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Joystiq interviews Metanet's Mare Sheppard and Raigan Burns
After we played the excellent pre-alpha DS version of N+, we were asked by the game's producer, David Geudelekian, if we wanted to meet Metanet, the creators of the original N. It's sort of a strange feeling, to play a game and then be escorted directly to the people responsible for it, by another person responsible for it. Or, at least, it would have been, had Metanet's Mare Sheppard and Raigan Burns, as well as David, not been so genial. Metanet was at PAX promoting the Xbox Live Arcade N+, which they are developing along with Slick Entertainment.Metanet's N+ booth, hidden behind Atari's in the corner of the exhibition hall, was as indie as the game, featuring a custom-built 360 display unit accessible only after a series of wall jumps and guarded by automated machine gun turrets; Mare and Raigan took a break from challenging convention-goers to multiplayer N+ (victors got t-shirts) to take part in an impromptu chat about the new multiplatform adaptation of their Independent Games Festival Audience Award-winning Flash game, its platforming influences, and even about their mysterious new game, Robotology. The interview continued via email afterward, when we weren't in one of the world's loudest places.
Joystiq interviews FarCry 2's Clint Hocking
Ubisoft's Clint Hocking made a special trip to PAX this year to show off his latest project: FarCry 2. But this isn't your run-of-the-mill FPS sequel, as our liveblog of the demo details, but an ambitious open-world shooter set in the exotic locale of the African Savannah. We were lucky to grab a couple minutes of Clint's time following the demo for an interview where we asked about the FarCry brand, the possibility of console ports, and how long they think this open-ended game will take to finish. Why use the FarCry brand to make this game? Well, I think that's kind of a business question for Ubisoft but my answer to that is, Ubisoft started with FarCry, published it and obviously started making the console games. The same time they were doing that – keep in mind I started conception before FarCry Instincts even shipped. They were in production when I started conception. And Ubisoft knew at that time that they wanted a top tier PC sequel. At the same time they knew about FarCry; at that time Boiling Point was announced; we didn't know about Just Cause; they knew they were going to make at least two sequels on the console; LOST was on TV. Literally they said, "We're worried that we're going to dry up this brand."%Gallery-6687%
Kohler: GeoWars is better on the Wii, should've been Wii Ware
Chris Kohler over at Wired took time to check out the Wii game Geometry Wars: Galaxies while at PAX07 and came away with the opinion that it was better than that of its original Xbox Live Arcade game. Even though we're huge Nintendo fans, we can't say we actually believe him, because the dual-analog control scheme of the original is just about perfect. Still, he sticks to his guns. Not only does he comment that the control setup of the Wii game is more intuitive, he also comments that there isn't any reason why the game couldn't have been a download on Wii Ware. We have to agree, because even though the game is almost guaranteed to be fun, we doubt it'll ever warrant a price tag of more than twenty dollars.
PAX 07 hands-on: Insecticide
I didn't get as much time with Crackpot's Insecticide as I liked, but I got to mess around in both an action stage and the detective mode, at least superficially enough to know how they worked. I can tell you right away that all three Psychonauts owners, as well as LucasArts adventure fans, are going to want this.The action mode looks and feels just like Psychonauts, with the exception of touch-screen integration, of course, and your character's use of a projectile weapon rather than melee. It's pretty much a standard 3D platformer. The graphics have taken a significant hit compared to the concept art, obviously, but the style of the game (like its neighbor at the Gamecock booth, Dementium) helps cover. The touch-screen control scheme was a little hard to manage, seeming to involve more limbs than a non-arthropod like myself had available. However, I quickly found that I could lock-on to targets with a button, and could therefore avoid the stylus altogether. I fell through platforms a couple of times, but that was actually a pretty common problem for some of the really early versions of games I played at PAX.
