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PS3 murders Xbox 360 with hot air
When robotic lions get together, they form a robot that defends the universe. When the PS3 and Xbox 360 get together, they apparently sometimes kill each other. In the battle for 1UP Editor John Davison's living room, Round 1 goes to the PS3, smacking the 360's red-ringed ass to the curb. The truncated version of Davison's tale of woe goes a little like this: His toddler turns on the PS3 (without Dad's knowledge) while the 360 is on. The two systems share the same confined space, but Davison always opens the shelving when the PS3 is on, for fear that it would go nuclear. It totally does. But instead of shutting down, it blows out so much hot air that it kills the 360. He learned it from watching you, Dad! ... He learned it from watching you.
Parish's rejected Pokemans review: Let us show you it [update 1]
For a change of pace, 1UP's Jeremy Parish sometimes submits reviews in webcomic form. He tried to do just that thought of doing that for his review of Pokemon Diamond and Pearl, and was denied, but went with the more traditional approach in the end. Luckily for us, personal blogs face no such content approval process. But rather than scrap the idea altogether, Parish has drawn up part 1 of his Pokemon review comic on both his 1UP blog and his personal blog GameSpite, with a promise to continue the story of ... well, of a guy reviewing Pokemon.We're big fans of Mr. Parish-- we listen to his 1UP podcast Retronauts every week, just like every sane person should. Not only that, we continue to be enthralled by anything that makes use of the "Pokemans" meme. So there was no choice but to post this comic when we saw it. Our hands were tied. What do you think about "alternative" review formats like this one?Update: Changed to reflect the actual circumstances of the strip's creation, thanks to a correction from Mr. Parish himself.
Luke Smith leaves 1UP to be Master Chief's poolboy
No, we don't actually know that 1UP's news editor will be fishing leaves out of the pool at the Spartan's summer home. But we do know, thanks to the most recent 1UP Yours podcast, that Smith, who has wasted no opportunity to express his love for Halo, will soon leave the world of gaming journalism for an unannounced position at Bungie. Smith did hint that he would still be in front of a mic at his new job, and Bungie's Frankie said in recent update that something was in the works that "might make the next official Bungie podcast that much better," so we probably have a pretty good idea of what he'll be doing. Smith's path may remind readers of that of Che Chou, who left his job as 1UP's managing editor for community management at Microsoft Game Studios or former Gamespot chief Greg Kasavin who left the site to work as an associate producer for EA.
Metareview: Valhalla Knights
Valhalla Knights looked so promising when it was first previewed so many months ago. Looks like it'll join the ever-growing collection of RPG failures on our system. The critics, for the most part, have bashed XSEED's latest, telling you to stay far, far away from it: 1UP (35/100) likens the experience to torture: "I can't remember the last time I felt so constricted as a gamer. Sure, running around the dungeons and slashing through enemies is enjoyable enough -- and, dare I say it, even fun at times. But as soon as you attempt to play through Valhalla Knights like its an actual game, it completely falls apart. The viselike grip Valhalla Knights holds." G4 (40/100) thinks the game is too old-school for its own good: "This is not a game for the impatient, especially since there's no in-game help system. When it comes to combat tactics or building a party, you have to learn by doing (and probably dying)." IGN (53/100) wanted to like the game, but couldn't: "Valhalla Knights succeeded at impressing me with fun, real-time combat, completely pissing me off with drawn-out quests and eventually driving me away due to the complete lack of anything resembling story progression." Ouch! Those are some of the harshest reviews we've read in quite some time. Valhalla Knights is now available in stores ... if you dare pick it up!
Lack of second analog makes Monster Hunter better on PSP
People are enamored by Monster Hunter, even with its suspicious lack of online gameplay. Why, you ask? 1UP's Milkman describes his personal Monster Hunter obsession on his personal blog: "I love a game where you try and collect the coolest gear possible. It's why I loved Diablo II, and it's why I played the sh-t out of Phantasy Star Online and Final Fantasy XI." Considering how Monster Hunter Portable 2 includes content from the never-released-in-America Monster Hunter Dos, Milkman seems overly eager to get his hands on the game. Interestingly, the series has improved on its transition from PS2 to PSP due to the lack of a second analog stick. On the console, attacks were relegated to the right analog, which felt unnatural: "I like the controls a lot better on PSP too, since it dispenses with the analog nonsense and just puts the attacks on the buttons." Do you share Milkman's enthusiasm for the title too? See tons of new screenshots and artwork from VG Gen.
