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Gran Turismo HD Concept - Launch date and details

GT HD will be available as a free download for the PS3 system and will be made available on December 24th. It's essentially just GT4 with totally revamped graphics for the PS3 console, aka, 1080p visuals. Interestingly enough, it will be available for the North American market, unlike the original GT Concept titles from years back which were only available in Europe and Japan.

According to Sony and Kazunori Yamauchi, this title is intended to be a glimpse into the future of the Gran Turismo series.

Players will have access to the Eiger Nordwand course in forward and reverse which will be playable as a time trial. Meeting certain goals will unlock the first 10 cars of the game and players will get to unlock them again with some performance tuning. The game will also include the drift mode that was initially planned for Gran Turismo 4 but nixed on the final release. Drift Trial mode will score players based on drift angles, racing lines, and speed for each of the evaluation zones on the course. The point total for all the zones will go towards the player's rankings.

Players will be able to use the Playstation Network to upload lap times and view rankings based on car and mode as well as share replays. Sadly, online play will not be available on this title.

Sony has also provided a list of the available cars in game. These will be available stock and tuned.

• 1995 Suzuki Cappucino
• 1989 Mazda Eunos Roadster
• 2004 Honda Integra TYPE R
• 1996 Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution IV GSR
• 2006 Infiniti G35 Coupe
• 2005 Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution IX GSR
• 2005 Lotus Elise 111R
• 1994 Nissan SKYLINE GT-R Vspec II
• 1995 Toyota Celica GT-FOUR Rally Car
• 2006 Ferrari 599

Sadly, it seems that GT HD Concept is going to be nothing more than a tech demo showing off the visual prowess of the PS3 console. There doesn't seem to be a whole lot on the plate here, and this is probably just meant to hold off the crowds until GT5 is officially released. No word yet on the release of GT5, but considering the delays to GT4, I'd expect it to launch no sooner than the end of 2007 - if even that soon. Kaz is a perfectionist when it comes to the GT titles, and if GT4 is any indication, he will delay it as much as possible in order to release the best racing sim he can.

Besides that, I'm not particularly looking forward to GT HD Concept as it just doesn't have much to offer in terms of gameplay and replay value. I'm sure the lucky few hardcore GT fans that actually have a PS3 will be excited, but for everyone else... you probably won't be missing a whole lot. I'd say stick with your PS2, some component cables, and play GT4 in 1080i.

Since I am sitting here talking about Gran Turismo, I may as well forward you on to GTPlanet.net - the largest online community dedicated to the Gran Turismo franchise.

Microsoft Extends 360 Warranty

Merry Christmas, Xbox 360 gamers.

Effective immediately, Microsoft has extended the Xbox 360's inadequate 90-day warranty to a full-year for units purchased in the US and Canada. If you experience hardware issues (it happens) within the first year of ownership, you can have it repaired at no cost.

This warranty will also apply to those who have already purchased a 360 and are within the first year of the warranty period; good to know because I bought my 360 two weeks ago. What's more, this policy is retroactive--if you've paid Microsoft for repairs within the warranty period, you will be eligible for reimbursement of the repair charges. Customers who have paid for repairs within the first year can expect reimbursement cheques for the amount of their console repair in approximately 10 weeks.

Contest: Xbox Live Multiplayer Mayhem Month

Want to win free stuff? Maybe some Microsoft points or some Xbox 360 accessories? How about an HD TV and an Xbox 360 HD-DVD player or even a trip to Ubisoft Montreal to see how its all done? Most likely in an effort to take over the gaming world or destroy sales for the Nintendo Wii and PlayStation 3, Xbox Canada is launching Multiplayer Mayhem Month starting Dec 26th. Every day for a month 10 Xbox Live Gold members will win prizes just for playing multiplayer games online. Since every Xbox 360 Premium package sold in Canada around this time is a holiday bundle, it comes with Xbox Live Arcade Unplugged which offers 1 free month on Xbox Live with a gold membership. Microsoft might be hoping that the contest will encourage gamers to sign-on with that free membership and give their Xbox Live service a try, as if the sale increases from Gears of War hasn't already been enough. But who can blame them for trying, we Canadians love free stuff!

There is a catch it, based on the contest website only Canadian gamers are being targeted. Also, it seems that specific games have been selected that you SHOULD be playing if you want to win, and Gears of War is not one of them. This is a smart move by Microsoft as it will encourage players to play some of the other titles online however people who bought the holiday bundle in Canada won't be able to participate heavily as most of the games listed are not sold with the bundle. So either rent them or buy them if you want to increase your chances of winning.

Good Luck!

Additional Kingdom Hearts titles on the way!

Why stop a good thing? Especially when it's making you lots of money? Tetsuya Nomura has announced that there are multiple titles in the works related to the Kingdom Hearts franchise for 2007. The game which is a combination of Square Enix and Disney characters has been a huge success for both companies. A sequel to Kingdom Hearts 2 hasn't been explicitly announced yet, leaving the opportunity for other types of media. Portable game? Comic? Movie? Card Game? Collectible Plates? The possibilities are endless.

Wii Opera Browser (Beta), available Dec 22

Nintendo announced that on Dec 22, the Opera Web Browser (beta version) will be available for download for free from the Wii Shop channel. Once downloaded, it will activate the Internet channel and allow users to surf the web from the Wii.

The final version of the Opera browser will be available at the end of March 2007, and will be free for all Wii owners to download through the end of June 2007. After June, users who haven’t already downloaded the Opera browser can go to the Wii Shop Channel to download it for 500 Wii Points.

The beta version is a flash-enabled browser that will allow users to use the Wii-mote to click links for navigation. An on-screen keyboard will be provided to help users fetch web pages. Users will also be able to zoom-in/zoom-out of content.

Also today, the Forecast channel goes live delivering current and future weather information.

