and a copy of Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots. All that for $499.99, or five hundred dollars for people without exact change.

This should be replacing the not-so-popular Motorstorm bundle, and considering the price, game, and DualShock 3 controller (at last), this is actually a pretty decent bargain. Yes, a $500 bargain.

GB Review: Patapon (PSP)

Shiva Stella — Sun, 24 Feb 2008 22:34:35 -0600

Get ready to drum to the beat.

Patapon is a great musically-geared PSP game from several of the creative minds behind the popular LocoRoco and sports the same simple flair, highlighted by a colorful world, straightforward mechanics, intricate visual details, and a fantastically catchy beat that'll make this an addictive treat for Sony and music-genre fans. But even if LocoRoco let you down, Patapon comes with some improvements: it relies on an actual storyline that gives the game purpose, the "characters" have a touch more depth, and the amount of army tweaking, hunting areas, bosses, and mini-game diversions should offer enough motivation for you to finish it. For $20, you simply cannot go wrong.

Click here for an explanation of our review and scoring format.

As is often the case with deities, you - the 'All-mighty' god of the adorable patapons - have been too preoccupied with the business of the universe to cast them an endearing glance. Completely neglected by their patron deity, the patapons - tiny, bloodthirsty, giant-eyed creatures with a serious knack for rhythm - have been forced to deal with an incursion of the malignant zigotons, ugly suckers that, in the ignorance of the divine, have walled their way between Patapolis, the patapon capital, and the object of the patapons' desire a great, mysterious gift that you conveniently placed at the end of the world. In your absence the patapons have suffered defeat after defeat at the hands of the foul zigotons and in a final act of desperation the sole survivor of the patapons' once magnificent army raises the war banner and cries out for your aid.

Should you answer the call, all of Patapolis will rejoice as you enter the world of Patapon, Sony's mix of real-time strategy and rhythm for the PSP from almost the same folks who brought you LocoRoco, the cute musical puzzle game that had you tapping your toes while sliding colorful blobs throughout the trappings of a rainbow paradise. Though LocoRoco was definitely a delight and a great boon for Sony's handheld, it lacked a certain quality and the player felt like he was maneuvering gelatinous globs for the sole purpose of hearing the next song. Patapon, refreshingly, does more than feature adorable music; it actively incorporates it into the gameplay via a very simplistic control mechanism. The player taps out a command in line with the music and the pulsating edges of the screen, a great help for beginners, and the patapon army behaves accordingly, either advancing (pata-pon), attacking (pon), defending (chaka), or performing the occasional miracle (it's good to see you living up to your reputation).

On the surface, it almost seems too simple; there are no thousand command combo variations that'll trigger some fancy cutscene, no "special" power-ups that'll teach your patapons how to fly, and no healing magic to get your troops back on track. There aren't even items - just four basic commands, yet the music and pounding drums makes them incredibly addictive. The proverbial icing is that each command operates as a strategy, such that "attack" has patapons throwing spears from a wider distance while "defend" orders the patapons to bunch up on the flag carrier, attacking only what approaches the army and therefore narrowing the archer's arch; this is a great maneuver for when bosses are attacking the area immediately in front of them and not the army's flank, where the tightly packed patapons are huddling safely out of reach. Nevertheless, a backup maneuver is sorely missing. When a patapon that isn't the flag carrier dies it leaves a "cap" (its head) behind for the army to collect so the player can resurrect the unit, but patapons at the rear (mostly archers) can get left behind due to the army's inability to retrace a few steps. The lack seems almost silly.

Pon, pon, pata, pon!

While the basic gameplay consists of leading your patapon army throughout the 30+ main missions, Sony threw in some boss battles and lighter hunting areas, enabling the player to collect source materials (rocks, sticks, etc), money (ka-chi), and "legendary" weapons. Admittedly the enemy design is redundant: the first boss the player encounters is a giant turquoise-spotted, fire-breathing dragon while the second is a giant red-spotted, fire-breathing dragon (and yes, both dragons require the same strategy to defeat). The patapons' prey receive the same treatment, boasting black birds, pink birds, gold birds, and the like. However, there is just enough variation and the bosses are just difficult enough to keep the gameplay interesting. For additional diversity there are some nasty environmental aspects including excruciatingly painful lightning strikes and annoying wind changes to watch out for as well as animals that actually fight back, but again, the sole purpose of Patapon is to lead those adorable bug-eyed killers into battle with your significant drumming abilities. As a final touch, the highly important fever mode, which you activate by staying true to the beat for ten commands, is the key to success, sending the patapons into a blood-frenzy that crushes everything in its path; one troop type in particular, the kibapon (cavalry), relies entirely on fever mode and is less than useless without it, though with it the kibapon become war deities that rival the All-mighty Himself. The only downside to the fever mode is that most levels appear designed to encourage the gamer to reach fever by walking forward; this amounts to a lot of empty space and needless repetition, as you can reach fever by standing in-place and defending, if need be. Another annoyance is that the music changes as you initiate fever, so you can easily miss a beat and lose fever if you're distracted by patapon singing and the acoustic switch.

