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Lost Planet producer: "western developers are leading the industry"
Capcom marketing specialist Brain Dunn has posted an "exclusive" interview with co-worker Keiji Inafune, Mega Man creator and one of Lost Planet's executive producers. While we shouldn't overlook Dunn's access to Inafune as a potentially convenient PR moment, the conversation is not without its honest details. Within, Inafune offers his insight into Capcom's resistance to expanding its content for a worldwide audience, revealing managements' initial rejection of the Lost Planet and Dead Rising concepts. "Actually for a while there we were practically on the verge of having the projects cancelled," Inafune told Dunn. Having convinced Capcom to invest in these properties -- both now commercially successful -- Inafune believes the company is entering a new era; in the same line as past milestones Street Fighter II and Resident Evil. "I think Dead Rising and Lost Planet have helped established Capcom not just as a Japanese developer, but as a developer that is on par with, and that can compete with, the top developers in the US," offered Inafune; important because the producer believes "western developers are leading the industry, with Japanese developers falling behind." Inafune suggests that Japanese companies need to improve working environments, imagining that western developers aren't nearly as over-worked or underpaid as their Japanese counterparts. He muses that by coupling an American "quality of life" with Japanese "diligence" (and selflessness) Japan can turn things around -- with some risk-taking too. "There are more titles like [Lost Planet] in store for fans: risky, challenging games, with a lot riding on them," promised Inafune.
Capcom snubbed by AIAS awards
Capcom was passed over for awards by the Academy of Interactive Arts and Sciences again this year. Granted, they didn't have any stellar outings in 2006 like they did with 2005's Resident Evil 4, but that didn't stop Gamespot from poking Capcom and pouring lemon juice on their paper-cut. As Gamespot puts it, "This year, when the nominations for the 10th Annual Interactive Achievement Awards were announced, two titles that gamers noticed were missing were a critically-lauded pair from Capcom -- Okami and Dead Rising." You know, Okami, the Zelda-like game about a wolf that Capcom supported so much they shut down the studio that created it. And the "criticially-lauded" Dead Rising? Gamers may have been critical of Dead Rising, but the lauded portion is a stretch. For every good thing (and the good was amazing!), Dead Rising compensated by giving us two bad.Anyway, when all is said and done, Capcom is not a member of the AIAS and needs to pay its dues to be nominated. AIAS confirmed to Gamespot that publishers Tecmo, Majesco and Eidos are also not members, accordingly they did not get nominations. This issue should be pretty cut and dry for Capcom, just pay the AIAS if you want a chance at a trophy to place on the mantel for polishing between Mega Man releases.
Mega 64 takes on Dead Rising
Once again landing in the gap between video games and reality, the Mega 64 boys find themselves covering a zombie outbreak in a mall. Follow the real Frank West as he takes "FANTASTIC!" photos, protects those with poor pathfinding abilities and deals with annoying security guards. He's covered wars, you know. [Thanks Jay & Braith. More Mega 64 hilarity can be found here.]
Capcom Rumor Round-Up: SFII on PS3, Dead Rising 2 on 360
As the prettiest girl at the gossip ball, Capcom has been making quite a few headlines recently for actions they may or may not be considering. In light of the particularly bogus rumors floating concerning Microsoft buying out Capcom, lets take a look at some of the more substantiated rumors involving your favorite Mega Man sweatshop. For your consideration, three rumors from the February issue of Electronic Gaming Monthly (#112). For those who still believe in the aforementioned rumor, you may as well tear down those tin foil barriers around your room as Capcom "looks to be making several interesting games for the PS3's (network) service." The two titles mentioned being a remake of Street Fighter II with brand new sprites and an "updated NES classic."
Real life Dead Rising: "Fantastic!"
The boys at Mega64 are at it again, this time with a real life version of Dead Rising. For those of you unfamiliar with Mega64, we have only one question: how's the view? You know, like, how's the view from underneath the rock that you live under. We keed, we keed. Seriously, Mega64 goes around harassing people performing skits based off their favorite video games. Some of their works include skits based off Resident Evil 4 (one of our favorites), Paperboy, and Katamari Damacy. Check out the above video, and when you're done with that, hit their website for more hilarity. Because watching funny videos is always better than working, right? [Thanks, Braith]
Dead Rising keeps killing, 1 million sold
Capcom's zombified shopping mall game has sold over 1 million copies since its release. Dead Rising has been out in the US since August 8th and has just broken the 1 million mark in worldwide sales. Hacking and slashing has never been so much fun! But after looking at the sales sucess of games like Gears of War ... it just goes to show that selling a million copies is great, but 2.7 million copies is all the better. Good job Dead Rising, because we're looking forward to a sequel with more zombies, a beefier story, some Live co-op, and a dash of multiplayer. Now get to work Capcom, our demands have been made public. [Via Digg]
Dead Rising sequels shambling forth
Having shipped over one million copies of their Romero-inspired zombie massacre sim, Capcom can confidently dub Dead Rising a full-on franchise. Speaking to Gamesindustry.biz, Capcom's head of consumer games confirms that further zombie-mashing titles are due to arrive on consoles in the future (feel free to let out a collective gasp). "When you're at the front-end of a hardware cycle, people are willing to take more of an experiment in what games they'll try," says Mark Beaumont. "Bringing out Dead Rising has allowed us to establish a new franchise that we can use for years to come." It's always refreshing to see brand new franchises take off, especially when chainsaws are involved. Controversial save mechanics and shameful SDTV support aside, we fully expect the next Dead Rising to be considerably more pleasant than being torn apart by a snarling, undead force.
