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Project Gotham Racing 4 goes gold
Bizarre Creations has hit Ctrl+S for the last time on Project Gotham Racing 4 and has duly sent the code off to be pressed onto millions of DVDs -- which is an absolutely marvelous format, we're told. If driving through rain or snow at ludicrous speeds is something you find appealing, you'd best start checking stores October 2nd in the US and Oct 12th in Europe. If not, ordering online is by far the safer option.If you just plain don't want the game (nor Geometry Wars: Waves), then you should have stopped reading three sentences ago. And you especially shouldn't read this sentence, which mentions the game's official website and a full list of its virtual vehicles.%Gallery-3052%%Gallery-4689%
PGR 4 makes its way onto the golden road
We are proud to announce that Bizarre Creations is proud to announce that Project Gotham Racing 4 has taken its final step to completion and has officially gone gold. This of course means development on PGR 4 is complete and that it is being mass produced for release to retail shelves in the US on October 2nd and October 12th in Europe. Also, Bizarre announced the launch of their official Project Gotham Racing website PGR Nations, where fans of the franchise can get the latest updates, media and news about PGR 4. It's the official website, so go check it out because it's official and stuff.Grease your wheels, air up your tires and top of your gas tank, because we've got a gold PGR 4 releasing in less than a month. Vroom, vroom!
Video: Geometry Wars: Waves gameplay
Gather around kids, it's time for some new Geometry Wars video! Embedded above is the first gameplay footage of Bizarre Creations' latest Geometry Wars installment oh so interestingly named Geometry Wars: Waves. First and foremost you must know that Waves will only be available within' Project Gotham Racing 4 and will not see a separate XBLA release. Secondly, let's look at the gameplay footage since that's the point of this post. From what we see, it looks like Waves is pretty much based off of Retro Evolved (which we fully expected), but with the addition of new enemies and behaviors.The video is rather short, but we get a glimpse at some new triangle enemies that shoot from one side of the map to the other, some double square looking shapes that just sit there and our old friends blue diamonds and green squares. We also noticed that the multiplier system has been tweaked over Retro Evolved allowing players to rack up a high score pretty quickly. Go ahead and give the video a watch to decide whether or not PGR 4 is worth purchasing just for this little beauty we call Geometry Wars: Waves.[Via Game Stooge]
Kohler: GeoWars is better on the Wii, should've been Wii Ware
Chris Kohler over at Wired took time to check out the Wii game Geometry Wars: Galaxies while at PAX07 and came away with the opinion that it was better than that of its original Xbox Live Arcade game. Even though we're huge Nintendo fans, we can't say we actually believe him, because the dual-analog control scheme of the original is just about perfect. Still, he sticks to his guns. Not only does he comment that the control setup of the Wii game is more intuitive, he also comments that there isn't any reason why the game couldn't have been a download on Wii Ware. We have to agree, because even though the game is almost guaranteed to be fun, we doubt it'll ever warrant a price tag of more than twenty dollars.
Check out some footage of Geometry Wars on the DS
Chris Hardin over at Nintendo Players managed to snag some video of Geometry Wars for the DS, taking two different videos of the game's promised interplanetary conflicts between geometric shapes. For those who've been foaming at the mouth for Bizarre Creations' casual title, there is no better endorsement than the embedded videos. So, head past the break and check them out.
Geometry Wars Galaxies might be giant
When you decide to use what is arguably the most well-known song ("Particle Man") by what is inarguably the greatest band ever (They Might Be Giants) in your game's trailer, you've got to be hoping for a healthy dose of geek cred. A new promo for Geometry Wars Galaxies almost gets it right before failing tragically in one regard: They forget to use They Might Be Giants. It's sad, really. A great marriage of product and song, marred by an overly-Devo, accordion-free rendition of the tune. Sorry, advertisers: No John and John, no sale. This does make us wonder, though: Is Geometry Wars Galaxies secretly a metaphor for the Holy Trinity? [Via NWF]
What's Geometry Wars Galaxies like? It's not important
We're a little suspicious about the use of both They Might Be Giants' "Particle Man" and wacky costumed characters in this promotional video for Geometry Wars Galaxies. Rather than reinforcing the geometry theme of the game, it all seems to be aimed at distracting us from the actual game footage. The game itself looks fine, but all the silliness going on in the video is actually putting us off the whole thing. It's a shame: the trailer would have been better and cheaper without the "actors" or "costumes." If nothing else, it's a lot more memorable now. You won't be able to hear the name Geometry Wars without thinking of people in black Spandex bothering some teenagers. [Via NeoGAF]
GeoWars producer chats up the game
Roger Carpenter, Sierra Entertainment producer, sat down with Modojo to discuss the Xbox Live port of Geometry Wars. They talk about all things, including the ability for DS owners to download a trial version of the game from the Wii (through the Wii game, natch), as well as the ability for the DS to download from another DS in the same manner. The remainder of the interview focuses more on adapting a bite-sized, $5 download into a much more fuller product, worthy of a higher price tag. Any of you looking forward to this on the DS? %Gallery-4777% [Thanks, Cody!]