Tales of the World demands fame
Many Tales fans are excited about Tales of the World. Being able to play with fan-favorite characters from previous iterations of the series is certainly enticing--but, getting them to stay in your party is another challenge in and of itself. 1UP recently previewed the game, and found that the game is a little bit more forgiving than the typical hardcore dungeon-crawl RPG. For example, "you won't lose your loot if you're defeated -- though you may lose your clout within the city."It appears your fame, and your overall battle quality, will determine your ability to have returning Tales characters join your team permanently. "Most of the time, these 'guest' characters will be available to you for their associated quest, but you can also try to get them to join you permanently. Whether they do or not depends on their overall opinion of you, which is determined by a variety of factors that are so far unclear. We imagine you may not need to do much besides playing skillfully and avoiding death when they're with you on a quest."If you play like a second-class warrior, you'll end up with second-class partners: generic heroes that must be paid to follow you around. Like in real life, it appears you'll have to earn friendship through charisma ... or money. See a video of the game, after the cut.
Capcom offers weak excuse for Ad-hoc only play in Monster Hunter
We're all bummed by Monster Hunter Freedom 2's lack of Infrastructure. It's absolutely mind-boggling. Sure, we can use tunneling services to trick the game, but Capcom should have known better. 1UP's Milkman agrees, and constantly brings the issue up in his latest interview with Producer Ryozo Tsujimoto. Capcom's excuse is absolutely terrible: "The reason we went with Ad Hoc wireless play for the PSP version was because the reason for having a PSP is the ability to take it out on the town, or to play with groups of friends while sitting down. Like when you go to the arcade with friends, you go to play with people in the same vicinity -- you don't go to play with people across the country. So we really wanted to focus on having ad hoc multiplayer, so you could sit with a group of friends and talk about strategies. And that's what the real fun part is."Excuse me? That simply doesn't make sense. Should World of Warcraft be limited to Ad-Hoc play because that's what "the real fun" is? Sorry Capcom, that doesn't cut the mustard. Tsujimoto does offer a concession: "But in the future, it's something we can think about if the fans want something like that and let us know." But we did let you know!
Naruto: Ultimate Ninja Heroes comes to US this summer
Believe it! The popular anime franchise is finally getting a PSP game. Ultimate Ninja Heroes will allow Naruto fans to assemble a team of three characters (out of a roster of 20) to duke it out against another team of three. Pairings must be thought through carefully, as new abilities will be unearthed based on character combinations. An interesting idea, to say the least. According to 1UP, the fighter is supposedly exclusive to the US, with no Japanese release planned at the moment. But, Heroes looks suspiciously like the Japanese PSP Naruto game, so we're going to take that bit with a grain of salt.Ultimate Ninja Heroes will hit PSP systems this summer. Check out 1UP for more details, and some breathtaking pictures of the game.
1UP explains why Puzzle Quest is so good
Many fans are calling Puzzle Quest one of the best puzzle games to come out in years. The game, which combines RPG and puzzle elements (seriously!), adds a much desired amount of depth to the typically simple Bejeweled gameplay. Watch the latest episode of Not the 1UP Show to see the Ziff Davis editors explain what makes the game so special. You can also download a PSP-compatible version here. [102MB .zip]
Retronauts! We choose you!
We depend on 1up's Retronauts podcast to help get us through the long, painfully silent hours of our lives. Most of the time, we'd rather be thinking about Castlevania than doing schoolwork anyway, and Jeremy Parish and his cadre of gaming scholars help us keep our attention away from what we're actually supposed to be doing.This week, in anticipation of the upcoming Diamond and Pearl, Retronauts focuses on the Pokemon franchise, focusing on the history of the franchise and some off-the-cuff theory about why the games remain relevant despite not having changed in any appreciable way in the last ten years. Oh, and they do a lot of cursing about terrible games, but that's to be expected.
