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A fun way to stumble upon games online
StumbleUpon is a brilliant service that helps you find interesting websites online with the help of other people. Taking the form of a free Firefox plugin, it feels like a kind of web-wide Digg, where you vote on websites that you like which pushes up that link's popularity and increases the likelihood that another user will visit that page after clicking a Stumble! link in a toolbar. Read more about how it works here.Like Digg, StumbleUpon has a healthy contingent of users that play and read about games (incidentally, I stumbled upon StumbleUpon when I was glancing at Joystiq's traffic referral links), so the suggestions in the video games category are generally excellent. You can try out a demo of the gaming section by clicking the link tagged "online games" which will provide you with an endless stream of direct links to flash games that can literally take up your whole day. If you're looking for a more passive experience, the toolbar also allows you to browse randomly through video game links in categories such as news, video, photos and even Wikipedia pages. One moment you can be reading about the history of gamepads, the next you can be watching the latest footage from Crysis. Random selection at its best.
An in-depth review of E3 media booths
Kyle over at Video Game Media Watch turns the spotlight back on the media's presence at E3 with an in-depth review of the big media booths that were dotted around the show floor. Here's the quick and dirty from Kyle's write-up: 1UP/Ziff Davis' booth wasn't very crowded, although the free copies of EGM were popular. BradyGames, the strategy guide publisher, stuck a couple of Guitar Hero 2 booths in their stall and let the crowds grow exponentially. GameSpot's booth was very inaccessible. So either they were working hard, or they were playing a massive LAN game. UGO couldn't hide their Geometry Wars addiction. Oh, and they stole chairs from neighboring booths. G4 let people browse the web for free: free internet FTW! Kyle goes into a lot more detail, so make sure to check out his full article.
Joystiq readers are environmentally friendly
Claims that the majority of Joystiq readers are harmful to the planet's health have been disproved, as the results from our do you leave your console on standby? poll proves. Out of the 8,500+ respondents that took part in the poll, 53% make a conscious effort to turn off their consoles once they're finished with another 10% occasionally forgetting to do so. We can only assume that the remaining 36% who leave their consoles on standby all the time are part of the North American SUV drivers for simultaneous use of air conditioning and heating lobby group. The comments thread provided some excellent commentary on the responsibility we have to conserve our energy so we've highlighted some of the most interesting ones after the jump.
Offer for one free year of EGM ends today
"Free" offers on the internet often come with annoying trials and lengthy cancellation procedures, but this one here's legit -- it's actually running from the subscription web site of the publisher of EGM, Ziff Davis Media.You may have seen this offer for 12 free issues of Electronic Gaming Monthly on Joystiq or other game sites out there. Basically, what's happening is the Ziff Davis Game Group is running a subscription drive for the mag, sponsored by the World Cyber Games. Free subs are only on offer through today, however, so get a move on if you want a piece of the printed action.Of course, EGM may be no OPM, but it's helpful for even the healthiest fanboy to get a balanced diet of multiplatform news and information on a regular basis. Also, please note that you're under no obligation to sign up for the World Cyber Games page which follows the EGM subscription one, so you can absolutely get your free mag without registering with the WCG.[Via Joystiq]
Joystiq: How the star system works
Have you been a long-time poster at Joystiq or one of its awesome network-affiliated sites, only to see others have stars placed next to their name (or negatives) and wonder what exactly dictates that rewarding or stripping of star(s)? Well, Joystiq's Vlad Cole has broken down the star system to show you exactly how it works. These guidelines apply to all the Joystiq network sites: Value: Does the comment enhance the topic at hand and add new perspective to the discussion? Is it a good question or interesting insight? Impartiality: This is hard, especially for Fanboy sites such as this, but as much as we loudly proclaim this system to be the superior, it detracts from the discussion at hand. It's OK to be touched with Fanboyitis, however try to curb it as best as you can as to not damage the topic at hand whilst commenting. Civility: This is just common sense. We all have opinions and want to share them, however as human beings we have the ability to exercise civility, even during the most heated debate. Other: Humor, wit, and bribes of cold, fresh chocolate milk. We like chocolate milk. As such, these are the guidelines followed when hiring Bloggers for the network (you have no idea how much chocolate milk it took for me to get the job), so keep that in mind should you one day wish to kill me and take my place. Vlad is answering as many questions as he can over at Joystiq, but if you post any questions here, we'll try as best we can to answer.
