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See PSN title Savage Moon in action
We've just watched the first, straight-from-PAX video of upcoming PSN title Savage Moon (don't worry, we've put it after the break for you) and it looks (as Sony said it would) like a sophisticated tower defense game, albeit a really attractive one. We do have one quibble we feel compelled to pass on though: The decision to put crowd noises into the game is a bizarre one. They're almost louder than the guns! C'mon, Sony, get it together! Who wants to hear that?!
The BigCast @PAX08 Special: Warhammer Online
Massively's sister site Big Download has a very special podcast with Jeff Hickman, Paul Barnett and Josh Drescher from Warhammer Online. Of course, you probably don't need us to tell you that these fellows made for a very interesting podcast, but what you do need to know is that this edition of the BigCast is very NSFW, so it may be wise to wear some headphones. As it happens, there isn't much talk about Warhammer Online. Instead, you'll hear a lot Mr. Barnett asking everyone questions and the ever-informative Josh Drescher pitch a very wonderful radio ad for Bacon Salt -- because everything should taste like bacon.As someone who was a part of this endeavour into the unknowns of German hotels, taxis and of course, Bacon Salt, this blogger can tell you it was a wild ride that you won't be remiss for listening in on.
Savage Moon gameplay finally comes out of PAX
The lucky attendees of Penny Arcade Expo 2008 were able to get their hands on the upcoming PSN game Savage Moon before anyone else. We described the game as "Starship Troopers meets PixelJunk Monsters" at Leipzig -- and it looks like our description was spot-on. Check out the first (off-screen) gameplay footage of Savage Moon, after the cut.
PAX08: Aion's first U.S. public showing
"Hey, isn't that the game where you have wings and fly around?"This was probably the number one quote heard around the Aion booth at PAX08. NCsoft's Aion: The Tower of Eternity had its first public showing in the States this last weekend at PAX, and the general consensus seemed to be mostly positive. As the opening quote suggests though, many gamers were after that novelty of flight, and we can't help but wonder if that will be enough to carry potential players through the game for the long haul.So we took this opportunity to spend an hour or so with the game, to get a few of those precious first impressions for our readers. Keep in mind that this is only first impressions on a game that isn't finished yet, so take it with a grain of salt.%Gallery-11511%
PAX 2008 hands-on: Resistance 2
Out of the many games that Sony was showing off at PAX this year, the one that easily dominated their show booth was Resistance 2. They had 16 stations setup, each linked into the ongoing private beta servers so that expo attendees could get a true taste of 60 player online action. While it was a bit disappointing that Sony wasn't showing off anything from either the single player or co-op portions of the game, it was great being able to try out the actual scope of Resistance 2's multiplayer matches. One of the first things you'll notice when you pick up the controller, is that the controls have been subtly improved. The awkward weapon select wheel and the slight aiming stiffness of the first game have been replaced with a two-weapon system and a considerably more fluid aiming / moving mechanic. While it's still not on par with the tightness of Call of Duty 4's controls, they are much more comfortable now and definitely made running around the level easier.%Gallery-14773%
PAX 2008 hands-on: Spore, have we seen enough already?
The last stop on our Electronic Arts booth tour at PAX was dedicated to Spore. That's right, it's more Spore news. It's not a real day on Joystiq unless you get some minor Spore news, or a definitive hands-on experience. With the game actually coming out (can it be?!) in five days, maybe you'll start to see these die down a bit. Unless, of course, there's a secret Hot Coffee level that we find during our explorations. But is the game coming out a bit too late, or just in time? It feels like it's starting to wear out its welcome just a bit. Like that house guest that just won't leave, is Spore in danger of becoming a bore? German gamer mags have already given the game fairly disappointing scores, and in all honesty, we were ready to leave our demo early, even though we went hands-on with the whole thing. Find out why after the break.%Gallery-15870%
BigCast Special Edition Recap
While adventuring to PAX 2008, the team at Big Download recorded three special edition episodes. While the audio quality in the first was laughably bad, the episode is a hilarious look into the minds of tired Warhammer Online developers, Paul Barnett, Jeff Hickman and Josh Drescher. Give it a listen, if you can! In the second special edition, GameDaily's Robin Yang joined the team to discuss everyone's favorite titles at the show. In the final installment of the special series, former 1UP editorial director and co-founder of WhatTheyPlay.com, John Davison, went into some detail on the sex and violence in games debate. Check out the episodes if you get a chance -- we assure you the first audio hiccup was corrected in episodes two and three.