Singing, dancing, and drumming your one-eyed soldiers to success - while the highlight of the gameplay - is only half the story in Patapon, as any great army unleashed by any great civilization requires plenty of bureaucratic management. To this end Patapolis awaits the All-mighty's use, boasting many convenient features, the foremost of which is the life-tree for patapon creation and/or reincarnation (nobody's perfect). At the life-tree you can bring forth many a new patapon by mixing ingredients, usually minerals, meats, and tree branches, for specific race and troop types. If you're looking to create an archer (yumipon), for example, you throw in a rock and a stick and viola - instant bow-and-arrow buddy. To "adjust" the yumipon you simply increase the quality of the ingredients, this time mixing a tytanium ore with hinoki wood to create a tikulee (blue) yumipon, read: an archer with improved stats (HP, damage, speed, crit, etc). There are four basic troop types: yumipon (archers), yaripon (spearmen), kibapon (cavalry), and tatepon (infantry), and each unit within each type my be either a regular (white) patapon or, with a little genetic tweaking, achieve that extra special rank: pyokola (red), gekolos (green), mofeel (purple), or tikulee (blue).

Though the life-tree is the heart of Patapolis, Sony added some elements of the mini-game variety for fun and musical relaxation. As the player completes missions he'll collect "unique" items that can be utilized by the life-tree to create "hero" patapons - the great patapons of lore who kept the troops fed and the altar flooded with resources. The mini-games have you repeat tunes in a 'Simon-says' manner for four lines and, depending on your timing, reward you with prize goods for patapon creation. The rest of Patapolis - the "gateway" to the world map, the base camp (led by the priestess patapon, Meden) - serve as nice perches from you can view plot progression, but otherwise they exist to make the city feel less vacant.

Patapon's presentation is on par with LocoRoco's and is about what you'd expect if you played its pseudo-predecessor: the environs are colorful, the patapons and zigotons are detailed from their helmets down to their very tiny feet, and all character and object design features a simplistic structure and color palette. What differentiates it the most from LocoRoco, besides its "puzzles" (most of which include the obtaining and usage of the proper miracle needed to proceed) and gameplay mechanics, is the inclusion of an actual storyline and characterization, shallow though both may be. The player feels as though there is a real goal to obtain for helping the struggling patapons succeed and not just another level filled with cute little musical "events" that may eventually bore him. This drive to finish the game nicely compliments its replayability and keeps the gamer coming back for more of this unique musical experience, often hunting for kicks or creating patapons to form the "ultimate" army. Perfectionists beware: with more than 100 weapons/armor and plenty of source materials to tweak your darling soldiers, you can spend a few hours doing nothing but gaining goodies and improving stats. Unfortunately all 100+ of those weapons/armor must be obtained by completing missions: you can't take the source materials you already have and turn them into weaponry, which is a missed opportunity that could have added countless hours and much depth to the gameplay. On the whole, however, Patapon is yet another fantastic title on the PSP, perfect for short or lengthy mobile gaming sessions and full of endless acoustic delight. You'll be pleasantly surprised by this one.

Publisher: Sony Computer Ent.
Developer: Sony Computer Ent./Japan Studio/Pyramid
Release: Feb 26, 2008
MSRP: $19.99
Everyone

Faith and a .45 Teaser Contains .45 Seconds of Gameplay

Aaron Dunlap — Tue, 05 Feb 2008 14:56:23 -0600

I haven't been following Faith and a .45 very closely, because there's been no reason to, and this "teaser" doesn't really change things. If you like the Ken Burns effect as applied to concept artwork and split-second takes from gameplay with uncomfortable, forced camera angles you should love this.

The SD video is above, or hit the link below for the HD version.

Call of Duty 4 Best Game Ever

Shiva Stella — Fri, 25 Jan 2008 12:53:29 -0600

More good news from Activision this morning, as the company has confirmed that Infinity Ward's Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare "was the #1 title in units worldwide for calendar 2007, according to The NPD Group, Chart Track and The GFK Group." Larry Hyrb's blog also lists the game as the #1 360 title on Xbox Live (based on unique users).

Here's the rundown on the game's rewards so far:

More than 18 perfect score reviews
More than 40 combined Editors' choice, Game of the Year awards (US)
Nominated for 10 Academy of Interactive Arts and Sciences awards (including Game of the Year)
GameBump's own Best Shooter of 2007

"We're very excited about this achievement especially given so many competitive titles this year," said Will Kassoy, senior vice president, global brand management, Activision Publishing, Inc. "Consumer and critics agree that Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare is one of the best games ever created and further establishes Call of Duty as one of the premier brands in the industry. This ground-breaking game and franchise continue to establish new standards by which all other action games will be judged."

The game has also sold more than 7 million copies worldwide.

Devil May Cry 4 Demo Confirmed

Solomon Lee — Wed, 23 Jan 2008 12:58:51 -0600

Following the recent teaser site rumors, Capcom has officially confirmed that the Devil May Cry 4 demo for the Playstation Network and Xbox Live will, in fact, be available on January 24.

Quoth directly from Capcom Entertainment:

"The demo introduces gamers to the gothic-inspired supernatural world of Devil May Cry 4, new protagonist Nero and the awesome power of his Devil Bringer. The demo consists of a sampling of sections from the full game, chosen to showcase Devil May Cry 4's varied locales, allowing gamers to familiarize themselves with Nero's unique abilities."

Those that wish to visit the site can do so here.

MGS4 Downloadable Demo Coming To PSN Next Month?

Aaron Dunlap — Mon, 21 Jan 2008 13:43:13 -0600

According to website Chicago Gamer's Club, and apparently anybody with a copy of UK mag "PSW," and at least one working eyeball, we should be expecting a downloadable demo of Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots to show up on the PlayStation Network (the PS3's Xbox Live counterpart) in February.