Halo 3 ViDoc on Brutes now on Live Marketplace

The Halo 3 video documentary Bungie promised us this week arrived on Xbox Live Marketplace at 2am PST running approximately 7 minutes in length. The video showcased work-in-progress and the basic production process behind the Brutes in Halo 3. From this video it is obvious that the Brutes will play a strong, aggressive, and more realistic role in the third installment. The video basically goes over the concept artist discovering an appropriate look for the Brutes and the animators working towards movements that portray appropriate Brute behavior. At the moment the video is only available on the Xbox Live Marketplace but Bungie claims that a non-marketplace version will be coming shortly so hold onto you pants.

Update: The documentary can be viewed online here.

Linerider is sliding from your browser to your Wii and DS!

If you don't know what Line Rider is by now, you need to stay in more. Here's what you need to do to catch up on the Line Rider phenomenon. The uninitiated can head over to DeviantArt and play the original. You can also check out the brand spanking new update if you want. Then go to YouTube and watch a few of the thousands of Line Rider tracks that people have created. Then cry yourself to sleep know that your track will never involve Gandalf screaming "YOU SHALL NOT PASS".

Anyways, on to the current news. inXile has announced that they have acquired the rights to Line Rider, and that it will be appearing on the Nintendo DS and Wii in the future. The titles will retain the core features of the game, and add more to it. Making tracks on the DS using the touch screen seems very interesting, and more intuitive than the mouse. Waving the Wiimote around to make tracks just comes off as odd though.

One puzzling thing is that the game will be coming out in September of 2007. If one guy can code it in Flash by himself for a project, how hard can it be for a team of programmers?

Halo 3 Campaign footage this week

The recent weekly update on Bungie.net indicates that there is yet another treat for Halo 3 fans coming this season. Sometime this week, no actual date mentioned, there will be documentary footage on Halo 3's campaign mode released on Xbox Live on 720p resolution. The video will also be released online so non-Xbox users will not be singled out. Frankie, who made the update also confirmed a rumor surfacing around that Brutes will be playable in Halo 3, this rumor has been confirmed as false. Sigh...

[Source: Bungie via Joystiq]

NSFW: Zelda TV series + South Park = Madness

I'm sure most of you have at least heard of the old Zelda animated series. Well, it was chock full of amusing sexual innuendo. So much so that RobotBling over at GameTrailers.com did a little mashup of the cartoons with some unique South-Park-esque animations.

The video is NOT work safe. You have been warned.

Gears of War, 2 Million copies sold and still going

Who would have thought that in 6 weeks there would be 2 million or so players around the world fragging the daylights out of the Locust horde. Microsoft and Epic games today confirmed that since release 2 million copies of Gears of War have been sold, 1 million in North America alone. And no Gears of War is not another Halo game if that's what you think after living under a rock for a year. It's a third person shooter that takes you into an epic futuristic battle against an ugly, horrendous, and nightmarish race, the Locust, that you have to beat-the-daylights out of to save mankind. Sounds fun doesn't it? Hell yeeeah, it is!

How fun could it be? Very! Microsoft claims that it increased subscriptions to their Xbox Live service by over 50% since emergence day. Approximately a million users are online battling in 10 million online gameplay sessions. Can you spell FUN in any other way? I'm sure that the game itself is going to drive up sales of the Xbox 360 console this holiday season. What do you think, is Gears of War the next Halo killer?

Wii Came, Wii Saw And Wii Conquered!

The Nintendo Wii hit the European streets on Friday December the 8th and sold out 50,000 units in 12 hours. But it kept going. In just two days, the console had sold out across Europe with a total figure of 325,000 units. According to a press release this has been the fastest selling home console in history. It seems the world has embraced the Wii with open arms. In North America and Japan, 3 weeks post launch a total of 1 million consoles have been sold. 600,000 units were sold out in 8 days after the North American launch. 400,000 units were sold out after the Japanese launch. So if you haven't already got one, what are you waiting for? Lets all Wii together.

MMOs are for the birds

There is no point in dancing around the topic here, we’re not going to avoid taking that critical blow that forces us to wander as a ghost, hunt down our body or lose a level. The zero dollar question is;

Have MMO games gone stale?

Everything has a beginning and an end. In the beginning there were BBS text based dungeons, MUDs, and RPG games, but the most widely renowned beginnings for the MMO genre are found in the seeds of Everquest.

With its humble beginnings in 1999, it’s hard to believe that almost a decade has passed and the Everquest players still continue to shell out cash on a monthly basis to immerse themselves in this interactive virtual universe. Since then dozens of whelps have been spawned, Final Fantasy XI, Guild Wars and Lineage to name a few, and some of them have grown into full fledged corporate entities, such as the WoW division of Blizzard Entertainment. However, as the years progress and the addictions continue to be exploited, players are beginning to notice the trends and the repetitiveness of the genre.

To be clear, there is no point in saying that online games are good or bad, fun or not, or worthwhile to a gamer or not. What needs to be explored from an unbiased vantage point is whether or not these MMOs are continuing to evolve and offer the player an entertaining unique experience.

The continuing trend in online games is to design tasks specifically to lengthen the number of hours of play. More innovative designers like NCSoft have recognized the need for compartmentalized tasks, which allow you to complete portions of an overall goal in 15-30 minutes; however they still want to keep gamers playing persistently. After all, that’s what the genre requires. They need you to buy the next expansion or pay the monthly fee, or else they have to close shop.

This should be a warning light for gamers everywhere, they expect you to keep paying AND keep playing the same game almost indefinitely. Where are the gorgeous new graphics? Why is it always the same problems that arise; like transportation, aggro, and not enough characters playing the “healer”. Maybe new games coming from popular TV shows like Firefly will produce new and innovative ideas.

