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March 16, 2012

The Untouchables: Resident Evil 4

It transformed a series apparently in its death throes, but Capcom's horror isn't entirely forward thinking.

This is the fifth article in our series looking for the flaws in some of the greatest and most discussed games of all time. You can read our previous dissections by following these links: 

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Shenmue HD "finished for a year"

An HD remake of Yu Suzuki's beloved Dreamcast title Shenmue is not only on the cards - it's finished, and has been for over a year. Speaking to Gamerzines, an anonymous tipster with ties to publisher Sega confirmed that both the original, and the 2001 sequel which was also released for Xbox, were in the can.
http://www.gamerzines.com/xbox/news-xbox/shenmue-xbla-hd-real-finished.html
Gamerzines

An HD remake of Yu Suzuki's beloved Dreamcast game Shenmue is not only on the cards - it's finished, and has been for over a year.

Speaking to Gamerzines, an anonymous tipster with ties to publisher Sega confirmed that remakes of both the original, and the 2001 sequel which was also released for Xbox, were in the can.

"Shenmue HD is real [and has been] finished for well over a year," the source said. "As is Shenmue II HD."

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The Friday Game: Next, Please!

There’s no victory without sacrifice in this clever platformer, says Chris Donlan.

It was inevitable, really: a platform game in which you play as the platforms. Next, Please!, a strange little Flash title from Vyacheslav Stepanov, takes the standard ‘overcome obstacles, get to the exit’ template, and drops in an intriguing twist – while your melancholy doe-eyed potato man can run and jump with the best of them, a tap of the space bar will turn him to stone, meaning you can use your past lives to fill out some fairly sparse environments.

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Notch welcomes Steam competition

Minecraft creator Markus "Notch" Persson says it is a "good thing" that the likes of EA are challenging Steam's dominance of digital PC game sales. Speaking to Gamespy, Persson - who handed the Minecraft reins to Jens Bergensten in December - said he was wary of one platform controlling the entire market.
http://uk.pc.gamespy.com/pc/minecraft/1220898p1.html
Gamespy

Minecraft creator Markus "Notch" Persson says it is a "good thing" that the likes of EA are challenging Steam's dominance of digital PC game sales.

Speaking to Gamespy, Persson - who handed the Minecraft reins to Jens Bergensten in December - said he was wary of one platform controlling the entire market.

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Datura trailer

Here's our first proper look at Datura, Plastic Studio's PSN exclusive controlled solely with the Move controller that was announced at GDC last week. Director Michal Staniszewski compared the game to Thatgamecompany's arty PSN exclusives Journey and Flower, boasting of the game's "unique experimental narrative and original way of interaction," and sheds a little more light on the game in the below video.
http://blog.eu.playstation.com/2012/03/15/delve-deeper-into-datura/
PlayStation Blog

Here's our first look at Datura, Plastic Studios' PSN exclusive controlled solely with the Move peripheral that was announced at GDC last week.

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Crytek confident in Homefront sequel

Crytek insists its Homefront sequel will succeed despite the damage caused to the brand by the lukewarm response to the first game in the series. Speaking at GDC in San Francisco last week, reported by Gamesindustry.biz, Crytek CEO Avni Yerli said that the sequel - development duties of which were passed to the Crysis 2 developer in September - was in good shape and had enough "mind share" to succeed.
http://www.gamesindustry.biz/articles/2012-03-15-crytek-homefront-still-has-great-mind-share
gamesindustry.biz

Crytek insists its Homefront sequel will succeed despite the damage caused to the brand by the lukewarm response to the first game in the series.

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Microsoft: no new Xbox this year

Firm pours cold water on months of speculation, saying: "2012 is all about Xbox 360."

Microsoft has moved to quash speculation that it plans to reveal new console hardware at E3 in June.

Abandoning its usual 'no comment on rumour or speculation' line, the platform holder issued a firmly worded statement to Bloomberg in which it said, “For us, 2012 is all about Xbox 360.”

