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Upper Deck previews MotL (and more loot card speculation)
Upper Deck has dropped three nice previews of their upcoming card set for the WoW TCG, entitled March of the Legion, set to hit store shelves in late November. The first preview is a look at how they're finally going to use those damage attributes on each card-- playing certain damage types will help open up new abilities on some card. The second preview looks at staff and dagger weapons for casters, and how UDE is bringing more of the online game abilities into the card game. And finally, the last preview looks at the addition of the Aldor and Scryer factions to the card game, as well as how Demons will enter into play. If you're a TCG player, are a must-read to find out how the new set is going to change the game.And Boubouille at MMO Champion has even more word on the three loot cards that will be released with the set. UD hasn't officially announced what they are (though not for lacking of trying on our part-- WoW Insider is doing our best to get an official announcement on what loot cards will be available), but it looks like, according to code in the game client, that those items we originally thought were more toys for engineers are actually the loot items-- a dragon kite, a robot chicken, and a paper gyrocopter. Bou even discovered a spell for the dragon kite that says "Upper Deck" right there on it, so this is about as sure a confirmation as they come. March of the Legion, and the new loot cards, all drop on November 17th.Update: Well there you go. Upper Deck apparently didn't like the leaks, and went ahead and confirmed all three loot cards. Look for a dragon kite, a paper airplane card, and a robotic homing chicken in a new deck near you.
Joystiq review: The Eye of Judgment (PS3)
It's not uncommon for video games to feature gameplay dependent upon gimmicks and peripherals, from early 8-bit examples like Gyromite to more modern releases such as Guitar Hero and Dance Dance Revolution, each of which changed the gaming experience by altering how we interact with the games we play. In this way, Sony and SCE Studios Japan's The Eye of Judgment is one of the most ambitious experiments with game design to date, and in leveraging off of the considerable card game experience of Hasbro and its Wizards of the Coast subsidiary, best known for the Magic: The Gathering and Star Wars collectible card games, The Eye of Judgment's pedigree is certainly not one to be taken lightly. Marrying a tabletop card game with the PlayStation 3 has created an experience that is if nothing else unique; unfortunately the lynchpin in this union, the newly launched PlayStation Eye camera, is also the game's Achilles' heel, oftentimes bringing an unwelcome sense of frustration to players gaming in anything but the most ideal settings, something which we covered in much greater detail previously.%Gallery-3181%
Joystiq hands-on: Master of Illusion (DS)
I've always liked magic. Growing up, I learned card tricks, sleight-of-hand, and other ways to fool an audience. One of my great childhood memories was being driven downtown by my mom and rummaging though a magic store's disorganized racks. I picked out a small, mirrored box that could cause any object I placed inside to disappear.If that store had Master of Illusion, I would have likely bought it instead. The DS "game" teaches kids tricks through dozens of on-screen activities. Some even rely on the included deck of cards. The best tricks lead to performances for friends, while some activities -- like fortune telling -- seem better suited to slumber parties. A few other activities let single players amaze themselves, with the DS reading the gamer's mind in a series of logic-based tricks.While I'll try not to spill too many secrets about how Master of Illusion works, the game looks to be a unique tool for young magicians. However, I was disappointed that the DS is required in all activities; I wanted the game to teach stand-alone tricks that work with just the included cards. But at least the game explains ways to misdirect an audience, recover from a mistake, and other basics that could be applied to other performances.
Card Hero: Intelligent Systems' other strategy game
Intelligent Systems is busy. We assume they're working on the Fire Emblem remake that we just now heard about, as well as any finishing touches that may need to go on the Wii Fire Emblem game. They're also in the midst of Advance Wars DS 2 development. But apparently that's not enough for the former R&D1, as they've revealed yet another strategy game project, this time a card game called Kousoku Card Battle Card Hero (Quick Card Battle Card Hero).This isn't their first Card Hero game; the original, on Game Boy Color, came out in 2000 and was almost released in the U.S. In addition to the GBC game, Japan also got a real card game based on the property. Card Hero is a sort of meta-game, in that you play a video game about kids playing a card game, and, of course, play that card game within the game. We've got the first magazine scans of the game after the break!
The Eye of Judgment to be released Oct. 23 for $70
While Sony still has some work to do to explain Afrika, Mark Valledor, SCEA marketing manager, thought it was about time to shed some light on The Eye of Judgment, so he posted a new video and five things you don't know about the game on the official PlayStation blog. For your reading pleasure, I've condensed it all into a few sentences.The game, which features the word judgment with only one "e" in its title, will be released for $70 on Oct. 23 in North America, followed by a global launch later in the month. Yes, it will be bundled with the PlayStation Eye, and expansion packs will be available to buy further down the line. Lastly, Sony has implemented a system to disallow online cheating by forcing users to register their decks offline. Their decks will then be available to be chosen when they play against an online opponent and will be randomly shuffled and drawn by the game. Players will then have to play their corresponding physical cards in the "real" world.For a much more in-depth explanation, keep reading on.[Thanks, Ruben!]
