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Deus Ex commentary compilation shows the 'net split on boss fights
It looks like our own reviewer wasn't alone in thinking the boss fights in Deus Ex: Human Revolution stood out like a sore thumb from the rest of the subtler gameplay. Nukezilla has compiled clips of commentary about the game from around the web so far, and the opinion is almost universal: The title's boss fights are unnecessary and badly designed. We say almost, in this case, because the main voice of dissent belongs to Ars Technica's Ben Kuchera, who argues that the game is simply pointing out that sometimes, violence really is necessary. Yes, most of the game lets you move along without combat, but the boss fights, in all of their stupid fury, are meant to show that in a game loaded with choices, sometimes you just don't have one. Seeing as the game just came out, y'know, today, most of us haven't been able to form our own opinions just yet. But Nukezilla's compilation at least raises a good question, and that's if the boss fights in Deus Ex: Human Revolution really belong there, or if they're there just because boss fights are what video games do.
Enter at Your Own Rift: One-point-four
Last week, Karen provided an excellent analysis on Trion Worlds' broad, eight-page State of the Game address as the company outlined its plans for the game's long-term future. This week, we're still going to cast our eyes to the present. As we wrap up the final phase of RIFT's Waves of Madness (how much fun is water bladder throwing, huh?) and raid guilds bang their way through Hammerknell, it's the time to revel in a brand-new content update: patch 1.4. Yes, another patch. I think people are still in disbelief that Trion is able to pump out updates as rapidly as it has, and the current naysayer theory is that the company is merely polishing up content it wanted to get for launch but had to hold back for whatever reason. There's probably a kernel of truth to that, but it doesn't hold up from what we know. We know that Trion has parallel teams -- up to six of them -- working on live development, which includes world events and content updates. We know that some of the features we've seen in previous patches were a direct result of post-launch player feedback, so it can't all be capping off unfinished projects. Say what you will, but from where I'm standing, Trion's putting its actions where its mouth is by continuing a hot-and-heavy updating streak without showing any signs of slowing down. It's smart, too; by providing faster updates than most MMOs on the market and giving players incentive to stay, return, and try the game for the first time, Trion's firming up its position as an MMO that's here to stay -- not one that's going to fold up shop when future titles hit. So let's take a peek through the highlights of patch 1.4 as I offer my award-winning commentary on each of the points!
Wimbledon NetMix lets you turn down on-court grunts in favor of staid commentary
Wimbledon, typically a quiet leafy suburb in the great urban sprawl of London, tends to get a little noisier around this time of the year as the world's top tennis players descend upon it with a grunt and a huff of exertion. It's precisely those un-British howls of effort that the BBC is offering to filter out for you with a new Wimbledon NetMix tool. It's a simple audio mixing slider, available to BBC Radio 5 Live listeners, that adjusts the balance between ambient on-court sound and the soothing timbre of commentators' voices. The technology's enabled by the guys and gals at Fraunhofer, who were nice enough to do it for free, and is being introduced in response to a great many complaints received by broadcasters about the primal screaming that's accompanied this year's matches. If the reaction to the NetMix slider is positive, it could find further job opportunities on the Beeb's iPlayer or in coverage of other sporting events.
The Gunstringer gets level commentary (a la Mystery Science Theater)
Twisted Pixel is taking a page from the script of TV's Mystery Science Theater 3000 -- and its web heir, Rifftrax -- for some of the bonus content in its upcoming Kinect shooter, The Gunstringer. Designer Dan Teasdale dropped the news on the developer's blog, saying that the team was inspired to create "full commentary for the entire game" by the spirited online riffing given to Sonic the Hedgehog (2006). "It's not just us talking about making the game," Teasdale says of the commentary. "Much like how some of the best Rifftrax are the ones that have special guests, we've asked some special friends of ours to comment on specific plays in the game." The identities of the guests may be a secret, but we already know one possible candidate: Troma's Lloyd Kaufman, who's already been signed to play the role of a reporter in the game's live-action sequences. Of course, the developer could go all out and get the master of riffing, MST3K and Rifftrax's Michael J. Nelson, to contribute -- something sure to get fans of his work all MSTy-eyed. Whoever's involved in them, the commentary tracks will be unlocked using in-game currency, after which, Teasdale says, "you'll be given the option to turn on the soothing voices of either us, or (more likely) our awesome special guests!" [Note: not an actual gameplay image]
Battlefield 3 gameplay video, now with developer commentary
Enough people have "liked" EA's Battlefield 3 on Facebook that a new video has been unlocked, and this time it's actually a commentary track to the 12 minutes of gameplay revealed back at GDC. Executive producer Patrick Bach shares all kinds of insights and secrets on the track, from the fact that attack plan map is actually just a placeholder to the return of a familiar series star. A lot of the commentary is pretty promotional (yes, Patrick, we know we're seeing lots of effects and that they're courtesy of that amazing Frostbite 2 engine), but there are some good bits in there and, if nothing else, it'll give you an excuse to watch that gameplay video again. You can see a YouTube version of the footage with commentary after the break.