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Microsoft: no new Xbox this year

Firm pours cold water on months of speculation, saying: "2012 is all about Xbox 360."

Microsoft has moved to quash speculation that it plans to reveal new console hardware at E3 in June.

Abandoning its usual 'no comment on rumour or speculation' line, the platform holder issued a firmly worded statement to Bloomberg in which it said, “For us, 2012 is all about Xbox 360.”

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Kinect finds the perfect pair of jeans

Microsoft's Xbox 360 motion sensor Kinect is being used in a US department store to help female customers find the perfect pair of jeans. A post on the Kinect For Windows blog reveals that Bloomingdale's in Century City, Los Angeles, debuted the Bodymetrics Pod earlier this week. Developed by London-based Bodymetrics, it uses eight Kinect sensors to produce a 3D map of a customer's body shapes and chooses a pair of jeans that both fits and flatters. The process takes less than five seconds.
http://blogs.msdn.com/b/kinectforwindows/archive/2012/03/15/kinect-for-windows-solution-leads-to-the-perfect-fitting-jeans.aspx
Microsoft

Microsoft's Xbox 360 motion sensor Kinect is being used in a US department store to help female customers find the perfect pair of jeans.

A post on the Kinect For Windows blog reveals that Bloomingdale's in Century City, Los Angeles, debuted the Bodymetrics Pod earlier this week. Developed by London-based Bodymetrics, it uses eight Kinect sensors to produce a 3D map of a customer's body shapes and chooses a pair of jeans that both fits and flatters. The process takes less than five seconds.

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BioWare "listening" to Mass Effect 3 ending complaints

BioWare insists it is listening to complaints about Mass Effect 3's ending, but has asked fans to wait for more people to finish the game before the studio makes any comment. So dissatisfied are players with the trilogy's conclusion that a fan-organised campaign, dubbed Reclaim Mass Effect 3, has garnered support from thousands of users on Facebook, Twitter and the game's forums. The movement has even raised over $50,000 for gaming charity Child's Play.
http://social.bioware.com/forum/1/topic/355/index/9992961
BioWare

BioWare insists it is listening to complaints about Mass Effect 3's ending, but has asked fans to wait for more people to finish the game before the studio makes any comment.

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Report: Elder Scrolls MMOG unveiled in May

Bethesda will announce an MMOG set in the Elder Scrolls Universe in May, according to reports. Multiple sources have confirmed to Tom's Guide that the game, logically titled Elder Scrolls Online, will be set in the Second Era, several hundred years before any other games in the series and a full millennium before the events of The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim.
http://www.tomsguide.com/us/ZeniMax-Bethesda-Elder-Scrolls-Online-MMO,news-14481.html
Tom's Guide

Bethesda will announce an MMOG set in the Elder Scrolls universe in May, according to reports.

Multiple sources have confirmed to Tom's Guide that the game, logically titled The Elder Scrolls Online, will be set in the Second Era, several hundred years before any other games in the series and a full millennium before the events of The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim. It will have three playable factions, each represented by an animal: a lion, a dragon, and a bird of prey.

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BioWare cancelled Mass Effect FPS

BioWare was working on a multiplayer FPS based on the Mass Effect series, but cancelled it, instead using it as the basis for Mass Effect 3's co-op mode. The news comes from The Final Hours Of Mass Effect 3, a new iPad app produced by Gametrailers' Geoff Keighley looking at development of the final game in BioWare's sci-fi trilogy.
http://kotaku.com/5893424/there-was-going-to-be-a-mass-effect-first-person-shooter/gallery/1
Kotaku

BioWare was working on a multiplayer FPS based on the Mass Effect series, but cancelled it, instead using it as the basis for Mass Effect 3's co-op mode.

The news comes from The Final Hours Of Mass Effect 3, a new iPad app produced by Gametrailers' Geoff Keighley looking at development of the final game in BioWare's sci-fi trilogy.

