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ROPID the adorable humanoid can jump 3-inches into the air, sweep you off your feet
It's been a while since we've seen a humanoid robot this size do anything very new or interesting -- mostly they seem busy with their slow-mo dance moves -- but the new ROPID bot by Tomotaka Takahashi, the man behind Panasonic's Evolta bots, not only has a few new tricks up its plastic sleeves, but has personality to spare. The bot can rotate its upper torso, which seems to help immensely in keeping it balanced while jumping, running and skipping around. It's still the tried-and-true "bent knees" method of balance, but ROPID is "rapid" enough to make it look almost lifelike. The movements are expressive enough, but with some slightly articulated hands and a moving mouth, ROPID ups the adorable-ness factor over some of its nuts and bolts counterparts. ROPID can also respond to a few voice commands and speaks as well. Takahashi designed and built the bot himself, which makes us wonder what we've been doing with our lives that's so-very-important for the past couple of decades. Video of ROPID in action is after the break. [Via Plastic Pals]
Overheard@GDC09: Design is Takahashi's anti-drug
Although it's hard to believe that the ideas for Katamari Damacy and Noby Noby Boy weren't birthed from some serious drug use, Keita Takahashi stated at GDC that he's completely straight-edge when it comes to partaking in the chemical vices of man. In the same session where he revealed Noby Noby Boy for iPhone, he also claimed, "I don't use drugs at all, I don't drink at all. Please don't worry about me."Hmmmmmmm .... okay.
Camelot likes the idea of Golden Sun DS
While speaking with Eurogamer about their game on the Wii, the subject of RPGs still managed to come up. And we can totally understand why, as the company's Golden Sun and Shining Force series of games are widely regarded as excellent. Camelot even hinted at Golden Sun for the DS, the teases!"We want to play that game too, just as much as you," comments the Takahashi brothers. " We love Golden Sun! We are working on a lot of different things - a lot of different design documents and so on, including some different RPG ideas. Don't worry, we're thinking about RPG stuff! We've got all these ideas, many many different things we're thinking about - but of course, we still have just one team, so we'll see what happens." Of course, we knew they were working on some kind of RPG earlier this month, but to take this as a confirmation that a Golden Sun for the DS is in the works could very well mean a lot of nights spent home alone, crying in the dark. Or, they actually could be working on it. For the sake of our sanity, though, we're going to remain skeptical.
Takahashi Meijin to show off Wii Ware in Japan
Hudson's Takahashi Meijin, the star of Adventure Island, will be a featured guest at a Wii Ware event hosted by Japanese cell phone company KDDI. The KDDI Design Studio will take place on April 1st and 2nd in Harajuku, and will feature playable versions of Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: My Life As a King, Dr. Mario & Bacillus Extermination, and Hudson's Star Soldier R. Admission will be free. Plane tickets to Japan continue not to be. Takahashi will participate in a "talk show" as well as game demonstrations. He rose to fame with his Star Soldier shooting skills, so attendees should expect some feats of button-mashing from the Meijin on the new version.
Takahashi apologizes for Mass Effect review
Mercury News reporter Dean Takahashi has quite publicly apologized for his negative and unfair review of Mass Effect. Takahashi's mea culpa reveals that he rushed into (and through) the early levels of the game without taking the time to learn the rules. BioWare can also be faulted for its lack of explanation in teaching the uninitiated the finer points gameplay.The lengthy apology clearly highlights issues we've heard about and experienced in Mass Effect over and over again. Some simple thoughts to enjoy Mass Effect: Take your time and be sure to make time, it is an RPG after all and not a rushed experience. Hopefully for the sequel they'll fix blatantly ridiculous things like the inventory system, inability to run around the Citadel, and the slowest elevators in intergalactic history -- the title sure sold enough to warrant future installments.