Taxi Driver comes to Blu-ray for its 35th Anniversary April 5th
Yet another classic flick finally has a Blu-ray release date now that Sony Pictures has announced Taxi Driver will be released April 5th. There's plenty of extras in store, with the inclusion of a commentary by the director Martin Scorsese and the writer Paul Schrader recorded in 1986 by the Criterion Collection for the Laserdisc, and an exclusive "Script to Screen" feature that scrolls the original script along with stage notes onscreen as the movie plays and points out the differences. Along with a 5.1 audio track, the picture has been remastered in 4K from the original and approved by both the cinematographer and director for this release. It's hard to find anything missing from this release of an iconic film starring Robert DeNiro and Jodie Foster, check the press release after the break for all the details.
32 GB versus 32GB: Almost everyone is writing it wrong
Fair warning, dear reader: this may be the most pedantic post in the history of TUAW. Maybe in history, period. But I can't help it: someone is wrong on the internet. Here's a fun trick. Go to the Apple menu on your Mac and select "About This Mac." A little window will come up listing your processor and RAM specs. Mine describes a 2.6 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo processor and 4 GB of RAM. If I click "More Info" to open System Profiler, I'll also learn that I have a 250 GB hard drive. Now go to Apple's product page for the MacBook Pro and click on "Buy Now" to see descriptions of tech specs. The 17-inch model is currently listed with a 2.53GHz processor, 4GB of RAM, and a 500GB hard drive. Other than the obvious differences in specs, did you notice anything different? All the spaces disappeared. 2.53GHz instead of 2.6 GHz. 4GB and 500GB instead of 4 GB or 250 GB. Almost everyone in the computer industry is writing tech specs this way on their product pages, and they're all doing it wrong. Click "Read More" to find out why.
DC Universe Online releases the commentary edition of the cinematic trailer
DC Universe Online is entering a crowded field, but it's aiming to enter said field with both guns firing. The cinematic trailer alone is the sort of thing to make any long-time DC fan happy, showing a large-scale battle between heroes and villains in the vein of the best comic crossovers. In the new director's cut variant, however, Jim Lee and Tim Miller sit down to examine and discuss the trailer, from the large-scale goals of the video to the easter eggs that tie everything together. It's clear from watching the trailer and the commentary that the people involved adore the work they're doing and the source material, with everything from an homage to Kingdom Come to Batman's role mirroring the end of The Dark Knight Returns. Click past the break to see the full trailer with commentary, which is certain to point out pieces that you missed. If, on the other hand, you haven't seen the original DC Universe Online trailer, it's available on the official site.
AdMob CEO comments on being thrown out of the App Store
Big surprise here, right? AdMob, freshly picked for purchase by Google (cue dramatic music) has been expelled from Valhalla, also known as the App Store, by a tiny change in the iOS developer agreement. Specifically, section 3.3.9 of the agreement, which precludes companies who do anything other than deliver ads from delivering ads on apps within Apple's precious, increasingly-walled ecosystem. On the AdMob blog, chief exec Omar Hamoui stated, "This change is not in the best interests of users or developers. In the history of technology and innovation, it's clear that competition delivers the best outcome. Artificial barriers to competition hurt users and developers and, in the long run, stall technological progress." Hamoui said AdMob would "be speaking with Apple," although there's no indication that Apple will listen. I'd have to agree with Hamoui's statement. In fact, it's a little off-putting to see Apple react this way, considering it'll only lend fuel to the fire already raging around possible anti-competitive practices. No doubt Steve Jobs has a witty sentence in waiting for this one. Meanwhile, the thousands of developers using AdMob will now have to worry about deploying something else in their apps.
EA taps Gus Johnson for Madden 11 commentary
Gus Johnson is no ho-hum, run-of-the-mill announcer. He really gets into it. EA has taken notice and tapped Johnson for play-by-play announcer duties in Madden 11. Johnson will join Cris Collinsworth, who returns this year to provide the color commentary. Johnson replaces Tom Hammond, whose commentary tracks last year were criticized by Madden players as being wooden and lifeless. While it's difficult to program engaging game commentary with pre-recorded audio, EA Tiburon remains committed to improving this facet of its football mega-franchise. With 90,000 lines of dialogue going into Madden 11, players will hear more dynamic play-calling than in past iterations, whether it's when a receiver drops a catch or a running back breaks into the open field. Above, watch a video of some of the developers discussing the new audio approach in Madden 11. For a preview of Johnson doing some lines for the game, hit up ESPN.