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March 15, 2012

NeoGeo handheld headed west

Retro gaming specialist Blaze has struck a deal with SNK Playmore to bring NeoGeo X, a handheld version of SNK's beloved console, to the west. MCV reports that the device, first revealed by Japanese website Famicom Plaza in January, will be released in the UK during the second quarter of this year. However, it will be a limited run, and could cost as much as £500.
http://www.mcvuk.com/news/read/new-neogeo-x-handheld-console-confirmed/092838
MCV

Retro gaming specialist Blaze has struck a deal with SNK Playmore to bring NeoGeo X, a handheld version of SNK's beloved console, to the west.

MCV reports that the device, first revealed by Japanese website Famicom Plaza in January, will be released in the UK during the second quarter of this year. However, it will be a limited run, and could cost as much as £500.

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Yakuza: Dead Souls review

Sega's zombie-infested spinoff doesn't require prior knowledge of the series, but certainly rewards it.

Yakuza: Dead Souls is a game that takes a well-established, five-game franchise that’s characterised, fundamentally, by realism – by seedy neon cityscapes, sleazy hostess bars, gritty violence, tattooed gangsters and overwrought drama full of honour and betrayal – and adds fundamentally, comprehensively, completely unrealistic zombies. So perhaps the most surprising thing about it is that there aren’t more surprises.

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Places: The USG Ishimura

We stalk the corridors of a space-bound tomb that rivals the best Hollywood has to offer.

This article contains spoilers.

You’ve seen it all before, of course. A small rescue team is sent to assess a mining vessel that has gone dark while orbiting a planet, just after it sent out fragmented reports detailing the discovery of an artefact of unknown origin. Dead Space thrusts its reluctant hero Isaac Clarke into a wanton medley of sci-fi references and cliché, but much more than that, it’s a love letter to genre fans raised on hulking spaceships and the isolation of deep space.

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Warner's keen on Lollipop Chainsaw movie

Publisher showed early interest in adapting Suda 51's next game for the big screen, writer reveals.

Grasshopper Manufacture's upcoming hack-and-slash title Lollipop Chainsaw has already been considered for a Hollywood adaptation, its writer has revealed.

Speaking to us at GDC last week, James Gunn told us that Warner Bros, which is to publish Suda 51's zombie-infested action title in the west, expressed interest in adapting the game for the big screen in the project's early days - and that a movie could happen should the game prove successful upon its release in June.

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Diablo III dated

The long-awaited PC action-RPG Diablo III will be released on May 15, Blizzard Entertainment has announced. The news means Diablo III will finally be in PC gamers' hands just under four years after it was first announced, in June 2008.

The long-awaited PC action-RPG Diablo III will be released on May 15, Blizzard Entertainment has announced.

The news means Diablo III will finally be in PC gamers' hands just under four years after it was first announced, in June 2008.

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Command & Conquer MMOG enters beta

Command & Conquer Tiberium Alliances, pitched by publisher EA as "the first truly portable MMOG", is now in open beta. Developed by German EA subsidiary Phenomic, whose most recent release was 2010 RTS Lords Of Ultima, Tiberium Alliances is in development for PC and mobile platforms.
http://alliances.commandandconquer.com/intro/index?lang=en
EA

Command & Conquer Tiberium Alliances, the PC and mobile strategy game pitched by publisher EA as "the first truly portable MMOG", is now in open beta.

Developed by German EA subsidiary Phenomic, whose most recent release was 2010 RTS Lords Of Ultima, Tiberium Alliances entered closed beta in December but is now open to all. To sign up, follow the source link below.

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House Of The Dead 4 hits PSN next month

House Of The Dead 4 will be released through the PlayStation Store on April 18, publisher Sega has confirmed. In a post on the PlayStation Blog, Sega's digital campaign manager Mike Kebby confirms that the arcade conversion will cost £6.49/€7.99.
http://blog.eu.playstation.com/2012/03/14/house-of-the-dead-4-coming-to-psn-this-april/
PlayStation Blog

The House Of The Dead 4 will be released through the PlayStation Store on April 18, publisher Sega has confirmed.

