konami-gamers-night-2009
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Karaoke Revolution gets a tune-up for PS3, 360, Wii
click to enlarge Are you ready to put your lips to work and sing like a star? Are you ready to kill us for that horrible introduction? We only ask that you read the rest of this post first. It may (or may not) satisfy your urge to commit murder. Plus, if you killed us, the only singing you'd be doing would be as a jailbird.Developed by Blitz Games and simply titled Karaoke Revolution, the new PS3, 360 and Wii entry in the series is proof Konami has been paying attention to its competition. The game will launch with 50 master recordings on-disc, a deeper character creator than series vets are used to, customizable venues and the inclusion of original music videos for each song. Song and customization item DLC is planned (any doubt it wouldn't be?) but specifics aren't being discussed just yet -- apart from the fact that Wii won't be getting any of it.A party-centric playlist and drop-in/drop-out duet mode reminiscent of Lips are also planned to compliment PS3- and 360-only online play. All three versions will likely benefit from promised improvements in pitch and rhythm detection; hopefully it doesn't turn out to be like Lips in its pre-patch state. Look for this series reboot to hit this fall.%Gallery-50004%
Vandal Hearts returns on PSN and XBLA
click to enlarge Konami has announced a third installment in its Vandal Hearts strategy RPG series, which hasn't seen a new release since the days of the original PlayStation. Vandal Hearts: Flames of Judgment is being developed as a downloadable title for PSN and XBLA. The game serves as a prequel to the original, with Konami promising an interface overhaul for the franchise, multiple endings and CPU-controlled party members who "adapt to the player's style of gameplay." The game will hit Xbox Live arcade in August and PlayStation Network in September.%Gallery-50001%
Joystiq hands-on: Saw
Click to enlarge Based on the brief teaser trailer released at the beginning of the month, our initial expectations of Konami and Zombie Studios' Saw video game were ... well, they didn't really go beyond visions of one gory minigame after another. Having now played it, we realize that, while those minigames are definitely there, there's a third-person game that shows hints of Silent Hill and Condemned: Criminal Origins in-between.Due out on Halloween, the game is about as far from Zombie's America's Army franchise as the developer can get in the action genre -- unless this is considered a training game for the event you're ever locked inside an asylum by a lunatic who wants you to solve twisted puzzles or die. The as-of-yet unnamed player character must not only pass the maniacal Jigsaw's tests; there are also others roaming the run-down facility's halls -- some who have already failed their tests and others who believe killing the player will set them free.%Gallery-49993%
Joystiq hands-on: Zombie Apocalypse
Click to enlarge Tucked away in a corner at Konami's recent Gamers Night event was probably the single most entertaining game of the night: Zombie Apocalypse. No one from the publisher was demoing it, no information was provided on it -- we're still waiting for confirmation of its developer -- but everyone was playing it ... until a tripped breaker put the kiosk out of commission. This four-player co-op game was running on PS3 and, from what the gaggle of assembled journalists could deduce, appeared to be a downloadable title. That was finally confirmed this morning; it's coming to PSN and XBLA on an unknown date this summer. (Seriously, whoever is in charge of promoting the game is doing a horrible job.) As you can probably glean from the title, the gist of the game is killing zombies. The basic gameplay won't win any innovation awards; movement is on one analog stick, firing on the other. What made this simple game so fun -- apart from the fact that its simplicity made it instantly fun -- were the arenas (for lack of a better term) themselves. We played in two: a downtown disaster zone and a junkyard. Both had multiple interactive elements (a downed airliner's jet engine, a car compactor) that we were able to toss zombie bait towards, luring dozens of the undead to their (very grizzly) comeuppance. Working together with three other players to almost "herd" the zombies into these traps was almost as fun as routing them with chainsaws (every character has one as standard equipment). Konami hasn't announced who's developing Zombie Apocalypse, but we're trying to confirm rumors Nihilistic Software (Conan, Marvel Nemesis) is behind it. We definitely want to know more about the game, and we'll be sure to share whatever we find out with you. %Gallery-49992%
Joystiq interview: Six Days in Fallujah
As evidenced by the large portion of the 2009 Gamer's Night presentation Konami devoted to it, Six Days in Fallujah, the upcoming third-person action game based on the Iraq War's second battle of Fallujah, is clearly a very big deal for the publisher. Light on actual footage, the segment was focused on the high level of realism and accuracy its developer hopes to instill the title with. Just how accurate? That's what we wanted to find out, so, along with fellow bloggers, we sat down with Atomic Games president Peter Tamte, creative director Juan Benito and US Marine Corps Corporal Michael Ergo, a veteran of the battle and adviser on the game.
Joystiq impressions: Sixty seconds of Six Days in Fallujah
We didn't have a stopwatch at the ready during Konami's unveil of gameplay footage from the controversial war game, Six Days in Fallujah, but it definitely seemed to go by fast. The video, shown during a very high-concept presentation at the publisher's 2009 Gamer's Night, primarily focused on two things: environmental destruction and squad AI.Atomic Games, developer of the title, seemed very proud of the fact that its game engine allows for buildings to be destroyed down to the individual brick level. While that aspect of the game looked decently realistic, we couldn't help but look confused when the player character magically regained health and US troops seemed to be able to take several more bullets than their adversaries before clocking out. We expected a little more realism from a game being touted as a realistic depiction of a very real battle.One aspect that did come across was the game's civilian factor. At one point, an unarmed Iraqi throws up his empty hands and the squad stands down -- only to come under fire from an insurgent who's jumped out behind the friendly. Truth be told, the footage did little to convey anything truly unique about a game that's getting a fair amount of attention based on subject matter alone. We sat down with Atomic Games following the demonstration to get its thoughts on the reception and what it hopes to accomplish. Check out our interview with the game's creators: JOYSTIQ INTERVIEW >> #ninbutton { border-style: solid; border-color: #000; border-width: 2px; background-color: #BBB; color: #000; text-decoration: none; width: 100px; text-align: center; padding: 2px 2px 2px 2px; margin: 2px 2px 2px 2px; } .buttontext { color: #000; text-decoration: none; font: bold 14pt Helvetica; } #ninbutton:hover { text-decoration: none; color: #BBB; background-color: #000; } %Gallery-49389%
Joystiq impressions: Silent Hill: Shattered Memories
Click for full-size scares! Although it was probably the most impressive looking game shown at Konami's Gamer's Night 2009 event last week, the "Wii-imagining" of Silent Hill, Silent Hill: Shattered Memories, was sadly not playable. It's a shame, too, considering how natural the game's motion controls appeared in the on-stage demo; seeing them in action made us really want to try them. We were left to watch the footage of the Climax-developed title and imagine what it will be like, roaming the streets of the snow-covered town, flashlight in hand and camera phone at the ready to catch the unexplainable and unnerving. Fortunately, it was a fairly meaty bit of footage that provided a good idea of what to expect from the game when we finally do get our hands on it.%Gallery-49995%
First Saw trailer fails to frighten, teases Konami event
Saw developer Zombie Studios apparently doesn't want us to see much of the movie license-based game it's working on. At least, that's what this first teaser trailer implies, as it features a maddeningly cheap shot of "gameplay," though it does suggest we'll see more on April 9 at Konami Gamer's Night from the newly confirmed publisher. Of course, that means another torturously long week of waiting. But, hey, at least that beats even one long day of waiting in a tortuously cruel room full of people you're loosely connected to in real life, eh?%Gallery-49262%
