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'No Man’s Sky' finally delivers the grand adventure we were promised
The huge No Man's Sky Next update has landed. Now we've had some time to relax into new material economies, multiplayer adventures and horrific alien eggs that will ruin your day, do we feel differently about the contentious space exploration game that promised so much and didn't quite deliver? The Engadget team outline how their odyssey is faring this time around.
'No Man's Sky' cleared in false advertising investigation
No Man's Sky developer Hello Games has emerged from a marketing investigation unscathed. The UK's Advertising Standards Authority has spent the last two months examining claims that the game's steam page is misleading. Disgruntled players had taken issue with screenshots, videos and text which, in their opinion, showed the game with better visuals, performance and planetary exploration. These covered warping, ship battles and the complexity of extraterrestrial life. The ASA disagreed, however, concluding that the materials were largely representative of the final product and "unlikely to mislead" consumers.
Final Fantasy XIV shows off its first notorious monstrosity
Notorious Monsters. The name is well-known to any veteran of Final Fantasy XI, denoting an especially powerful opponent with accordingly potent rewards. Final Fantasy XIV is set to receive its own set of notorious opponents with the December update, and the first preview of such has just been released. Deadeyes, a wolf deep within the forests of the Black Shroud, is the first one announced, and the preview details both why Deadeyes is to be feared and what players can hope to gain from the challenge. The preview implies that Deadeyes will be encountered via a faction levequest, thus clearing up questions of how spawns of notorious monsters would work within the game. It also explains that upon his defeat, he will reward players with one of 12 runestones, with each stone being turned in to an Ul'dahn trader for a powerful piece of armor. The Harlequin set, a four-piece set for Disciples of Magic to use to enhance the potency of their magic, is shown off as one of the possible rewards. Final Fantasy XIV players have quite a bit to look forward to in the next update, and Deadeyes looks to be just the beginning.
The spawning grounds expand for Final Fantasy XIV
After the development team discussed the more technical side of the coming November version update yesterday, today's preview for Final Fantasy XIV is back to the gameplay. That's not to say it doesn't have any technical details or enticing hints for veterans of Final Fantasy XI, considering that the newest preview is discussing monster spawn placement and the upcoming notorious monsters. For example, the new preview notes that server processing is being spread across multiple servers, which should help handle large groups of monsters more effectively -- and should also help mitigate server lag and some latency issues players have experienced. As for notorious monsters... it seems only fitting that some of the most iconic residents of Vana'diel will apparently be getting a nod or two, with a promise that veterans may find some familiar faces among their new targets. The details of what can be looted from these creatures and who is coming to fight over dinner will be posted to the site in the near future. Final Fantasy XIV is working hard at making up for the issues many players had at launch, and that includes giving said players more monsters to fight against.
DS Fanboy's Media Summit screen round-up
The worst bit about big industry events for impatient bloggers and readers? The game assets. Oh Lordy, the assets. An absolute landslide of screens, usually scattered about across, ooh, dozens of pages. But not at DS Fanboy! Not on our watch! Because we wub you, readers, we've collected a big old stack of new screens for your viewing pleasure and placed them all after the break of just one post. This post, in fact. From the well-known to the obscure, we'd be amazed if there's not at least one game that appeals to everyone past that line of blue text. Mario & Luigi 3, Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: Echoes of Time (right), Professor Layton and the Last Time Travel, Shining Force Feather, and Picross 3D is only scratching the surface, so make the jump!
