PiratesOfTheCaribbean
Latest
DS releases for the week of May 21st
Looks like it's pirates vs. ninja this week ... but we're pretty sure this time, it's gonna be alllll ninja. Pirates of the Caribbean may be all the rage when it comes to the theaters, but when it comes to gaming, our money's on Naruto. Of course, if you're looking to stay out of this particular conflict, there are plenty of other games for you to check out this week. Death Jr. and the Science Fair of Doom Diner Dash Marvel Trading Card Game Naruto: Ninja Council 3 The New York Times Crosswords Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End For the rest of the globe, check out the lists after the jump.
Worldwide PS3 releases for week of May 22nd
Ready for your weekly worldwide PS3 releases? Good. Here they are: US Games Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End EU Games Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End Asian Games NBA Street Homecourt A game for each territory this week. Aren't we lucky. Ready to get started on some hardcore 1080p pirating? My brain has a habit of glossing over any mention of franchise-based games, so I'll probably be giving this one a miss. Let me know if I should reconsider.Don't forget that the PS3 is region free, so feel free to choose any of the above list as your next purchase. Maybe you're a huge Pirates of the Caribbean fan and fancy playing a copy from each territory? It could happen, I suppose. And yes, I will be reminding you that the PS3 can read discs from any country every week. It's so easy to forget. Release dates are subject to change, as always.
Worldwide PSP releases for the week of May 20
Another week, and luckily another set of game releases. Every Sunday we give you the 411 on what's coming out for the PSP worldwide. If a game is listed as coming out in a different country from where you live, don't worry. Your PSP can play games from any region. That gives every game on this list the potential to be in your future game library. We have some interesting choices this week, so read on! US Games Brooktown High Senior Year Diner Dash Legend of the Dragon Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End EU Games Crush Heatseeker Metal Gear Solid: Portable Ops Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End Winx Club Asian Games Bleach: Heat the Soul 4 Juiced Eliminator Release dates may always change, so you may want to call before heading to your local game shop. I totally want Bleach, but do any of these games interest our readers?
Newest AACS circumvented: The Matrix Trilogy set free
Just in case you didn't already piece it together, many (if not all) of the new HD DVD and Blu-ray Disc titles set for release on May 22nd will feature the latest revisions to AACS. Right, the update hinted at by those forced user updates to the WinDVD and PowerDVD software. Yeah, well no worries... it's cracked. That's right, a week before the disks have even hit the shops, the kids over at Slysoft have already released AnyDVD HD 6.1.5.1 (beta) which kicks AACS MKB v3 swiftly to the curb. Thus you can continue to rip all your newly purchased HD DVD and BD flicks for playback any damn way you like. The update has already been demonstrated to work with an early-shipped release of The Matrix Trilogy on HD DVD and will likely work for Pirates of the Caribbean - Dead Man's Chest when it arrives on Blu-ray. Come on AACS LA, you're gonna have to at least try. Better yet, why not just give up this silly charade.[Thanks, Garth M.]
Pirates of the Carribean demo hits shores
The Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End demo has arrived on Marketplace, which is a good thing. The weird thing is the regions that it is available in, or more specifically, not available in. It's listed as available in all Xbox regions except the U.S., Canada, Mexico and Asia. So no go for North America, which is a little odd, considering the movie and its game are being made by American companies. So, Europe and other regions that don't fall into that category, can you play that first tutorial level and tell us how the game looks and feels?
Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End demo sailing into some ports
Remember your "Japanese friend" who helped you play that Eternal Sonata demo yesterday? Well, you may need a new friend. You've got plenty of choices, just as long as they're not in Asia, Canada, Mexico or the U.S., because those are the only nations that can't play the new Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End demo on Xbox Live. Of course, if you're already living outside those countries you can proceed to downloading the sample, which weighs in at 972 MB to make room for the trademark Depp swagger.If you can't find a friend in another country who'll let you use their Xbox Live account, you can always use our incredible PotC:AWE virtual reality system, which consists of watching the video after the jump and hammering buttons on your 360 controller. We know it's not quite the same, but, if the last game in the series is any indication, the controls would actually be more responsive with our system. Ooh, pirate burn. A bARRRn, if you will.