A guide to Joystiq star-whoring
We're often asked why some comments result in positive stars and why some result in loss of stars, so this explainer will, we hope, provide some clarity around the star system. Here's what we're looking for from commenters: Added value: Does the comment add value to the discussion? Does the comment add a new dimension to the topic? Does it ask a good question? Is it unique and interesting? Impartiality: A commenter who consistently promotes one console (or attacks the other consoles or systems) will never make the top commenters list. We're hunting for commenters who aren't suffering from a severe case of Fanboyitis. We often review a commenter's history prior to rewarding stars and are careful not to allow extreme partisans of any one system into the top 20. Civility: Ad hominem attacks and rough language tend to confuse issues, not clarify them. We're looking for comments that stay on topic and avoid cheap shots. Other: Humor, punch, wit, and bribes all help too. By the way, these are all qualities we're looking for when we hire bloggers for Joystiq, so these criteria are consistent with our editorial mission of providing balanced blogging of the video game industry. One last note on comments: the cream will rise to the top. Quality commenters will, over time, gain more stars than they lose. Your questions on the star system answered in the comments, below.
Engadget Podcast 080 - 05.15.06
The show's over and we've headed back to our respective homes across the globe, but before we fled LA, Ryan headed around the show floor to get final thoughts from members of the Joystiq crew, including former Editor-in-Chief, Ben Zackheim. Hear their thoughts on how the show went, whose booth was superior, why Sony kind of blew their chance, and even what the fairer sex thinks about this year's lack of booth babes. We'll be back with normal podcasts soon, but enjoy this final E3 edition, straight from the noisy floor of the Los Angeles Convention Center, recorded in earshot of Sony and Nintendo. Get the podcast [iTunes] Subscribe to the Podcast directly in iTunes (MP3). [RSS] Add the Engadget Podcast feed to your RSS aggregator and have the show delivered automatically (MP3). [MP3] Download the show (MP3). [OGG] Download the show (OGG). [Vote] Vote for us on Podcast Alley! Host Ryan Block Featuring Joystiq's Chris Grant, Ross Miller, Jennie Lees, and AOL Games' Ben Zackheim Producer Randall Bennett Music J J J - 'Suits' in Japan Format 1:02:43, 28.7 MB, MP3 Program 00:00 - Ross Miller 23:40 - Ben Zackheim 45:14 - Jennie Lees 50:00 - Chris Grant LISTEN (MP3) LISTEN (OGG) Contact the podcast: 1-888-ENGADGET, Engadget (Gizmo Project) or podcast at engadget dawt com
An Apple IIe at E3
Forget the Nintendo Wii (pronounced "wheeeeeeeeeeee!"), Sony PS3 (or the "Rockefeller Machine" as I call it), or Xbox 360 razmatazz... The real action at this year's E3 was hidden deep in the bowels of the show: an Apple ][e. Apparently the ][e had been gutted, and replaced with a net-aware time machine, connected to an abandonware site, which was playing... uh, I have no idea. That game looks awfully familiar, but I can't name it. Any takers? I found this via the blog of one "Greg," who is a senior software developer with AOL. So, Greg: you read Joystiq but not TUAW, and yet your favorite gadget is an iPod?
The Engadget & Joystiq Interview: Microsoft's Peter Moore
This morning, Vlad Cole and I had an opportunity to chat with Microsoft's Peter Moore, the man responsible for marketing the Xbox 360. When we last pinned him down at CES, there were still so many unanswered questions about the competition. After Sony and Nintendo's keynotes at E3, not to mention their own, the time was ripe to ask him about a portable Xbox, the Nintendo Wii complementing the Xbox 360, the Sony Dual Shake controller, and where he got that ink on his arm. Forgive me if I interrupt you, if I hear something that I already heard at the press briefing, I might cut your answer short a little bit. Congratulations on Gears of War. Everyone is saying it looks and plays awesome. It actually appears to be head and shoulders above everything we're seeing on the show floor. Is that a conscious choice to keep it off the floor itself, so that the comparison gap doesn't pop?No, not really. I think the idea is that the game deserves hands-on. We're trying to show it to as many people as we can up here. The team at Epic is really so conscious of the quality of what they're doing and presenting that bringing them up here, we'll get thousands of people through in the end, they churn people through pretty quickly, there was no conscious effort, no.So where are the rest of the games that look this good?Here? That depends on your ... you tell me. What is it that you think is missing?There does appear to be a gap in quality between that and everything else. It's just head and shoulders above. We're wondering if there are other titles that will match that by the time they come out. Quality of gameplay, graphics, depth, immersion? It's all subjective. I'm biased on all of them. Games like Crackdown: different visual style, different genre. But, it's coming together really well. Mass Effect. I was on some blogs last night where people are spending some time on it and are really impressed with it. Dave Perry and a few other people wrote some really strong stories about Mass Effect. That's a weird question ... I mean, which of my children do I love more?
