tie-in
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All six episodes of Bright Falls now available online
If you're hoping to get acquainted with the world of Alan Wake before the game's extremely imminent release, you may want to watch the six-part mini-series Bright Falls, all of which is now available on Machinima's YouTube channel. Regardless of whether or not you understand a lick of what transpires during the Twin Peaks-esque series, it's still a really well-made tie-in, and gives a great sense of the unsettling environments the titular Wake will be exploring. If you want more information about Bright Falls after viewing the series, we suggest checking out our interview with co-writer and director Phillip Van. Watch: Episode 1, Episode 2, Episode 3, Episode 4, Episode 5 and Episode 6
Publishers: Movie tie-in games don't need critical acclaim
While publishers may unleash the PR hounds over some games, apparently they aren't so concerned when it comes to movie tie-in titles. MCV spoke with several company representatives behind this year's movie-licensed cash-ins, revealing the opinion that megaplex titles are enjoyed by fans of the film and reviews don't really matter.Activision Blizzard's head of marketing, David Tyler, notes that many licensed titles are targeted at kids, who really don't pay attention to scores. He believes success or failure depends on how fun a game is, and that game ratings are largely the concern of an older target audience. Meaning, if there was a movie tie-in game for The Bucket List, chances are, the publisher would make sure it's amazing.
Blizz posts overpriced ringtones, wallpapers
It's not an iPhone Armory app, but Blizzard did release some official content for your mobile phones. They've set up a mobile.blizzard.com site, at which you can buy wallpapers and ringtones from WoW and the other Blizz franchises. At this point, you're probably asking yourself one question: can I get a murloc gurgle ringtone? The answer, thankfully, is yes. Yes you can. (Though I can't guarantee it's a good idea.) There is a big catch: the ringtones are priced at $2.99 each. Yikes. I know ringtones are big business, and I know Blizz is all about the tie-ins, but this is foolishness. Who would pay this over recording an MP3 and sending it to their phone? The wallpapers are $1.99, which is equally dumb for something I could just as easily screenshot off Blizz's concept art pages and email to my phone. Also I can't find the USA or Canada on the list of countries; it seems, at least at the moment, that these are not available here. It's a shame that these are so oddly expensive, and that they're not even available in the US, because some of them are pretty well-done. It would be awesome to play the WoW intro theme when my guildies text me to go raid. I guess I'll just have to make my own ringtone for it.
Curses! D-pad revision is 'limited edition, promotional item'
It doesn't look like everyone should be jumping for joy about a revised Xbox 360 d-pad, yet. According to Microsoft the rumored directional pad revision is currently only slated as "a limited edition promotional item that is only available in Europe, Asia and Latin America while supplies last." Set for release on October 24, Eurogamer confirmed the "optimized" d-pad will be released in a bundle with Pro Evolution Soccer 2009. Also, the controller will be sickly green, as seen in the image above. While plans could change the bundle seems to be the only option for now. No word on a North American bundle, so for now sports fans should hope Pro Evo 09 is region-free. [via Joystiq]
The Mummy unwrapped
Who doesn't have dreams of Brendan Fraser looking all cool as the swarthy hero Rick O'Connell? Honestly, The Mummy movies are pretty fun, and the upcoming movie The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor should be equally righteous. Since the movie will be tops, there's no reason the associated game of the same name won't be just as good, right?Well, swashbuckling journeys have a certain special place in the DS library, but we're not sure if TM:TOFTDE will be quite the same. It's an action-adventure spanning many locations around the world, culminating in a battle with a DS-ified Jet Li -- after all, he's the bad guy in the movies. Provided the control is smooth and combat responsive (not unlike the reasonably okay Pirates of the Caribbean game), we might just have an epic journey worthy of taking along on another epic journey of bus and train-like proportions.%Gallery-26666%[Via press release]
Wii smashes PS2 software sales record
var digg_url = 'http://digg.com/nintendo/Wii_smashes_software_sales_record_held_by_PS2'; The folks in Nintendo's PR department, gawd bless 'em, have milked yet another statistic from the Wii's early success: according to the firm, approximately 50 million games were sold during the console's first 18 months on the market -- and that's not including Wii Sports or Virtual Console releases.This, declared Nintendo of America's Cammie Dunaway, compared favorably to the PlayStation 2, which Nintendo claims sold only 42 million units in its opening 18 months, the Xbox 360 (around 30 million), the first Xbox (28 million), and the PlayStation 3 (20 million). No mention of the Dreamcast, we notice. Got something to hide, Nintendo? Okay, well probably not."While we appreciate the impact the Playstation 2 had on sales and the industry, perhaps we are even more impactful," remarked Dunaway.