Brain Age getting retooled for DSi launch
Rejigged versions of both Brain Age games will be available for the Nintendo DSi when the upgraded handheld launches. Brain Age 1 and 2 will be the first titles available from the DSi shop, according to Nintendo name-taker Reggie Fils-Aime, who also revealed that each will feature DSi functionality of some kind.In truth, Nintendo couldn't have settled on a safer two titles to launch the DSi store, with both games having sold a quite obscene number of copies in all regions (particularly Europe). The lack of risk-taking involved on Nintendo's part is disappointing to us, though there's plenty of time for innovative games to follow. Bet they don't fix the voice recognition, though.%Gallery-3436%
Sin & Punishment 2 and other third-party gems confirmed [update]
Update: Screen grab from Nintendo's media page, which has video of all these new games! Check it out right here.Nintendo just unleashed a demo reel of upcoming third-party Wii games, including Taiko no Tatsujin Wii, a new Tsumi to Batsu/Sin & Punishment game from Treasure, a Wii version ofAnother Code (otherwise known as Trace Memory, the DS adventure game), Let's Tap (Yuji Naka's latest project, a.k.a. the game that even penguins can play), Sengoku Musou 3 (Samurai Warriors 3) and a new "mothership" title in the Tales Of series.Will the internet regard this as the press conference that E3 should have been? We suspect so!
Nintendo announces Nintendo DSi
Click image to enter our DSi gallery! Nintendo's Media Summit has just thrown us its first juicy bone of the night, and it's a big one. As was previously rumored, Satoru Iwata has revealed the Nintendo DSi, the direct successor to the DS Lite which comes absolutely jam-packed with new features and trinkets, including two cameras, music playback functions, expanded screens, an SD card slot, and a whole new, DS-specific download service. Hit the break for the full list of improvements and adjustments, as well as the Japanese launch date and price!%Gallery-33263%
Analyst doubts Wii price cut, recommends more peripherals
Mito Securities analyst Yoichiro Watanabe has weighed in on the buzz surrounding tomorrow's Nintendo Media Summit, suggesting that a Wii price cut is unlikely. Frankly, it's hard to disagree with the man. As Watanabe points out, demand is still through the roof, and the Holiday season is only going to ramp up Wii fever to ridiculous, hair-pulling levels.More controversially, Watanabe thinks Nintendo should force us all to add to our growing collection of plastic doohickeys and controller shells, on the basis that adding new peripherals to the Wii has worked well for the company. That's not exactly a move we're in favor of (our living rooms are now mostly plastic), and Iwata has already stated that new add-ons are unlikely.[Via Gamasutra]
DS Daily: What has Nintendo got planned?
Folks, it's time to whip out your crystal ball and join us in a bit of pointless (but hopefully fun) speculating about what MEGATONS will be announced tomorrow at Nintendo's Media Summit. We know there's compelling evidence that we'll see a DS redesign, and while that does seem very plausible, it's far from the only possibility.A quick poll of the DS Fanboy team revealed quite diverse expectations. I'm banking on Professor Layton dates for not-Japan, JC reckons there'll be a bunch of stuff about Cooking Guide, while Dave thinks there could be an iPhone-style apps store for downloading titles directly to the handheld, and/or a new Channel to go along with the new DS (or a revision to the Nintendo Channel to support it).Oh, and we all predicted a DS redesign. But to heck with what we think: what bombs do you expect to drop in the next 24 hours?
Wii Warm Up: Get your prediction on
This time tomorrow, we'll know whether the much-discussed Nintendo Media Summit was worth all the excitement. In the meantime, we've a simple question: what do you all expect and/or hope to be announced at the event?The Wii Fanboy staff tend to be divided on the matter. Dave is predicting a Wii Fit add-on pack or new Channel update that uses the leaked pedometer peripheral, Wesley suspects this rumor could mean the unveiling of Kid Icarus or Punch-Out!! (though says his "money would be on Kid Icarus"), JC forecasts dates for Disaster: Day of Crisis and Fatal Frame IV, while Mike and Dave both think we could see a solution to our ongoing storage woes (as do I, actually).Over to you, reader. What has Nintendo got up its sleeve?