Metal Gear Solids 1 and 2 both had pre-release demos that were quite a big deal (I'd estimate that roughly 104% of Zone of the Enders' sales can be attributed to the bundled MGS2 demo). Demos mean the game is close enough to completion to be able to cut a chunk of it out without screwing anything up, and it means that there's at least some small parcel of the story that Kojima can't stay tight-lipped about.

Will the MGS4 demo sell PlayStation 3s, though, that's the question.

PlayStation 4 Development Farther Along than We Thought?

Shiva Stella — Thu, 17 Jan 2008 13:37:45 -0600

Though the dust has yet to settle on this current generation of consoles (all three have only experienced one holiday season together on store shelves), rumors of next-generation development inevitably spring up here or there.

Popular German site, Gamefront, is reporting that Sony (Japan) is currently seeking a software engineer to work on backward compatibility for the PlayStation 3 and an un-named next-generation system (which as far as we know would be the PlayStation 4). The engineer would implement and improve emulation of PS1, PS2, PS3, and PSP (also for PS3) for this next-generation hardware.

If one believes the rumor then PS4 development must be much farther along than seems reasonable, as all three companies have expressed a desire to extend this generation's life-span as long as possible (remember that ten-year mark that Sony set for the PS3?)

One would also have to believe that it'd be a great bonus for the PS4 to feature backwards compatibility all the way back to the original PlayStation, taking advantage of Sony's extensive lineup throughout the years. Of course, it's just as likely that this is a mistranslation blown out of proportion.

The rumor follows a recent Microsoft rumor regarding the Xbox 3.

You can check out an image of the job listing text here.

Devil May Cry 4 Demo Release Confirmed?

Solomon Lee — Thu, 17 Jan 2008 13:01:20 -0600

According to reports, the highly anticipated demo for Devil May Cry 4 is expected to arrive within the upcoming weeks on the Playstation Network and Xbox Live.

Information from Capcom's teaser sites suggest the possibility of the demo arriving on January 31. However, it should be noted that Capcom has not officially confirmed the release date for the Devil May Cry 4 demo at this time.

Those that wish to visit the sites can do so here or here.

Spore and COD4 Mac-bound. Is Mac Gaming Going To Improve?

Aaron Dunlap — Wed, 16 Jan 2008 12:45:52 -0600

We in the gaming world typically don't need to pay attention to the Macworld Expo for news, since it's been pretty well-known that gaming on the Mac sucks. One of the "hottest" games on the Mac right now is Age of Empires III, which came out something like 400 years ago.

Macs use Intel chips now, and the market share is expanding day by day. There's no reason for the gaming market to be so bleak on the Mac, and it looks like perhaps things are starting to make a turn.

Today, Activision announced that uber-hit Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare will be coming to the Mac via game-porting specialists Aspyr. Yesterday it was revealed via EA that Spore is being developed for the Mac, and is even available on display at Macworld.

I do most of my work on a MacBook Pro but I have to hang onto a Windows box for the sake of the few PC games worth playing that come out every year or so. If the PC and Mac gaming markets were a little more symmetrical, I'd be ecstatic for one, but I think it would be good for gaming and great for Apple.

Go into an Apple store and the only games you'll see on those machines are such fare as Finding Nemo and some new age analog of Reader Rabbit. Aren't Macs supposed to be for the young, hipster, media-savvy crowd? Shoddy ports coming out months late doesn't strike me as very hip or savvy.

This could be a product of Microsoft's buddy-buddy status with the publishers. They've dumped millions on this "Games for Windows" concept, and pushed DirectX on the developers like smack on a pre-teen. It could also be a product of legacy. Games started out on computers, and although this tricked-out "gaming rig" trend is a recent phenom, PCs have always been seen as gaming vehicles.

They're also beginning to be seen as antiquated, and Apple is moving in as the younger alternative. If they'd like one hell of a boost in that direction, a decent library of video games would do that.

Devil May Cry 4 Features Achievements on PS3 Version

Shiva Stella — Mon, 07 Jan 2008 16:18:04 -0600

Reviews of Devil May Cry 4 on the PlayStation 3 have begun circulating the Web today, detailing that the game integrates achievements for the PlayStation 3 version as well as the Xbox 360 one and enables gamers to show those achievements to their friends.

The news is noteworthy considering that Sony has yet to integrate achievements into their PlayStation Network service, though there's always hope that Home (when it finally launches) will make use of the feature.

Reviews are also confirming a 5GB required installation for the game and Sixaxis functionality that allows gamers to control the camera by tilting the controller.

Retailers Using Call of Duty 4 Costs to Lure Gamers?

Shiva Stella — Fri, 04 Jan 2008 14:55:25 -0600

Some of you might be wondering why retailers have been offering Activision and Infinity Ward's stellar hit, Call of Duty 4, at such reduced rates (with some prices as low as a mere $38 for this "game of the year" title). It almost appears as though this incredible game isn't selling as well as it should be (which you know is an automatic farce if you've spent any time bouncing between matches on Infinity's servers).

Newsweek has tackled the question head-on, turning to analyst Michael Pachter for comment on what's going on with CoD4's low pricing. Pachter summarizes neatly:

COD4 is selling very well, so much so that I think it's been positioned as a loss leader to drive store traffic, particularly at Circuit City. I've seen the same ads, and it is a retailer price cut, not a publisher price cut. There are differences in terminology between how the two cuts are advertised (long story). So the answer is that holiday software sales were great (more from GameStop on Jan 10), and retailers know that they can offer discounts to drive customers to their stores. COD4 has been holding its own at $60...