Best of the rest: Ross' picks
Lumines Live! (XBLA) On a big screen with surround sound, Q Entertainment's Lumines Live was easily the most-played game in my library (if you stretch the definition of library to digitally distributed titles). Although I railed against how microtransactions were implemented in this title and still think the extent to which they disclosed the dearth of features was misleading, both the Basic and Advanced Pack got more than enough play time, as did the multiplayer. It is the best Xbox Live Arcade title since Geometry Wars.
Get your vote on, Gamespot's game of the year
It's the end of one long gaming year and that could only mean one thing, Gamespot has just announced its nominees for 2006 Game of the Year. Among the ten nominees there are quite a few great 360 games on the list including Dead Rising, Oblivion, Rainbow Six Vegas, Viva Piñata, and our little engine that could Gears of War. It's nice to see that so many high profile games from the 360 made the list and that Oblivion may have some of its stiffest competition yet. Visit their site, vote for who you think deserves the crown, and wait patiently for the winner to be announced. It's a difficult decision so we're totally opting for a write-in and voting for Viva Gears Rising ... that's one great game.
Gears named 3rd most important game of '06
Gamasutra recently sent a request to its readers from the game industry, asking them to name the games that created a true "quantum leap" in game design this year. Sandwiched in between critical darlings, Okami and The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess, was Epic's Gears of War in the number 3 spot on the list. Each game on the list is supplemented with a paragraph or two contributed by Gamasutra readers and industry professionals. The achievements of Gears of War are nicely summarized by Game Developer Magazine's Brandon Sheffield, who notes the amazing graphics (of course) and cover-based gameplay. In particular, we share his sentiments about GOW's co-op: "I'm personally most fond of the game's cooperative play – the most fully-realized truly cooperative action experience in games since the days of 2D beat 'em ups – Double Dragon and their ilk." We were also reminded of 2D co-op games of yore (Contra, in this case). Congratulations, Gears of War. The industry likes you. They really like you! Props also to Dead Rising for receiving an honorable mention. What game provided this year's greatest "quantum leap" in your opinion?
Capcom fixing Lost Planet tiny text
[Click to enlarge]Looks like Capcom finally figured out what Nintendo knew when they developed the Wii: A clear majority of consumers still own standard definition televisions. Following complaints that the multiplayer text on Lost Planet was like going through a Dead Rising tiny text time warp, Capcom has taken "the great feedback we have received from our fans ... Lost Planet will automatically detect if you are playing on an SDTV and change the score display settings for this mode automatically."Capcom states that the demo does not reflect the final build "as they are still early works in progress." You know, Lost Planet was still in the "early works" with a launch date of January 12, 2007. Other fixes to the final game will be having objectives delivered in single player as both voice-over and text. Players can also pause the game at any time to review objectives on their in-game PDA.Hold up, back to paragraph one, that text fix will happen "automatically" on a SDTV? Now is there any way we can get Capcom to reconsider their decision to not patch Dead Rising's tiny text, considering they have the technology to fix it "automatically" now?See also: Capcom's Lost Planet tiny text
Dead Rising $39.99 at Best Buy
For those who have played Dead Rising on a standard definition television, you aren't completely blind yet -- the headline on top is factual. Dead Rising is on sale this week at Best Buy for $39.99, which is cheaper than buying it used from most retailers. Why the strong price drop? No idea, but we certainly made a call to Best Buy corporate to find out. Sadly, it's Sunday, so we aren't expecting an answer today. The reviews for Dead Rising were kind given its awkward save system and structural issues. Also, insult was added to injury when Capcom squashed any hopes of patching the standard definition tiny-text problem. So, take those $20 you're gonna save and put it toward an HDTV fund -- or a pair of designer glasses. See also: Metareview: Dead Rising Xbox 360 Capcom aware of Dead Rising standard definition woes Dead Rising patch chance lost [Thanks Chris]
Joyswag: Get a call from Otis, win Dead Rising -- four days later
We chose Gabriel's truly terrifying milieu of a zombie infestation, sans zombies, as the winner in the final day of our Dead Rising contest. Everyone knows Phantoms don't exist -- yet, there it is! Gives us the creeps. Of course, don't forget about our other winners: zombie Flanders, vegetarian zombies, and PS3 early adopter zombies, each one terrifying in their own right. Vegetarians! We'd like to thank every single entrant to our little contest (more honorable mentions after the break), and Capcom for hooking us up with some great prizes.