DS punch cards resurface in Mega Man Star Force 2
The DS "punch card" is such an elegant idea for a card input. Rather than requiring a card reader or a camera to take pictures of the cards, you just stick the card on the screen and touch the screen through holes in the card. Spectrobes and Monster Rancher both take advantage of this extremely inexpensive feature, and Capcom has picked up on the idea for their sequel to Mega Man Star Force. Two such cards will be given as a preorder bonus in Japan, each of which unlocks a suit (and corresponding weird animal-head arm). Capcom was smart enough not to include the positions of the holes on the preview images, so unscrupulous people like us can't print out the cards and do it ourselves. Not that it really matters with a free bonus item.
Texas Hold 'em champs face off with pokerfaced computer
While highly intelligent computers have been pwning humans in backgammon, checkers, and chess for years, machines haven't had nearly as much luck against poker sharks. According to a number of researchers, however, that will surely change over the next decade or so as the programming is honed to better anticipate the human's moves. Nevertheless, poker champion Phil Laak and fellow professional Ali Eslami will soon sit down for a two-day contest at the Association for the Advancement of Artificial Intelligence conference in Vancouver, British Columbia. Up for grabs is a $50,000 prize, but moreover, University of Alberta's games research group will be interested in figuring out how to better prepare computers to understand and deal with the complex scenarios that only apply to poker. 'Course, with one-petaflop supercomputers now available for civilian use, we're sure it won't be too long before silicon and PCB rule supreme over our feeble brains in yet another facet.
WoW TCG: At the Darkmoon Faire Chicago
I spent last Friday evening at Upper Deck's Darkmoon Faire event in Chicago, IL (actually Schaumberg, as our readers have pointed out). And once there, I learned all about the WoW trading card game. I got to meet both Ben Drago, who organizes these events for Upper Deck, and Mike Hummel, who developed and created the game with the rest of his team.I also saw lots of people playing the game-- there were beginner and advance tournaments running all weekend-- as well as a special section Blizzard had set up with Upper Deck to allow visitors to play on a special LAN server, where they ran scavenger hunts and PvP events ingame. Tons of people brought tons of cards, and everyone got to throw down and try to outlast their opponent's heroes more than once over the weekend. A gallery of pictures from the Faire is below-- thanks to Upper Deck for putting on the event in Schaumberg, and we can't wait to see you guys again at Blizzcon.%Gallery-4040%
SNK fixing Card Fighters DS
Luckily for people hoping to get their New Game+ on in SNK vs. Capcom Card Fighters DS, SNK is aware of the game-breaking bug. Unfortunately, they'll have to wait more than six weeks to get their hands on a repaired game.SNK president Ben Herman released a statement on SNK Playmore's official message board stating that they have ordered new cartridges from Nintendo, which will take six weeks to receive. At that point, SNK will issue instructions for getting your game switched out for a corrected one. Be patient! Don't return the game to the store yet, because the replacement copy will have the same issue.Anyone out there playing Card Fighters DS? We wonder how many people this issue affects. That's a nice way of saying we wonder how many people bought this game.
Naughtiness on the Nintendo DS
var digg_url = 'http://digg.com/gaming_news/Naughtiness_on_the_Nintendo_DS'; The Nintendo DS's software library is diverse enough to satisfy almost every genre craving or niche interest. If what you're looking for, however, is a game with more mature themes -- nudity and sexual content -- it's doubtful that your needs will be met. Japanese dating sims and witch fondling titles notwithstanding, the DS doesn't have any Leisure Suit Larrys, Hot Coffee mods, or even porno-Tetris clones.But just like any other scene, the Nintendo DS has a network of people working outside of the fringe to create those illicit goods you'd never ask for at a respectable shop. They hustle their homemade software from the back-alleys of the internet, each downloaded bit transferred in a nondescript paper bag.We're going to take you through that DS underworld, previewing a selection of homebrew games that are sure to arouse your interest. So put the kids to bed, light those candles you've been saving for a night like this, and slip into your robe and wizard hat. This feature is for adult eyes only!
SNK vs. Capcom Glitch Fighters DS
SNK vs. Capcom Card Fighters DS has already had its share of negative press; now that it's joined the exclusive club of DS games that don't work, things are just going to get worse. The game-breaking glitch happens when, after completing the game, you start a "New Game +" and attempt to talk to a fellow in the Card Tower named Card Battler John. The game freezes and further progress is hindered.Depending on your idea of finishing a game, this could make it impossible to play completely through Card Fighters DS. It definitely renders you unable to get all the cards, which, in a game called Card Fighters that contains both the place name "Card Tower" and the name "Card Battler John," is probably pretty important.