E307: Joystiq goes hands-on with Geometry Wars
Those lucky Joystiq folk got their hands on the DS adaptation of the Xbox Live Arcade hit Geometry Wars during the recently-concluded E3. After running it through their rigorous gauntlet of tests, Joystiq came to the conclusion that the game was sloppy and hard to handle. More like hard to swallow for all of those looking forward to playing the game on the DS, we imagine. Even with the ability to guide your attack ship with the d-pad, or exclusive use of the stylus, the game is harder to play than on the Xbox 360, according to Joystiq. With 60 levels to play, we imagine even a little bit of time with the game won't help correct this error. Guess the game just needs analog sticks ... %Gallery-4777%
Joystiq impressions: Geometry Wars Galaxies
Despite what developers Kuju tell us, we don't think fans of previous Geometry Wars games will necessarily enjoy Galaxies for the Wii. Though it may have been more enjoyable with the classic controller, our playtime with the Wii remote and nunchuk proved needlessly hard to use. Movement is done with then nunchuk's joystick, and the direction of your fire is determined by where you point on screen and is shown via a thin red line shooting out of your ship. Given the sheer necessity to be accurate in more difficult phases, having to deal with Wii remote's imprecise pointing proves detrimental. Compensating for the control issues is your little drone buddy that will team up with you against the Shapes of Evil. By collecting geoms, the game's currency dropped by the bad guys, you can upgrade your drone. We couldn't get a descriptive answer as to what upgrades will be available, but a representative gave us the example of buying an upgrade that tells the drone to target a specific type of foe. %Gallery-4889%
E307: Geometry Wars Galaxies gets new screens and very busy boxart
Geometry Wars Galaxies, besides being a baffling display of brightly-colored sparks, is also a pretty neat shooting game. It's somewhat easier to tell what's going on in screenshots than to be dropped right in the middle of gameplay like in the video. If, like us, you couldn't really figure it out, we recommend the screens. That boxart is just a swirly mess of sparks, though. It's like someone superimposed five Rez boxarts together. Galaxies has some exciting features in store, like co-op play and online leaderboards. We checked with Sierra to inquire about online co-op, and learned that, unfortunately, the online aspect was limited to leaderboards. But the bottom line is that this third-party Wii game uses the Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection for something, and that is very promising news. Owners of both the DS and Wii versions can connect the two and unlock mysterious bonus content. Connecting the games also allows access to the Elite Leaderboard for people who are really good at playing the same game on two systems! %Gallery-4795%
E307: Geometry Wars: Galaxies gets slightly online
The Xbox 360's best launch game, Geometry Wars, is heading to the much-less-HD screens of the DS, and we've got the first screens of Geometry Wars: Galaxies. It appears to have been adapted to a touch-screen-based method of control, but we're sure that's the first thing you thought of when you heard about, well, a DS game. More interestingly, the DS version of Geometry Wars has online leaderboards! And if you happen to end up with both the DS and Wii versions of the game, you can combine your high scores and compete on the Elite Leaderboards. An apt name for something that basically requires more money to use. Publisher Sierra Entertainment says that Galaxies contains the full version of the Xbox 360's Retro Evolved as well as a new single-player campaign. %Gallery-4777% [Via press release]
Geometry Wars video hurts
We think we've underestimated Xbox 360 gamers. Not that we didn't hold them in high regard, but we just assumed that they were all humans. We don't know how anyone can play Geometry Wars and see what's going on through all the sparks and particle effects. It must require a feat of concentration just to track your own ship on the screen. We could barely play Bangai-O on the Dreamcast, and this is like Bangai-O with everything made of sparks. Wii gamers are going to get extra complexity in Geometry Wars: Galaxies, since we'll have to track not only our ship but also the Wiimote-controlled aiming reticle. It's like training your brain! Also, oooooh pretty. [Via Joystiq]
PGR4's motorcycles expanded upon
At the Media Briefing, Bizarre Creations' Craig Howard and Brian Woodhouse showed off Project Gotham Racing 4. The game will include manufacturers Honda, Ducati, and Suzuki for motorcycles, which can race alongside cars, of which there are over 120. When riding the motorcycle, you can pull some fancy tricks, wheelies, endos and taunting maneuvers. On the Live side of things, for the first time, gamers will be able to share photos and videos with what's called "PGR On Demand". We can't wait to get some hands on time in the coming days.