Are the corporations that back these massive online games afraid to try something new? Why change the format when you have a cash cow like this. There is no question mark in that statement because it’s rhetorical. When you are earning that much money there is little reason to introduce change and risk. The only driving factor for change in the MMO genre at the moment is when companies (new or old) are looking to expand their market. Guild Wars, published by NCsoft, is an example of a company that wanted to attract a new market of gamer. They changed the MMO so that it did not rely on player groups alone, could be played without severe time constraints, and did not have a monthly fee.

Unfortunately, due to the sheer volume of people interested in playing the stale MMOs that are already available, it doesn’t look like the massively multiplayer genre is going to make any massive leaps into a new generation of gaming, but thanks to companies like NCsoft there is hope. What will the next era of gaming bring us? Things like countries having virtual wars, or laws being developed to govern virtual realms? Or will it all devolve back into a safer more single player oriented gaming style. Who knows; it is certainly an interesting era for games to grow and develop.

Assassin's Creed - 360 Gameplay Footage HD Trailer!

Watch Me.

Ubisoft, I love you. That right there is a link to the HD 360 gameplay footage of Assassin's Creed. I'm going to probably catch a lot of flak for this, but I'm willing to bet this game will out-do Halo 3. Don't get me wrong here Halo 3 is going to be an amazing game, but it will always just be an FPS.

360 has been waiting for a title like this for quite some time. There just hasn't been a good RPG for the 360 to date really. Some may argue that, but can you honestly name a blockbuster RPG that graced the 360? I can think of a couple wannabe titles that fell flat in the first week of sales.

Let's be honest. Assassin's Creed looks hot. You know it, I know it, they know it. It's going to bring aspects to gaming that are, for the most part, currently overlooked. Crowd collision? Are you serious. Of course there will be cry babies who don't like the idea. Personally I think it's going to be amazing. (Take note of the "social stealth". FINALLY! A game that doesn't directly link stealth to shadows!) The game is going to take talent to play, and I like the thought of that.

Also note around half way through the video they explore the town itself. Seemingly you are not limited to 1 dimension of the game. There are tons of varying paths to the same location. From climbing the sides of buildings to jumping off walls and swinging from poles, the game lets you interact with environment in ways most games avoid all together.

WARNING: This trailer will make you want the game. If you do not have a 360 you will be forced to purchase one. Please avoid watching if you can't afford said console. Thank you.

Can you say pre-ordered, because I sure can. TBA 2007 release. Please hurry. (:

Jason out.

Mass Effect X06 footage released, all in-game!

BioWare recently released some amazing gameplay footage of their upcoming sci-fi role-playing game Mass Effect for the Xbox 360. If you thought that Gears of War looked great, this will blow you away. This game has won Best RPG and Best Xbox 360 game at E3. The story pulls us into a very different futuristic universe. The legend is that every 50,000 years an ancient machine race invades the galaxy and they are at it again. You must above all odds defend this galaxy for the sake of humanity without remorse, without hesitation, and outside the limits of the law. Yes, great heartwarming story. But just look at those in-game graphics, they claim to be all generated in real-time. If that is true then this game will be momentous achievement for the Xbox 360. Still want a PS3?

Source: [ Digg ]

Why not get an Xbox 360, seriously?

I have been to all the launch events; Xbox 360, Nintendo Wii, Playstation 3. I’ve seen what each has offered from day 1. I even gave the Xbox 360 a year to see what Microsoft would come up with. So I waited and now I’ve decided.

When I first saw the Xbox 360 I was definitely wowed by the graphics but I had faith Sony would show something better after their demonstrations at E3. I was not even considering Nintendo until the Wii-mote was unveiled. Going to the Nintendo Wii event, I discovered how much fun the Wii was, the graphics were shitty but the remote won my heart. Sadly I walked into the Playstation 3 launch expecting something really great and walked out very bored and disappointed. All I saw was an Xbox 360 wrapped in black with a label saying Playstation 3. It was the same damn thing, nothing superior in graphics. I’m sorry fan boys, you love Sony, but the launch titles sucked and the graphics were just okay after seeing what the Xbox 360 had at launch. If Sony really wanted to wow people they would have tried just a little harder at making a game with graphics showing the true potential of the PS3, instead they coupled the same GUI found on the PSP and threw out crappy first titles with boring gameplay. I think Sony has forgotten that great graphics only take you so far, it’s the games that matter most. If it feels like shit playing it, why bother with graphics. Oh and since you can already get the third party games for the PS3 on the Xbox 360, why cough out your money for the PS3 if it looks the same anyway. For the Blu-ray player, enforcing the Blu-ray format? Seriously HD-DVD and Blu-ray look the exact same, it doesn’t even matter! I’ve tested them both.

As for the Nintendo Wii, it’s great! But the selection of choices on it are still limited and I would like to see what more innovative and original games Nintendo throws out in the next year. Wii Sports isn’t enough for me to buy the console yet.

Now we come back to the Xbox 360; 1 year out with a strong established online community. A lot of great titles, more specifically Gears of War and the upcoming Too Human and Halo 3 games. If anything it’s the continuous blockbuster games Microsoft is dishing out each year that have won me over to the Xbox 360. These games look fantastic in graphics, but tend to be even greater in gameplay. They are just so damn fun to play, and they are only on the Xbox 360! And they make great use of cinematic elements. Yes I’m sure Sony will throw out some cool looking games with decent gameplay later, but it’s too late. I want to play great games now; I don’t want to wait anymore. If you're tired of waiting, get an Xbox 360, I know I am.

Update:
Here is a performance comparison of the Xbox 360 vs. PS3 - guess which one is better (source: IGN)

Thanks Kevin.