Yar! Pirates gameplay vids off the port bow!
Pirates and videogames have been friends for a long time. Movies and videogames ... not so much. With the upcoming release of Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End, we are faced with a conundrum. You see, Pirates is a game that is (naturally) filled with pirates. Sounds good, right? However, said game is also based on a film, which typically means bad mojo for any game.With the release of four new clips from the game, our hopes were high. Unfortunately, upon actually watching the new videos, we're thoroughly unimpressed. On the outside everything looks all right. In fact, the character models and animations are top notch. The combat, on the other hand, looks bland at best and awful at worst. It's clear that Disney Interactive Studios is attempting to borrow a few tricks from games like God of War and Prince of Persia, but the results are hardly convincing. From the "one guy at a time" AI to the lack luster swordplay, Pirates doesn't look too promising. There's also a distinct lack of sound. The Pirates movies are very loud and raucous, which isn't evident in these clips at all. Check out the videos after the break.
You'll never guess what game will support 1080p...
We'll make it short so you don't have to guess: Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End is going to be displayed in 1080p where available. Why is this such a surprise? Because normally games based off of movies (based off of amusement park rides) hardly get any sort of beauty treatment. Well, despite this announcement, perhaps that's not entirely false.A problem arising for games trying to attain 1080p is a performance hiccup. Kind of sucks. However, this game is promising not to have any penalty for the utmost of graphical output. Why won't it hiccup? Nick has an idea. The game isn't that visually impressive. Now, don't judge me, it's true. It looks good, but more like a 360 launch title than a second-gen 360 and semi-first-gen PS3 title. Check out the picture we used. Don't look at Jack -- look at the dude in the middle. Completely emotionless, like an N64 character. While the game may sport the highest resolution, it just lacks something else. I'd rather see more 720p titles with much better graphics if this is what 1080p forces devs to churn out. Maybe in a year things'll be different.
Runat busts out Pirates of the Caribbean TV, CD and DVD players
Runat is certainly no stranger to Disney-fied gadgets, but the company looks to have stepped up its game for its new batch of Pirates of the Caribbean wares, adding a suitably piratey touch to some otherwise unremarkable TVs, CD players, and DVD players. In addition to the stylish adornments seen above, the 14-inch TV with built-in DVD player also comes complete with a compass-style remote, which while less than practical would seem to at least be pretty hard to lose. Rounding out the pirate-themed line-up is a treasure chest CD player (check it out after the break), and a DVD player modeled after a ship's wheel (also after the break), complete with glowing skull, of course. While it's not clear when or if any of these'll make it to North America, you can currently get 'em in Japan, with the TV setting you back a hefty $245, and the CD and DVD player running $66 and $105, respectively.[Via Akihabara News]
Yarr! Pirates sails to 360
No, we're not referring to the elusive Pimps At Sea Alpha. Disney Interactive Studios announced that they will be releasing Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End for new generation consoles, including Xbox 360. Players will have their chance at the life of a pirate as Will Turner, Elizabeth Swann and of course, Captain Jack Sparrow. Looking to coincide with the film's release, the game is slated for May 22nd, 2007. DIS' President of Marketing, Craig Relyea, promises that the game will feature environments above and beyond those featured in the films as well as multiple endings. So, does this make you want to search for that bottle of rum, or are you going to get a case of scurvy?
Prince of Persia could be Disney's next 'Pirates' film franchise
Murmurs of a Jerry Bruckheimer produced Prince of Persia film have resurfaced, buzzing about Bruckheimer and Disney working to mold Ubisoft's game franchise into a successor to the Pirates of the Caribbean trilogy; set to conclude in May. One source even speculates that the Prince could hit the big screen as early as summer 2008.When Bruckheimer and company first seized the Prince of Persia film rights in 2004, the goal was to adapt elements of the game world, rather than directly translate 2003's The Sands of Time. It's unclear if that direction has since changed, as the game series has evolved into a port-able trilogy.