Katamari creator downplays importance of video games
Ever the eccentric, Katamari Damacy creator Keita Takahashi went on stage at a video game conference and tried to tell the audience that video games are NOT the most important thing in the world.We couldn't believe it either.Standing barefoot in front of London Nottingham's GameCity conference, the obviously brain-damaged Takahashi alleged that "it would be impossible for us to be here... if the world was not peaceful." He tried to convince the crowd that real world suffering and problems were occasionally more pressing than games. "If you're suffering from poverty and disease, could you worry about collecting coins? I don't think so," he argued, unconvincingly.Takahashi also implied, rather laughably, that things like recycling and being friendly were just as important as beating Halo 3 on Legendary for the third time. "I'm not trying to be the next Al Gore but I'm not sure if we could afford to have video games in ten or twenty year's time," the fearmongering designer said, adding that white is black and up is actually down.After the confusing opening, Takahashi showed off a demo of Nobi Nobi Boy, thankfully distracting the audience from the problems of the real world once again.
Takahashi: Xbox 360s with 65nm CPUs soaring this year
Have you been as curious as us about when Microsoft plans to utilize smaller CPUs in their Xbox 360? According to The Mercury News' Dean Takahashi, who has previously written two books on Microsoft's consoles, the 65nm processors will probably start finding its way into new Xbox 360s by the end of the year. However, there are a few caveats.The chips, which are a sizable difference than the current 90nm chips, are being planned for a new motherboard codenamed Falcon (if you recall, Microsoft's previous motherboard upgrade that included an HDMI port was called Zephyr). The upgrade will still have 90nm graphics chips from ATI -- that upgrade is for later. And there is no guarantee that the smaller chips, though theoretically will require less energy, will alleviate the Xbox 360's Red Ring of Death. And so how will you tell if the console has the Falcon? You can't -- not at first, anyways. "Microsoft has no intention of telling you which box has 65-nanometer chips on the inside," he said. All Falcon-equipped Xbox 360s have HDMI ports, but not all HDMI-enabled 360s have Falcons. "I really don't know how you're going to be able to tell the difference. If you're buying an Xbox 360 without HDMI, then for sure you aren't getting Falcon," he said.This Christmas, if you're hoping for a more reliable Xbox 360, there is a chance you could nab one. From what Takahashi has said, however, you might have to increase your Luck stat before you try to pick up one. Check out Takahashi's article for more details.
A valiant attempt to get Xbox 360 failure rate answers
Dean Takahashi from the San Jose Mercury News recently sat down with Todd Holmdahl, Microsoft's man in charge of the quality for the Xbox 360. Takahashi is another reporter trying to get Microsoft fessing up to the actual failure rate of the Xbox 360, a machine that many enjoy and continues to show its worth, but has an anecdotally tragic failure rate. It would probably make a great chapter if Takahashi ever follows up his book Xbox 360 Uncloaked. Takahashi does his best get answers in the interview to what's really going on with the system's failure rate, but if you've ever wondered what corporate stonewalling looks like, make sure to read the full interview.Highlights from the interview after the break
Miyamoto talks user-generated content, critical of PS Home [update 1]
Speaking to The Mercury News' Dean Takahashi, designer Shigeru Miyamoto gave a slight jab to the PlayStation Home for its familiarity. "What they're doing already exists in one form on the PC," he said. "Our focus [with Miis] is always to be different and do something that's different." Miyamoto furthers his opinion by expressing how the Mii system embraces but isn't focused on the internet, while noting that the character system took 20 years to "come to fruition." We assume much of that time was just Miyamoto circling the idea in his head, as his GDC keynote places the Mii conception alongside the Nintendo 64 era."We are trying to do something that is different and create something that hasn't been there before," he said. A caricature creation system may not have been done explicitly on consoles before, but we still wouldn't call it an entirely new concept. Nor would we give the same honor to Home, but their integration is indeed a first for game consoles.Miyamoto went on to address the idea the user-generated content, citing it as an inevitability. "It's not simply the question of whether there is a game editor," he said. "It is what form does that editor take." We have some idea.Also of note, Miyamoto gave the obvious revelation that a Wii fitness game, tentatively titled health pack or Wii Fit, is underway to ride the wave of success of Wii minigame collections Wii Play and Wii Sports.[Update 1: There was some confusion as to what Miyamoto said in the third line and what we added following the quote. The editorial has been given its own paragraph so as to alleviate some confusion.]