E3 booth props from day 2
We have some more images from the show floor that speak volumes about the energy here at E3 (and the money these companies are spending). I've seen more than one attendee make a strange face at some of these, so hope you enjoy.
Overheard at E3: fanboy disillusionment
Overheard at E3: Gamer 1: So what do you think of Wii? Gamer 2: I like it but I want to like it more. This short snippet captures a sentiment that we're hearing more than just once on the show floor. There's a sense that people who are really rooting for Nintendo want to believe that this is the promised breakthrough that gamers have felt is necessary. In other words, we buy the argument that gaming must be kept fresh, but we may not be buying Nintendo's freshmaker. Joystiq reader and contributor Darth Pixel (5 stars) concurred in his response to our post on Madden for Wii. He wrote, "You see, the gaming world is so desperate and sick of the direction gaming has taken during the past few years that every gamer and their dog hang onto any glimpse of a possibility of something different and new." [Image source: Nintendo press kit explaining proper logo use for Wii.]
Limited-edition t-shirt for readers at E3
Peter got one (it'll show off those tattooed pipes right nicely). Now you can get one too, if you stop by the AOL booth at E3's West Hall today between 11 AM PDT and 12 PM PDT. We will only be handing these shirts out for one hour or until supplies last (whichever is shorter). Please keep this our little secret, as we want this to be a reward for Joystiq readers, not any old random schwag hunter.
Tip: keeping up with Joystiq's E3 coverage [update 1]
The Joystiq team is writing nearly 100 posts per day during this crazy thing they call E3, so here are a couple tips that will help you enjoy all of the content that we're posting. First, be sure to click the "next page >" link that appears at the very bottom of the Joystiq home page. With such high post volume, our homepage includes 15 brand new posts every four hours. That means that you've got to check out pages 1 through 6 if you want to see every item we've posted in a single day. Second, don't forget that we've created a special E3 2006 homepage (e3-2006.joystiq.com) containing all of our E3 content. Finally, don't forget that you can subscribe to RSS feeds for any of our categories. For instance, if you're just interested in Nintendo Wii news, you can find an XML feed for it at joystiq.com/feeds. [Update 1: fixed broken link in second bullet point.]
Joystiq checks out prototype XPS desktop
Question: How can you tell that a Dell XPS desktop is still in the prototype phase? Answer: You'd be willing to put it in plain-sight on top of your desk. Excessive paint jobs aside, there isn't a gamer alive who doesn't get a little excited when reading an XPS spec sheet featuring such terms as "Quad-SLI," "4.xxGHz," and "free 30-inch display," so we're sure there will be some interest in this backroom shot that Joystiq captured of an XPS work-in-progress. As you can tell by the photo, the protoype that Dell was seeking feedback on is nowhere near ready to be adorned with a $10,000 price tag, and the journalists on hand got absolutely nothing from the suits in terms of specs or features. Still, we are able to speculate that the open grating in the front will lead to better airflow -- and thus cooler components -- which a good sign for whatever insanely overclocked processor gets stuffed inside.[Thanks, Einhanderkiller]
Xbox Live Marketplace brings home HD E3 trailers and demos [Halo 3 update 2]
Ok so thats basically direct marketing speak from Microsoft. But it's true. This week Xbox 360 owners have been able to download trailers and demos of some of the same games that they will be showing in LA. Yesterday I was able to download the demo for Test Drive Unlimited (which is not so unlimited, the demo has a 15 minute timer boooo!) and Lost Planet, as well as the trailers for a lot of other games, movies and apparently there will also be video straight from the E3 floor. If you don't have a 360, you can also get a hold of the high definition trailers from Xboxyde. To find out exactly what and when things are available, check out the Marketplace section of MajorNelson's website.We'll get back to you after Microsoft's pre-E3 showcase, in the meantime, check out live coverage at Joystiq.Today's XBLM releases:Game Trailers:Call Of DutyCuldcept SAGAHitman: Blood MoneyLost Planet Extreme Condition Marvel: Ultimate AllianceNBA 2K7Rockstar Games Presents Table Tennis Tony Hawk's Project 8Demo:Lost PlanetAs just announced during Microsoft's presentation THE HALO 3 TRAILER IS AVAILABLE FOR DOWNLOAD ON XBOX LIVE. That is all. Also available on bungie.net.
