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Joystiq reports GameTap to support Mac
OK, it's been a busy day in Macville, what with the D Conference doing its best impression of Comdex and inspiring scores of product announcements. Still worthy of mention from earlier today: our sister site Joystiq posted an interview with two GameTap VPs on the upcoming changes to the GameTap offering. The most notable change for our people won't be along until late summer: a Mac implementation of GameTap.com will be released. This tidbit was so surprising to blogger Alexander Silwinski that he responded "Late summer you'll have a what?" Classic.For those not familiar, GameTap is a gaming subscription service; imagine NetFlix but without actually mailing DVDs, and, like, for PC games. Check out details here.Thanks Chris & Uros.
Joystiq interviews GameTap about big changes and Mac support
Joystiq recently spoke with GameTap's VP of Marketing, David Reid, and their VP of Content, Rick Sanchez, about all the major changes coming to the service this Thursday. Most notable is the introduction of a free ad-driven GameTap service, effectively turning it into a hybrid, adapting casual game site Pogo.com's model while offering more than just casual games. One of the big recent announcements was that Tomb Raider: Legend will be offered free by this ad-driven service and GameTap even created a Lara Croft mega-site to showcase all things Lady Croft. We got a chance to talk to them about what's really going on with the service, which is still very unique in the gaming space, and future growth including ... Mac support. So, let's start off with David [Reid, VP of Marketing]. GameTap has had some serious changes over the last couple years. The service has almost mimicked the life of a cable television station. Starting off by showing mostly re-runs geared to the demographic and slowly introducing original programming. Is this an accurate model of what we should expect in the future? Well, yes and no. You've got some of the history there pretty accurate. Internally, we look at Cartoon Network at how GameTap got started. Turner Broadcasting has this core competence in acquiring content. That's how TBS got started, Cartoon Network got started and how GameTap got started. The real difference is [GameTap] was Turner's first direct consumer business, its first games business and first broadband business. There has been a big push in Turner to get digital fast and build on the expertise they had on the licensing front. What you'll see more of is a less purist game business model and more of an overall broadcast model. Like our ad-supported games service. Providing publishers a much richer sense of opportunity to make money off their intellectual property. Right now, the games industry, it's very much like box office. Like a movie, you see the marketing, you go to the theater and get the experience. The digital retail business we're launching on Thursday is sort of like a box office premiere. Then our subscription business (what we've known GameTap as), which keeps getting better, is video-on-demand. Then the free service is your free broadcast television. So, our model, it's more like what film and TV does rather than what cable does. %Gallery-3513%
GameTap officially getting Grimm
GameTap announced today that they'll publish Grimm by American McGee. The 24 episode action/adventure game was re-confirmed after McGee sorta let the grandma out of the wolf last week. Expect the game to follow in McGee's Tim Burton-style treatment of Alice. The game is being developed by McGee's Shanghai studio Spicy Horse and will start on GameTap next year. Hopefully GameTap will keep McGee on track in terms of content and release schedule. So far, we can't complain about GameTap, which has brought us the only true episodic gaming experience we've seen so far with Sam & Max. An episode a month with a solid release schedule -- exactly what this whole episodic gaming concept was supposed to be about (and yes, we're looking at you Valve -- per usual). Oh, also, we know Pinnochio isn't a Grimm tale, but that's the art we've got for the game, go take it up with McGee. What we really want to know about is the "words as weapons" mechanic in the game. Action/adventure meets Typing of the Dead -- we're so there!