Hands-on with LG's Iron Man handset, it's Superhero approved
Movie tie-ins are usually a pretty tiring lot, with garrish colors, sparkly add-ons, and outrageous campaigns being par for the course. Not so -- well almost -- for LG's Shine as Iron Man handset, this thing is so exclusive, it apparently won't ever hit the retail channels, and at about $2k a pop, nobody will miss it. Of course, there isn't much new here, it's a typical LG Shine with a dab of 18k Gold -- and by dab we mean, the battery cover is solid, solid gold -- and a fetching maroon color that nicely coordinates with Iron Man's fab suit. Follow the link for a pile more pics of the handset and a few of Iron Man, too.%Gallery-19703%
Midway looks to Hollywood tie-ins in 2008
2007 was not exactly a banner year for Midway, with the company still doing its best Atari impression with its pocketbook alongside lowered financial forecasts, f*cked up development, and a string of delays. Like a good little soldier, however, the publisher has kept its eyes on the horizon, though we're inclined to chalk up its newly revealed plans to achieve financial security by investing in Hollywood tie-ins to too much holiday eggnog. Something tells us this was not what Pachter had in mind when he said Midway could be just one franchise away from financial freedom. The company has already announced new NBA Ballers and Blitz games for the new year, and also plans to helm the video game prequel to the Vin Diesel flick Wheelman, though Midway CEO David Zucker describes the firm's 2008 strategy as one of "fewer, bigger, better" releases. Honestly, if we were Midway we'd take just one of those three and count ourselves lucky.
DS Daily: Stylus-plus
Paddles, drum sticks -- and that's just lately. Who knows what the future could hold for special DS styli and controllers? That's where you come in, dear readers. What would you like to see? What ideas do you have? Share them with us ... we live to hear your weirdest and wildest notions, especially when it comes to offbeat DS fun.
DS Daily: Movie licenses
It's no secret that most of the time, licensed games may not be ... how shall we say? Any good at all. But that's not a universal truth, as occasionally, a game based on a film shines through as strongly as any more original property. Some people have told us, for instance, that Cars DS is not a complete waste of a cartridge, especially for the younger and more casual gamers in our lives. But looking back, there are very few licensed games or game tie-ins that stand out. Perhaps the best of the lot was a stronghold of the N64, but the link to the movie was a little tenuous at times. Have any other licensed games rocked your socks over the years? What was so horrifically bad it made you want to kick things? We'd love to hear about it.
BC figurines coming in fall
ToyFare reports that DC Direct is producing some lovely Burning Crusade figurines, schedule to debut this fall. All we have so far are pictures of unpainted prototypes (like "you are not prepared" Illidan, pictured at right). They look pretty nifty to me, although I know very little about figurines.Two things about this story strike me as odd. As they point out over at ToyFare, DC Direct usually makes stuff based on DC comics for the direct market, as you might expect. These are of course not based on DC work, and furthermore seem to be headed for the mass market. Second, "release date: fall?" That's over six months from now; it seems like they would have done better to get them out a bit sooner. But maybe the manufacturing process doesn't allow for that or something.Anyway, click on over to ToyFare to see the prototypes for a Draenei Paladin, an Orc Shaman, a Dwarf Warrior, and Illidan. (Is it just me, or is the paladin wielding a one-handed weapon with no shield nor offhand?)
Sneak King trailer wins Nintendo hearts
Self-admitted Nintendo Fanboy Nmaster64 threw this trailer up on YouTube because he says it inspired him to do what Gears of War could not -- get a 360. Creepy man. Sneak King, which -- despite appearances -- is not a sequel to Fight Night Round 3, serves up the fast food thrills later this month.
Xbox gets X-tra X-Men product placement
You didn't have to be a telepathic mutant to predict that X-men: The Official Game would be a half-assed, Hollywood cash-in, similar in artistic merit to the cinematic rush-job it seeks to cross-promote. Those who broke down and paid money to see Halle Berry void her Oscar over the weekend may have noticed that the under-developed power-sucking character was playing an Xbox 360 to pass the time in his cell. I couldn't tell what game, though thankfully it wasn't the current king of obnoxious in-game advertising, Fight Night Round 3. Hard to believe the suits who sold this film franchise down the river, then insulted us with a crappy game, would miss the opportunity for a rare tri-level Burger King product placement.
