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Waggle Tennis circa 2000
Wii Sports is totally innovative for its motion controls, right? You can move the Wiimote and swing your tennis racket, which is what makes the game so accessible and compelling. That's probably why the Wii has been such a big hit. Just like online gaming, the Dreamcast already did it. While experimenting with the Dreamcast fishing controller, The GagaMan from The Dreamcast Junkyard discovered that its motion sensors worked perfectly with the fantastic Virtua Tennis. In fact, he claims, the controls are more nuanced and sensitive than Wii Sports Tennis. On top of that, you can actually move your character around with the analog stick. We wonder if things would have gone differently for the Dreamcast if anyone had figured this out back then. Probably not. But at least we can pick up a fishing controller and try this ourselves!
Gamerscore Blog's Road Tour stops in DC [update 1]
The Gamerscore Blog crew is still on their road tour across North American and still having fun. Today they set up shop in Washington DC with the official event kicking off this evening. And to pass the time between now and tonight they've been seeing the sights, visiting the White House, and getting a feel for what DC has to offer even getting a look at Mr. Lincoln himself. We're sure we'll be seeing more photos trickle in from their DC festivities later on tonight, so keep an eye out for secret XBLA clues or peripheral appearances. We hope everyone who RSVP'ed has a blast at the GSB event tonight, we're with you all in spirit.Update 1: Doh! Their blog post was from yesterday, which means the DC event already happened, which means all the photos they have up are all you're going to get. It's Friday, what can we say ...
Valve not charging for downloadable content
Despite the rise of micro-transactions and pay-per-download content in the PC and console worlds, Valve recently announce it has no intention of charging for downloadables in games such as Counter-Strike and Team Fortress 2. Designer Robin Walker explains their logic that gives Valve a big gold star in our book: "You buy the product, you get the content ... We make more money because more people buy it, not because we try and nickel-and-dime the same customers." Micro-transactions were innocent at first, but when we had to pay for horse armor in Oblivion and tutorials in Madden, the line had to be drawn. Kudos to Valve for a step in the "don't make the customers angry" (i.e. "right") direction.
Illidan says: You are not prepared (for my coolness)
Somewhere out there, one of my guild-mates is about to squeal with glee. For that matter, so am I... if only internally.For you see, buying Collectors Edition Boxed-Set versions of the game, trading card game packs, t-shirts and stickers just isn't enough for my collectable-loving little heart. DC and Blizzard have ensured that I will once again break down into a puddle of "that is SO COOL" in front of my fellow gamer geeks. (Well, okay, maybe only in front of the fellow geeks who happen to frequent my favorite local comic book store, but I digress...)Sure, we knew back in February that the Illidan Stormrage figure was coming out. We even had an idea of the rough look of the statue. And considering the already drool-worthy things we've seen from the DC World of Warcraft line, we knew it was going to have to be cool. But now we have the final picture of what the new figurine is going to look like. Much like the others in the DC figure line, it is truly a (SO COOL) thing of beauty.Mind you, I can't speak for anyone else - or ultimately that guild-mate of mine who is probably noting the December 19th release date even now - but I know what just landed on my holiday wish list!Now if you'll excuse me, I think I'm going to go invest in some earplugs before the squealing starts up over Vent.[Via bowzerblack on the WoW LJ community]
WoW action figures: now with karate-chop action!
Well, actually, no, none of these action figures, made by DC Unlimited, specifically suggests karate-chop action (though they do point out that the figures feature "multiple points of articulation") -- but perhaps that will be an improvement for the second run. Due to be released in October, there are four different figures available, including a dwarf warrior, an orc shaman, a blood elf rogue, and an undead warlock. (Interestingly enough, these do not remotely match the figures that were initially announced in January, and included Illidan. However, these are listed as "Series 1," which implies there might be a "Series 2" in the future.) They all appear to be amazingly detailed -- and perhaps they'll be the perfect item to decorate your own WoWspace with.
Peek into the future: the best games of 2010
Pointlesswasteoftime has been peeking into the future, and has prepared a list of the 12 best games from 2010. It's really nice to know that the Wii will still be dominating gaming by then. Speaking of the Wii, sign us up for those Star Wars: Jedi Saga and DC vs. Marvel: Superhero Brawl games. And seriously, have you heard of a better concept for a game than Killchain? That would seriously be extreme fun. Burnout is just the tip of the iceberg in setting up a series of accidents.Of everything on the list, the one that has the best chance of coming true is World of Starcraft. Isn't it about time Blizzard just went ahead and told us that they're gonna make this for the crying masses? Maybe they'll wait until WoW subscriber numbers start dropping off, which doesn't seem like it'll be anytime soon ... looks like 2010 isn't a bad guess.
Firefly launches DC and Looney Tunes-themed handsets
If the standard translucent blue is boring your tyke to tears, Firefly Mobile has a handful of new variations of its child-oriented handset that might just be what the doctor ordered. Through a deal with Warner Bros. Consumer Products, Chicago-based Firefly Mobile is now peddling versions of its pod-shaped Firefly wrapped in Superman, Supergirl, and Tweety Bird designs. The Tweety Bird version is weirding us out a bit (click through to see what we mean) but we're sure they'll be a hit with the little 'uns this holiday season. Look for the phones in stores now or online at Firefly's site for $90 a pop.[Via Slashphone]
Screens for the Man of Steel
The shaky, disease-ridden addicts over at XboxAddict have posted some new screens of Superman Returns. This could turn out to be a great game, but thus far the screenshots have not thrilled me. They lack zing. No verve at all. Hopefully, my fears are completely unfounded and this will be the best Superman since the arcade game, but I'm not holding my super breath.
