Interview
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Inside the mind of a cheater
Have you ever played Battlefield or Halo online, only to be faced with dirty, filthy, joy killing cheaters? What was your first reaction? Whatever it was, we're pretty sure it wasn't "hey, would you like to do an interview?" That's exactly what Richard (nice name) from Aeropause did. The interview is a fascinating look into the thought processes of a cheater. Here's one of our favorite selections. When asked what game makers should do to curb cheating, the schmuck responds:"Give Up! There is no way to stop us. Everyone wants to cheat and we will always find a way to do it. Anyone reading this is simply jealous of the fact that I have enough nuts to cheat and play the game the way I want to."Wow. In denial much? Cheating because you enjoy making people miserable at least has some semblance of sense to it, but actually believing people are jealous of the act? That's practically mental instability. Still, his response to one question makes it all better:"Do you have a girlfriend? Schmuck5000: What kind of freaking question is that for this kind of interview? How does me having a girlfriend relate to cheating? (AP: We will take that as a NO!)"Ah, the fetid reek of Loserville. Makes us all warm inside. Hit the read link for more insight, if you dare.
Richard Mitchell09.15.2006
The Engadget Interview: J Allard, Microsoft Corporate Vice President
We only got a mere 20 minutes of his time, but Peter and I got a chance to talk to the one and only J Allard about the Zune, digital media, and the direction Microsoft is taking things in what could be their most public marketplace battle since the browser wars. We'll let J do the talking.So, you guys have heard an awful lot about Zune already leading up to the press release, what can we clarify?Well, we've been following it pretty closely, obviously, since we first started hearing about it. Obviously today is the big unveiling, and we wanted to get a better idea of Zune not just as a device, but as a platform, and where you guys want to take all this stuff. So maybe you can start off by giving us an overview of where the device is, and where you see it going both as a device and as a platform.Sure, I think it's a great question the way you phrased it because we actually really think about Zune more as a platform than a device; you used both those two key words. If you step back a little bit in terms of where we're going as a company and where we think we can move forward with the industry in the entertainment space, we have this idea of connected entertainment. You're too familiar with the transition from analog to digital, we think there's a transition that goes one step beyond that called "connected," where the community gets to have greater participation with their entertainment experiences. We want to bring that across all forms of entertainment. What we're doing with Xbox and Xbox Live in the gaming space, what we're doing with MS TV and the Media Center in the television space, and Zune is really our first foray into a deep connected music experience. The first product we'll introduce this holiday will be a connected one -- that's why we put in WiFi in every device, because we think those connected experiences are really going to signal what the future of the music industry looks like, and the future of television and film and everything else. And the community wants to play a big part in it. So while we're starting now and sharing between devices where you can share songs with your friends (3 plays for 3 days), and sort of get the recommendations of your trusted circle of friends and experience and discover new music. You guys know all too well 802.11 devices there are out there. Think about what else we can connect to. Think about all the other scenarios we could do, whether location-based, etc. The device itself is intended to be a future-proof platform that's part of this connected entertainment world where entertainment will become more personal, more interactive, and more engaged with community.
Ryan Block09.14.2006
Mr. O'Rourke explains himself
The name might not be too familiar, but Mr. O'Rourke is the man responsible for the PSP-bashing report he created for the analyst group In-Stat. In an interview with Gamasutra, O'Rourke explains his reasoning behind Nintendo's continued success in the handheld market. Here are a few excerpts: "The DS's shipment advantage has been overstated somewhat." "The key to a successful handheld is not necessarily graphics. Several of Nintendo's challengers over the years (e.g., Atari, NEC) have had superior graphics performance. But they did not succeed. More important is strong software support, and recognizable characters, that appeal to what has been primarily a pre-teen, early teen demographic. This is what Nintendo has understood well, and has executed on." "Sony does not have the same number of breakout titles for the PSP as Nintendo has created for the DS. In addition, the PSP costs substantially more than the DS ($199 vs. $129 in the US)." "No, publishers will not move away from the PSP. Sony is selling too many of them. Publishers are not in the business of throwing away revenue opportunities." I think the man's on-the-money with his analysis. While it's clear that the DS is "winning," that's not going to stop publishers and developers from delivering games to us. And in the end, that's what we fanboys want (more than a victory in the handheld "war").
Andrew Yoon09.14.2006
An absolutely mammoth Madden interview [update 1]
IGN's got the goods, folks: this seven-page interview reveals more about Madden Wii than every past publication on the game combined. The interview covers the exact passing controls, special moves with the Wiimote, defensive manuevers, graphical capabilities, the kicking game...it's quite a read. Of note is that the Wii version won't be "dumbed down" as the initial 360 version was; it contains every single mode and feature that long-time fans of the franchise have come to expect. It also contains some new features, such as the "two-on-two" minigame, which re-enacts the classic quarterback/receiver vs. rusher/safety playground game complete with "Mississippi" counting. It truly is a goldmine of information on the game, and the interviewee is extremely candid on most everything...except, strangely enough, online play. He absolutely refused to speak a word about it. Hmmmm.[Update 1: Fixed a small typo.]