So retailers are apparently luring customers in with great deals on CoD4 in the hopes of selling them $500+ Wiis and games they don't want. At least it means a great deal for you.

Microsoft to Offer Free Live Arcade Game to Those Affected by Service Hiccups

Shiva Stella — Fri, 04 Jan 2008 00:18:19 -0600

Just in case you missed this posting over at Larry Hyrb's blog or at Xbox.com, Microsoft has confirmed that Live's poor holiday service was indeed due to a record-setting number of gamers online simultaneously and that the company will be offering compensation for all Live members (that be silver and gold) in the form of a free Live arcade game.

While it's not a couple hundred Marketplace points or a free week of service, at least it's proper acknowledgment of the issue that includes some kind of compensation. Here's the full message from Microsoft's Marc Whitten, General Manager of Live:

Dear Xbox Live Members:

During this past holiday season you helped us break a number of Xbox LIVE records. This included our largest sign-up of new members to Xbox LIVE in our 5 year history and just yesterday (January 2) you broke the record for the single biggest day of concurrent members ever on the service.

As a result of this massive increase in usage we know that some of you experienced intermittent Xbox LIVE issues over the holiday break. While the service was not completely offline at any given time, we are disappointed in our performance. I would like to take this moment to thank you each and every one of you for your patience and understanding as our team has worked around the clock to return the service to a stable state.

At the same time we would like to offer a token of our appreciation to all of you in celebration of record success for the service. And as a thank you for your loyalty during this holiday period, we will be offering all of our Xbox LIVE members around the world access to a full Xbox LIVE Arcade game that will be available to download free of charge. In the coming weeks we will be sharing the specific details of this offer with you.

Thank you again for helping make Xbox LIVE everything that it is today!

Microsoft to Compensate Gold Members for Live Downtime?

Shiva Stella — Thu, 03 Jan 2008 16:13:09 -0600

Regarding those nasty Xbox Live issues that gold members have been experiencing since Christmas,Torrent Davis over at The Bitbag recently confirmed that he'd been in contact with a source at Microsoft who stated that "we [Microsoft] will definitely be doing something for our Gold memebers that weren't able to get online over the last week."

This is interesting in that it would mark the first time Microsoft has compensated members for Live "issues".

Sounds spiffy considering that 360 owners have been complaining that they have basically been paying Microsoft in order to beta test their Xbox Live service. Of course, gamers who were frustrated in their attempts to play Call of Duty 4 or Halo 3 online could have just played other games, but why pay for a service if you don't even get to use it for the games you want?

The good news is that Live seems to have stabilized some.

Experiencing Call of Duty 4, Halo 3 Connection Issues Since Christmas?

Shiva Stella — Sat, 29 Dec 2007 19:33:00 -0600

Just on the off-chance that any of you are Xbox 360 gamers eager to relax over the holiday break with a nice match on Halo 3 or Call of Duty 4, better be prepared for some "intermittent issues." According to Microsoft's support page as of 7:30p.m. CST:

Status:
Up and running

Users may experience issues performing transactions dependent on Windows Live ID availability including but not limited to Xbox 360 and Zune account creation, renewal, recovery, all DMP transactions, and logging into or creating Windows Live ID accounts. Users will experience intermittent issues including but not limited to: Tournaments, Storage Downloads, Gamer Tile, Statistics through Arbitration, Match Making, and Messaging. Additionally, Halo 3 and Call of Duty 4 users may experience issues joining matches or posting statistics. Customer Support may also experience issues referencing customer data. We are aware of the issue and are currently working to resolve it. We apologize for any inconvenience.

In other words, players are reporting issues with forming parties, hosting/finding matches, gamertag recovery, and just about any feature that a person paying $50 a year for would want - though the chat function is still operating superbly.

You can check on the status of the "issue" at Microsoft's support page or check on some forum posts (1; 2) if you're in the mood for some quality entertainment provided by Xbox fanboys who seem to share the opinion that we should all get down on our knees and thank Microsoft for allowing us to give them money.

We'll keep you updated on Live's status as Microsoft addresses the issue; current word has it that the problems should be resolved by tomorrow afternoon at the latest.

As an aside, I imagine that Xbox 360's Live issues combined with Nintendo's Wii shortage have made Sony very happy recently...

Update: As of 9:30p.m. CST the Live status now reads:

Users may experience issues logging into Xbox Live. We are aware of the issue and are currently working to resolve it. We apologize for any inconvenience.

Read: everything is still screwy and players are still having problems with Live, finding/joining games, staying connected, and so on. However some gamers are able to play other online titles, like Gears of War, while they wait on Microsoft to fix the issue, so if you're bored out of your mind during your break it's a possible option.

Update Update: It seems that things have stabilized at least a smidgen on Live since yesterday, but don't be shocked when you encounter various Live problems. As of 2:40p.m. CST , 12/30, the status now reads:

Users may experience intermittent issues logging onto Xbox Live. Our engineers are continuing to investigate and are working to resolve this issue. We apologize for any inconvenience.

Apparently Microsoft is still searching for whatever is causing the problem so they can fix the issue. Normally this is when I'd head over to Larry Hyrb's blog for an insider view on the chaos, but unfortunately Major Nelson's site is down...