In a post on the PlayStation Blog, Sega's digital campaign manager Mike Kebby confirms that the arcade conversion will cost £6.49/€7.99. PlayStation Plus users will be given a 30 per cent discount, valid until May 3.

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Game confirms funding talks

Game Group has confirmed that it has been approached by a third party, believed to be retail salvage specialist OpCapita, about helping the UK's largest specialist videogame retailer avoid administration. Yesterday The Times reported that OpCapita - which bought another struggling UK chain, Comet, for £2 last month - had offered to buy Game's debt from its lenders. In a statement, the retailer confirmed that preliminary discussions had taken place - but warned that there was no guarantee of a reversal in its fortunes.

Game Group has confirmed that it has been approached by a third party, believed to be retail salvage specialist OpCapita, about helping the UK's largest specialist videogame retailer avoid administration.

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The Untouchables: Halo - Combat Evolved

It redefined the firstperson shooter, but is Bungie's masterpiece really bulletproof?

This is the fourth article in our series looking for the flaws in some of the greatest and most discussed games of all time. You can read our previous dissections by following these links: 

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A videogame designed by AI

Created by Michael Cook, a computer scientist at Imperial College London, Angelina iteratively designs games using a technique dubbed co-operative evolution. The AI separately builds aspects, or species, of a game - selected from a list of enemies, power-ups and level architecture - then combines the element before simulating a human player's progress through it.
http://www.newscientist.com/movie/space-station-invaders
Space Station Invaders

The link at the bottom of this story will take you to Space Station Invaders, a game designed by an AI system called Angelina.

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Opinion: Your play brain and you

There's no need to feel guilty about all those unfinished games sat on the shelf, says Tadhg Kelly.

You love them, you play them, but after a while you just sort of… drift away. You look at their boxes guiltily and promise yourself you’ll finish them soon. Then you buy another and it becomes your new favourite. I’m talking about your games, of course, and the likelihood that you never finish most of them. 

For your DVDs, books and albums, it’s different. When you get around to watching, reading or listening to them, you’ll probably 
finish them. So why not your games?

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PS3 hacker in cannabis bust

George "Geohot" Hotz, the man who posted the PlayStation 3 "root key" online and opened up Sony's console to piracy, has been arrested for possession of marijuana. Above The Law reports that Hotz, 22, who also devised the iPhone jailbreak, was stopped by police at a checkpoint in Sierra Blanca, Texas, on his way to give a talk at the SXSW festival in Austin.
http://abovethelaw.com/2012/03/famed-hacker-arrested-for-pot-possession-en-route-to-sxsw/
Above The Law

George "Geohot" Hotz, the man who posted the PlayStation 3 "root key" online and opened up Sony's console to piracy, has been arrested for possession of marijuana.

Above The Law reports that Hotz, 22, who also devised the iPhone jailbreak, was stopped by police at a checkpoint in Sierra Blanca, Texas, on his way to give a talk at the SXSW festival in Austin.

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Report: Game loses Microsoft and Activision

Ailing UK retailer Game Group has reportedly lost the support of Microsoft and Activision. The news comes from a leaked memo, passed to MCV, in which the retailer admits it will not be stocking Activision's Cabela Big Game Hunter 2012 or Zhu Zhu Babies or Microsoft's Kinect Rush: A Disney/Pixar Adventure.
http://www.mcvuk.com/news/read/xbox-and-activision-pull-game-support-says-leaked-memo/092767
MCV

Ailing UK retailer Game Group has reportedly lost the support of Microsoft and Activision.

The news comes from a leaked memo, passed to MCV, in which the retailer admits it will not be stocking Activision's Cabela Big Game Hunter 2012 or Zhu Zhu Babies, or Microsoft's Kinect Rush: A Disney/Pixar Adventure.

read more


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