Jason Wishnov09.13.2006
Why you want Vice City Stories: the interview
Ever since the official trailer for Vice City Stories dropped on us, Rockstar has been very actively hyping this PSP-exclusive follow-up to the insanely successful Liberty City Stories. (Of course Rockstar doesn't have much of a choice: this game may be the only thing that saves the company from financial ruin.) IGN recently had a chance to talk to Gordon Hall from Rockstar, and Mr. Hall (obviously) has a lot of good things to tell us: Game features twice the number of polygons and a new radiosity lighting model. A new way to have the CPU and GPU communicate to each other was developed so that improvements could be made across the board. A new streaming process and lossless animation streaming allows the game to load more data at once. "With the Jet Ski you can dive under water and come bursting back up, you can really feel it bounce off the waves as the weather conditions change, you can turn on a dime and really send the water spraying." (Sounds like they packed in an entire water racing game in our GTA!) "The combat system has more depth to it than any other Grand Theft Auto game." Targeting and combat has been tweaked just a bit: you can now fight unarmed and do grappling moves and throws. "The soundtrack has over 100 tracks, and is probably the best, deepest collection of songs ever assembled for any one project -- TV, Film, or Game." (But the game includes Custom Soundtracks too if you don't like retro music.) Call me stunned. I know this is mostly PR hype, but considering how amazing the original Liberty City Stories was, I'm willing to believe that Rockstar is making this game a masterpiece. It sounds to be this could be the best GTA yet... handheld and console. And you didn't even have to wait until 12:01 AM for such amazing news. The game hits America the same time as Killzone. Ouch: my wallet's already crying.
Andrew Yoon09.09.2006
Medal of Honor video overload
Gamespot has gone absolutely bonkers with video coverage of the upcoming PSP-exclusive Medal of Honor Heroes. There is impressive gameplay footage of multiplayer battles (which will support up to 32 players!), and a video interview. The Gamespot preview is absolutely glowing for the game, which gets me pretty excited: "Heroes is shaping up to be as fully featured a Medal of Honor game as you could want on the PSP, with visuals that come close to the PlayStation 2 installments in the series."
Andrew Yoon09.08.2006
Creator of GBA emulator speaks out
Many of you seem very interested in homebrew lately. With the release of a super-easy way to downgrade firmware, it seems like many of you are ready to experiment with homebrew. While I prefer to support original endeavors, it's pretty obvious that the greatest lure for homebrew is piracy emulation. Exophase is a relatively new coder to the PSP homebrew scene, but he's already come out with a full speed Game Boy Advance emulator for the system. In an interview with DCEmu, he reveales some interesting info about his work.DCEmu: The release of this emulator has been compared to the shock of Ultrahle and Bleem, emulators that werent thought possible until they were released, are you proud that your the first to get a decentplayable GBA Emulator out there ? Exophase: Heh, well, I'm just glad that at least some people can play some games well. I know it was nice being able to play Castlevania: Circle of the Moon for a while when I had nothing else to do.You can check out the rest of the interview at DCEmu.See also:More interviews with more homebrewersCommodore64 emulator for PSPWonderswan emulator for PSP
Andrew Yoon09.03.2006
Mark Cuban: I would buy an HD DVD player today and wait for a dual box
Yes, we are fully ignoring the rest of this interview with Mark Cuban concerning his HD networks and business to focus on the ongoing format war. If you want to read it there is actually quite a bit of other interesting commentary on why HDNet isn't carried on more cable networks, how he plans to use Dan Rather and in the second part posted today, why the Emmys weren't broadcast in HD and what he thinks of the digital TV transition. But we must post about HD DVD and Blu-ray at least twice each day so we'll focus on that. Interestingly, he first says he would rather get a cheap HTPC and run high definition content off of that, but otherwise would choose HD DVD right now and a combo player later. This is a viewpoint seen in more than a few AV forums around the net, is Mark just a part of a niche HD DVD market or is this evidence that even a billionaire who can afford a 103-inch plasma HDTV thinks Blu-ray is way overpriced?