360 rocking in the UK
This week's sales numbers are in for the UK, and the 360 is still topping the charts. The 360 currently has games in four of the top five spots. In order, they are: Lego Star Wars II (#1), Dead Rising (#2), Saints Row (#3), and Test Drive Unlimited (#5). Granted, LSWII is a multiplatform title, but you can bet Microsoft is nothing but pleased with these numbers. Any of our UK readers rocking one of these great 360 games?
Joyswag: Get a call from Otis, win Dead Rising -- three days later
Selecting today's winner was especially tough but, after barricading ourselves inside for hours to make the decision, we've chosen Christian's nightmarish vision of this coming November 17th for day three in our four day Dead Rising giveaway contest! When that fated day rolls around, we'll all wistfully recall these silly contests and our silly, little lives. This is your last chance! You have until midnight tonight EDT to send your entries in .jpg format to joyswag [dot] submissions [at] gmail [dot] com. We'll comb through them (with gloves on, of course) and lift our favorite submission out of the feeding frenzy to admire it, before sharing it with all of you. Read on for some more rules and a sampling of some of yesterday's honorable mentions.
Joyswag: Get a call from Otis, win Dead Rising -- two days later
We've selected Tim Park's groan-inducing "GRAIINS" entry for day two of our Dead Rising giveaway contest. We've still got two more copies to give away, an army of entries breaking down our barricaded inbox, and only a couple hours left before daylight!Same rules apply. Send your creations in .jpg format to joyswag [dot] submissions [at] gmail [dot] com. We'll select one submission each day, over the next two days, with the juiciest brain droppings. You better get started, today's entries must be received by 5:59am EST. Read on for some more rules and a sampling of some of yesterday's honorable mentions.
Joyswag: Get a call from Otis, win Dead Rising -- one day later
A reminder that the second day in our four day Dead Rising giveaway contest is coming to a close (since we're late, we'll give you an extra couple hours to get today's entries in). We've already chosen yesterday's winner -- AJ Bothe's Simpsons meets Dead Rising mashup had us imagining a zombie outbreak in the Springfield Mall, with zombies pouring out of The Leftorium. Nice work, AJ. We've included some other honorable mentions after the break.Send your entries in .jpg format to joyswag [dot] submissions [at] gmail [dot] com. We'll select one submission each day, over the next three days, that either makes us laugh the most, or infects us with enough T-Virus to tur ... B R A I N S. You better get started, today's entries must be received by 5:59am EST. If you win, we'll pack your precious game in a box, put that box in another box, write a magical incantation on its surface and then it'll somehow get to you. Be warned, this can be a very lengthy process, so please allow 3-4 weeks for delivery.
Joyswag: Get a call from Otis, win Dead Rising
We've been feeling charitable lately. As promised, we've got four more copies of Capcom's zompocalyptic Dead Rising we're just dying to give away. How are we going to do it? We'll run one of our favorite contests! Inspired by Something Awful's rant on Otis, Dead Rising's "helpful" security guard, we've created this caterpillar of an overlay that you can edit (using your Photoshop chops) to make into your own beautiful Dead Rising-inspired butterfly. It's a blank canvas, so feel free to add not only zombies to your mise en scène.Send the butterflies in .jpeg format to joyswag [dot] submissions [at] gmail [dot] com. We'll select one submission each day, over the next four days, that either makes us laugh the most, or infects us with enough T-Virus to tur ... B R A I N S. You better get started, all entries must be received by the witching hour -- our lawyers inform us that we should make that a little more specific, so you've got until 11:59 EST -- each night, from now until Monday night. If you win, we'll pack your precious game in a box, put that box in another box, write a magical incantation on its surface and then it'll somehow get to you. Be warned, this can be a very lengthy process, so please allow 3-4 weeks for delivery.Big ups to Capcom for the prizes!
UK prefers zombies to gangstas
It seems that zombies -- not math or music -- are in fact the universal language. Transcending all cultural barriers, Dead Rising, in its first week of release in the UK, has topped the Euro charts, knocking Saints Row off of the coveted top spot. And Britain loves gangstas, too -- though we must admit that the pimped out thugs of Saints Row aren't the suave Layer Cake gangstas that the UK is used to. Still, tiny text and red lights be damned, Dead Rising cannot be ignored. Any UK readers care to comment on their experience with the game thus far?
No SDTV patch for Dead Rising players
In a blow to Xbox 360 owners who aren't using using HDTVs, Capcom has denied requests to release a patch for the recent zombie-survival game, saying it would not be possible due to the scope of the changes required. Many players of the game are complaining that the game's subtitles are almost unreadable on standard definition TVs. While we always advise people upgrade to HD anyway, we're not really sure why Capcom is refusing. Having been around the game and high-def industries for some time, their reasoning really sounds more like a smoky cover-up than a true technical constraint, but what else can players do? 1Up tried to get owners of the game to complain to Capcom and get a resolution from the game's publisher, but to no avail.[Via Slashdot]