Hudson interviews the real-life Master Higgins
Takahashi Meijin ("Master Takahashi") is the nickname of a longtime Hudson employee named Toshiyuki Takahashi, who became famous in Japan for his ability to tap buttons really, really quickly -- up to 16 times a second. This amazing power lent itself to videogames, naturally.After making a few TV appearances, and becoming a Hudson mascot of sorts (along with that adorable bee), he lent his appearance to videogames, too. Specifically, the Adventure Island games, which were called Takahashi Meijin no Boukenjima ("Takahashi Meijin's Adventure Island") in Japan. When you play New Adventure Island on the Virtual Console-- which you should do, as soon as possible-- you're playing as a grass-skirted Takahashi Meijin.Hudson's US branch has posted an interview with this legendary figure, which is not only interesting for the novelty of being an interview with a videogame character, but because he really knows his stuff about Hudson and their history. We can't wait until they post an interview with Air Zonk.
What'll Bungie do after Halo?
Xbox boardroom biographer and industry observer Dean Takahashi wonders what's next for Bungie. They're currently holed up in their fancy new headquarters working (tirelessly we imagine) on the third installment of Microsoft's Xbox-selling secret weapon, Halo 3. But what else are they working on in their Dr. Pepper and Dorito encrusted fortress? Takahashi's inside sources tell him they're working on not one, but maybe two other projects. Just like Xbox's J Allard disappeared suddenly from the limelight, only to turn up working on another not-so-secret project, Bungie's general manager, Pete Parsons, is mysteriously no longer their general manager. Takahashi intimates that Parsons is now leading a secret second team at Bungie while other Bungie all-stars, like "Jason Jones, the project lead on the Halo games, and Chris Butcher, the top programmer," are working on yet another project "beyond the Halo universe."If Halo 3 is to be the final installment of a Halo trilogy, is Microsoft going to sit back and let their most lucrative franchise go out in style or continue to milk it for all it's worth? With a Halo movie in the works, what about the inevitable tie-in game? After all, a Bungie with business sense would make Halo 4 and 5 and ... we'd also take LEGO Halo. Seriously.[Via Xboxic]
9 year old girl hates Loco Roco, flaming ensues
Through our comments section, I've learned that Joystiq (and this site as well) hates the PSP, Sony, you, and your mother. They recently posted a news story about a Loco Roco review posted by a nine year old girl (daughter of the author of The Xbox 360 Uncloaked). Here's an excerpt:"This game is for younger kids such as five- or six-year-olds. Older kids might not like it. The music is for two- or three-year-olds. It gets annoying with the baby singing. If you beat the level, you get a prize. I haven't beaten the whole level yet so I don't know what the prize is. I'd give this game a one out of four star rating."What I find absolutely hilarious is how this "kiddie" game seems to appeal to us adults more than this little kid. Even more hilarious are the fanboys flaming the girl on the site:Wow, that "review" was mediocre. The game is for all ages, just because some people are too shallow to look past certain things like music or graphics doesn't mean it's "for" any certain age range. - EdwardYou know what really deserved 1 out of 4 stars? This review... Why do you have a 9 year old review video games? Is it because it (Loco Roco) looks kiddy? Or does everybody think video games in general are kiddy? Well, they're not. - Slamming If it's such a baby game, why couldn't she beat the first level? - Captin Shmit Remember folks, it's always really cool to pick on a little girl on the internet.
Seen around eFocus event
We stopped by the eFocus event over at the California Mart in LA's Fashion District. Just a few snapshots of what we saw...
Dean Takahashi at Not an E3 Party
Sarah: So, what'd you think of Sony's keynote? Dean: (shrugs) Sounds like Sony is stealing Nintendo's thunder. This is going to be fun to watch this week.