GameTap's Lara Croft mega-site
If there's been any entity who has surprised us over the last year, it's GameTap. The online game service that started off as nothing more than a retro library repository is really turning into something completely different. Starting with Sam & Max, then URU, then their reinvention of sorts at the end of this month including a "free-to-play" service, topped by the leak of Grimm this morning, this isn't the GameTap we once knew. Their latest venture is a website fully dedicated to Lara Croft with a retrospective documentary and a conceptually amazing animated series beginning in July.Although the 10 year retrospective documentary is definitely interesting, the thing that really catches our eye is the "Re\Visioned" series that starts in July. An animated series of shorts all featuring Lara Croft by artists and writers well known in the animation field. The first three episodes are by Peter Chung, best known for Aeon Flux and a segment in the Animatrix (although his credentials really do go on and on). All the shorts will be available to view for free on this GameTap Lara Croft site. After the Lara Croft series is done, GameTap will apparently do more characters as part of this Re\Visioned series. Even if they stick with Eidos' characters it'd be cool to see Hitman and Kane and Lynch, but they're apparently going in a completely different direction.The website also includes a bunch of extra content like clips of all the models who have "been" Lara Croft, conversations with developers, sneak peeks at Tomb Raider: Anniversary (which will be "free" to GameTap subscribers on the same day it launches in stores) and just a mess of other stuff. Definitely worth checking out for behind-the-scenes geekery and if you're looking to get a feel for the franchise in a nutshell.
Grimm news for GameTap and American McGee
Oh American, you so crazy. You went and let it slip that your game Grimm was going to be distributed by GameTap. Now, we weren't there to see you talking about this on your blog, but Gamasutra saw. And they remember. They remember that you said it would be a 24-part episodic series. They remember when you said it should start in 2008. Or, at least, we think that's what you said.Apparently McGee was a bit early letting the Cheshire Cat out of the bag, as the blog post that announced the the game has been replaced with a bean-spilling apology. But the long and short is, as you probably could have gathered from the title, he'll be giving the Hot Topic treatment to a bunch of stories by The Brothers Grimm. Though we're eager to see more of the game, we were disheartened to hear he's been blaming Argentinian McGinty for the leak. Come on man, grow up.
Tomb Raider: Anniversary, day and date on GameTap and more
Referred to as May Day on their design blog, Turner's buffet-esque gaming service, GameTap, has some huge announcements today. The headliner of which is a real doozy. Through a deal with Eidos, the upcoming Tomb Raider: Anniversary will be made available on the service come launch day, June 5th, and at no extra cost to subscribers. The title will also be available to non-subscribers via their upcoming digital distribution store as well. GameTap has been offering brand-new, original titles at no extra cost for a while now (see: Sam & Max, Myst Online), but to take this trend and run with a third party is huge. Closing out May Day is May 31st where GameTap will crack open its doors a bit with a new free-to-play portal. Not regulated to chump titles, the new service will launch with games such as Metal Slug, Bust-a-Move and Tomb Raider: Legend. This will be made possible with their new three-tiers of membership and a handy-dandy chart to explain these tiers (two of which are free, by the way) has been made available after the break. In other GameTap news, both the press release and blog have mentioned the Metal Slug and King of Fighters series coming to the service. Nice.
New Sam & Max, Scrapland and more now on GameTap
Though most GameTap subscribers will probably be downloading the final Sam and Max of the season today, a few other offerings are also joining the world's furriest detectives on the service this week. First up is Scrapland, the last game American McGee made before he smashed the Irony-O-Meter into subatomic particles by moving the whole operation to China and building a vast army of wage slaves. The game has an average score of 72 on Metacritic, so fans of mediocrity have plenty to be excited about. Like some sort of Pokémon fan gone horribly astray, GameTap has also continued its maniacal quest to catalog the entirety of the adventure genre, both the good and the unspeakable. You may now count Return to Mysterious Island and Voyage (two of our favorite games inspired by Jules Verne) alongside Sentinel and Mysterious Journey II amongst their throng. ... Wow, Sam and Max just can't download quick enough, can they?
Sega Saturn Panzer Dragoon, Zwei coming to GameTap
A glimpse of the Coming Soon tab in the GameTap client reveals that they will soon be bringing Sega Saturn titles Panzer Dragoon and Panzer Dragoon Zwei to the service. Although the first title also appeared on the PC, Gamasutra has learned from sources close to GameTap that both these titles will be running via a Saturn emulator.These games join the now-unhidden Bug! as the first three Saturn titles that Sega has brought to the subscription-based service. We're still hoping for Panzer Dragoon Saga, which now seems more probable following this revelation. No release date has been given for either Panzer Dragoon or Zwei; GameSetWatch recently published an interesting retrospective on the series.