Monkey Island 2 Special Edition commentary features Schafer, Gilbert and Grossman
One of the game features promised during Monkey Island 2: Special Edition's announcement event was an audio commentary track that could be accessed at certain points in the game. Today, the identities of the commentators have been revealed: Tim Schafer, Ron Gilbert and Dave Grossman -- none other than the original game's trio of designers. Check out a behind-the-scenes video above, in which the three beloved adventure game creators introduce themselves and explain their roles in the title's development. We never knew Schafer had such humble, subordinate beginnings!
'PA Commentator' software beefs up commentary in sports games
Commentary in sports video games has come a long way. It's a little known but relatively true fact that for the first few years, the only commentary in any game was John Madden saying "Boom! He's on his back!" (This was especially confusing in luge-centric titles.) Phonetic Arts is promising to push the limit even further with its newly-announced PA Commentator, which it claims will greatly improve the fluidity and diversity in sports game commentary by combining existing words to form new lines that pertain to the onscreen play. The tech's officially being launched at Microsoft's GameFest Feb. 10 and 11, so hopefully we'll get to hear it in action soon.
IDW adding audio commentary to PSP comics
According to a tweet by comic publisher IDW, we won't just read comics on the PSP, we'll hear them as well. At least we'll hear people talking about them. "Editing more audio tracks from @Templesmith (Ben Templesmith) for Wormwood on the PSP," one tweet noted. A subsequent message clarified the nature of the audio: "Recording more @Templesmith commentaries tonight." The official PlayStation Digital Comics Twitter account (yes, we're sourcing another tweet) pointed out the note, saying "I'm so pleased IDW are taking advantage of the optional audio sound track(s) available to publishers." We agree -- it's nice to know that the PSP Digital Comics service will add something to the medium beyond a different interface. [Via QTE Gamers]
WoW.com livestreams Halls of Reflection Friday at noon PST
Halls of Reflection, the 5-man in which we're going to face down Arthas (finally -- we've been waiting for this moment since the end of Warcraft III) is now live on the PTR, and the staff of WoW.com is going to head on in there to see what there is to see. And you get to watch -- we'll be streaming our run of the brand new 5-man this Friday afternoon, starting at noon Pacific / 3pm Eastern. We'll be live on our Ustream page, with full in-game video and commentary from yours truly, as five intrepid WoW.com bloggers go and see what the Wrath of the Lich King really looks like. Of course there will be spoilers, although if you're interested in seeing what the PTR has to offer, this will be as good an opportunity as any to do it. We've embedded the Ustream feed after the break on this post, so just come back here on Friday at noon to jump in, chat with us and other viewers live, and check out the action. If you have the Ustream iPhone app installed, you should be able to see it on there as well, so if you're out and about that afternoon, you can still watch. And we'll be recording the whole thing on Ustream, so if you can't watch it live, you will be able to come back later and check it out for yourself. Should be fun -- we'll see you back here on Friday afternoon at 3pm Eastern. Patch 3.3 is the last major patch of Wrath of the Lich King. With the new Icecrown Citadel 5-man dungeons and 10/25-man raid arriving soon, patch 3.3 will deal the final blow to Arthas. WoW.com's Guide to Patch 3.3 will keep you updated with all the latest patch news.
Found Footage: iPhone Consumer Revolt (NSFW)
Forget about everything else. The cool consumer rage is currently directed at AT&T. Pat Lee, a Chicago iPhone user, is asking the iPhone community to petition Apple to drop AT&T exclusivity. In this biting 30-second video, Lee suggests that disgruntled users voice their displeasure about "less bars in more places." He points viewers to Apple's feedback page to get their AT&T hate on. Created in Adobe After Effects, the video has great production values and a stinging message. Oh, and it's not especially safe for work. So you might want to bookmark this for later.