Richard Lawler08.30.2006
Dead Head Fred interview
Dead Head Fred was one of the games I said "you should keep your eyes on." And for good reason: it's an original action game, made exclusively with the PSP in mind. QJ had some time to sit down with Eric Peterson, president of Vicious Cycle Software to get some info on the game. Here are some of the more interesting comments: "Dead Head Fred is a very ambitious game and we plan to deliver on all fronts. We want people to buy a PSP just to play Dead Head Fred." "Currently our load times are extremely fast and we are pleased with the results... the E3 demo that we showed, allowed for 30 min of straight gameplay without the player ever experiencing a load time." "The last thing we want people having to do is fight then camera when they should be fighting the enemies in the game." You acquire new powers by attaching new heads to yourself. Here's a few examples of heads you'll find in the game:"The Mutant head helps you survive radiation fields. The Scarecrow head lets you float on the water. The Stone Idol head makes you sink underwater. The Shrunken Head lets you get into tight spaces and glide along high wires. The Corpse head allows you to inflate with air and hover over obstacles; you can also fill it with water or gasoline to generate different effects and attacks. The Dummy head allows you to interact with citizens without scaring them out of their minds. " The full interview has details on the graphics engine, combat, mini-games, and more. The developers would love to do a downloadable demo for the game, so hopefully we'll see one down the line. The game has still a lot of development time left: it comes out next year.
Andrew Yoon08.28.2006
GamerTag Radio goes Gilligan
GamerTag Radio's latest podcast has live coverage of MLG Orlando including a random interview with Mary Ann from Gilligan's Island.
Ken Weeks08.27.2006
Interview with a Blu-Ray
Aeropause sits down for a disturbing chat with an anthropomorphized Blu-Ray disc. Sample quote:One time when we were young, HD-DVD and I played "Show Me Yours and I will Show You Mine" We got caught and we never tried it again, but what I saw was impressive, but I think mine is just as good! That moment scarred me for life. If that would not have happened I would have had a much higher capacity.At least they went to the source.[Thanks Lucas]
Ken Weeks08.23.2006
PlayStation 3: T-minus 3 months, not started manufacturing
Pretty bold move, Hirai, to admit that you're less than three months out from the global launch of what could be one of the most expensive propositions Sony has ever undertaken -- and you haven't even started manufacturing. According to Kaz, who recently spoke with GameSpot, Sony "haven't started manufacturing yet. Some of [their] ops guys were actually just in China, and also in Japan just reviewing the [production] lines and everything else." Oh, great, you've got two million units to whip up and you're still in the review process. That's over 660,000 units a month if they start, um, tomorrow. Look, we're not saying it can't be done, but unless the hefty price tag of the Blu-ray behemoth outstrips consumer interest, it seems like we could be in for some serious shortages come the holiday buying season.[Via GamesIndustry.biz]
Ryan Block08.22.2006
Cash Money Chaos video interview
Gamespot has a new video interview with Cash Money Chaos' lead designer. While the video doesn't offer any new info on the game, it does provide plenty of in-game footage of the game's bloody carnage. The designer compares it to Smash TV and Robotron, but with a crazy alien 70s game show feel. Keep this one on your radar: it'll be a mere $30 when it launches in Q1 2007, and it'll feature 8-player online infrastructure play with stat-tracking.
Andrew Yoon08.20.2006
An "interview" with Blu-ray Disc
Talk about nerd fiction! Following up on the recent "noisy" spoof featuring the Apple commercial actor, we got tipped that gaming site Aeropause has a fake "interview" with Blu-ray Disc, talking about hanging with Sony execs, "Grandpapa" Betamax, and the feud between himself and HD DVD. Pretty funny, if I do say so myself. While those of you who are absolutely sick to death of this format war can skip another article about it, at least no one can say we don't go all out with our love for next-gen formats. B-ray in the hizz-ouse![Thanks Luke]
Erik Hanson08.18.2006
Kaz Hirai talks PSP, denies redesign
Nintendo fans have Reggie. We have Kaz. There's no real new info in his interview with Gamespot, but it's always interesting when a Sony exec goes on the record about the system. Here are some bullet points summarizing what he said: Sony is still "hard at work" on Connect. (Note: It was originally supposed to come out in March.) PSone downloads will come "close" to the PS3 launch. "Obviously, we certainly are not going to have 1,200 titles come out at once. You also need to realize that some of the games just don't translate well onto a PSP environment, games that require the use of the two analog sticks, for example." No plans for a PSP price drop OR redesign. Sony is "happy" with PSP; it is their "fastest-growing product."
Andrew Yoon08.18.2006
Star Wars gets Lethal
Ubisoft has announced today that they're developing a new, original Star Wars game for the PSP and DS. Entitled Lethal Alliance, the game will take place in the time between the so-so Episode III and the good Episode IV. You'll play as Twi'lek Rianna Saren and her security droid Zeeo, and it's your job to uncover the most lethal weapon the Empire has ever come up with: the Death Star (cue dramatic music). GameSpot has some screenshots of the PSP game, and also an interview:On [the] PSP, we wanted to utilize the powerful hardware by making an action-packed, fun-filled game set in beautiful environments... Both versions of the game offer local Wi-Fi capabilities... On PSP you will play Twi'lek versus Twi'lek, while on DS you will play droid versus droid.[Thanks, steve & daniel-kun!]