New Devil May Cry 4 Cinematic Video, now with pretty music

Shiva Stella — Fri, 28 Dec 2007 14:00:00 -0600

Considering we've been staying on top of the Devil May Cry 4 news I thought I'd provide a link to the latest DMC4 video goodness, or of course you can just view it below as provided by Gametrailers. Pretty music, yes?

Microsoft, Capcom Team for Devil May Cry 4 360 Bundle

Shiva Stella — Thu, 27 Dec 2007 11:27:57 -0600

The PlayStation 3 isn't the only console getting a Devil May Cry 4 bundle from Capcom, as the company has now made it official that the Xbox 360 is also receiving a DMC4 bundle entitled the "Premium Pack" (as opposed to the PS3 "BD Pack").

The bundle costs 37,800 yen (about $331 USD) and contains an Xbox 360 with a 20 GB hard drive, the game, a wireless controller, an HD AV Terminal D cable, LAN cable, and a media remote. The Premium Pack does not contain a headset, DMC4 gear, or the extra content of the BD Pack. And of course, these bundles only matter if you happen to live in Japan or are in the import/export business.

Image available at the jump.

Square Releases Star Ocean 4 Trailer

Shiva Stella — Thu, 27 Dec 2007 11:00:00 -0600

Square Enix has published a short but sweet Star Ocean 4 trailer that you can view below. The title's platform, however, is yet to be announced, but we'll keep you updated.

Just as an aside if you're a Square fan: the annual Jump Festa event is under way in Japan and you can keep tabs on it here.

Star Ocean 4
Uploaded by gamefront

COD4 Christmas Gift for PC

Akshay Masand — Fri, 21 Dec 2007 21:05:20 -0600

PC owners of this popular game now can experience some Christmas spirit. Along with the CoD4 1.4 patch for the PC, a new release of the map Crash was released with some festive spirit. If you haven't already tried it, download it and check it out. Hopefully something of the sort will be released for the Playstation 3 and the Xbox 360 versions as well.

Devil May Cry 4 PlayStation 3/360 Comparison Video Up

Shiva Stella — Fri, 21 Dec 2007 15:00:01 -0600

Yet another Xbox 360/PlayStation 3 comparison video has been posted over at Gametrailers, this time for Capcom's hotly anticipated Devil May Cry 4. You can view the video and some additional images at the jump; let us know if you spot any major differences, as both versions appeared strikingly similar to me.

[GOTY] Best Portable Game of 07: The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass

Aaron Dunlap — Fri, 21 Dec 2007 13:16:00 -0600

Why It Won: Zelda games come around more frequently than Mario games and so aren't held to the same absurd scrutiny. In fact, after a lifetime of mostly-identical storylines (the princess is kidnapped, oh noes!) it wouldn't be altogether ridiculous to wonder when something new would come along for Link to do besides spend all day fishing, blowing into an ocarina, and looking for pieces of the much-elusive Tri-force. I'd all but discounted the series as an ad-tedium retread of the same concepts when The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass came along and I, feeling sorry for my oft-neglected DS, decided to give it a whirl.

Phantom Hourglass is refreshing on many counts. Rather than trying to transpose some pre-fab Zelda tale onto the DS and throwing in a few inane mini-games for the sake of utilizing the hardware's features (like nearly every Wii game being made still), Phantom Hourglass is built from the ground up for the DS and the dual-screen, touch-screen, and microphoney features are etched into the very fabric of the game. Though it may sound off-putting, the only way to control our cel-shaded Link is by dragging the stylus around the screen (no D-pad), the only way to skip through conversations is by tapping the screen (no face buttons), and except to activate them, every weapon and tool is exclusively controlled by the touchscreen. Need to extinguish a fire to continue through one of the countless labyrinthine temples, caves, and dungeons? Just it out? Need to send your boomerang on a serpentine course across the map to defeat baddies, break open some vases, and return their contents to you? Stay back where it's safe and draw a wiry course for the boomerang to follow. Need to remember the key to a puzzle, the best route through a maze, or the positions of hidden treasure chests? Just draw them on your map.

No element of this game feels shoe-horned in. The story is actually a bit engaging and not a repeat of the same thing we've been doing for 20 years now. There's no Ganondorf or Tri-Force or Epona or, hell, not even a Zelda. This straight-sequel to Wind Waker manages to be unique, fun, and simple at the same time. I was starting to think that there would never be a portable game that could hold my attention when I'm surrounded by high-definition consoles and crazy-huge gaming PCs, but here's The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass proving me wrong.

Why You May Disagree: The most common complaint I read from naysayers is that the lack of D-pad controls is a "slap in the face" to longtime Zelda fans. Others find the constant ocean-faring tedious. Others are afraid that playing a game with a cel-shaded protagonist will damage the delicate fabric holding their heterosexuality intact.

But We Say: Is the reason you liked previous Zelda games because of the immersive story and addictive gameplay, or because you move the character around by sliding your thumb around a plastic cross? The touchscreen control might look awkward at first, but it feels perfectly comfortable. Also, since every tool and weapon is controlled via the touchscreen it would become too confusing to constantly switch back and forth from the D-pad to the stylus. if you want to control a character with a D-pad, try playing any other video game ever made. The sea-travel can seem a bit monotonous, but there's usually something to do on the way, and there are ways around it.