50,000 Wiis sold in UK over 12 hours

Although us North Americans have been blessed with launch of the Nintendo Wii already, folks in the UK have just embraced the Wii-mote and nunchuck, and man have they embraced it well! In 12 hours 50,000 Nintendo Wii's have already been sold according to a UK press release. That's roughly one Wii console sold every second! Nintendo of UK plans to keep the supply coming as they do for North America so that we all have a Wii to play with this Christmas. We have a feeling that Christmas shopping will be more chaotic than the norm this year. The Nintendo Wii to some parents may become what "Turbo Man" was to Arnold Schwarzenegger in Jingle all the way.

Overcomplicated home network?

We all know that home networking is generally pretty simple. Buy a router, connect it to the modem, connect the PC's to the router. Wireless is also pretty simple since there's only 1 extra step for security. In my home though, things are never straightforward. In fact, they're so messed up that I'm currently running three, yes, count that - THREE, routers to connect 2 desktops, 4 laptops, a PS2, and a PDA to the internet.

What does any of this have to do with gaming? Well, I want to play Eve Online on my laptop while watching TV, damnit!

The story begins just a few years ago, in my old home. Over there, we had a single Microsoft 802.11b router (now out of production) to do the job. The router was positioned in the basement and the signal would maintain a strength of over 80% all the way up on the second floor. Then, we moved to this place.

This is a fairly old home and for whatever reason, wireless signals don't travel very far. I believe it has something to do with the fact that my laptop can see something along the lines of like 8 wifi routers not including my own. Combine this with some rooms just naturally 'blocking' wireless signals, and I found myself in a shitty situation in that it would only cover fractions of the 2nd and basement floors. I compromised by placing the router on the second floor since 4 of the computers connect from up there 99% of the time.

However, this didn't solve the problem for anyone wanting to connect from the living room. My first response was to upgrade to a better router - something I was considering for months before the move, but couldn't be arsed to do. I went with a Linksys WRT54G because of their ability to take 3rd party firmwares and the fact that getting bigger antennas isn't difficult.

With the WR5T54G (Base station from now on) in place, I found that it helped cover a slightly larger area of the first floor of the home, but not effectively. Going through the hallway into the family room resulted in a signal drop from 50% to 0 instantly. Even in the 50% zones, it was difficult to maintain a solid connection for an extended period of time. Because of this, I went ahead to install HyperWRT onto it. The theory being that Linksys defaults the router to use only 50% of the transmitter's total power. Third party firmwares unlock the ability to use 100% of the transmitter's capacity and ideally, extend the range and improve signal quality. Signal quality improved a bit, but I still had that family room problem. I attribute this to the fact that the fridge and microwave sit partially within the line the signal would follow from the router to family room and the fact that the area does have a few major ducts running through the wall.

Still with an unresolved and messed up network, I was down to 4 options.

1. a wireless repeater which would essentially be guaranteed to work at a cost of about $140 Canadian
   
2. a high gain antenna but no guarantee on the range it would provide at $80
   
3. buy a wifi bridge and connect it to the old MS router at a cost of just over $100 and a lot of hunting to actually find one
   
4. buy another WRT, install a 3rd party firmware and convert it to operate as #3. This cost about $80 as well
   

I went with #4 in the end since I couldn't find any place in the area wth reasonably priced bridges in stock. A network diagram has been provided to explain how all of this comes together

So, as the diagram shows, that the PCs on Floor 2 connect to the primary base station as they get the best signal. Computers on Floor 1 are running between either the bridged, secondary router or through the 2nd floor base station depending on which gives the stronger signal. Basement connections are facilitated by the Floor 1 setup.

Click for Full

I jumped the gun there for a bit though. The bridging router was configured with DD-WRT as the firmware and is running in bridged mode in order to connect to the base station. The old Microsoft router is effectively running as a switch and is connected to the bridge via the WAN port (on both ends). Unfortunately, computers running under the Microsoft router have to connect to a different SSID and also operate on a different subnet, making it impossible to effectively run Windows file sharing. A minor inconvenience, but one I can live with. My PS2 isn't online either since I have no way of reaching it wirelessly yet.

At the end of all of this, I learned that 1) I really don't like network configuration despite being an IT student. 2) I also learned that wireless network setups are a pain in the ass if you get even 1 setting wrong. 3) I learned that I could have saved some time and used only the two WRT routers if I was running in WDS mode, and 4) as a result, my PS2 and future consoles/HTPC could have been connected to the MS router running in bridge mode.

I seriously would have started over and reconfigured for WDS mode, but with my sister and me both having exams, I couldn't risk downtime. Add onto that the fact that my first WRT router is borked and refuses to take any new firmwares. HyperWRT is nice, but I find DD-WRT to be far, far easier to work with and more powerful.

For anyone wondering, this place is just about average for a 'large' home in this area @ about 2500 square feet.

Gaming Makes You Smarter

Ever felt like you were wasting your time playing video games? Like you weren't accomplishing anything by wasting hours on end sitting on your couch? Me neither. But for those of you who have family and friends who feel that way, its time you set them straight.

For those of you who aren't familiar with IQ, chances are yours is low. But to help you catch up, IQ is a method used to measure a person's intelligence (many believe it is an inaccurate representation, but this has been debated for quite some time). According to Wired.com gaming provides people with a great opportunity to work through visual puzzles and solve riddles, very similar to the kinds of questions asked in IQ tests. Wired also mentions the Raven's test, which consists of puzzles in which several shapes are displayed, one of which is missing. The missing shape needs to be selected from a set of available choices.

So to get down to business, I want to test this hypothesis. I found a link to the Raven's test online. The average score is 100. Take the test (it takes less time than they recommend, trust me) and post your score.

Lets put this myth to rest once and for all. The next time someone tells you to put down that controller and pick up a book, take them to this site, show them these scores, and silence them forever.