Craaazy Crazy Taxi interview
1UP interviewed Kenji Kanno, the Chief Game Design Manager of the upcoming Crazy Taxi: Fare Wars. Amazingly, the interview doesn't really ask many questions about the PSP game. Instead, it focuses on general industry and Crazy Taxi series questions. When asked about the most important part about the evolution of the series, Kanno answered, "I wouldn't use the word 'evolution' for this series because basically the whole point of the game is to have a lot of fun in a short period of time." Sounds like the perfect kind of game for a portable! [Thanks Jonah]
Ziff Davis Game Group still profitable but revenue declining
GamesIndustry.biz reports that the Ziff Davis Game Group -- home to publications like EGM and Games for Windows -- has continued to recede, with expectations for the game magazines offset only partially by a growing 1UP. Total gaming profits for Q4 2006 were down to $1.6 million from $3 million in Q4 2005, while the online subset of those totals grew 76 percent.Ziff Davis profits as a whole increased 70 percent over that period, meaning that while the games group is still making money, it's not matching pace with the rest of the publicly traded company. Would the Game Group do better with a new owner?
Retailers tell Sony: change PSP, or else
According to 1UP, retailers have been telling Sony to change the PSP, or else they'll stop carrying the machine altogether. Shipments of the system plummeted about 72 percent from the year before, with a meager 10,000 machines shipped to retailers last Fall. (Of course, the system has gained much more momentum at the beginning of this year. Looking at hardware sales, one can see that the PSP is still doing well--just not as well as the DS.)Retailers have supposedly asked that Sony reduce the price of the PSP, but apparently, there's no plans for a price cut. At the Destination PlayStation event for retailers, Sony announced something else that got retailers excited: what it is is unclear at this point.The theories have ranged from new system colors, new bundles, to a new system redesign. Hopefully, we'll see more when the PSP's second anniversary comes up on March 24th.[Thanks, Aaron!]
Sony finally confirms God of War PSP
It was a terribly held secret and after the scans of the back of the instruction manual appeared online, there was little doubt God of War was coming to the PSP. Some gamers still had in the back of their heads that the image was a hoax though. Fear not, now there is no doubt. Sony has confirmed God of War is coming to the PSP. At a God of War launch event last night God of War director Cory Barlog said "It is its own story that connects to the overall story. God of War, God of War 2, and then if all the stars align God of War 3 will be the telling of a trilogy. This PSP story will be a further fleshing out." Glad it will fit into the overall story and though I had no doubt, it's good to have confirmation it will be an original game. [ Via 1UP ]
The truth behind David Jaffe's HL
David Jaffe wanted to make gamers cry with his PSP game Heartland. Well when the game was cancelled he accomplished that goal as many gamers faced incredible disappointment at its loss. Just as that wound was starting to heal, 1UP re-opens the wound and pours salt in it by getting details on the game. Of course, no matter how much it hurts, the curiousity factor makes it so we can't ignore the info David Jaffe cleared the air by saying "Heartland was the story of China invading America. It was a first-person-shooter where you played a soldier debating whether to stay and fight for America or go AWOL to meet up with your family. We were trying to put in a lot of gameplay that would evoke emotion. You had sequences where you'd go into homes and your commanding officer would tell you to shoot innocent Chinese-Americans. It was very dark and was meant to cause players to consider what it's like to live in America and be an American today." Sounds like it could be a deeply meaningful game, so why did Jaffe step away from the project? "Hearing myself talk about it now makes me a bit sad (that we didn't finish it). But I wasn't incentivized to make it, in a way I could go to my family and say 'You're not going to see me for 90% of the time, but there's a pot of gold at the end of the rainbow.' There isn't a pot of gold at the end of the rainbow, at least the current way the industry is set up." Maybe Cory Barlog can continue this project too?.