Geometry Wars Galaxies confirms Wii particles possible
Remember when you paid $5 for this game on Xbox Live Arcade? Or maybe just $2.50? You ready to drop $40? Sure, you'll get the level structure and wireless downloading features -- and a sidekick drone! But isn't Galaxies better suited for Wii Ware? At least visually, Geometry Wars Galaxies appears to be a worthy sequel to the Xbox 360 money-maker. Apparently, Wii really does produce results that are "very close" to Xbox 360 ... an Xbox 360 XBLA game. We'll bring you our hands-on later in the week.
Project Gotham Racing 4 loses two wheels, gains bikes
Peanut butter and jelly.Cookies and milk.Cars and bikes.Finally, Project Gotham Racing 4 brings two great tastes together. In a first for the franchise, the upcoming Xbox 360 racer will allow players to use both cars and bikes in the same race. Bizarre Creations is promising the same level of visual fidelity in the bikes as in the cars -- looking at the new screenshots released today, we're also equally impressed by the racer character models.A new "Stunt button" will allow players to perform a "crazy move" that will earn the player the series' trademark Kudos. While some may find this move to be controversial, Bizarre Creations notes that the game "won't force you to ride bikes if you don't want to." Regardless, they think players are willing to try something new: "we expect 99% of players to take the bikes out just as frequently as the cars!"%Gallery-4689%
New Boom Boom Rocket DLC is on its way
Bizarre Creations has confirmed that they are currently working on downloadable content for their firecracker of an XBLA game Boom Boom Rocket. The specifics like price and release date are still unknown, but what we do know is that the DLC will include five new songs. Which new songs? Well, that also has yet to be confirmed, but they did hint that the new tracks will be harder and should pose a challenge to even the most experienced Boom Boom Rocketers. We'll be sure to keep our ears open and our eyes peeled for any new info that heads our way concerning the new Boom Boom Rocket DLC. Boom!
PGR 4 box art hints at motorcycle madness
Today, Bizarre Creations released the official box art for Project Gotham Racing 4 (viewable after the break) featuring a closeup of a red vehicle sporting a PGR 4 emblem. It's quite the interesting choice for box art as we're on the fence about the design. But if you look closer you'll see something that's very interesting. Behind the PGR 4 logo is the reflection of a motorcycle blazing past the car. Does this mean that motorcycles will be drivable in the fourth edition of the PGR franchise and is this Bizarre's big exciting announcement? We aren't sure, but we'd be liars if we didn't say that we're a little uneasy about including motorcycles in our PGR franchise. Here's to hoping Bizarre Creations knows what they're doing.
Geometry Wars Galaxies coming to 360?
Gamespot has a video hands on demo of Wii/DS title, Geometry Wars Galaxies, and while it is for a competing platform, there is one thing worth bringing to your attention. During the gameplay demo, whenever the Bizarre Creations developer pauses the game, the word "Achievements" is clearly shown in the pause menu. Also worth noting is that the selection is skipped over whenever scrolling down to "Exit Game". So, the tradition may be kept alive with a new Geometry Wars game released alongside PGR4. Either that, or else the Wii version will have in-game Achievements, which may or may not be "allowed". Either way, very interesting stuff.
Geometry Wars on Wii and DS offer wireless downloading, shininess
The handsome devils over at Gamespot recently spent some time with early builds of Geometry Wars: Galaxies on both the DS and the Wii, and walked away happy with what they saw, even in the games' nascent stages. According to their preview, both versions feature a level structure, with solar systems divided into planets, and each planet being one playable level. Both the DS and Wii version will also include the full content from Xbox 360's Geometry Wars: Retro Evolved, but Gamespot reports that that content amounts to one planet, in proportion to everything else offered in the game. Other juicy details include cooperative multiplayer, and wireless sharing of a multiplayer DS demo of the game. The DS version can actually share a full copy of Retro Evolved wirelessly with other DSs, but perhaps what's more exciting is that the Wii version can do the exact same thing, making Galaxies the first game we know of to offer Wii-to-DS wireless downloading. The preview also gives some detail on control schemes. The Wii version has players using the nunchuk to move the ship, with the Wii remote functioning as a cursor to indicate the direction being fired in. The DS version, on the other hand, uses the d-pad to move the ship, and the stylus to aim and fire. Gamespot has also included video coverage of the Wii version, so we'd encourage you to head over and check it out. Both versions are due out sometime later this year, but impatient folks can still find Retro Evolved on Xbox Live Arcade, or Geometry Wars XP on Steam. [Thanks Grog]