Andrew Yoon08.17.2006
Blizzard Insider Interview with Tom Chilton on PVP
The official newsletter Blizzard Insider has posted an interview with Lead Designer Tom Chilton about the new PVP system and world PVP options showing up in the Burning Crusade (read the transcript at that link, or listen to audio here).The interview's pretty softball (hey, what do you expect from an official source), but Chilton does talk a little bit more about the new PVP arena matchups. Players will fight in teams of 2v2, 3v3 or 5v5 from an "arena team" (consisting of main players and benchwarmers) that "has a lot of strong parallels to the guild system" in that you can invite or release players at will. Chilton also answers the question about the arena "seasons"-- matches will be organized in periods of every few months, and at the end of the season, scores will be reset. Chilton says they're planning to change around certain PVP rewards from season to season, and he doesn't rule out the interesting possibility of a "Super Brawl"-- whatever that exactly means.Chilton also talks a little bit more about 1.12 world PVP in Silithus and Eastern Plaguelands, but here's an interesting question he doesn't answer: Is world PVP only confined to the higher classes? Is Blizzard trying to think of any ways to offer world PVP options to lower levels?Combined with news from the forums yesterday that players with current PVP titles will be able to keep their highest rank even in the new non-ladder system, it sounds like there are a lot of wacky shakeups coming to PVP in both 1.12 and the expansion. Sounds fun.
Mike Schramm08.16.2006
Death Jr. 2 to feature HDR lighting?!
Death Jr. was the first PSP game to be publically shown, and it wowed a whole lot of people with its technical prowess. If a new interview at QJ.net is to be believed, it appears that we'll be wowed again. Chris Carla commented:Well, we used Renderware on our first game on PSP, and it wasn't exactly perfectly tuned for PSP. After we removed it for [Death Jr. 2], we found our framerates hit 90fps... before we knew it, thanks to our fantastic tech staff, we had light blooms, High Dynamic Range lighting, and lots of other lighting and frame buffer effects running in the game. The net result is that we've probably got some of the most technically advanced features of any title on PSP at this point, which is pretty cool. We've done a lot more than that as well; I think people will be pleased by the tech in the game, and our loading times are still extremely short.Can this really be possible on a handheld? Death Jr. 2 seems to address the problems of the original and throws in a multiplayer co-op mode to boot. The sequel comes out this Halloween, but until then, don't forget you can check out the original for only $10.
Andrew Yoon08.14.2006
Justin Long on 'Get a Mac' ads, being harassed
In an interview more about his career (rather than Apple nerdery), Justin ("hi I'm a Mac") Long managed to wax ecstatic with Mary McNamara of the LA Times about 'the ads' and what they've done for (or rather: to) his career. He had stories to tell of being harassed on the street by people who might have taken the ads just a little too seriously, and he also admitted that, before the ads, he didn't even own a computer (just guess what he owns now). Also of note in the interview is a tidbit Martha wrote about a whopping 20 more ads in the "hottest campaign on TV" on their way (are these spots really resonating that well with their target demographic?). We've seen a few more ads trickle out since they were first introduced, and I would wager more will hit a Daily Show near you once the semester kicks back in.There aren't many more Apple-related details in the interview other than what I've summarized, but check it out if you're interested in learning a little more about the actor who might (or might not) be helping the Apple cause with the powers of comedy.
David Chartier08.14.2006
More interviews with more homebrewers
A month ago, we showed you an interview with the popular PSP homebrewer ZX-81. DCEmu has continued their summer series of interviews with two other popular PSP coders: StrmnNrmn and Deniska. Both have very different goals with the PSP. StrmnNrmn is famous for his efforts in bringing "Daedalus," an N64 emulator, to fruition. You can read through the entire interview with him for more, but here's an interesting snippet:K: What do you keep on your own PSP?StrmnNrmn: About 100 or so roms Deniska works on bringing original games to the system, such as KETM. He also is working on a GPS device (see the YouTube video here). When asked what's on his PSP he had this to say:K: So what homebrew/apps do you keep on your own PSP? Deniska: Currently, I only have IRShell, PSPLink, Noiz2sa and KETM.Feel free to read the entire interview with Deniska for more. It's clear that there are two very different segments for PSP homebrew: one focuses on pirating games, while the other focuses on developing original applications and games. Sony's attempt to squash homebrew as a whole is spawned by their fight against piracy, but it's unfortunate to see coders of original programs get caught in the crossfire. What about you, homebrew-using PSP fanboys? Do you use it for emulating games or do you use it to find original apps?
Andrew Yoon08.13.2006