Takahashi: Microsoft portable coming halfway through 360's lifespan [update 1]
According to Dean Takahashi's new book, The Xbox 360 Uncloaked, the Xbox 360's hardware team have been divided in two: half to work on reducing production costs for the Xbox 360, and the other half is at work on making a portable console (we've blogged about this before). The portable, we've learned, is meant to launch halfway through the life span of the Xbox 360, when sales usually start to decline due to announcements about next-generation home consoles (Xbox 720?). Will we see any announcements at E3? Highly doubtful, but we would suspect an unveiling at E3 2007.[update 1: fixed typo, time]
The switch from Intel/NVIDIA to IBM/ATI
The "Dean" (har har) of Xbox education, Dean Takahashi, wrote a typically thorough and thoughtful piece for this month's Electronic Business magazine. What? You're not a subscriber? Tsk tsk. Lucky for you, the good folks at EBM have put the article online.Takahashi profiles Nick Baker, one of the 360 system architects who decided to switch chip camps, going from Intel to rival IBM and switching from NVIDIA to (bitter) rival ATI. Takahashi covers the fascinating project of building a next-gen game console in -- what we assume is -- just a taste of his upcoming book on the 360.One of the most interesting parts in the piece is Takahashi's details surrounding the shortage of the GDDR3 RAM. He writes, "Both Samsung and Infineon Technologies had committed to making the GDDR3 memory for Microsoft. But some of Infineon's chips fell short of the 700 megahertz specified by Microsoft. Using such chips could have slowed games down noticeably. Microsoft's engineers consulted and decided to start sorting the chips, not using the subpar ones. Because GDDR3 700-MHz chips were just ramping up, there was no way to get more chips. Each system used eight chips. The shortage constrained the supply of Xbox 360s."Microsoft has argued that it was a generalized component shortage, but we've known better. [Thanks, Joe]
Mr. Katamari not interested in Revolution
For how quirky and unique a game Katamari Damacy is, I find it odd that its creator is not interested in the Revolution at all. When conversing with Gamasutra's sister-publication Game Developer at GDC, Keita Takahashi claimed "So, there's nothing I really want to do with it right now." He went on further to say "I'm not really interested in it. I don't think a controller should have that much influence on the enjoyment of games."Don't you think he's kind of missing the point? Isn't it not so much that the remote influences the game, but more that it adds a whole new dimension to the gameplay? Red Steel isn't a brand new type of game forced to compromise to the remote's characteristics, it takes the unique properties of the remote and aims to mix it with conventional first-person gameplay to create something new. How can you possibly not be interested in that?! Of course, comparisons to Red Steel aren't all that valid since noone has tried it, but you get the point, right?
Takahashi's Xbox 360 book gets finishing touches
As promised, unofficial Xbox biographer Dean Takahashi has completed the draft of his upcoming book, The Xbox 360 Uncloaked, before his self-imposed deadline of E3 in May. You can check out some info on the book at the publisher's website.Counting down to the book's May 9th release date, Takahashi will be posting portions of an exhaustively detailed chronology of the original Xbox every week. A small snippet of the first installment: April 22, 1999: Craig Mundie lays out rules of engagement, setting up a beauty contest between the Xbox and WebTV teams April 27, 1999: Xbox team meets with Mundie to show him demos of the PS 2 emulation and the PC April 27, 1999: 3-D graphics chip designer GigaPixel visits Microsoft. April 28, 1999: 3Dfx graphics chip team visits Microsoft. April 29, 1999: Dave Kirk, chief scientist of Nvidia, visits Redmond to talk about game business April 30, 1999: Consumer Windows/PC appliance team holds a meeting with Bill Gates The first installment goes from 1983 (Microsoft launches Flight Simulator) to Dec. 22, 1999 (Rick Thompson takes the Xbox team skiing). Prepare to get your minutiae on. [Via Joystiq]