A first, Unreal 3 Engine used for Xbox Live Arcade game

The Unreal 3 Engine developed by Epic Games is a game development framework used in next-gen consoles as well as PC's running DirectX9. According to Unreal Technology, this powerful game engine is being used for Unreal Tournament 2007 and was used on the recently released and very popular Gears of War. Of course the engine can be licensed out. Which brings us back to Xbox Live Arcade. RoboBlitz (released today for 1200 MS points) is the first game on Xbox Live Arcade developed with the Unreal 3 engine. In it you are Blitz "a multi-talented robot who must activate an aging Space Cannon to save his world from a band of maladjusted space pirates." Now we all know how great Gears of War turned out, and UT3 is going to be no disappointment either, so this may be one arcade title worth checking out, simply to see how well such a successful game engine was put to use. If that's not enough to jump start your imagination, check-out the game details below:

• 19 levels of puzzle-solving and high intensity action set in seven distinct environments
• Free trial version consists of three engaging levels
• A new breed of game blending fast paced action, puzzle solving, and a playground of interactive physics
• Advanced physics simulation gives the player real freedom to solve problems in creative and unexpected ways
• Unique weapons including Fire-Cracker Rocket and Point-to-Point Tractor Beam
• Gamers may choose their difficulty level for ease of use and high reparability
• Two different levels of difficulty (Normal and Master Technician)
• Master Technician mode allows players to unlock new achievements and bonus content
• Expect premium downloadable content for this title in the future – providing new game play elements and unique challenges for RoboBlitz fans

Vanguard: Saga of Heroes PRE-ORDER

Thats right, the highly anticipated Vanguard: Saga of Heroes MMORPG is now taking pre-orders. You can stop by your local GameStop, BestBuy, Fry's, or other generic store that has games and see if they have the pre-order box so you can lay down some cash to secure your copy.

The pre-order box includes the following:

-Early access to the game. Log on and get a jump start up to three days prior to the official launch!
-A special account key that grant you a unique exclusive in-game scroll, allowing your character to sprint for longer periods of time due to an endurance buff. (one per account)
-An invitation to the Vanguard: Saga of Heroes beta (for eligible participants).
-Guild Mail. A fun recruitment tool to help you build your guild before launch.
-A king's ransom of assets, including videos, wallpapers, and screenshots.

Time out. Did you read that closely? I'll point it out for you. AN INVITATION TO THE VANGUARD: SAGA OF HEROES BETA (FOR ELIGIBLE PARTICIPANTS). Thats right, for merely a down payment on a game thats coming out next year, you can buy your way into Vanguard: Saga of Heroes beta. Now, they tried this before via an issue of Computer Gaming Magazine, believe it was this years June issue. If you purchased that you got a key, of course then Microsoft sold the rights for the game back to Sony, and they kicked all those beta key's out. This, however, will be a more legitimate attempt I believe. The same company dev'ing the game currently is the one pushing the promotion.

Personally I think the game is going to be great. It looks good and if they hold true to most of their promises it's sure to be a hit. For a closer look at Vanguard: Saga of Heroes click here. That link will take you to the official site where you can browse the forums or check out the FAQ. And while you do that I'll be cleverly pre-ordering my copy while you are distracted. Rogues do it from behind.

Jason out.

Top 5 Gamer Gifts

With the final days before Christmas quickly counting down there are a fair number of us thinking, “OMG What am I going to buy him/her?” Well never fear, a team of expert geeks and gamers has gotten together to compile a top five list of gamer gifts.

#1 - The newest console: Nintendo Wii, Playstation 3, Xbox 360

Now here’s the catch, you have to know what preference your gamer has. If they’ve already managed to lay their hands on a PS3 or a Wii, then perhaps adding a 360 to their library wouldn’t hurt. Either way, you’re going to impress them, and by impress we mean they will love and worship the ground you walk on … and all their bases are belong to you. If you’re not sure which one’s for them check out this article for a little help deciding.

#2 - The newest portable gaming device – Playstation PSP, Nintendo DS lite

There are fewer options in this category, but that just might make your decision easier. A strange general rule applies to all Playstation vs. Nintendo battles, if your gamer enjoys RPGs (Role-playing games, and no we don’t mean the Roleplaying they want you to do in the bedroom) then Playstation is probably a better purchase. However, if your gamer loves Mario, Pokemon, Kirby or any of the many other animated generators of pure childish giggles then the Nintendo DS lite is the way to go. Make sure you pick up the DS lite, and not the DS original or you may be banished from the presence of the Christmas tree.

#3 - Games

Once you have your console of choice, you do need something to play on it. Here’s our minilist of 10 awesome console or portable games to get for your gamer this Christmas.

1)Gears of War 2)The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess

3)Final Fantasy XII 4)Call of Duty 3 5)Resistance: Fall of Man

6)Wii Sports 7)Dead Rising 8)Guitar Hero II

9)Grand Theft Auto: Vice City Stories 10)Pokemon Diamond

#4 - Magazine Subscription

Once your gamer has played for hours on their new console (hopefully sharing the controller once in a while), he may need to get out and buy more provisions, or possibly see the glowing object in the sky. Point being, if he’s not playing games, he’ll probably enjoy reading about gaming, technology and his favourite console. Check out your local magazine rack and just steal some of the inserts for good deals on magazine subscriptions. If you don’t know your gamer’s preference then you haven’t done your homework!

#5 - Comfortable Furniture

Trying to stay within a budget here, because we can’t all afford to go out and buy that LCD or plasma TV that our gamers want, we can consider getting them some comfortable seating for those long sessions and late nights. We recommend home theatre seating in the form of some comfy chairs, however, if these are too posh there are some excellent alternatives.

If you find this list doesn’t help, you can always go back to the traditional gifts … you know, “4 calling birds, 3 french hens, 2 turtle doves, ..” But please, we implore you to consider the sanity of your geek this holiday season.

Merry Christmas!