Runner Up:

Contra 4: This was the first game in a long time to "feel" like a Contra game. The fast-paced shooter is one of the best portables released this year and deserves recognition, but the joy it takes in its difficulty makes it a game not for everyone, and besides taking advantage of both screens the only real reason for this game to be on the DS is because it would look ridiculous on any other platform. What the game needs is a boomerang you control by drawing its path with the stylus.

Final Fantasy Tactics: The War of the Lions: The PSP release of the nine-year-old PlayStation classic, FFT: War of the Lions is possibly the best RPG available on Sony's handheld and is an absolute requisite purchase if you owned and loved the original. However, this fresh version does feature some subtle changes that tend to annoy fans, including slower spell animations, adjusted dialogue (though we find this a plus), and the lack of online multiplayer. Considering the huge potential for online battles as opposed to just ad hoc (which requires two PSPs and two copies of the game), this is a significant drawback.

Devil May Cry 4 Bundles Set for Japan, with Your Choice of Color

Shiva Stella — Thu, 20 Dec 2007 16:24:38 -0600

Here's some great news if you happen to live in the center of the gaming universe (read: Japan). Sony has announced that two Devil May Cry 4 bundles will be releasing on January 31, 2008 there, aptly entitled "Devil May Cry 4 Premium BD Bundles." The contents include:

PlayStation 3 40GB model, black or ceramic white
Devil May Cry 4 (well I certainly hope so) Blu-ray disc with bonus CG cutscenes
60 minute run-time for said cutscenes (might be a translation error, as that's a hell of a lot of extra CG)
47,800 yen (294 euro, roughly $422 USD) price tag

Pictures are at the jump. I admit that those bundles would make for a lovely stateside release, even if they are post-holiday season.

Devil May Cry 4 to 'Partly' be Installed on HD?

Shiva Stella — Wed, 19 Dec 2007 16:00:00 -0600

According to GameWatch the PlayStation 3 version of Devil May Cry 4 will allow owners to "partly" install the game on the system's hard drive while the "feature" will be absent from the Xbox 360 rendition due to unit bundles that don't include a hard drive. I'm wondering why you can't just install the whole thing on the HD and be done with it.

The news comes from a GameWatch interview with Capcom's Hiroyuki Kobayashi, DMC4's producer.

Editorial: So, Like, The COD4 Chernobyl Level Is Based On a Real Place and Junk?

Aaron Dunlap — Wed, 19 Dec 2007 11:47:04 -0600

Is our children learning? I think the answer is no.

Like most people with even a fraction of an education, I enjoyed the level in Call of Duty 4 taking place in post-meltdown Chernobyl because of the accurate and realistic portrayal of the barren, radioactive landscape.

Chernobyl is a city in Russia where a nuclear power plant exploded in 1986. It was one of the largest disasters of the modern era. Hundreds of square miles are still radioactive over 20 years later, thousands of people died from the radioactivity from the waste seeping from the nuclear reactor. It's estimated that over 500,000 people have been seriously affected. Mutations, radiation poisoning, deformed offspring.

I didn't know that anybody didn't know that. Even if you don't know about it because of its significance in human tragedy or engineering failure, you know about it because everybody else knows about it. Almost everybody.

Recently, someone posted some photos from Chernobyl to compare them to Call of Duty 4 screenshots. Then, as is the most proper thing to do, someone put the photos on YouTube with a Linkin Park song over it to post it in this nextgenboards thread. The reactions, and the replies, have destroyed a special part of the inside of my brain.

People have no idea what Chernobyl is.

Here's one early reply:

OMFG what scary yet brilliant story those pics as well the game or at least some off the levels must be set here

Alright, that doesn't count as a logical sentiment or thought, so maybe it's just "first post" syndrome. Lets keep reading...

wow walking thru there must be cool, after you played the game. Might make you think your really in the game lol, but thats cool they used real places

Awesome. The only connection to one of man's greatest disasters is that it would remind you of a video game level.

Yeah worst part its radioactive. So u can die. But i would go there to be like Dam.

Yes. I too would go there to be like Dam. Though, I don't think the worst part is that it's radioactive; I think that's the only part.

The next reply:

creppy, is it really radioactive? if so, why?

Don't let your heads explode just yet, he is quickly educated:

The reactor melted down. and spilled it in the air. so everyone had to leve.

*boom*

I love to think that video games are helping to educate our youngsters, (everything I know about guns I learned from gaming...) but this is taking it a little far. It's Chernobyl for crying out loud. What are our public schools doing? Do people know that the events surrounding previous Call of Duty games (World War II) actually happened, too? Perhaps The Daily Show would have to do a bit about Chernobyl before today's youth would become aware of it.

Granted, this might not represent an accurate sample of our population, but not a single person in that forum seemed to have any idea that Chernobyl is a real place with a real meltdown. I think perhaps a few hours every day browsing Wikipedia articles should be mandatory.

Call of Duty 4 Patch is Available

Akshay Masand — Wed, 19 Dec 2007 01:58:16 -0600

If you hop on to Call of Duty 4, you will be able to download a patch which has all the playlist changes in place now. Amongst the updates is the new Mercenary Team Deathmatch and the now available Hardcore Team Deathmatch, which was previously combined with Hardcore Search and Destroy.

