joystiq
Latest
Insider Roundup: April 9-23
Guiding us through Noblegarden, a minor patch, and several food-for-thought questions, WoW Insider is a shining light: The Nostromo n52 Speedpad was listed by several readers as an essential WoW tool, so we're putting it to the test. more» Blizzard has opted to bring the public test realm online for a round of testing for patch 1.10.2. more» ... doesn't it break down the immersiveness of an alternate reality when you see someone who looks suspiciously like Santa Claus sitting in the middle of Ironforge? more» ...Blizzard has announced that the Mac version of WoW will indeed continue to recieve native support. more» ...My first character was, maybe predictably, a Night Elf. I chose a Druid because shape-shifting sounded unbelievably cool... more»
Joystiq t-shirt contest deadline reminder!
The deadline for submissions for the Joystiq t-shirt contest is only about 54 hours away. For full contest rules and details, click the "read" link, below. If you have questions about the rules, please drop a comment on the main rules post. The image above comes from Joel Cuthriell's entry to the contest. Nice work, Joel!
Announcing PS3 Fanboy... en garde!
Sure, we're supposed to love the Xbox 360, with its sexy inhale design, smooth white plastic, curvy wireless controller... droooool...Where was I? Oh yeah, introducing the newest member of Joystiq's dysfunctional Fanboy family: PS3 Fanboy! Since I have a flair for hyperbole, I'll extend the family metaphor far past its usefulness by comparing the PS3 to a younger sibling. Sure, the Xbox 360 console has been around for near six months already, but lets not jump to criticize our younger brother, the PS3. After all, it's young and still not sure how to behave. But we understand, it's hard to define yourself and make your own path with a cool older sibling around so they: act out (boomerang controller); dress funny (George Foreman grill); and even crib our style (Network Platform), but it's cool. Why? 'Cause they're family.
Welcome, one and all, to PS3 Fanboy!
Whether you're here because you saw the related post on Joystiq Central or because a link was flashed elsewhere online, we wish to warmly welcome you to PS3 Fanboy, the site that loves Sony's next console with all its heart (even if it ends up with that batarang prototype as a controller).For a few more details on the wild 'n' crazy guys responsible for bringing this site to you, check out our unofficial welcome post with its shameless bios and boastful claims.We couldn't be happier to join the Joystiq family of fanboy blogs (especially our dearest brother Gizmondo Fanboy), and we certainly hope you enjoy your stay here. Just six weeks till the E3 overload... are you all ready yet?
Unreal Engine 3 MIA on Revolution?
Epic Games' Mark Rein, in a Q & A session attended by Joystiq Blogger Christopher Grant during the recent GDC, said that we probably "won't be seeing Unreal Engine 3 on the Revolution." Mark implied that the Unreal Engine 2 would be more than sufficient for anything the platform may demand and had yet to be informed on what the final specs for the console would be. Mark's comments were more towards down-scaling HD projects, such as the upcoming Gears of War, for the console and cited that it would not be very cost effective. We assume that titles will eventually utilize the Unreal Engine 3 on the console, however upcoming titles created specifically with HD resolutions in mind are more than likely not going to see an incarnation on Nintendo's system.
VOOM HD creates new channel exclusively for gamers
The reborn Voom HD has launched a channel specifically for gamers, "GamePlay HD". The channel actually started broadcasting on February 1st, with some content from their new partner CNET (& GameSpot). They also plan to provide coverage of tournaments like the Blizzard Worldwide Invitational Tournament in Seoul and the Guild Wars Championship, both in April. Two GameSpot produced news segments, GameSpotting and The Art of Play, are also part of the scheduled programming.GamePlay HD can be found on DISH channel 9485, any HD Beat readers check it out yet?