GameTap reveals Sega Saturn plans with Bug!
Currently hidden amongst over 800 games residing on GameTap is a relic of the Sega Saturn's past. One of the early 3-D platformers of the day, Bug! has managed to weasel its way onto the service under the guise of "Insect?" as a search term. The presence of Bug! today is much more important than the mediocrity it originally presented, as it means that Sega Saturn titles are coming to GameTap.Just to be absolutely sure what this means, we took Bug! for a test run. As one of the many Sega Saturn titles that got ported over to the PC, we wanted to make sure that this was in fact the Sega Saturn version and not some sort of trickery. Our doubts were squashed when, upon booting up the game, we were met with the familiar loading sequence of the original Saturn. Sure, Bug! may somehow be worse than we actually remembered, but it's great to see what appears to be spot-on Saturn emulation.As GameTap currently sports a rather robust first-party line-up from the Sega graveyard, consisting of the SG-1000, Master System, Genesis, Game Gear, 32X and Dreamcast, we fully expect this relationship to continue. If we're lucky, we'll see more along the lines of Panzer Dragoon Saga and Burning Rangers and less of those embarrassing Daytona USA ports.In other GameTap news, Bug! is only one of three games currently hidden in the game vault as part of an easter egg promotion. Clues leading to the whereabouts of the remaining two games can be found both within GameTap itself and on their website.
GameTap's Myst Online: URU Live available on Mac OS X
GameTap announced today that the Mac OS X port of Myst Online: URU Live -- built using Transgaming's Cider technology -- is available for download. Rand Miller, CEO of Cyan Worlds and creator of Myst Online, offered this heartfelt sentiment: "Many of the original Myst fans were Mac users, so for GameTap to reopen the door to this audience really means a lot to Cyan on a personal level."Though we're sure there's lots of hugging going on in the Cyan Worlds offices this morning, we're just excited to test the Cider-built version and see how it compares to the existing PC client. A reminder: while your $10 monthly GameTap subscription buys you full access to the GameTap service, Mac users should know that Myst Online is the only GameTap offering that will work natively on your computer. Our recommendation for Intel Mac users: play URU Live natively, Boot Camp the rest.Already a GameTap subscriber and want to take the Mac version of URU Live online for a spin? Head on over to this login page, enter your GameTap login information and get downloading!
Bungie's Myth II coming to GameTap March 22.
var digg_url = 'http://digg.com/gaming_news/Bungie_s_Myth_II_coming_to_GameTap_March_22'; For those cool enough to be down with Bungie before they became "The Halo Company," Myth II tends to conjure fond memories of great Mac gaming. Sure, it was available for PC as well, but you folks were too busy with your Command & Conquer's and your Warcraft's and your... rock music...Come March 22nd, PC users will get another chance to appreciate the last, great, pre-Halo Bungie title via GameTap. Having lost the rights to the Myth franchise some years ago, Take 2 Interactive will be the ones supplying the goods.Myth III will also be available, but, uh, pay no attention to that.
Digital distribution panel: Retail and downloads work together
Newsweek's N'Gai Croal hosted a GDC discussion about digital distribution, featuring panelists from Bioware, Valve, Microsoft, Telltale Games, and GameTap. The session interested us most for its comments on how retail and digital distribution work together and thoughts on the media's lack of digital-only games coverage.Valve's Jason Holtman said, "The myth of digital distribution cannibalizing retail sales isn't true. ... The first couple times we ran [free weekends for games], we found out they increased retail sales as well [as digital sales.]"Holtman later said, "We love selling our boxed products. We like selling our digital products, too. ... Retail is going to be here to stay. It's a great channel for games. Digital is also a great channel for games."Ray Muzka of Bioware said, "They're incredibly complimentary. ... You can get research, you can get data from your digital distribution to make better games."Dan Connors of Telltale Games described how his company's games benefit from initial digital distribution. He said, "By the time it gets to retail, it's a known quantity. ... It was thought of from the ground up that we're going to launch online and [move to retail.] ... I think we've managed to take revenues from a range of places."Near the end of the session, Croal asked if he and other journalists had covered digital distribution enough. Rick Sanchez of GameTap vehemently said that the press hadn't and that they don't know how to treat his game-download service. The other panelists thought their projects were getting enough coverage, although they echoed the slow recognition of their digital projects.Other than Microsoft's Xbox Live games, GameTap represented the only company with a digital-only distribution method. Could that affect GameTap's recognition, because the public -- and journalists -- still need a boxed copy to take notice?
