In this post:
1. The rest of the best of!
2. Plus a birthday head’s up.
Before diving headfirst into part 2 of my big rundown and analysis of notable news and nonsense from the last half of last month, least one “major” headline has broken since yesterday?s part 1, and that is…
- Sonic is back, and in 2D! Like most of us has wanted since forever. To the point that it’s almost too late, but Sega in recent years has never been the best when it’s come to timing (among other issues). Plus, for those actually keeping track; he’s actually been in 2D for sometime now; there’s the Advance series, the two Rush installments, and does the BioWare RPGs count? Anyway, and as already noted at that other place where I write about games, it’s destined to be another colossal disappointment, but not in the form of some retarded sidekick, but the piss poor execution of motion controls.
- Here’s something else that just popped up; a quick and cute commercial for Minna no Tennis Portable. You know how the folks who made Mario Golf decided to make Mario Tennis? Same thing here, but with the folks who make Hot Shots Golf for Sony.
- Well, I just beat No More Heroes 2, and I honestly can’t recall the last time I’ve become so engrossed and obsessed (for a lack of a better word) with a game, not since Flower, Sun, and Rain, another Grasshopper Manufacture release of all things. I’ll try to explain why next time, since I mostly just want to stick to a link-dump, though I will say that, other than my desire to beat the game all over again but at a higher difficulty setting (no matter how much I love a game, normally when I finish it I almost always move onto something else, but not this time, which hasn’t happened since Persona 4, it’s just that damn good), I now want to re-visit the original, but the HD re-releases, especially since pre-order bonuses have been revealed…
… Unfortunately the PS3 version will be censored, but I recall people saying that the black pixels instead of blood was actually cooler. All I care about is if the extra amount of skin that’s supposed to be in the Xbox 360 version makes it over as well!
- Time for two additional Siliconera items that broke since yesterday as well: that DSiWare fighting game that uses you and your friends, via the camera, might be coming to the US?? Nice.
- And the GameCube was secretly a 3D machine (as in Avatar 3D, not games that are simply three dimensional)? Weird.
- Not sure if everyone knows this by now, but it’s the 10 year anniversary of The Sims! And what better way to celebrate than a bunch of custom iPhone skins.
- Haven’t had a chance to check it out yet, but I will quite soon (especially since it’s only going to be online for the rest of the month, maybe less): the documentary that takes a close look at video game violence, Moral Kombat.
- Alright, time to get to business, and deep into the heart of Darkness, aka Sankaku Complex. Which has been especially creepy and disgusting as of late, even for me (which is saying a LOT). But it’s still the place for some of the finest, hard-hitting game reporting about Japan you’ll find anywhere! For starters, they’re all over Final Fantasy, as you’ll soon see. Like this post about the proposed Western-flavored Final Fantasy that never came to fruition.
- SC also loves reporting how poorly the Xbox 360 is doing in Japan, like how the Core system is worth about five bucks. Dude, I would GLADLY pay that much for one to play some of the Japanese only software.
- Gotta say, these Final Fantasy XIII figures look mighty impressive…
- Hey, the PS3 has finally been cracked! That certainly took long enough.
- The console wars illustrated in the form of yaoi.
- On a related note, Famitsu recently got into some hot water for a Final Fantasy XIII comic that ran in its pages that featured tentacle rape.
- Some more on that ultra creepy virtual girlfriend simulator, Real Kanojo. Warning, pretty much NSFW!
- As most folks have heard by now, Sega finally released a patch for PS3 owners of Bayonetta to make that game somewhat more tolerable on the Sony system. Still visually inferior to the Xbox 360 version I’m afraid.
And as we would all later found out, it was Sony who had more to do with the miracle fix than Sega (who were the ones who said the long load time issue was unfixable in the first place).
- Yet on a related note, the Xbox 360 version of the Final Fantasy XII apparently can’t hold a candle to the PS3 version. Interesting…
- Who plays the Wii in Japan? Little boys and older women.
- Here’s a surprise: Final Fantasy XIII was originally being developed for the PS2!
- Back to Famitsu, which accidentally spilled the beans on a Love Plus sequel. Though the only reason why I’m mentioning this item is because of the chick from Love Plus X chick from Gurren Lagann (Yoko, sorry I don’t know any of the names of the girls from Love Plus) fan art…
- And gotta love SC’s take on the Dead Or Alive Paradise contains “creepy voyeurism”. Some of the screenshots provided are good God!
- I know everyone’s talking about the Dante’s Inferno Super Bowl ad controversy (I actually kinda like the new one, good use of an old song in a new setting, as cheesy as it might be), though what I care about the most is the animu. Okay, not really; looks pretty horrible actually.
- Well, since we’re here already, may as well pass along some of the more interesting (IMHO) items that have showed up on Kotaku as of late. Like how… I’m considered a member of “gaming’s Twitterati”! Not gonna lie, pretty happy with such a distinction.