1UP's most wanted games
1UP has been going through their most wanted games across all the platforms. Their list of wanted PSP games feature a list of heavy-hitters, many coming from Square-Enix. Do you have the same wants? Burnout Dominator Crazy Taxi: Fare Wars Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII Crush Dungeons & Dragons Tactics Elder Scroll's Travels: Oblivion Final Fantasy Tactics: The Lion's War Tomb Raider: Anniversary Silent Hill Origins Valhalla Knights Of course, this list doesn't account for unannounced titles, such as God of War and the other Square games that are heading our way. Better save up--it looks like our wallets aren't going to get any rest this year.
God of War on PSP, seriously
James Joy from 1UP got an early copy of God of War II. By taking pictures of the retail packaging, James has uncovered one of Sony's worst kept secrets: God of War is coming to PSP. In 2007, no less.Is Ready At Dawn developing the game? Is it a remake? Is it a sequel? A prequel? There's still tons more info we'd like to know, but rest assured that the game is coming.[Via IGN & GAF]
Joyswag: Free 1-year subscription to Games for Windows magazine
[Update: "Thank you for your interest in Games for Windows. Unfortunately, this promotion has ended." And with that, our Games for Windows: The Official Magazine promotion has run its course; exhausted from a non-stop barrage of subscription requests, it finally toppled over and died. See what you've done? Enjoy!]Sure, they've got a new corporately-sanctioned identity, but beneath the glitz and glamour of the Games for Windows branding, it's the same old Computer Gaming World magazine, one of the longest-running gaming mags around. To maintain their street cred, the editorial team introduced some risky features, like a new scoring system that ranks a 5 out of 10 as "average," and sounded off on their trepidation about upgrading to Vista, Microsoft's latest and greatest and, ostensibly, the very reason behind their magazine's name change. So what is this all about? We've teamed up with Ziff-Davis, the publishers behind Games for Windows: TOM, to give away 25,000 free 1-year subscriptions (to US readers only ... sorry!). How free? You won't need to provide your credit card information; your subscription won't be automatically renewed at the end of the year; and you will need to "opt-in" to renew your subscription before receiving any bill for the magazine. Free.Thanks, Joystiq readers!
Metareview: Ratchet & Clank: Size Matters
Ratchet & Clank: Size Matters just came out on PSP and a lot of gamers have high hopes for the title given the history of the series. We here at PSP Fanboy love Ratchet & Clank, but what about everyone else? It seems like most critics agreed with us, but let's see why: IGN (90/100) "It's packed with fantastic single-player content, has a strong multiplayer element, boasts a great visual and thematic presentation, and excels with razor-sharp gameplay mechanics." Yahoo! (100/100) "For the last two titles, the developers of Ratchet & Clank have done a wonderful job building full-featured multiplayer support into their games. Size Matters is arguably the best attemt to date. Although it only supports four players at a time, the maps and modes are meticulously build to wring the most out of multiplayer matches." 1UP (70/100) "If you're looking for a game that matches the quality of the previous games in the Ratchet franchise...well, keep looking." Not sure what game 1UP was playing, but they're the only one to even give the game anything close to that score, so if you're a fan I think you need to check out Ratchet & Clank: Size Matters.
Planet Moon no longer a PSP exclusive dev
Planet Moon, the famed developer of titles like Giants and MDK, became a PSP-exclusive developer at the system's launch. Since then, it has released the zombie-shooter Infected and is finishing up the upcoming Sega remake, After Burner. Speaking to 1UP, the team has revealed that they are no longer a PSP-exclusive team: "We're no longer a PSP exclusive developer," confirms Planet Moon chief operating officer Aaron Loeb. "One of the things that was funny was when we made that announcement, people assumed what we were announcing. They sort of read between the lines and assumed that we'd become a handheld developer, which was never our intention with it. The goal of Planet Moon when it was founded was to make original IP and it's still our goal as a company -- it's still our striving mission."While it's sad to see such a high-profile developer move on to other systems, I hope they don't ignore our handheld for whatever future projects they work on.