GDC 07: How to get your indie game published
It seems like everybody's hitting it big publishing their indie games through services like Xbox Live Arcade. But what about you? For those among us still clinging to indie projects but burning to get them out into the world (ah, it burns!), Simon Carless hosted a "Console/PC Distribution Gatekeepers" panel this afternoon as part of the Independent Games Summit. With John Hight from Sony, Sandy Resnick from GameTap, Greg Costikyan from Manifesto Games, and Ross Erickson (formerly) of Xbox Live Arcade, the panel covered everything from what game services are looking for, to how many submissions they get, to how much they pay. Here are some tips and heads-ups from the suits who decide the fate of your games: Sure, experience, fun factor, uniqueness, and audience appropriateness are all important factors in getting your game published, but the execs also stressed enthusiasm. Making a game takes a lot of work, so publishers want to know you'll see it through. Said Erickson, "The game we want is the game you're passionate about."
'GameTap Indies' launches lil' guys into cyberspace
GameTap has launched its 'Indies' program, an initiative to market and distribute independent games through its subscription-based service. While GameTap Indies will supposedly "take effect immediately," there's no sign of it today. A representative confirmed with us that launch titles won't be announced until GDC, when, during the Independent Games Festival, GameTap will present its first ever 'GameTap Indie Award' to three "hand-picked" recipients.The trio will have their games showcased on GameTap, assumingly headlining a selection of less-heralded indie titles. One recipient will receive a $10,000 advance for signing a 5-year distribution deal with the GameTap Indies label; two others will receive $5,000 for signing away similar distribution rights.It's a strong play from GameTap -- still seeking a firm identity -- and will hopefully encourage similar services to support independent development more aggressively. Will 'Indies' help to negate the stigma that GameTap is a bloated client with little original content to offer? Mr. Turner and company certainly hope so -- Sam & Max and Myst Online can't do it alone much longer.
Vectorman of Vermillion: Spinball Oasis for Virtual Console
In the grand tradition of Xbox Live Arcade having one title announced, here comes the competition with four announcements in one. The Wii's Virtual Console will be seeing four games from Sega sometime soon and while they're not all winners, there is some good news.The good news is that the tragically under-appreciated Beyond Oasis will be making its way to the Virtual Console. The bad news is so is Sonic Spinball, Sword of Vermillion and Vectorman. Unless of course you enjoy them. In that case, congratulations! At 800 points each ($8.00), they're all somewhat of a hard sell, but Beyond Oasis is certainly worth a download if you never got a chance to play it before. Others like Vectorman, on the other hand, are proof that nostalgia can be quite the mistress.Coincidentally, all of these titles have been available on GameTap for quite some time.%Gallery-1764%
Telltale Games looking to develop for Xbox 360
In this week's installment of our ongoing series, "Is Sam & Max coming to [platform here]?" we examine a job posting for an Xbox 360 programmer that went up last week on Telltale Games' official website. The systems programmer position entails the implementation of Telltale's "core 3D graphics and audio systems on the Xbox 360," as well as the modification and support of existing art and production assets. Furthermore, it's preferred that any applicants have a "love of adventure games."Now, there's no need to leap to any conclusions here. Indeed, the most desirable conclusion lies at the end of a simple game of hopscotch -- minimal effort is required to reach it. Given their recent success, episodic nature and small file sizes, Telltale's Sam & Max episodes seem like an ideal fit for Xbox Live Arcade. Unfortunately, we live in a world that's far from ideal and with no official announcement, there's no telling what tale Telltale is working on next. We've always been rubbish at the whole waiting and seeing thing.