The Playstation 3 has also received a connectivity patch alongside with the regular patch which allows better connection for the game to US server centers as opposed to connecting to European servers and also provides Matchmaking optimization. For a detailed list of updates head over to www.fourzerotwo.com

Time Crisis 4 Price Drop At Amazon

Tim Grube — Mon, 17 Dec 2007 21:55:26 -0600

I think Amazon is on a roll here this holiday season by price dropping a bunch of their items. Could I say, "hot" items. Last week, the online company dropped Call of Duty 4 to $40 while the MSRP was still standing at $59.99. Now, this week Time Crisis 4 with the Guncon 3 Controller has been dropped to a whopping $49.99 which also has free shipping for the PlayStation 3. The title released on November 20 and carried an MSRP of $89.99.

The numbers haven't been released yet out of Namco whether or not Time Crisis 4 is selling, but I would totally pick this up being so low. Last minute holiday shoppers? I do believe you are one of them!

[GOTY] Best Shooter of 07: Call of Duty 4

Aaron Dunlap — Mon, 17 Dec 2007 13:49:18 -0600

Our Single Player Review (*****)
Our Multiplayer Review (*****)

Why It Won: Call of Duty was already an established series by the time Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare came around. After Treyarch's Call of Duty 3, many had thought the series had caught the "sequel syndrome" that plagues almost any big studio franchise that gets a new installment each year, each game becoming just another iteration of the previous with one or two features interesting enough to be mentioned on the back of the game's box. Boy were we ever wrong.

Call of Duty 4 isn't a greatly ambitious game. It didn't have the mega-millions advertising budget of Halo 3, it didn't have the Ayn Rand-ian objectivist overtones of BioShock, and it didn't really require that you go out and buy a new $4,000 computer to run it like Crysis. The scale of the game itself is somewhat large but it's no Earth-vs-Aliens. What the game lacks in scope, however, it makes up for in pure quality. Call of Duty 4 is a fun game, a well-made game, and a rewarding game. From the first mission you're sucked into the world of modern Special Forces and you're never let go.

The single player mode may be relatively brief but there are no dull moments. This game doesn't sag during the middle and the ending doesn't disappoint. You can't say that about many games these days. There's no backtracking or boring missions stuck into the middle to give the game length, and there's no abrupt, "Buy the sequel!" ending. How refreshing is that?

The multiplayer mode, something that could be easy to overlook, is so amazingly intelligent that it rivals and, in my opinion, tops Halo 3's online mode. I've waited my whole life for a game that rewards experimentation with multiple weapons and playtypes instead of letting people get stick to one tactic and dominate anybody else. It's here, and it's fantastic.

Call of Duty 4 is what I want from future games. It shirks trendy gameplay gimicks and instead focuses on being the best at what it does.

Why You May Disagree: I've heard some complaints about the lack of tactical elements, such as the ability to issue commands to squad members or a cover system where you can press against walls and fire around corners. You know, like every other game made in the last three years. Some Halo kids take offense to our claims that Call of Duty 4's online play is better than Halo 3's.

But We Say: Just because the only way to get a military shooter not set in 1940s Europe used to be in the form of the a Tom Clancy tactical squad-based game, it doesn't mean things have to stay like that. Call of Duty has never been a tactical game, so why should they start now just because that's what everybody else is doing? Some people don't like those kind of games. Some people just want a straightforward shooter where the only weapons aren't an M1 Garand and American pride. Too often games have these features and ride them to death. The Brothers in Arms games that featured squad commands, how many times did they shove it in your face? Rather than becoming a one-trick pony and a slave to one or two gimmicks, Call of Dut 4 focuses on overall quality and not marketing bullet points. To the multiplayer naysayers, I suggest they give the game a fair try. If anything, they probably find it too difficult because they can't jump around and obliterate an entire enemy team with a shotgun and an oversheild.

Runners Up:

Halo 3 - One of the most advertised, best selling titles of this year-slash-lifetime, Halo 3 has a lot of quality features. Unfortunately, none of them are in the campaign mode. It's reasonable that Bungie figured everybody would be buying the game for the multiplayer, but all twelve of us who were more interested to see what a bloated, runaway development budget could do for single player games were rather disappointed. This category is about the overall shooter experience, and a good multiplayer mode with a mediocre campaign mode does not a Best Shooter make.

The Orange Box - Valve's amalgomated parcel of gaming value known as The Orange Box is an extremely good gaming experience, but unfortunately the definitions for the Best Shooter category nearly exclude it. Portal is more of an adventure/puzzle game than a shooter, and Half-Life 2, and Half-Life 2: Episode One all released before this year. For new content, that only leaves Half-Life 2: Episode Two and Team Fortress 2. Those two are great, but compared to Call of Duty 4 they don't quite make it.

BioShock - This steam-punk underwater adventure is a critical and financial success, but not many of the staff here at GameBump were quite as impressed as everybody else. Personally, the ridiculously short supply of ammunition early in the game when enemies are attacking you from all sides is what broke the experience for me. Sure it had storytelling, and impressive visuals, but I didn't have much fun finding them. Managing Editor Shiva Stella says the game isn't even a shooter and that I'm wasting my time writing this paragraph.

Check out the Game of the Year 2007 Homepage.

Merry... Holiday, Call Of Duty 4 Only $40 at Amazon

Aaron Dunlap — Fri, 14 Dec 2007 12:51:27 -0600

Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare is one of the year's best games (earning a total of 10 stars on our 5-star scale). Amazon has the game on sale for $40 versus the usual $60 price tag. This applies to the PS3 and Xbox 360 versions. I don't know why I should need to say anything else.