- Next is Stephen’s list of games that are candidates for the next Duke Nukem Forever, in the sense that they may never come out, or so it feels like.
On a related note, JC recently interviewed the man behind the pixels regarding the WiiWare version of Cave Story. Unfortunately, not the one question everyone has, which is when the hell it’s coming out, was exactly answered.
- So Warner Bros has apparently purchased the film rights for Mortal Kombat from Midway, back when they were liquidating all assets, and will be doing a reboot. Interesting… can’t be any worse than the recent Superman and Batman reboots. Actually, yes it can!
- Did you hear about the time Andy Garcia made a surprise visit to Sonic Team?
- Attn Katie, this is most definitely relevant to your interests…
- So when Raiden from MGS: Rising finally shows up, he’s gonna look a tad bit different from what we last remembered. Meanwhile, Kojima’s REALLY sorry about the Peace Walker delay.
- Back to Twitter, and during a post that’s supposed to be about Mass Effect 2, the maker of Rez and Lumines had some very harsh things to say about the DS! Such a shame since Meteos (especially the Disney version, believe it or not) was outstanding.
- And I really appreciated their look at other GameCube games that could stand a re-release on the Wii. My vote goes for Billy Hatcher!
- It’s Professor Layton, on ice. Nuff said!
- So there’s a new game coming out for Xbox’s indie games channel called Flotilla, which is very reminiscent of Homeworld. Didn’t care for the original back in the day, so I should perhaps not care about this remake/tribute, but I do, if only because of this one screenshot…
- Speaking of the Microsoft’s indie initiative, or lack thereof, here we have Brandon with an excellent breakdown.
- And here’s Brandon’s look at the often ignored Indie Games Student Showcase.
- Plus at long last, he’s compiled what games to check out (the dude simply has the best taste, bar none) in a very convenient forwmat!
- Via his Tumblr is a video that I also would love to be a video game somehow.
- Speaking of Tumblr, here’s a new one that I recently stumbled across that’s all about the wild world of box art. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again; I miss the days of futures past…
- Another place that I recently just learned about is Eastern Minds, which covers the same extremely obscure and hardcore Japanese beat that Insert Credit used to (R.I.P.). Anyhow, take a gander at all the different endings in the PSone puzzle classic I.Q. Final. They’re actually totally insane.
- And here’s a look at soda machines as they pop up in games. I’m a bit disappointed that Persona 4′s offerings didn’t get at least a mention.
- Game & Watch are coming back! Albeit a bit smaller.
- On a similar note, and what I actually want, are these mini, screen-less versions of Street Fighter and Xevious.
- Yet the definitely highlight of the place, and why it’s now a permanent fixture of my RSS reader, is this expose of an old Capcom title that’s based upon the most unlikeliest of films; instead of it being some big-budget action spectacular, its a satirical drama that’s about… tax evasion?
- Check out this old Fantastic Four cover that’s been infused with a dash of Donkey Kong…
- And sticking with fan-art for a bit, here’s a badass rendering of Akuma as a biker that I recently stumbled across (sorry, but I have no idea who the original artist is)…
- I’ve seen plenty of Super Mario fan art in my day, but very few, if any, to feature the princess from Galaxy…
- This is also my first encounter with Monster Hunter fan art as well…
- A bunch of Vocaloids playing PS3…
- Alright, I’ve had these screenshots since almost forever, so now might be a good time as any to pass them along (since for whatever reason, I’m paranoid that I don’t have enough pics for this particular journal entry); they’re actual screenshots I believe from a game. I actually had the installer, but then accidentally trashed it, and can’t for the life of me remember what the name was. And yeah, I’ve been kicking myself ever since…
… There’s one last screenshot, and even though you really can’t tell what’s going on, I’m still keeping it hidden since it does depict squirting penises and at least one vagina, as impossible to make out as they might be.
- Though with that in mind, I don’t feel nearly as dirty for passing along this piece of wonderful Persona 4 fan art!
… But if it’s “too much”, someone let me know and I’ll hide it as well.
- I too must lament the death of character based rhythm games.
Though on a semi-related note, Courtney Love now states that her departed husband Kurt would have loved to have been fine with how he’s been portrayed in Guitar Hero 5. You know, I really miss the man’s music, and it’s sad that his life ended so early and so tragically, but on the bright side is that he doesn’t have to deal with this idiot anymore. Yeesh.
- So long story short, both myself and Hilary are obsessed with these goth kids who dance around Southern California (they were #5 in my top ten random videos of 09 as some might recall), which led us to do doing some research as to who the hell these folks are, and thus I came across The Gothsicles. They’re not related to the dancing kids, btw.
Anyhow, I figured them to be a goth chiptune act, but it’s mostly a traditional electronic ensemble that regularly references video games…
… Be sure to hit their MySpace and check out their Konami Code song.