Rumor: Old Nintendo franchise getting revived on Wii
For most people who aren't high-ranking Nintendo executives, the air is presently thick with speculation over what Nintendo will be revealing at its forthcoming Media Summit. Not if you're Gamekyo.com, though. The French site knows for certain what is coming: a new Wii game based an old Nintendo franchise that "everyone is waiting for."The Gamekyo story certainly sounds very sure of itself ("We can announce today that Nintendo will reveal a new game for the Wii during this event," reads the closing line), even though the article is entirely unsourced. While we're advising you take this rumor with a barrel -- nay, a truckload -- of salt, the prospect of an old Nintendo series being resurrected was too much for us to ignore. For its part, Nintendo issued a by-now-standard "We do not comment on rumor or speculation" to CVG, but that's not a denial, right?Source: Nintendo making new game based on old franchise.Source: Nintendo refuses to play ball.[Thanks, Chris!] Know what should be on the Wii? These games.
Confirmed: Nintendo Media Summit in early October
Didn't we already have a Nintendo Media Summit this year? By golly, we did! But, still, it turns out that rumor is true, as Nintendo will be holding an event on October 2nd and 3rd, showcasing games for both the Wii and DS in San Francisco. We know because we just got our invite.So what should we expect? Well, something on Disaster: Day of Crisis we imagine, but anything outside of that is anyone's guess. What do you all think?%Gallery-30942%
Wii Warm Up: NMS excitement
Fresh from the Nintendo Media Summit, we've quite a few impressions of games coming out in the immediate future. Among them: Mario Party 8 Super Mario Strikers: Charged Big Brain Academy Pokemon Battle Revolution The Bigs Boogie My Word Coach Rayman: Raving Rabbids 2 We're most jazzed for Strikers, especially after reading such effulgent impressions from Penny Arcade. But which game shown at NMS excited you the most? If you were stuck on an island and could only have one game ... you know, assuming you had a Wii and a couple Wiimotes, and a nice TV ... maybe some nunchuks, oh, and the sensor bar, and I guess you'd need a standard 120 W outlet somewhere in the sand ... and a decent supply of food and water, or you wouldn't spend your time playing the Wii ... you know what, never mind.
NMS: Scoring goals in Mario Strikers Charged
Joystiq's Nintendo Media Summit coverage just keeps on trucking as they take a look at Mario Strikers: Charged. This is one of the games that Nintendo is stating will appeal to core gamers (or more hardcore games, to be exact), so Reggie and the gang understand the importance of making the title accessible and appealing. But what makes this game different and improved over its predecessor?Well, the gameplay mechanics have been greatly improved, according to one of the game's developers. With tweaks to the game's AI and improved character customization, along with more characters to choose from overall, more is the name of the game here. And, not to mention the implementation of online gameplay.%Gallery-3438%
NMS: Cutting a rug in Boogie
Joystiq managed to get down with EA's Boogie while at the Nintendo Media Summit and their impressions were quite positive. Not only do they remark that the game looks great, but they also comment that the gameplay was fun and exciting. Also, they got some time with the karaoke portion of the game (which uses that bundled microphone). As far as graphics go, they went so far as to say it was the best looking game at the Media Summit, only challenged by the likes of Mario Strikers: Charged.Boogie is broken down into two main sections: the rhythm-based dancing, where the player must flick the Wiimote in-time with the song causing the on-screen character to dance with the beat, and the karaoke portion utilizing the microphone. This second section of gameplay is highly reminiscent of titles such as Karaoke Revolution and SingStar.%Gallery-3449%
NMS: Pokemon Battle Revolution impressions
Our overlords at Joystiq got their hands on the upcoming Pokemon Battle Revolution while at the Nintendo Media Summit, which takes place on an island called Poketopia, which has ten different Colosseums to battle in. Of course, the object of the game is to become the biggest and baddest Pokemon trainer. Nintendo encouraged people to control the game with their DS at the show, as well as upload their own captured critters from Pokemon Diamond & Pearl for use in the game.Nothing much else can be reported, however, as Joystiq lets us know that the game looks impressive and is chock full of the classic Pokemon gameplay. We expect to see you online come June 25th when the game releases in the United States.%Gallery-3447%