DS Phat: old school mod
Kotomi, the gentleman responsible for the NEStation, took his craft for modding and applied it to his DS Phat recently, turning it into a homage to the big N's first console. Applying the simplistic design of the NES to his DS, Kotami has created a functioning piece of nostalgia that brings a tear to this blogger's eye. Coloring the A and B buttons was the icing on the cake. [Via Joystiq]
Playstation 3: Coming to North America (and the world) in 2006
Check out Joystiq's continuing updates of Sony's Playstation Conference for more information, but lets get down the key facts: Worldwide (Asia, Europe, North America) launch in early November 1 million units shipped every month, total of 6 million shipped by the end of 2006 100% backwards compatible with existing PS1 & PS2 titles, will upconvert to HD resolutions Latest HDMI connectors (1.3?) 60GB HDD "required", supports Linux, acts as a media server All PS3 games will ship on Blu-ray discs to prevent piracy PS3 online service will feature matchmaking, downloads; free "basic" service Developers will get final kits in June PS3 is "4D" The conference is over, no games, no price announced Well there we have it, more hardware details, and still so many questions. But at least it is launching in 2006, I don't know if we could survive another Christmas without "true" high definition. One thing is for sure, just when it looked like Sony might be slipping, they have come back with a big plan for continued worldwide dominance. Anyone want to place odds on if they can pull it off?
HDTV Game of the Week: Fight Night Round 3
This is a game I've been waiting for since the impressive demo Sony used to advertise their PS3 at E3 last year, and EA's Fight Night Round 3 has not failed to impress. Every bone cracking punch, every drop of sweat and blood, almost every boxer you could ever want to fight is ready in glistening 720p. If you were waiting for the "next generation" feeling to hit you, put your gloves on and find your mouthguard because it is here.
Major Nelson asks what's best for gaming? 720p, 1080i or 1080p
On this edition of Major Nelson's weekly podcast he has a special guest, Tyler the HDTV expert. Among the things they discussed were what HD means, a few of the reasons Microsoft chose HD-DVD to support, why the Olympic broadcast isn't the best it could be, and the many different formats of HD. It's a pretty long conversation that I'll try to summarize here, but I suggest you give it a listen to get all the details on why 720p may be better for gaming than 1080i or even 1080p (which the PS3 will apparently have and the Xbox 360 doesn't).We will leave the breakdown of spatial and temporal resolution to Tyler, but there are several elements here to consider.
Joystiq interview: Hoyt Ma, The9
Online gaming is so popular in China, the country has more than 100 online game operators. One of the most successful is Shanghai-based The9, which focuses primarily on MMORPGs. In 2003, they launched MU Online, which attracted over 15 million subscribers within two years.The9 is also in charge of running Blizzard's international hit World of Warcraft (WoW) for Chinese gamers--who account for more than half of the game's 5.5 million worldwide customers. On a recent visit to Shanghai, Alan Rose from Joystiq had a chance to meet with Hoyt Ma, The9's Senior Marketing Manager for WoW. We talked about his job and the growing popularity of gaming in China.
Playstation 3 hands-on....is 1080p gaming in the cards?
Gaming site Kikizo claim to have gotten some seat time with a PS3 development kit running on near final hardware and have found out some very nice tidbits of information from three separate (unnamed) developers.Among other things, they note that the hardware designs we've seen will likely change before launch, native 1080p games with full effects are unlikely, and that launch games are being designed with a 10x DVD drive in mind. There is also much praise for Sony's machine, with developers noting that it will probably be capable of handling more effects and geometry than the Xbox 360. These statements aren't surprising, 720p will likely be the sweet spot for gaming this generation, anything more than that increases memory needs to an almost impossible level, but the PS3 should be able to scale to match whatever your TV accepts just like the 360.Also worth noting is that the developers they spoke to are targeting a fall launch as most likely. Other recent PS3 news from Joystiq has suggested the 2x Blu-ray drive it is most likely to feature will be the same speed as a 12x DVD player. If developers actually do make a 20GB game we could be looking at loading screens for quite a while. The development kit Kikizo looked at had no Blu-ray drive so they couldn't test those capabilities at all.[Via Evil Avatar forums]
How one game changed 2005
No prizes for guessing which game the title of this post refers to; this is WoW Insider, after all. Online magazine The Escapist has a piece up charting the tremendous effect World of Warcraft has had on massively multiplayer gaming, and how WoW has changed the MMO landscape forever. WoW has realised many visions as well as plotting its own course in the MMO space, but will it stand up to the onslaught of competing titles that think they now have what it takes to hit the mainstream? We hope it will; the Burning Crusade expansion is a good start, and we can't wait to see what other cool stuff Blizzard has in store this year![via Joystiq]