Games for the International Day of the Ninja

It's December 5, and that means it's International Day of the Ninja again. That means all you Nonjas out there have an opportunity to go out and dress like a ninja for the day.

Just be warned, the real Ninjas WILL be watching, so don't let your free day as a Ninja get to your head. They know the difference between a real Ninja and a Nonja.

I know what you all must be thinking right now. "But eMadman - what if we can't dress like a ninja today?"

For you guys, I must say "sux2bu", but you could always go Ninja it up in video games.

Here's a quickie list that the site's staff has come up with:

• Shinobi
• For the amateur Nonja Gamers out there, there were many Shinobi games, dating back to the Sega Genesis - all worth playing if you want to be a real ninja
  
• Tenchu
• I remember playing this way back when I first got my PS1. It was a great game then, taking some of the finer stealth portions of Metal Gear and mixing them with all sorts of Ninja related bad-assery.
  
• Ninja Gaiden Black
• A highly rated hack and slash ninja action game on the Xbox. Considering the rave reviews, you must all get it. I'll be on hold while I attempt to use my 1337 nonja skillz to get my hands on a 360.
• Mortal Kombat
• What could be more fun than a game that stirred up so much controversy that ignorant parenting groups tried to have the game banned from sale. Oh, right - the part about the badass ninja/assassin characters going head to head and fighting to a bloody and gruesome death.
  
• I-Ninja
• This is one for all of you caffeine overloaded ninjas out there.
• Kung Fu
• Ok, so it isn't exactly Ninja related. But any game that I grew up on where I ran from side to side kicking the butts of a rival dojo is a great game in my book.
• Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles IV: Turtles in Time
• One of my fondest childhood memories was TiT. I had great times beating up the evil nitwit Krang in multiplayer co-op action. While the Turtles aren't the swiftest or the quietest, or even the deadliest Ninjas around, they are certainly among the most memorable.
  

That's our list of awesome ninja related games that are worth checking out for the Day of the Ninja. Put up a comment with your faves. If you think you're Ninja enough, put up a pic of your best ninja outfit too!

Market Analyst: Amazon's Xbox 360 Deal Topped Next-Gen Launch Interest

Just a little while ago, Amazon asked their customers to vote on which deal they would offer on Thanksgiving Day. The people spoke, and it was 1,000 Xbox 360 Core units for the low, low price of $100. Not only did Amazon sell out of the 1,000 Core units, they sold out, apparently, in 60 seconds.

Market analyst Complete tells us in their blog that Amazon may have helped spike interest in Microsoft's year-old console:

On a pure traffic volume basis, the 360 generated more online interest on the 23rd, than either the Playstation 3 or Wii commanded on their respective launch days, making one thing clear — the Amazon promotion was the Xbox 360’s Launch 2.0.

It turns out Microsoft has still got a few tricks up its sleeve despite all the hoopla about PlayStation 3 and Wii. Might we see some more of this before the end of the year?

Full charts from Complete can be seen here.

Halo 3 HD Trailer Now Online, Chief Looks Amazing

You want Master Chief, you want Halo 3? You got it! The 2nd trailer for Halo 3 just went online moments ago, above is a YouTube version, but you can view the HD version at GameTrailers.com. I had to watch the beginning a few times to realize the two kids were not made in CG, no biggie. I loved every millisecond of it from when Master Chief grabs his helmet and snaps it on. Of course we still don't see his face. What I really loved was how he smacked that shield gernade or what ever it is officially called, into the ground and then ran over the cliff into Covenant forces.

Give it a look and be awed beyond belief, and you thought the Wii had some awesome moves.

By the way, the animation and effects are beyond amazing!

Update:
The CG was done by Digital Domain, a hollywood FX house. Microsoft's Rise of Nations: Rise of Legends' CG work was also partially outsourced to Blur Studios.

Halo 3 Beta <-- SIGN UP NOW! -->

The sign-ups are officially up at www.halo3.com, have fun getting through though. I'd imagine the site is being bombarded with millions of page requests by avid Halo fans all over the interweb. Make sure you have your gamertag linked to your microsoft.net account, as you will need it to continue signing up. Of course I took the time to register for it well before I made this post, otherwise I wouldn't be informing the public about it :P

Here is a heads-up on the post itself:

"Please note that in order to register* for the beta, you must be 17 years or older and a resident of the 50 United States (includes District of Columbia) or Canada. If selected to participate, you must have access to the following:

- An Xbox 360 Pro console (includes hard-drive)
- A valid Xbox Live Gold subscription
- A valid Microsoft. NET Passport account with a Xbox Live gamertag linked"

Sorry to all you young-guns out there hoping at a shot, get mommy and daddy to sign up for you for your birthday. Another big sorry to all you people who decided the hard drive wasn't worth the extra cash, guess you guys are out too. I expect a huge influx in 360 hard drive sales in the next 24 hours, wait and see. (:

Halo has always been a great shoot-em-up way to vent some rage online. I'm a fan of standard tcp/ip domination. Take a look for me in game on release, I'll be the one stickying you while you think you're safe.

Frag out!

Chinese MMO gamers given access to real land?

First order of business:

wtf?

Now that I have that out of my system...

Tianchant Networks - the guys who run Datang, have purchased a 100 acre plot of land in the Zhejiang region. The company is giving a 49% share of it to their 10,000 players (about 435 square feet per player). No details on the source, but apparently the players get the right to make use of the land? The company is apparently digitizing this area for gamers to fool around it. I don't know how the whole land use thing will work, but it's interesting.

From Pacific Epoch [via Kotaku]

edit:
Unfortunately, screenshots or detailed information could not be found after a quick Googling. In fact, I'm not particularly sure if this is even real. Maybe someone who can read chinese and use Google China could come up with something?

edit 2:
There is some speculation, but this *may or may not* be the game's official site. I also *may* have found a trailer here.