Myst Online launches to a free trial
After our in-depth look at the final hours of the Myst Online: Uru Live beta, we were pretty eager to jump back into the caverns and get back to exploring. We didn't have to wait long as the game officially launched today and there was more going on than just the in-game block parties.Gametap is offering up a free trial of their service that comes along with a visitor account for Myst Online, though it does sound rather limited. You'll be allowed to create one character in which to explore one stage of the game, as well as any public neighborhood. It is worth a shot of course, if not just to scope out the locals.A new Linking Book was also released that takes players to age of Tsogal. Inside the book is an incredible looking water garden with, naturally, a few to hide. While we were initially stumped (and distracted) by an ominous locked door, spinning around and flashing patterns, we manged to break on through to the other side with the help of other travelers. As for any other additional content, we'll just have to do some more exploring.%Gallery-1651%
Richard Branson touts revolutionary PC game download service
"This is a really exciting development for us, as it gives us the opportunity to do for PC games what iTunes has done for music," says Virgin mega boss, Richard Branson. We've all heard that one before, but Branson promises that his take on digitally distributed PC games will rely on top-notch technology to push it into the mainstream market. MCV reports that Virgin Games and Game Domain International have unveiled plans for a distribution platform called A World of My Own (AWOMO).A woah mow? The service is described as a 3D virtual world (likely the interface) built upon several key features, including quick download speeds -- supposedly you'll get your games in minutes, not hours -- and better security. Branson even goes as far as to say that the proposed technology will "revolutionise how the mass market will play games, and will give them more choice for less money." Koch Media has already pledged its support.Though it will be interesting to see just how the technology gets around download speeds (barring an artificial size limit, as was present in Xbox Live Arcade until a while ago), that factor alone won't be enough to break into a mass market already targeted by the likes of Gametap and Steam. Content is, as always, key. Until Virgin and GDI unveil a library of games and real specifics, their revolutionary proposition remains nebulous at best.
GameTap forgets half its name, adds music content
GameTap has added music content to its diverging focus from being a videogame download service. While game-related video shows -- and some that aren't expressly about games -- were already a part of GameTap, the music areas and new "Artist of the Month" selection confuse the message.GameTap has recently been earning gamer credibility by publishing new titles like Sam & Max episodes and the upcoming Myst Online: Uru Live, but the new music content seems like an idea from out-of-touch marketers to appeal to a younger audience. Even the first two featured bands seem like a scattered approach. Fall Out Boy strikes us as My First Emo, appealing to the Music Television kids with their Total Request Lives. (At least Kyle's cousin likes it.) And The Hold Steady is nearly the opposite, a great rock outfit that sounds like the smokey halls it plays.But, come on, GameTap. If we wanted to listen to The Hold Steady, we'd play it on our stereo. (And if we wanted to listen to Fall Out Boy, we'd turn on an MTV awards show.) We hope that GameTap can turn a profit and please papa Turner without pandering to a music audience.GameTap, it's too early for you to jump the shark; keep the focus on games.
Mac OS X port, as well as new world, added to Myst Online
As one of the most captivating, if not vastly underrated, titles of last year, any news from the Ages of Uru is good news. GameTap has announced that not only will their MMO adventure, Myst Online be receiving an entirely new world to explore, but a new platform on the Mac.As GameTap is not yet (will not ever be?) available for the Mac, TransGaming Inc. will be in charge of porting the title over (using their Cider product we presume). With not so much as an estimated time for this release, Mac users will be left sitting on their hands until further information is revealed ... or discovered in a mysterious book. Those in the nether realm of the PC, however, will have new content to enjoy as soon as tomorrow with the release of the Great Zero area to explore. With a brand new platform of users to engage and a continued push of content, Uru sure has come a long way from the days of Ubisoft's waffling. If Mac gamers are really dedicated (and/or impatient), there's always Boot Camp to get your GameTap fix.