If you haven't picked the game up yet, perhaps this sale should be motivation. Hey, there's still time for shipping before Christma...Holiday!

Confirmed: Metal Gear Online and MGS4 To Be Bundled

Aaron Dunlap — Fri, 14 Dec 2007 12:20:24 -0600

One thing that's always vexed Metal Gear fans is Metal Gear Online. We know that the online component of MGS3: Subsistence was just a "beta test" for the larger, more expansive gameplay to be found in Metal Gear Online. We know that it's being made at the same time and by the same people as Metal Gear Solid 4, and that it's being released at the same time. What didn't make sense was that they were selling it as a separate game; with a separate price tag.

According to the January, 08 issue of PlayStation: The Official Magazine (because, y'know, it's January already), tucked away in a multi-page spread about MGS4 is the juicy tidbit that Metal Gear Online would be bundled with (or even on the same disk as) MGS4, which has a scheduled release date of "Whenever."

Though the only online Metal Gear game I want is one where only I'm Snake and everybody else on the internet is a hapless guard defending the base I'm infiltrating, Metal Gear Online has enough features that I might be impressed. As soon as I get a PS3, which will either be the day the game is released or the day somebody confirms for reaslies that there is no way in hot hell that the game will land on the Xbox 360.

Spike VGA 2007 Award Winners

Tim Grube — Sun, 09 Dec 2007 10:47:04 -0600

The 5th annual Spike Video Game Awards show doesn't air till tonight at 9pm EST, but the winners have "somehow" made its way into my inbox this morning. The show is being held in Las Vegas at the Mandalay Bay Events Resort and Casino. I honestly thought Halo 3 would hit the Game of the Year, but I never expected Skate to be in the best Sports game category.

But anywho, check out the full list below!

GAME OF THE YEAR
BioShock

STUDIO OF THE YEAR
Harmonix

BEST SHOOTER
Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare (Activision/ Infinity Ward)

BEST RPG
Mass Effect (Microsoft Game Studios/ BioWare)

BEST MILITARY GAME
Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare (Activision/ Infinity Ward)

BEST INDIVIDUAL SPORTS GAME
Skate (Electronic Arts/ EA Black Box)

BEST HANDHELD GAME
The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass (Nintendo/ Nintendo)

BEST GRAPHICS
Crysis (Electronic Arts/ Crytek)

BEST GAME BASED ON A MOVIE OR TV SHOW
The Simpsons Game (Electronic Arts/ EA Redwood Shores)

BEST RHYTHM GAME
Rock Band (MTV Games/ Harmonix)

BEST DRIVING GAME
DiRT (Codemasters/ Codemasters)

BEST ACTION GAME
Super Mario Galaxy (Nintendo/ Nintendo)

BEST TEAM SPORTS GAME
Madden NFL 08 (Electronic Arts/ EA Tiburon)

BEST SOUNDTRACK
Rock Band (MTV Games/ Harmonix)

BREAKTHROUGH TECHNOLOGY
The Orange Box/ Portal (Valve/ Valve)

BEST XBOX 360 GAME
BioShock

BEST WII GAME
Super Mario Galaxy (Nintendo/ Nintendo)

BEST PS3 GAME
Ratchet & Clank Future: Tools of Destruction (Sony Computer Entertainment/
Insomniac Games)

BEST PC GAME
The Orange Box (Valve/ Valve)

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE
BioShock

BEST MULTI-PLAYER GAME
Halo 3 (Microsoft Game Studios/ Bungie Studios)

MOST ADDICTIVE VIDEO GAME FUELED BY DEW
Halo 3 (Microsoft Game Studios/ Bungie Studios)

Back to WWII For Call of Duty 5? Probably Not

Aaron Dunlap — Sat, 08 Dec 2007 19:20:04 -0600

This is just rumormongering, but Gamer.tm got word from a tipster that the job postings at Treyarch (makers of Call of Duty 3) include a level designer position. The description for the posting includes, if youre a fan of World War 2 shooters, then even better!

Let's see. Treyarch has made more than zero Call of Duty games, and they say they want a level designer who likes World War II games... it all adds up!

It's a pretty flimsy premise, in the same way as the notion that there's a treasure map on the back of the Declaration of Independence. Infinity ward's Call of Duty 4 got lots of praise for shirking the tired WWII premise, and if Activision has indeed tapped Treyarch to make yet another WWII shooter, well, I don't know what's become of the world.

New Devil May Cry 4 Screenshots

Solomon Lee — Fri, 07 Dec 2007 15:57:41 -0600

Capcom has published new screenshots of Devil May Cry 4 for the Playstation 3 and Xbox 360. It has been confirmed that the highly anticipated demo is coming to the Playstation Store and Xbox Live sometime in early 2008.

Hit the link to view more images.

GameTap Signs Meridian4 Games

Tim Grube — Tue, 04 Dec 2007 12:10:06 -0600

GameTap is slowing growing, with the latest company to jump aboard being the good folks over at Meridian4. Past titles, as well as new games like Shadowgrounds Survivor and Gumboy, will begin appearing on GameTap in early 2008 as part of their expanding list of GameTap Indies featured in the service.

Weve been really impressed with GameTaps commitment to continually providing its users with high-quality games, including new hits and classics, said Steve Milburn, Director of Meridian4. The agreement with GameTap helps us to broaden our reach and lets us get products from our excellent development partners out to an even greater number of gamers.

Visit GameTap by clicking here.