Joystiq hands-on: Pirates of the Caribbean Online
Last week, at the Bay Area Fencing Center, I got a chance to play Disney Online's Pirates of the Caribbean Online. With its variety of activities, the MMO is targeted at a more intermediate, casual audience than World of Warcraft and other online games. Beyond level grinding players can engage ship battles, venture through quests from characters in the Pirates movies, play card games, and try other pirate-based objectives.Pirates Online is based on the Toontown Online engine, meaning that a fairly old PC can still play. (Final requirements are still uncertain, but a P3 800 with 256MB RAM is the target.) But because of the low entry, the graphics are far from current standard; I saw a lot of blocky shapes and simple gradients. While good graphics would be ideal, I thought the visuals sufficiently conveyed the world.The Toontown engine's recent Mac conversion will also benefit Apple's gamers; Pirates Online will be released for OS X. The developers were excited about Mac prospects and hope to get the game out at the same time as the PC launch in the Spring, but Disney Interactive's official stance is that a Mac game is coming, but without any timeline.I had fun exploring Pirates of the Caribbean Online, taking the helm of ships, shouting arcane seafaring phrases, and swashbuckling. Keep reading to learn about pirate garb, fluid fighting, and massive ship battles.%Gallery-1491%
Disney to expand MMORPG line-up
No stranger to the online landscape, Disney's CES presentation included word on their future plans to create massive worlds based on many of their licenses. With Pirates of the Caribbean already well into production (if not due this year), Disney intends to "build more virtual worlds like "Pirates" based on a broad range of our properties." Disney is quick to throw out Toy Story as an example of this, but when they mean broad, think real broad. This may not mean that every game is going to own up to the standard, online RPG format. A "virtual world" can be anything from an online hack-and-slash like Pirates to something of a visual chatroom like MTV's Virtual Laguna Beach.Disney's first foray into the MMORPG format was a kid friendly action game, Toontown, which is still online to this day and at by last account, fairly competent. Should Disney team-up down the line with some designers worth their chops, we may not insist on groaning when we hear word of The Suite Life of Zack & Cody Online.
360 needs more pirates
No, not software pirates, silly! Seafaring pirates. Atari recently announced it will distribute Playlogic Entertainment's upcoming swashbuckler, Age of Pirates: Caribbean Tales. Director of Marketing, Rick Mehler, describes Age of Pirates thusly: "Age of Pirates: Caribbean Tales provides a deep role playing experience that encourages development of captain, crew, ships, towns, fighting abilities, weapons and more. With a chest full of features, Age of Pirates: Caribbean Tales is a treasure of a game." PR lingo aside, Age of Pirates looks like it could be pretty good. Developed by Akella -- the people behind Sea Dogs, Age of Sail II, and Pirates of the Caribbean (often described as Elder Scrolls on water) -- the title looks like it's definitely in experienced hands. The title is scheduled to be released for Windows this September, making it an easy candidate for a 360 port. Haha, port. Get it? Oh, never mind. Hit the read link to visit the Age of Pirates website and see a juicy trailer. [Via Xbox Solution]
Pirates of the Caribbean MMO on parade at E3
Fans of Captain Jack Sparrow and his motley crew will be wise to keep their eyes peeled this E3. Disney will be unveiling the first images -- along with a playable version -- of Pirates of the Caribbean Online, a massively-multiplayer online game that should be hitting shelves in 2007. Although a pirate-themed MMO isn't a new idea, taking a film with such a cult following as Pirates of the Caribbean and turning it into a MMORPG could prove a stupendous hit -- as long as it's done right. Disney's VR Studio, the developers behind the family friendly Toontown MMO, are on board for the project -- it's billed as being for "teens to adults" so it'll hopefully have more of a mature feel than Toontown. However, as long as it has Jack Sparrow in, some fans might not care.