Fan-made project makes Card Fighters awesome again
What's an SNK vs. Capcom: Card Fighter fanboy to do? Previews and reviews for the NGPC classic's DS revival haven't been kind, calling out its flawed AI and monotonous story mode. The title's lack of online support is upsetting enough, but it doesn't even allow for download play with local matches, dropping your chances of finding another person to play against to a multiple of zero.ASCIIMATTER's Card Fighter's Project brings the series back to its original mechanics and adds a whole new realm of accessibility that you just can't get from a video game. Dueling with a friend will be as easy as printing out the project's mocked up set of cards and reading the posted rules. Each card is fashioned after its NGPC counterpart, mirroring SvC: Card Fighters' Clash's super deformed artwork. There are still a great deal of cards left to be converted, and ASCIIMATTER predicts that he won't be able to finish all of them until late Summer. Unlike SNK Playmore's DS release, however, we expect the Card Fighter Project's completion to actually be worth the wait.[Via Insert Credit]
The Darkmoon Faire comes to Austin
Elwynn, Mulgore, and...Texas? Unlikely as it may seem, apparently the Darkmoon Faire is going to be making an appearance in the land of Blizzard's latest GM center this weekend. This event is being put on by Upper Deck Entertainment, who make the WoW trading card game, at the Austin Convention Center this weekend, Friday through Sunday. There will be all manner of TCG tournaments for everyone from noobs to experts, of course, but here's my question: will there be anyone on hand to sell pet frogs? I don't think so.On the other hand, Blizzard will apparently be setting up a private PvP server just for the event with premade 70s decked out in Gladiator gear, and there will be 30 PCs running Arena and Battlegroup competitions using these characters for real-world prizes. That might even be better than pet frogs. Lots and lots of prizes are at stake in the card games and other events, from booster packs to iPods to computers, and the event is open to the public with no entry fee, so if you're going to be in Austin this weekend, it's probably worth checking out.
DS Fanboy Favorites: Eric's top five
All this week, the DS Fanboy staff is letting you in on a few of their favorite titles. Each day, a different member of the staff will present their personal top five DS games along with a snapshot of their gaming paraphernalia and habits, in an effort to provide our readers with a little more information on the tastes and personalities of our writers. When my afternoons aren't busied by hours of photoshopping cat heads onto pictures of my friends, I pass the time with puzzlers and plumbers on my DS Lite. But those kitten-free days are few and far between, so I end up being able to only fit either the most polished or the most eccentric games into my packed schedule. Wario: Master of Disguise? Sorry, I've got things to do and feline faces to retouch. Lost in Blue 2? I'll have to pass -- I'm already lost in trying to get these whiskers to look perfect. My collection is a mishmash of AAA titles and niche releases, their cases piled atop one another like a Jenga stack of mismatched blocks, threatening to topple over at any moment. Just pulling a game from the middle of the shaky structure is an act preceded by hours of anxiety and self-doubt. Having my wife provide commentary during the ordeal, remarking "Oh god, it's going to crash this time for sure, I just know it. Why'd you even try, Eric?! Game over, man! Game over!" as I tug out my copy of Advance Wars DS doesn't make the challenge any easier. So when I do manage to put aside the pussycat photos and secure a game to play, it better damn well be worth it. Journey forth and read which of those titles have captured a place not only on my top five list, but in my heart.