Source

Top 10 Video Game Weapons

The video below is a great compilation of ten of the greatest video game weapons of all time. Video games have progressed a lot over the last few years. How we play, what we see, and how we interact have all changed, but the one thing that has remained consistent is the satisfaction of using a great weapon to blow stuff up. One thing that really caught my eye when watching this video for the first time was the fact that many of the weapons are from older games. Perhaps so much emphasis has been put on graphics, and processor power that developers are beginning to forget about the simple joys of running around with a chainsaw (anyone who has played Wolfenstein knows what I'm talking about). Is it simply the act of playing a game that we remember enjoying as children that makes it fun, or have video games changed in the last 20 years? This brings up a very interesting question...what is it that makes a video game fun? Which elements are most important?

Halo 3 Beta -UPDATE-

So with the Halo 3 beta sign-ups mere hours away, I thought it would be a good time to post some beneficial news for everyone to read.

Taken from Xbox.com:

"Beta Testers Wanted In conjunction with the ad, Microsoft today unveiled further details and an official call to entry for the Halo 3 beta program. Beginning Monday, December 4, visit http://www.halo3.com and register for the opportunity to be one of the select members to join the unprecedented Halo 3 public beta program, scheduled to kick off in spring 2007. Be among the first to experience the most anticipated game of 2007! The Xbox Live multiplayer public beta, which is a pre-release version of the multiplayer experience of Halo 3, is scheduled for availability in spring 2007 exclusively on Xbox 360. This beta also represents an opportunity for you to participate in the development of Halo 3. Through the resulting feedback, Bungie Studios will be able to further refine and hone the end result of Halo 3. Unveiled earlier this year at the Electronic Entertainment Expo in Los Angeles, Halo 3 represents the third chapter in the Halo trilogy, an international award-winning action series that grew into a global entertainment phenomenon, selling more than 14.7 million units worldwide, which equals nearly $700 million in sales, and logging in excess of 800 million hours of multiplayer action on Xbox Live."

Now for those of you less inclined to know the more technical terms of Beta's I'm going to give you a few definitions. Public beta means they are allowing people other than the developers and staff to play the beta. This in no way means that everyone who signs up will be allowed to play. In fact, by signing up all you are really doing is letting them know you are interested.

I have a feeling most people are confusing this with an Open beta. Open beta allows anyone and everyone who wishes too play the game access. Unfortunately this is not the case with the Halo 3 pre-beta they are running.

------

In any case I just wanted to wish everyone who is signing up good luck. I'll be secretly wishing none of you get in so that I myself will have a chance :P I don't expect the halo3.com site to stay up very long once the ability to sign up is added. A couple million hits in a few minutes is probably pretty hard on server stress.

On a side note, you know Bungie always delivers. Halo 3 is going to be game of the year, or close to it. If you don't think so, you've never played Halo. I'm looking forward to this game with high expectations, and I'm sure it will fulfill my every plasmatagging, warthog ramming, pistol whipping needs.


Jason out.

Forget MySpace, it's time for WoWSpace

Here's an interesting idea, make a Social Networking site for anti-social people. Business Week reports in an interview with Shawn Fanning, that he plans on making a MySpace like site for people who play WoW called Rupture. The site will pull data and stats straight from World of Warcraft, and post them on your personalized page. You will also be able to instant message friends while playing, keep track of guild matters, and organize raids. There are plans to eventually incorporate other popular MMORPG's into the site as well.

If the name Shawn Fanning sounds familiar, it should. He's the guy who created Napster (hey! it's actually still running!), a program that pretty much revolutionized file sharing. Will his new start up fare better than World of Datecraft? Unlike World of Datecraft, I think that this site appeals to more of the WoW community than World of Datecraft because almost every player would find it useful. With 7.5 Million WoW players out there, he may be on to something.

Let the PS3 ripping begin!

Ok, the PS3 wasn't 'hacked' per se, but it has been instrumental in the ripping and playback of blu-ray movies through Linux.

There aren't any security measures on blu-ray playback on the PS3 Linux. As a result, it's naturally possible to rip the blu-ray media straight to iso and play it back using linux media player software.

Follow the jump for deets
Link

More interestingly, piracy groups seem to have found a way to rip the blu-ray games to ISO.

From the nfo file that's floating around:

| cOMPANY : Activision | rELEASE DATE : 02 Dec 2006 |
| sYSTEM : PlayStation 3 ! | sIZE : 68 x 100mb |
| tYPE : Action/Role Play | vIDEO MODE : NTSC/USA |
| sUPPLIER : Huey Lewis | cRACKER : G0d |
| mEDIA : BLU-RAY | pLAYABLE : Soon ;)

The disks were more than likely ripped using the PS3 + one of the linux distros available. Playback is as yet impossible since there isn't a way to 1) burn them, and 2) convince the console that they're the real deal.

We here at 3dgamer don't condone piracy in any way, shape, or form, but I see this as the potential beginning for a future homebrew gaming scene. The PSP has one that is/was booming (I sold my PSP several months ago), and it will be interesting to see homebrew stuff making its way to the PS3 as well. I know that it is more than possible to create homebrew games for Linux on the PS3, but frankly, that lacks the '1337 factor' of having a h4x0r3d PS3 that plays homebrew games.

Instead of buying a PS3...

If you're thinking of getting one of your kids a PS3 for the holiday season maybe you should think of presenting them with a few other options that will run about the same price.