Microsoft "explains" the Xbox 360 HD DVD add-on
Microsoft has been so nice as to post some information about their upcoming add-on for the Xbox 360, and HD DVD in general. While my take isn't quite as harsh as our good friend Henning's, I think it can be pretty well summed up as heavily skewed marketing-speak that glosses over any shortcomings of their product while highlighting and detracting possible weaknesses of the competition, not at all giving a fair comparison or unbiased information.That was a mouthful, well, once you get through the BS (get your waders, the hip-deep ones), you'll notice that they don't specifically mention how the add-on will deal with HDCP, only that it will "connect to the Xbox 360 console with a USB cable, enabling it to harness the power of the Xbox 360 console for the HD video outputs and digital surround sound.". Does that mean analog only, and facing the prospect of downconversion on ICT-flagged discs? We can't say for sure and we also can't tell you what it looks like because it hasn't been shown, hopefully we'll know more after their event tomorrow afternoon.Check out Joystiq's live coverage for more E3 information.[Thanks to all who sent this in]
Joystiq's E3 everything page
We're pleased to announce the availability of our E3 2006 page: e3-2006.joystiq.com Our team of bloggers will be posting all E3 content to e3-2006.joystiq.com, providing readers with a one-stop page for keeping up with all of the latest news, views, opinions and gaming goodness from across the Joystiq network. In addition to a sizable Joystiq team, we've shipped in a gaggle of bloggers from NintendoWiiFanboy, Xbox360Fanboy, DSFanboy, PS3Fanboy too. All of their content will also appear on this page. [Image credit: Scott Johnson, creator of game comic ExtraLife.]
E3: What lies beyond WoW?
We'll be making an appearance at E3 next week, and we hope to find more about the future of WoW there. However, for anyone interested in life beyond Azeroth, there's a whole host of other MMORPGs currently in development -- from Hello Kitty to post-apocalyptic sci-fi -- and our mothership Joystiq's taken a look at them all.Whether any of these games will prove a WoW-killer is debatable. Would you give up your level 60 epic-clad character to try out a new MMO? If not, have some comfort in the fact that several of these games will be free to play -- either permanently, or they'll use in-game currency sales as revenue -- so you might be able to keep up two at once.
Let the E3 bloopers begin! Press list exposed.
As part of the E3 registration process for press, would-be attendees are given the choice of receiving announcements about the show from vendors and other exhibitors. All press registrants who answer "yes" to this question are added to a massive list that was -- until today -- a secret. What happened? It seems that one Morten Iverson "ZEO & Creative Manager" for Copenhagen-based ZeitGuyz Game Developers, emailed all of us "journalists" with an offer to see a new game concept developed by his company. He forgot to use the "BCC" field, though, and in the process exposed the entire list to its recipients. Oops. Concept shmoncept! We were more interested in the list of folks who had registered as press. As you may be as well. Here's that list, stripped down to just the domain name of the outlets who will be covering E3. As the diversity here indicates, E3 is going to be a regular media circus! Remember, this is only a partial list, as some portion of registrants have opted out of being on it. Click "continue" for the list.
Revolution support list
Over at Joystiq, blogger Ross Miller strives to keep you updated on all the pertinent information regarding official third-party support for the Revolution. Ross, not one to half-ass it, goes on to explain the respective company's ties with the Nintendo of old and summarizes all that is currently known regarding the project. It's really a worthwhile read and a trusty bookmark as it will be updated with new information as it surfaces.