PAX 2008: The Entire Fallout 3 Vault Dweller's Survival Guide
Bethesda's Fallout 3 booth pretty much won the "Oooooooh!" contest at PAX by about a million rads. Not only did they have an Airstream trailer, fully kitted out in 1950s style and with Fallout 3 goodies inside, but they also had some of the best schwag at the expo. Vault Boy Puppet? Yes, please. Fallout 3 Penny Arcade poster? Don't mind if we do. The Vault Dweller's Survival Guide, Pocket Reference Edition? Oh my stars and garters.In the gallery below you can check out the entire guide that they were handing out at the show, and it may very well be the actual game manual. You get 50 pages chock full of tips for surviving in the wastelands, info on the different weapons, details about the creatures you'll encounter, and tips from Vault Boy himself. It even has a map and notes section in the back for your own enjoyment and doodling.Of course, the best advice can be found on Page 39: "Are you in immediate danger? You are beyond help. Drop this book and run." Update: Download it as a PDF!%Gallery-31026%
PAX08: Hands-on with Mines of Moria
This weekend at PAX 2008, Massively had the opportunity to be a part of the first-ever public preview of Mines of Moria with Lord of the Rings Online Executive Producer Jeffrey Steefel. During this showing, Steefel showed us many of the main features of this first expansion for LotRO, including the Legendary Weapon system, the two new classes, the vastness of the mines themselves and much more.The overall impression we got from this presentation was that this expansion is going to be epic. Just the sheer size of the world, which includes the mines themselves, more of Eregion and into Lothlorien, will be immense. This, combined with the game mechanic changes and additions to just about every aspect of gameplay, will speak volumes (pun!) about the potential of Turbine with this franchise. Follow along on our journey through Moria>>%Gallery-31017%
PAX 2008 hands-on: Magic: Duels of the Planeswalkers
Wizards of the Coast has been very busy talking about the 4th edition of Dungeons and Dragons, which came out this year, as well as its Star Wars and D&D miniatures and the online version of Magic: The Gathering. So, we were really caught off guard when we stopped by the Wizards booth at PAX and happened across this new version of Magic for the Xbox Live Arcade. We did a double take, tapped our mana, and found out more. Find out about the long-titled Magic: The Gathering: Duels of the Planeswalkers after the break.%Gallery-30916%
Sackboys build the Joystiq logo
Download to PSP So LittleBigPlanet is complete. You know this from our interview at Leipzig. We've been covering the game pretty closely since its reveal at GDC 2007, so we wanted something a little special for our PAX 2008 coverage. What could be more special than building the Joystiq logo and stickering the thing to death, before riding off in a fully-functional tank? We've sped it up and added some music you might be familiar with, to give you a bite sized, level building experience. Hopefully, for the LittleBigObsessed, we'll have the full 15 minute video available for you to check out soon.
PAX 2008: The Penny Arcade Interview
Note: Photo above taken at interview A few hours before PAX 2008 opened its doors to the public last Friday, we had a chance to speak with Penny Arcade creators Jerry Holkins and Mike Krahulik -- for simplicity's sake referred to here by their respective pseudonyms Tycho and Gabe -- about the Expo, its future expansion, the intensity of Jenga and the Duke Nukem Forever Omegathon round that never was. Audio embedded below; we've also gone ahead and transcribed highlights from the interview. (Note: To make it easier to read, we've put Gabe's name in red and Tycho's name in blue.)[MP3] Download the Interview
PAX08: Hermann Peterscheck interviewed on all things Jumpgate Evolution, page two
Massively: The flying and shooting felt really tight when we got to play it, did that take a lot of iteration to get just right? Massively: Control-wise you guys nailed that, because it took us a minute of fiddling around with the game to figure it out. Anyone familiar with shooters of any kind on the PC will be able to figure it out.