In Zelda, even walking can be an adventure
We don't have to tell you that a lot of people weren't exactly fans of The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker; Nintendo fans who loved it (and even those who didn't) heard the complaints over and over again. That's made a few people a little wary of the upcoming Phantom Hourglass, and we understand. Really, we do, even if we don't necessarily agree. But from every scrap we've seen from the latest handheld entry in the franchise, it's shaping up to be a real adventure -- which is the biggest complaint about the series as time goes on. We've seen it. We've done it. We've been been heroic through the ages, and though we love every moment spent in Hyrule, sometimes, we crave something a little different. From the looks of things, we're about to get just that, and more.Our own JC Fletcher spent some time with Phantom Hourglass recently at PAX, and his report is nothing short of glowing. Everything in the game feels fresh and new, and what's more? It's just plain fun. There are all the elements we need for a Zelda game: familiar enemies and tasks, but the smooth stylus-based controls turn the forests and seas of Hyrule into a whole new world. We've been waiting for this one for a long time, but the closer we get to release, the more it seems that it's all been worth it. We've tucked a video behind the break that offers up a short glimpse of simple navigation that shows off the stylus-based movement, so you can see for yourself. Just watch out for the trees. %Gallery-4748%
Joystiq interviews Sony about Uncharted at PAX 07
During last weekend's insanely busy Penny Arcade Expo (PAX), Joystiq was able to get a lengthy interview with the Line Producer for Uncharted, Sam Thompson. They go over technical improvements since E3, Home support and the benefits of SDK 1.80.The interview is a bit on the long side, but what better way to pass the time while you wait for Warhawk to download?
PAX 07: Joystiq interviews Sony's Sam Thompson about Uncharted
At last weekend's PAX 07, one of the biggest titles Sony was showing was the latest build of Uncharted: Drake's Fortune. We were eager to get our hands on the action platformer to see if any of those problems from E3 had been fixed, but before that we were able to talk to the Line Producer for Uncharted, Sam Thompson about his game. He talks about tweaks and fixes to the game, technical details surrounding development and whether or not they'll be supporting Home. Check out the interview below and come back in a bit for hands-on report as well. Can you go into the tweaks that have gone into this Uncharted demo since it's showing at E3 last month? Absolutely, one of the things we did and we looked at very closely at E3 and after the show was the targeting system. And believe it or not the targeting system is still an evolutionary process and probably going to continue until we release the game. And one of the things we are doing to focus on this is bringing in test groups and getting a lot of peoples hands on the game and listening to what they have to say about it. The development team has taken an active roll as well, into kind of tuning the system. A lot of the time, artists won't have time to play the game until they're done with their contribution to the product. But we've really been trying to get everybody's feedback as often as possible because when you're dealing with a game like this it is an evolutionary process and it takes a lot of tuning to get the targeting system to where it needs to be. The second thing we've done is that we noticed during E3 that there was actually problems with the way the enemies were animating and people were getting a little kind of frustrated. So we decided to change the way the enemies were reacting so there is no invulnerability state when they grab at their knees or flinch after taking damage. At E3, there was a two second window where they wouldn't take any damage, so it gave people the impression that you had to pump 60 bullets into the guy to kill him.
PAX 07: Pink Godzilla vs. our money
Retailer Pink Godzilla's presence at PAX was one of the more drool-worthy booths at the show. In addition to piles and piles of Dev Kit kits, PG t-shirts and stickers, the booth was rife was classic and import games and consoles. If you were looking for a copy of Face Training or Doki Doki Majo Shinpan or even Yume Penguin Monogatari at PAX, this was the destination. I personally had a PC Engine Coregrafx in my hand at least twice, desperately battling over whether or not to buy. I totally would have if stuff didn't cost money.The most impressive (and expensive) items were on display in a glass case, and included things like Toilet Kids, Dracula X and even a sealed Super Metroid ($300). I ran off with a Twin Famicom took a bunch of pictures of the booth, when I wasn't getting trampled.%Gallery-6425%
PAX 07 hands-on: Dementium: The Ward
Tiny DS demo stations around Gamecock's Fury booth had demos of Dementium: The Ward available, and I made it a point to try Renegade Kid's horror FPS. The graphics may be simple in terms of polygons, but the game does its best to set a mood, which can be difficult on a handheld!I was immediately impressed with the framerate. I'm not a frame-counting expert, but the game ran perfectly steadily at what looked like 60 FPS. The simple geometry of the game's environments and enemies is masked by the lighting effects (you can really only see about five feet in front of you without a flashlight) and a dirtying effect around the periphery of the screen, which is normally black but turns red when you take a hit. These work similarly to the noise and fog effects in Silent Hill to create a mood while hiding technical limitations. Taking inspiration from Silent Hill is generally smart, and this isn't the only example of such influence.
Down down: No Contra 4 at PAX
My PAX expo hall map showed a small Konami booth toward the back of the hall. Just small enough, I thought, for a couple of DS demo stations showing off a certain side-scrolling sequel. I was sure I'd come back a hero, having gotten my hands on Contra 4 for real, and bringing back hyperbolic froth based on real playtime rather than screenshots and video. You can imagine our disappointment when we saw the actual Konami booth, then. That's it above, occupied by Derrick and Garrett from Mega64. ProTip: it's not Contra 4. Okay, I'm exaggerating. That's not the whole Konami booth. There was another DDR machine behind it.
PAX 07 Omegathon concludes with Halo 3
The Omegathon has become an annual tradition at PAX, and this year was no different. A gaming challenge that runs the gamut from the old school to tabletop gaming, the Omegathon truly tests the mettle of its participants. Another aspect that has become a tradition is the top secret final round of the Omegathon. Gamers have come to expect challenges of the old school variety, as previous Omegathons concluded with PONG and Combat (ask your parents). This year, however, was different. This year, the final round of the Omegathon was Halo 3. Yeah, you read that right. The top two Omeganauts, Accelon and MNC Dover, competed in new Halo 3 maps (Narrows and Guardian) and were able to test out new weapons and items like the firebomb, flamethrower, and flashbang. Head over to Joystiq for the full rundown.
PAX 07: Namco Museum DS has more options than games
Poor Namco Museum DS was sitting there in the Bandai Namco booth all alone, while people ignored it in favor of new games. It needed just the right person to come along and play some Dig Dug II. Dig Dug II is, of course, unchanged, as are all of the games in the collection-- that's kind of the point of Namco Museum (with the exception of the oddball Wii version). However, players have the option to change the method of presentation significantly. You can view the game in the normal DS orientation or turned sideways, with the screen rotated in either direction, depending on how you want to access the controller. You have the option for full-screen or the original aspect ratio in all of these configurations. There's also a softening filter that can be applied to the graphics. With so many options for displaying the games, it's slightly frustrating that there are only eight games in the collection. We want definitive DS versions of Bosconian and Metro Cross and The Legend of Valkyrie!
Girls deliver awkward PSP experience at PAX
Having people get hands-on time with the upcoming PSP-2000 makes a lot of sense to us. But, according to Joystiq, the experience at PAX was a little uncomfortable. The Sony booth girls (who look a lot like PSP-tan) had systems tethered to them. However, for better or for worse, the systems were tucked away in a sensitive area (see picture, above).Joystiq added that "the cables weren't very long" and provided "awkward situations where you all up in their personal space and playing with something right next to the front of their pants." Hot?
PAX 07: Exhibition hall gallery
The Penny Arcade Expo was bigger than ever this year -- more people, more bands, more special guests, and way more companies showing off videogames on the show floor. Major companies like Sony, Microsoft, Nintendo, Atari and Sierra were all on hand showing off their newest titles. So, of course, we took a ton of photos from the show floor showcasing all the cool stuff that was being shown, so check out our huge gallery below!%Gallery-6400%
PAX 07 rock-on: Jam Sessions
When a friend alerted me that Ubisoft was demonstrating Jam Sessions near one of the lounge areas at PAX, I got over there ASAP. Jam Sessions has been one of my most anticipated DS games, and it's not even a game. In fact, it was one of the games I was really hoping to see at the show, because I am crazy about DS weirdness. I found a stage, upon (or near) which an Evil Avatar writer was strumming away, accompanied by an Ubisoft employee on bass and some guy who just showed up with a harmonica. The DS was running through a Fender amp, and sounded great. The greatest consideration for any musical instrument is how it sounds, and Jam Sessions is nearly indistinguishable from a real guitar. The guy playing had skill, as well, meaning that all in the handheld lounge were being treated to some very lovely improvised music. Until I took my turn, that is.