Dealing with temporary changes in-game
Larisa's got a good rant about something I've considered before in a slightly different context: players aren't very good at anticipating how temporary game changes will work out. We, as a group (not individually necessarily), are quite quick to judgment when we see changes to the game, and the word Larisa uses is "conservatism" -- she notes the examples of the reaction to the zombie outbreak and the Children's Week batleground issues, and says that players "tossed the gift away, like spoiled kids." We (again, in general, not you specifically) have a very short view of how temporary changes will affect the game, lambast Blizzard for changing what didn't need to be changed, and very often, when the dust settles and the zombies are gone or the event is over, we realize that it wasn't so bad after all.She's not talking about class changes here -- those are more permanent changes that affect the basic rules of the game. But specifically with temporary events (I'd even throw the Brewfest controversies, and the Headless Horseman complaints in the mix), players sometimes have reactions that are way out of proportion to the events themselves. These holidays and world events are temporary: shouldn't we just enjoy them while we can?It's definitely a valid point, and something to remember for the next time a temporary event throws off your usual routine in-game. The fact is that we players are spoiled -- Blizzard generally does a great job keeping this game fun, and so when even a little issue sneaks into the game during a temporary event. But Larisa promises that next time she gets shaken up by a temporary change, she'll give it another chance. Sounds like a great idea to me.
Fox cuts out the extras on rental discs
With DVD sales slipping, every studio is trying new strategies to eke out a buck, and now Fox is trying to coax people towards buying instead of renting, by selling stripped down versions of some movies to rental outlets and keeping premium extras for buyers. According to a letter obtained by Video Business, Slumdog Millionaire will be one of the first discs with the treatment, where extras like deleted scenes and commentaries go retail only on the DVD, while the rental Blu-ray edition loses the (probably useless on a rental) digital copy. At least so far the HD editions of these movies don't seem to be affected, but unless prices come down we wouldn't be surprised to see this kind desperation double dipping on the Blu-ray front as well. Still, with as many of our readers that have said they don't care about extras and the relative ease of piracy, studios may just have to learn to be happy people are paying to watch at all.[Via Switched]
EVE Online Alliance PvP Tournament VI begins today
The sixth Alliance PvP Tournament in EVE Online kicked off today, with some of the game's most formidable player alliances going head to head in team-based combat. The first qualifying round takes place on January 24th and 25th, from 1500 - 2100 GMT. EVE Online dev CCP Mindstar explained earlier this week how players can tune in to the tournament. The two stages of qualifying rounds, this weekend and next, can be listened to in audio in a few different ways. Players can either listen in-game in the "Alliance Tournament" channel using EVE Voice, or tune in to what's happening via the web at EVE Radio, Split Infinity Radio, or New Eden Radio -- all of which are broadcasting tournament coverage. This Alliance Tournament is the first where the qualifying rounds have been made available in audio, with commentators selected from among the game's top PvP'ers, notably Crovan and Verone -- both of whom have a well-deserved reputation for being knowledgeable about the combat side of the game. A match schedule is also available for those who want to tune in to a particular battle. While the qualifying rounds of Alliance Tournament VI are audio-only, the finals of the tournament will be broadcast live in video, on February 7th and 8th. As an added bonus, that live video broadcast will feature some of the first footage shown from the upcoming Apocrypha expansion.Update: While only the final rounds of the tournament will be streamed live, CCP Games is already making the qualifying rounds footage available on their YouTube page. The player-run EVE Network News is also following the matches, announcing the winners as they're declared, accompanied by audio commentary, and embedding video of the combat as it becomes available.
The Dark Knight fan commentary BD-Live feature shown on video
So, you and hundreds of thousands of others picked up your Blu-ray copy of The Dark Knight today, huh? We know you haven't had time to fiddle with the BD-Live extras just yet, but one Joe Lynch from G4 TV has. One of the most intriguing aspects of the flick's interactive feature set is the fan commentary; put simply, users hook up a USB webcam to their player (PS3 included) and then commentate as the film progresses. From there, you can upload your take(s) to the BD-Live servers for others to enjoy. Granted, we aren't too sure how you'll actually find someone bored enough to listen to you jabber on about a film they purchased, but we reckon that's beside the point. Vid's waiting after the break.
Mythic Entertainment's Mark Jacobs has started blogging
When you think of Warhammer bloggers, folks like Syp, Keen, and the guys at the Greenskin probably come to mind first. Then you'd probably think of Josh Drescher and Paul Barnett, two of the WAR team heads who have longstanding blogs themselves. Just recently added to the ranks of Warhammer bloggers is none other than Mythic's head honcho himself, Mr. Mark Jacobs. Jacobs has hung out his shingle at a site entitled Online Games Are a Niche Market, a reference to a bad conversation he had with AOL execs back in the day. Hard to believe AOL could be shortsighted about anything.He's already put up several interesting posts, which we think are well worth checking out. He reiterates and expands on some of the comments he made in his MTV article when discussing the role of WAR's success or failure in the market. He also directly answers questions from commenters in not one but two posts. It's great to see a busy guy like Mark getting into the trenches to address fan questions; perhaps you've got one for him as well? Did you enjoy this? Make sure to check out all of our previous Warhammer Online features, and don't miss any of our ongoing coverage as Massively goes to WAR!