PAX08: Hermann Peterscheck interviewed on all things Jumpgate Evolution
On the last day of PAX08 we stopped by the Jumpgate Evolution booth, which was full of people with glazed-over eyes as they blasted away at enemy ships in space. After some time with the game, we sat down with the NetDevil producer Hermann Peterscheck. In-between our questions and his answers we also got to watch him blow up some space pirates, fly through a huge asteroid and battle above a super-volcanic planet with chunks of land -- that had a city on it -- floating in orbit around the planet. It was a lengthy look at a game that's already come a long way and is still showing some real promise, too.%Gallery-18375%
PAX 2008: Sex and Violence in Videogames Panel
The last panel at PAX 2008 was the highly anticipated discussion on Sex and Violence in Videogames between former Nintendo executive Perrin Kaplin, Grand Theft Childhood co-author Dr. Cheryl K. Olson and What They Like Inc., president John Davison. Moderated by Newsweek tech writer N'Gai Croal, the trio attempted to dissect the mainstream media misnomer that "videogames are toys" with both informative and hilarious results.
PAX 2008: Population 58,500
The show is over and the numbers are in. Said Penny Arcade business guru Robert Khoo to BigDownload, this year's PAX recorded 58,500 people in three days, placing it near the echelon of "Old E3." Previous guesstimations put the attendance at 45,000 to 50,000, which still would have eclipsed the PAX 2007 population of 37,000.So, what's to be done for PAX 2009? More expansion, of course, to ease overcrowding. "At 2 or 3 of the main theatre events 3-4% of the line wasn't able to make it," said Khoo, "but we hear those 3-4% loud and clear. We have a few ideas to manage that problem for 2009 including wristbands for popular events or just a straight-up hard count of people in line. The worst thing is if people line up for something and end up not getting in." The next PAX will take place again in late August, with the first PAX East Coast opening its Bostonian doors in late March 2010.
PAX 2008: Family Feud not so family friendly
The 2008 edition of PAX's Family Feud could have easily followed the "Sex and Violence in Video Games" panel, because it too had a healthy dose of sex and violence. Really, PAX Family Feud (or should we say Family Freud?) could best be described with three adjectives: entertaining; intense; and overly sexual. As attendees clapped to the Feud's theme song music, both teams (sans Joystiq readers, for shame!) answered questions ranging from, "Name a power-up used by Mario," (yay for fire flower!) to "What's your favorite Penny Arcade character?" Fruit "lover" got our vote. Everything was quite tame, albeit a bit verbally violent as the show's host received constant heckling from the audience due to his sometimes ... questionable hosting abilities. But then things turned towards sex, sex, sex when Feud players were asked, "What do you do when the electricity goes out at home?" We thought it to be an innocent enough question, but then we remembered that PAX attendees answered the questions. As a result, things got interesting.
Seen@PAX08: Cryptic's Champions book treasure trove
While Champions Online was being shown at PAX08, we discovered something on the other side of the booth. It was a treasure trove of the tabletop books that the game is based on. When we say treasure trove, we really mean it, too. The amount and variety of books being sold was no less than astounding. Plus, the president of Hero Games was there to answer any questions or concerns regarding the books. We even got some tips on which of the books to start with for anyone interested in the game because of Champions Online. Also, we found out which book contains all your required Foxbat information, so that we can continue to worship him as one of the greatest villains of all time.%Gallery-30683%
PAX08: Talking with Champions Online's content lead, Zeke Sparkes
After speaking with John Layman at PAX08, our second Champions Online interview was with content lead Zeke Sparkes. We talked sound effects, travel powers, character creation, controls and zone creation among other things. In fact, we actually got a short period of hands-on time with the game prior to the interview.So far, Champions Online had only been playable with the Xbox 360 controller, but we were able to finally try the keyboard and mouse controls at PAX. Instead of hitting a face button on the Xbox controller to do your basic attack, you tap an assigned number-key on your keyboard. As you do this, you build up energy and can move through the rest of the powers, which for us were set to the rest of the numbered keys. Overall, the keyboard and mouse controls feel tight and responsive for a game scheduled to launch in Spring of 2009.
PAX 2008: The LittleBigJoystiq level
To demonstrate LittleBigPlanet's level creation tools in a way that we haven't seen or written about ad nauseum, the gang at the PAX 2008 Sony booth helped us model the Joystiq logo and vomit stickers all over it. The entire video initially clocked in at just over 10 minutes, so in the interest of time we've sped up the creation part.Here's the full LittleBigJoystiq logo -- click for a (slightly) higher-resolution version:
