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Breakfast Topic: Old heroes with new stories
At the Lore panel at BlizzCon Chris Metzen mentioned that some old faces will appear in new ways in future content. We can expect Sylvanas to make an appearance, Bronzebeard will lead us to unlock the mysteries of the world's creation, Hellscream will lead the Horde into Northrend. Keeping this in mind, what heroes would you like to spend more time with? Is there anyone you would especially love to see again?
Heroes: Season 1 seven-disc HD DVD set previewed at Comic-Con
The HD DVD Promotional Group is on the ground at Comic-Con, with the price drop of the Xbox 360 HD DVD add-on and accompanying 5 free disc promotional offer, with more details of content to expect this holiday season. The Heroes: Season 1 HD DVD boxed set will be available August 28, including HDi features exclusive to the high def release, like a web enabled download center, Heroes Abilities Test, picture-in-picture commentary and others. This is Universal's first release to take advantage of HD-DVD's online capabilities, but it won't be the last. The seven disc package has an SRP of $99.98, and as mentioned earlier, Xbox Live members will be able to download the pilot episode for free before its release.
Heroes game confirmed, Ubisoft at the helm
Just one day after Hollywood trade-mag Variety reported that Ubisoft's licensed Heroes game would be revealed this weekend (at a little party called Comic-Con) another, uh, Hollywood trade-mag – this time The Hollywood Reporter – seal the deal, reporting the game should hit next-gen consoles and PC as early as late 2008.And so, Ubisoft adds Heroes to their stable, continuing their aggressive push for popular licensed content after confirming Lost back in April and James Cameron's Avatar on Tuesday. Now, we patiently wait to see how they adapt the talky superhero mystery into a compelling gaming experience.
Xbox 360 HD DVD player now just $179
The already nicely priced Xbox 360 HD DVD player just got slashed to $179. The new US-only, retail pricing also includes 5 free HD DVD flicks when purchasing the player between August 1st and September 30th -- you know, the same time period 300 and Heroes goes on sale in HD DVD format. Unfortunately, the free titles must be made from a selection of just 15 pre-selected films which Toshiba considers "popular." Nevertheless, the $20 price cut makes the Xbox 360 HD DVD player all the more enticing as an easily hacked, USB-player for HD flicks on your PC.[Thanks, Andrew and PacoDG]
Variety: Ubisoft's Heroes game likely revealed this weekend
NBC and Ubisoft aren't ready to talk about it yet, but Variety reports that the two are close to closing a deal that would let the French game company turn the sci-fi hit Heroes into a game. Though they're currently mum, there's a little convention in San Diego this weekend, and they might be able to find a few geeks there who would get excited about the news, if they wanted to unveil it there.Though it may seem like a natural choice for a game version, what with the superpowers and all, we wonder if anyone at Ubisoft has considered the fact that there's very little actual hero-ing on Heroes. It's largely people talking to other people about their powers and only occasionally using them. Don't get us wrong, we love the show. We hope that Ubisoft doesn't try to jam it into an action mold.That being said, there's the Reservoir Dogs game, which is either a knock against our argument or terrifying, irrefutable proof of it, we're not sure.
Killing off the Horde and their heroes
Ketsumei of Bleeding Hollow makes a pretty good point on the forums: we're killing off Horde heroes, and Alliance are getting a pass. Actually, the Horde heroes point isn't quite a valid one-- yes, we've taken down Kael'thas, Rend Blackhand, and eventually Zul'jin, but we've also killed off Emperor Thaurissian, the Architect of Stormwind (many, many times), and Mekgineer Thermaplugg, not to mention that eventually we'll be killing the number one figure in Alliance lore, Arthas himself. Oh, and some lady named Katrana Prestor, usually found sitting on the left hand of the throne in Stormwind, has been killed as well. But it's true that more instances, especially raid instances, are featuring the deaths of Horde races rather than Alliance races. Especially in the endgame, we're fighting Trolls, Orcs and Blood Elves, not Humans and Draenei.So what's with the imbalance? This Horde-heavy enemies list is actually a very recent thing-- Scarlet Monastery is full of Humans, as are the Deadmines, and BRD is full of Dwarves. But as we've headed to Outland, the Burning Legion seems to have a thing for recruiting Blood Elves and Orcs, and Zul'Aman will bring about the death of many, many Trolls. Far many more Horde cries of death are being heard lately, and that's just racist.There's only one thing for it-- as players suggest, we should be allowed to kill a corrupted Malfurion Stormrage in the Emerald Dream expansion. No arguing now-- let's say he's gone insane from fighting the Nightmare and he's got to be put down. We need an instance full of Night Elves to kill over and over again. Oh, and while we're at it, let's have Arthas bring Uther back as a Scourge, and kill him, too! And what's the King of Stormwind up to-- isn't time he died, too?
Travis vs. Holly: new No More Heroes images
Considering that Holly Summers is ranked several slots higher than our antihero, Travis Touchdown, it's probably no surprise that she's kicking his ass in these screenshots. But just because it isn't surprising doesn't mean it's not cool. We've put the latest shots in a gallery for your viewing pleasure, because we figure that, just like us, you can't get enough of No More Heroes. %Gallery-4611%
Suda 51 talks No More Heroes some more
Whether it's save screens showing one of the more embarrassing parts of being a human being, or the crazy cast of characters , we want No More Heroes. We need it like we need oxygen to live. So, when head honcho Suda 51 (Goichi Suda) talks, we listen. His latest interview with Gamasutra is no different.Suda's inspiration for the game comes from a movie called El Topo, by Alejandro Jodorowsky. Can't say we've seen it, but you can bet we're planning on it. Suda says he always wanted to create a story where progression occurs through a series of battles. Also, he says he learned a lot from Ubisoft's Red Steel. Now, before you blow your top, he says he learned from the good and the bad, so at least he recognizes that the game had faults.Of course, this isn't the first time he's talked inspirations on the game, so take it as you will
No More Heroes character bios
The official No More Heroes page has updated with three brief character bios. We immediately put on our Secret No More Heroes Fan Club Decoder Rings and set to the task of figuring out the mysterious secret code in which they were written.Travis Touchdown is #11 in the assassin ranking. He loves pro wrestling, competitive fighting, and a "Japanimation" (their word) called "Bizarre Jerry." Sylvia Christel is an agent of the assassins' group. A mysterious, cool woman, she organizes the ranking competition herself (we think.) Holly Summers is ranked #6. She is a model who also works as an assassin.None of this is entirely new, but it does have the benefit of being about No More Heroes. And it's another excuse to go look at the character art.
Save the cheerleader ... and your Xbox 360
Save it from boring themes and user pictures, that is. If you've ever wanted to get your game on as Hiro Nakamura, Peter Petrelli, or Niki / Jessica, now you can ... although the results might make you wish you had Hiro's time-traveling powers so you could go back and correct that mistake. While the blades are excellent photos of Tim Sale's paintings from the series, the artwork on the guide background can only be called craptastic. It's just a tiled version of that strange helix symbol in the show that pops up on everything from Niki's shoulder, to Hiro's sword. C'mon, in this day and age we're still getting tiles? With the season finale hitting airwaves tonight, we were hoping for more.The picture pack contains a painting of Claire, the Heroes "eclipse" logo, the "exploding man" painting, and the helix yet again. This means you'll have to download future packs with more heroes in 'em, but we're waiting on Sylar for ours. Boom.
Pay to show your love for Heroes
Truly there is no better advertising than paying another company to advertise their products for them. It seems that Xbox Live Marketplace was designed for just such a thing, as numerous themes and picture packs have appeared, which do little else than tell other people how much you like a certain product (we bought a Halo theme, so we're not exactly innocent). Marketing genius. The latest in this line of fan-vertising is new Heroes content available on Xbox Live Marketplace. Specifically, there is a theme available for 150 points and a picture pack for 80 points. Strangely absent from the Marketplace: the actual Heroes television program.With such a perfect digital delivery system, you'd think NBC would be offering Heroes on Video Marketplace already. Alas, for now your stuck with the digital equivalent of a T-shirt.
Actual details on Sadness?
The game that is ... then isn't ... then is again has been quite secretive for quite some time, which of course provoked our skepticism in the first place. On top of some recent artwork released by developer NIBRIS, we now have some interesting gameplay details. The game will total around twenty hours in length. There will be two playable characters: a thirty-year old woman of Polish-Hungarian descent, and her son. There are eighteen species of monsters; which ones you see will be determined by how you play the game. The game will feature no (i.e. real-time) loading. Voice acting will be a prominent feature. The graphics will contain copious amounts of fog, to match up with that artwork. Last night's Heroes episode was totally awesome. Okay, so that last bulletpoint is just us geeking out. Whatever, we do that. Here's to Sadness (clinks wine glass)!
Wii Warm Up: Suda 51
He's got a weird name, he makes weird, violent games, and he's got really, really cool friends. He's also writing the Snatcher radio drama, which makes him our best friend. Grasshopper Manufacture's Suda 51 applies a punk-rock philosophy to game design, and the results are always interesting.He seems to have made the Wii his home console for the time being. Do you welcome his contributions? Are you looking forward to No More Heroes as much as we are? The kind of stuff he likes to make is pretty far outside the usual Wii fare, but we feel that the Wii all about shaking up the norm. Is there merit to his disruptive game design ideals, or are they just disruptive for disruption's sake? If you're a Suda fan now, would you still be if he didn't have the glow of Wii association? Can we put some more question marks in here?
Possible No More Heroes t-shirt surfaces
This weird-looking t-shirt with the phrase "NO MORE HEROES" was spotted in Japan recently. Just from looking at the shirt, we have no idea if it's related to the Wii game, but the 4cr poster who purchased it seemed to think so, indicating that it is part of a line of No More Heroes shirts. We'd like to see the full line of these shirts; we'd be unlikely to purchase this one, but we really like the idea of having some No More Heroes memorabilia. Suda 51's games and his company Grasshopper Manufacture's website prove that they are capable of remarkable stylishness. Check their shop for some amazing stuff that doesn't look like it was designed by a video game company. Of course, the store is for Japan only, but go and gawk anyway.
Suda 51's inspirations for No More Heroes
This video interview with Grasshopper Manufacture's Suda 51, the eccentric auteur responsible for Contact and Killer 7, shows off the stylish semi-cel-shaded graphics and bizarre second-person camera angles we've come to expect from a Suda game. In addition, we get a few details about the storyline, which concerns an otaku named Travis Touchdown who wins a beam sword in an online auction and then (naturally) gets involved with a bunch of competitive professional hitmen.Suda goes on to discuss some of the influences that he synthesized into his new Wii game No More Heroes, including Ultimate Fighting, Grand Theft Auto, and Johnny Knoxville. No mention is made of the title, which is also the title of a Stranglers song-- no surprise from a guy who titled his GDC presentation "Punk's Not Dead." The video is embedded, after the cut.
"Heroes" game on the way ... to your mobile phone
Yes, a video game based on NBC's series Heroes may be on the way, but don't expect to be picking up the "Have a Haitian Guy Erase Your Wife's Mind 20 Times" Achievement any time soon.In its mobile gaming roundup, Gamesindustry.biz mentions that publisher Gameloft has picked up the rights to develop games based on the geek favorite for the very small screen. No details are available yet about which of the show's many characters will be playable in the cell phone game ... or if the story will be separate from the show's storyline or ... well, really no details are available about any of it, save that it will be based on Heroes.It's well-worn territory for Gameloft, which has already given similar treatment to hot TV properties like Lost and Desperate Housewives. Looking at those rather unlikely choices, Heroes may just be their easiest adaptation to date. Though light on details, what the announcement does provide is an opportunity for you junior marketers to come up with your own witty, cell-phone based play on one of Heroes' many infamous taglines.Right now, we're leaning towards "Save the RAZR ... save the world."
Breakfast Topic: Hero classes
Hero classes were in the "on the horizon" section of the Under Development page for a long time, though they have since been removed. Tseric has said that they are still looking into "alternate character advancement," but we should maybe forget the term "Hero Class." At any rate, they've been since release one of the most desired improvements for the game by many players. So when someone comes forward claiming to be working for Blizzard and to have the inside scoop on how they're looking at hero classes these days, it gets me excited. Now there is, as the poster rightly points out, no credibility whatsoever to this information, aside from the fact, as Tobold says over at his blog, that it's just boring enough to be something Blizz would do.Basically, each class would be able to specialize as one of the three different hero classes, each corresponding to one of the class's talent trees. Then, by spending "Hero Points," which will be earned in unspecified ways (but will be indefinite (!)) in a fourth, linear talent panel, they could gain access to special abilities. The hero classes would also have some passive benefits. It actually sounds pretty decent to me, except for the fact that, supposedly, your choice of hero class would be absolutely permanent, like profession specializations used to be. I think it would be much better to do it how profession specs are now -- you can re-specialize, but only if you completely unlearn the profession. With hero classes, I'd make it so you could choice a new one, but you'd lose all your invested Hero Points.Anyway, that's the rumor. My question for you: how do you think they should do hero classes? Or is "hero class" just an outdated idea and we should focus on novel methods of character progression?[via Tobold's MMORPG Blog]
Heroes of Mana confirmed for North America
Heroes of Mana, the latest in Square-Enix's we're-not-exactly-sure-what-genre-this-series-is Mana series, has been confirmed for release in lovely North America. Though many thought the real-time strategy game was a sure bet for western audiences, lackluster sales in Japan had caused worry among David Hinkle pessimists who may or may not be named David Hinkle.Obviously, the Japanese do not enjoy beautiful flash-based websites and things that are not turn-based. Or maybe it was just a lackluster game, but hell, we'll find out soon enough. Rabites, here we come!
New goodies, and baddies, coming to Marvel: Ultimate Alliance
Xbox 360 owners, traded in your Marvel: Ultimate Alliance disc yet? If you did, then you'll be missing out on the opportunity to fork over your Microsoft points in exchange for some additional characters. In April you'll be able to purchase either a 'Heroes' pack or a 'Villains' pack for 500 points apiece, or both for 800. Whoever said that Activision doesn't like to make a deal and pass the savings along to you?The Heroes pack includes: Cyclops, Nightcrawler, Hawkeye, and The Incredible Hulk. On the flipside, the Villains group consists of Venom, Magneto, Sabretooth, and Doctor Doom ... which sounds like an 80s hair-band mega-metal tour. Both packs will include new achievements as well, breathing some life back into this game. Hopefully this is a trend that'll continue for awhile, because we like adding some shelf-life and playability to our games. Of course, we're still waiting on additional achievements for Whacked!, but that's a different story.
Today's most Hero(es)ic game video: Heavenly Sword on NBC's 'Heroes'
Tonight's episode of Heroes on NBC opens with Micah and Niki/Jessica playing Heavenly Sword on the PlayStation 3. Apparently one of Micah's other tech-based powers is the ability to play unreleased video games. That would actually be a pretty sweet ability to have. Of course, talk about getting no work done as a result. Like us rushing to get this post to you before the show even airs. We read your minds, a la Matt Parkman, and knew you'd want to see this early.Is there also some sort of a hint or clue buried in the game title? Hiro is desperately trying to get his hands on that special samurai sword that he thinks will let him access his powers once again. Of course in the game Heavenly Sword, the title weapon is the game. According to an IGN interview with the developer Ninja Theory, "The story revolves around an ancient sword, the Heavenly Sword, which belonged to a deity and can never be wielded by a mortal without destroying them ... but as the sword is not meant for her, it sucks away her life force. So you begin the game with only a few hours left to live and have to fulfill this one last mission before the sword finally takes your life. But until that day arrives, Nariko's fighting skills rock."Also, Gollum/King Kong/Nikola Tesla's assistant Andy Serkis will be playing villainous King Botan in this game. Is there any sort of connection here? We'd love to see Serkis on heroes. His power would be to make you feel slightly uncormfortable. Very interesting, NBC. Verrrrrrrrry interesting.