PAX 07: The Penny Arcade Panel II: Panel Harder
Because there was so much to do at PAX that some fans may have missed their chance to pose questions, Mike and Jerry held a second panel. By the time they came out (to strobe lights and "Hustlin'"), there was already a massive line of inquisitive attendees. No Bolls this time, so the mood was much more celebratory and less terrifyingly unstable.The highlight of the show was when a fan presented Mike and Jerry with hand made hats in the shape of the head of the Fruit ... Interactor-with, which both wore proudly (of course the picture didn't come out-- how dare they have an event in a dark room with bright lights directly on them.) Is it rude to print their responses to the question "What was the worst thing you ever did?" I guess not, since they revealed it in front of a throng. Mike, at age 8 or 9, snared his cat with a rope. He turned to his mother in the audience to ask if she knew about that-- she didn't, to which Mike responded "Great." Jerry couldn't think of any particularly horrible things he'd done, so Mike regaled us with the tale of Jerry finding, and biting into, a beetle in his chai tea, and continuing to drink the tea.
PAX 07: Attendees play the Feud
The PAX Family Feud game, I can safely say, was the greatest game of Family Feud in the history of the known universe, including unknown Feuds taking place in distant galaxies between gaseous superbeings. No hyperbole. Why? Because it was about video games, of course! Also, host Alon Waisman was infinitely dissimilar from Louie Anderson.The game took place over five rounds, with the teams getting mixed up between rounds. All of the answers were based on a survey given to PAX attendees, which, yes, did mean that incorrect or patently insane answers could be popular enough to make the list.The first round was between Team Shyguys, made up of Quicksnap, Lynx, Ken Swanson, and Nobu, and Applez, comprising Gray, Mark, Chris, and Marie TJ, and had teams guessing survey responses to the question "Name a female game character." Team Shyguys took that round, although everyone onstage failed in my eyes for naming Lara Croft and Kairi from Kingdom Hearts before Ms. Pac-Man.
PAX 07: The final Omegathon challenge was ... Halo 3
PAX just wrapped up in the traditional way, with the final Omegathon challenge -- and this year they broke from the tradition of old-school games by going with Halo 3 as the final game. Gabe and Tycho unveiled the title to an ecstatic crowd, who were expecting something much more along the lines of Donkey Kong. And if that wasn't enough to whip the thousands of geeks into a frothy frenzy -- they also had the Minibosses come out and blast out a quick tune before the last two contestants sat down for their final challenge.The final Omeganauts, Accelon and MNC Dover, sat down on stage to play a brand new, never-before-seen level populated with never-before-seen weapons -- a slick move that guaranteed that neither player had an unfair advantage. Both players' screens were displayed on massive projectors so that the crowd could get into the action as well, and get into it they did. As each player explored the new level, a huge forest ruin high in the trees, the crowd oohed and aahed at each new weapon and new vista that the players discovered.
PAX 07: The World in Conflict party
Sure, we had a lot of blogging to catch up on, but we couldn't help but stop by Sierra's splashy Word in Conflict party last night if only to play our favorite game: "How Much Do You Bet This All Cost?" Alongside what appeared to be real military vehicles (they're scary looking in Real Life) and Communist propaganda were the requisite "booth" (party?) babes and overpriced drinks. How overpriced? How does upwards of $7 or $8 sound? It's a good thing anyways, we'd have just drank too much, riflebutted a guard, then drove one of those tank-things out of the building and through downtown Seattle. %Gallery-6395%
PAX 07: Audio from the Wil Wheaton keynote
We admit it. Our writeup of Wil Wheaton's PAX keynote didn't manage to capture the palpable energy of the crowd. And that's why we're happy to present you with this here audio file which should manage to better communicate the cheers of adulation and camaraderie. But don't go thinking audio is an infallible format! For example, can you hear the audience's fists pumping in the air during the speech's high energy moments? You may be able to feel it, but you can't hear it. So there.Listen – Wil Wheaton's PAX keynote (.mp3 link)