- It feels like forever since we first got wind of the iPhone version of Noby Noby Boy, but it’s still coming, and was even demoed publicly not too long ago!
- Apparently, at a Panera Brea in the city, is some dude who sits around playing World of Warcraft all day long, via the establishment’s WiFi. Doesn’t sound too insane, right? Well, he’s not using a laptop but an actual desktop, an iMac to be exact.
- As noted many times before, I’m a big fan of augmented reality as is, but when you add Virtual On to the mix, you’ve pretty much struck gold IMHO!
- Also via Mecha Damashii, and I know I’ve already gone over toys and figures and the like already, but this too just came up: someone’s created an actual transformable model of the Vic Viper from Zone of the Enders!
- Hey, did I ever mention that I recently started contributing over there as well? Here’s a somewhat recent post about the return of the Shagohod (somewhat) in the new MGS PSP.
… I seriously happy about this, btw!
- Meanwhile, over at Heavy, been meaning to pass along a review of Silent Hill for the Wii for some time now, but I’ve just been so busy with so many things (plus No More Heroes 2 sorta got in the way). But anyhow, it’s an amazing game. Seriously! And it’s nice to know that I’m not the only one who feels this way.
- The last major stop is, of course, GameSetWatch! Said it before, and I’ll say it again: pound for pound the best damn game blog you’ll find anywhere! The place is simply chock full of so much awesome stuff that it’s actually pretty easy to miss something that one should not miss! Like the 411 on a game that involved you folding pieces of paper so a stick guy can deliver a cake.
- This four player take on Space Invaders seems like a pale wannabe Extreme to me, but it still looks fairly interesting.
- Maestro is heading to the iPhone? What isn’t these days, amirite?
- These (mock/concept) screenshots for a Natal game that ultimately got scrapped look positively insane…
- Hey, Canabalt fan art! I’m genuinely shocked and disappointed that no one went for the obvious joke of having the running man run into Faith from Mirror’s Edge.
- God, Bit.Trip Runner looks (and now sounds, literally) more and more awesome with every little detail that becomes unveiled.
- The idea of a game in which you control someone like Indiana Jones, except his a lazy-ass, is all kinds of genius.
- Yet it still pales in comparison to the arcade game in which you don’t shoot aliens or punch street fighters but flip a table over in anger. Once again, God bless the Japanese!
- Haven’t gotten a chance to check it out yet, but since I was a BIG fan of Donkey Kong ’94, I’m fairly certain that I will love Monkey Kong.
- Remember what I said last time about the Xbox being the spiritual successor of the Dreamcast? Well, these very Sega-like ads centering on a downtrodden Xbox 360 simply hits that message even closer to home.
- God, I really wish I could have attended this chiptune event, if only to pick up an print version of this poster…
- And speaking of posters, check out this print inspired by Tommy…
- Official GDC 2010 promotional vid take two. And unfortunately, I’m pretty certain that there will be way too many “Cake Is A Lie” jokes at the show.
- I’m sure I’ve already mentioned this before, but once again, Korgs DS-10 Plus is coming out real soon! Can’t wait; been playing around with the original a lot as late, create mini compositions while on the toilet bowl. Next stop Pulsewave for sure.
- Time for another look at the crazy world that is the demoscene, with a look at the best of 2009; here’s part one and part two.
- So the scope of the Kokoromi Collective’s Gamma 4 seems to have expanded a bit; instead of just having one button games, they’re now asking for one button objects as well?
BTW, here’s an excellent example of the types of games that’s been arriving at Phil Fish’s inbox. And for anyone wondering how many games there will be, the answer is a lot!
- Back to chiptunes, here’s another fantastic installment of Sound Current, this time featuring all the awesome Game Boy music related goods would have been able to find at the Comiket 77.
- Remember that Parodius fan art from last time? Here’s some more from the same source, and it’s all Konami themed!
- So my jaw literally dropped when I heard the news that Akira Yamaoka, best known for this music on Silent Hill, had joined Goichi Suda & company. But shortly afterwards I downloaded a audio rip of NMH2 and noticed that his name was credited and only then realized that some of the music sounds an awful like something he would create. Plus this Tiny Cartridge post all but confirmed his involvement.
- And yes, these arcade mugs are kinda cool (but somewhat useless to me, since I hardly ever drink any hot beverages).
- I also think this concept art from a game that never happened is equally cool, but will agree with the comments that it seems a bit too Masamune Shirow…
- Actually, one last stop, to help justify my paycheck; a round-up of my fave Heayy posts…
… Remember kids, campers never win.
… Where Capcom REALLY gets their ideas from.
… Video games killed the porn star.
… Guess what? Muscle March is not THAT bad after-all.
… A movie based on a game that was based upon a movie.
Oh, one more last thing, for real, and something totally non-game related: today is Katie’s birthday! And because she likes gray kitty cats…