Things you could do instead of buying a PS3:
- Fly to London (and get a cheap hotel room)
- Pay your rent for a month
- Buy 300 big macs
- Buy 4 Nintendo DS lite's
- Buy 3000 bandages
- Order 60 Large cheese pizza's
- Buy 250 gallons of gas
- Get a laptop
- Get some books from the library and return them really, REALLY late
- Buy 4 Ipod Nanos
- Buy a 1988 Mazda 323
- Pick up 3 flat panel monitors
- Buy 15 shares of Sony Corp (judging from PS3 sales I would NOT recommend this)
- Take a skydiving course and do 4 jumps
- Hire a personal trainer and have 17 sessions at the gym
- Pay for two months worth of groceries
- Buy 30 years worth of toothpaste
- Buy 210.8 gallons of soda
- Pick up 225 pounds of tuna (canned)
- Buy a 360 AND a Wii (and a couple of games)

Or...you could do the right thing:

Provide food, shelter, and clothing for two children for AN ENTIRE YEAR and still have $150 left over for something nice for yourself.

In North America alone, about 200 000 PS3's have been sold. That's 400 000 children fed, clothed and sheltered for an entire year. Maybe we should all take a break from video games and put our money to some real use this holiday season.

360 to benefit from console shortages?

You can't help but wonder how long before people become totally fed up with waiting to get their hands on PS3's and Wii's and opt for picking up a 360. Sometimes companies ship fewer systems in order to increase hype around the release, however, I'd question the intelligence behind the decision (especially by Sony) to ship so few. It seems Microsoft may have been prepared for this and are quite happy with the console shortage in North America. Recently Microsoft executives let it be known that they intend to try and have 10 million Xbox 360s sold wordwide by the end of the holiday season.

As if losing potential sales isn't bad enough, if quantities remain low, it is most likely that potential PS3'ers will pick up a 360 this holiday season (simply because they target the same audience). This is even worse news for Sony, as Microsoft's Xbox HD-DVD add on for $200 is definitely a much easier alternative to purchasing a bluray player- especially for those who have already picked up an Xbox for the holidays.

Though this sounds like bad news for Sony, Nintendo caters to a different audience, and from the looks of their sales, they seem to have everything under control (outselling the PS3 2-1). It remains to be seen however how both Sony and Nintendo put up with the upcoming holiday demand. If you want to make sure you get your hands on a console this holiday season, the 360 will definitely be your best bet - which may have been Microsoft's strategy all along.

iPod meet Zune

There comes a time in every person’s life when your barricades are broken down, your personal armour is torn to shreds, and your guardian sidekick/hallucination has been kidnapped … and you give in. Apple has been pounding on my doors, through TV and magazines and ads all over the Net, and I can finally feel myself giving in to the urge to buy an iPod. However, this gruesome duel between Steve Jobs with his massive, sleek army of cute little icons and myself is not over, thanks to Zune.

Now you may be thinking, what does Zune have to do with video games? Well, nothing, unless you take into account the constant boundary pushing technology that comes from such inventions, leading us into bright new frontiers for gamers and gaming fans everywhere! Other than that, no, it has nothing to do with video games.

Zune is a Microsoft brand product that supports audio and video playback from a variety of different formats. It took to the markets just this past month (Nov 2006), and was the number two overall seller on the portable audio market; care to take a guess which product was number one?

Now being sceptical about the fact that Zune seems to compete with the iPod, even though Microsoft and Apple are in bed together, I am happy to see an alternative system with similar quality. Zune will be fed to you, just as the iPod was, but before you dismiss it as imitation, take a look at the wide variety of features and improvements it has over the competition.

So if your looking at replacing your expensive iPod battery for the 3^rd or 4^th time, take a look around, maybe you’ll find the Zune fits your late night gaming lifestyle a little bit more.

*Editor's Note*: The Zune is a great example of Microsoft's commitment to broadending its investments, like the Xbox which has become a successful wing of the Microsoft company and forced improvements in the realm of console gaming. Sometimes a little competition isn't a bad thing.

Entertainment Software Association 2, State of Michigan 0

In another blow to the anti-videogame movement everywhere, US District Court Judge George Caram Steeh has awarded the Entertainment Software Association $182,349 to be payable by the State of Michigan to compensate the ESA for legal fees associated with the state's unsuccessful attempt to regulate video games sales earlier this year.

ESA president Doug Lowenstein had this to say about the decision: "States that pass laws regulating video game sales might as well just tell voters they have a new way to throw away their tax dollars on wasteful and pointless political exercises that do nothing to improve the quality of life in the state.

"In nine out of nine cases in the past six years, judges have struck down these clearly unconstitutional laws, and in each instance ESA has or will recover its legal fees from the states.”

Other states or municipalities that have been ordered to pay the ESA's legal fees include Illinois ($510,000), Washington state ($344,000), Indianopolis ($318,000), and St. Louis ($180,000).

In spite of all of this, I don't expect this recent decision to hamper the efforts of America's most notable anti-violent videogame attorney or even similar efforts by state governments in the future.

Aside from trying to win a big pay-off from the videogame industry, I can't understand why individuals or governing bodies would even try to argue that videogames are responsible for the ills of society. If that were the case, could I blame Blizzard's World of Warcraft for my own lack of sleep?

Gran Turismo HD Cancelled

This just in; Gran Turismo HD has been cancelled. What certainly would have been a killer-app for the new PlayStation 3 has been scrapped, and the good ship Polyphony has turned all hands on deck towards developing Gran Turismo 5.

Now the slightly better news: Japanese PS3 gamers can get a taste of "The Drive of your Life" by downloading a stripped-down version of GTHD, for a limited time starting December 24. Unfortunately, there is no mention as to whether this crosses the Pacific, but we can hope! This sample features 10 cars and 1 track, with no mention of any of those microtransactions.

In case you hadn't heard, GTHD was set to release with few cars and tracks on the Blu-ray disc you buy in store. Instead, you were to buy more cars and tracks for a nominal fee online. Does that sound like a cash-grab to you? This could mean that GT5 will be developed with that same premise.

As if there wasn't enough uncertainty in the GT series for you to handle, there's also no word as to when Gran Turismo 4 Mobile for the PSP will be launched.