New Darkmoon cards stats revealed
I was never able to collect any of the Darkmoon cards (although I'm pretty sure I have six or seven of the Warlords cards sitting in my Warrior's bank), but I always thought they were a great idea. Since the expansion, however, the old cards haven't been quite up to par for level 70s. Enter the new Darkmoon decks-- Blue announced a little while ago that there would be new cards to collect, and now Tiare has compiled what the new Darkmoon trinkets will do for you when completed.[Darkmoon Card: Vengeance] (Ace - Eight of Storms)You have a 10% chance when hit by an attack or harmful spell to deal 95 to 115 holy damage to your attacker.[Darkmoon Card: Wrath] (Ace - Eight of Furies)Each time one of your direct damage attacks does not critically strike, you gain 17 critical strike rating and 17 spell critical strike rating for the next 10 sec. This effect is consumed when you deal a critical strike. (Stacks up to 20 times)[Darkmoon Card: Crusade] (Ace - Eight of Blessings)Each time you deal melee damage to an opponent, you gain 6 attack power for the next 10 sec., stacking up to 20 times. Each time you land a harmful spell on an opponent, you gain 8 spell damage for the next 10 sec., stacking up to 10 times.[Darkmoon Card: Madness] (Ace - Eight of Lunacy)Each time you land a killing blow on an enemy, you gain the Power of Madness.Unfortunately, we're not quite sure what "Power of Madness" means-- it could be anything from a simple beserk buff (+Damage and Spell Damage, -Healing recieved), to a shapechange to a Worgen, or even "Opens a portal into the Twisting Nether that periodically summons demonic minions to aid the caster in battle for 14 sec." (at least that's what the rumors say).But sweet cards nevertheless. The Wrath and Crusade cards look especially cool, but I'm confused about the 10 second limit-- someone with Wrath can supposedly build up to a whopping +340 crit rating, but does that mean they somehow have to hit 20 times (without critting) within 10 seconds? Is that even possible? I don't see it procing more than two or three times before the ten seconds are up or a crit appears.[ via MMO-Champion ]
More items for cards from TCG expansion
One of the most interesting aspects of the WoW TCG (trading card game) has been the in-game tie-ins. The best-known example is probably the ever-popular turtle mount, which is only attainable via a scratch-off-to-reveal code that can be found on rare cards. There is also apparently a hippogryph pet and a couple of tabards (flame, frost), though I haven't personally seen either. So it comes as no surprise that the expansion to the TCG, Through the Dark Portal, will feature more of these loot-for-cards promotions. As announced on Upper Deck's page, here's what you can get: Picnic Blanket. When used, summons a nice picnic setup, complete with umbrella and grill. Anyone around can right-click the grill to get "Grilled Picnic Treat," a BoP food that gives a buff reading "Does nothing. Tastes great!" Hopefully this blanket is reusable, since it looks pretty neat when used (see pic). A pet monkey named Bananas. Come on, it's a pet monkey! Like Upper Deck says, who doesn't want a pet monkey? Very cute. Finally, there will be a "fortune-telling device." Click it and an imp appears and whispers an answer to you (allegedly to the entire party, in a future patch, though I think that would get old fast). Upperdeck says it's similar to "a certain toy you may have had as a child." This would definitely help make some decisions a bit easier. Neat stuff. Do any of you play the TCG? How is it? Like everyone else I know, I played a lot of Magic: the Gathering when I was younger, but I haven't really touched those kinds of games in a while.[thanks, Dave!]
Genius DS wants to train your brain
With all this brain training going on, one wonders just how long before DS aficionados start racking up the patents and the Nobel Prizes. Maybe we're just not quite there yet. We need to train further. Well, don't despair, future genius inventors, there's yet another edutainment title on the horizon, and it's coming to stretch your gray matter. Genius DS - Equal Cards is slated for this summer, and seems to be primarily a math-influenced title, and the math puzzles use cards that must be sorted. Sounds riveting.
Elemental Monster: new card battler from Hudson
Card-battling games seem like a natural for the DS-- the second screen is especially well-suited for managing cards while the game is in play. But we haven't gotten that many card games-- in fact, SNK vs. Capcom Card Fighters DS is the only one we can think of, and that one's not even out yet.Hudson's Elemental Monster is a turn-based card-battling game that uses some pretty great 2D sprites. Between battles, the game has an RPG-style story mode, which also uses a lot of hand-drawn 2D. We're actually surprised to see a DS game coming out that has this much non-polygonal art (some backgrounds are 3D, but that's fine!) How about a US release, Hudson?
First look at a Spectrobes "punch card"
This is one of the cards that comes packed in with Spectrobes. Notice the little holes for the stylus to poke through when the card is placed on the touchscreen. We must say, we like this idea better than passwords! And involving physical artifacts in gameplay makes the whole experience a little more special.Still, something is nagging at us. It's a card used to input data into a computer. How can it seem so innovative? It's basically 18th-century technology.
British cheaters jailed for illegally beating the odds
Joining the ever-growing list of folks using technology to unlawfully beat the odds is a group of British gurus who claimed nearly £250,000 ($487,400) before being sniffed out by curious officials at the Mint Casino in Cromwell Road. As with so many other high-rolling hijinks, the trio seemed to doing just fine, pulling in £38,000 ($74,084) during a single week at one point, but greed ended up getting the best of them, as you're bound to get scrutinized after winning 34 out of 44 matches in a row. The average joes-turned-poker-sharks utilized sleeve-mounted cameras to beam card deals to a completely wired up van waiting outside, which then rolled the footage in slow motion and passed along the top secret information to the actual table sitter, who listened intently via a hidden speaker. Their method illegally snagged massive chunks of coin from an estimated six of the capital's 25 gambling locales, and now they each face nine months behind bars, coupled with 150 hours of unpaid community service. Of course, one may argue the ethics behind stealing from a venue which thrives on suckering people in that stand little chance at walking out with any profit at all, but regardless, you won't see these folks in any gambling parlor for two full years after their stint, which should be ample time for RFID-infused playing cards to hit the underground market.[Via Fark]
