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Lost Planet and Dead Rising haven't broken 100K in Japan
This info is definitely not lost in translation with the universal language of numbers. According to Capcom's own sales records (chart after the break), neither Lost Planet nor Dead Rising broke 100K units sold in Japan. This isn't really the most shocking of news given the sales of the Xbox 360 in Japan, but it does show the game resonated with North American and European audiences more. Despite tepid sales in Japan, both titles sold outside the Land of the Rising Sun to the tune of 1.4 million copies each, signs of Capcom's growing global focus. Now, before you go pointing at cultural differences -- highlighted by Monster Hunter Freedom 2 for the PSP selling 1.2 million units, while the PS2 versions of RE4 also couldn't break 100K -- here's some fun info: Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas, which was published by Capcom in Japan, sold 430K units. So, frozen tundras don't resonate with Japanese gamers, neither does a mall full of zombies, but playing a gang-banger bent on ghetto domination sells 200% more than Dead Rising and Lost Planet combined. Ah, good times.
Lost Planet Auto-Update Details
Yesterday, Lost Planet: Extreme Condition got a multiplayer auto update. The first thing it did was add some features, such as seeing a player's national flag in the lobby, pre-game and post-game results. It also shows who's talking in-game and in the lobby with a ")))" to the left of their gamertag in team-based games. Finally, in the lobby, your connection strength to a player is signified by a "!", and the brighter it is, the better your connection. The other set of fixes were to bugs found in the game, due to lag, as well as a few exploits. For full details on what to expect next time you log on, click the "Read" link. So do the fixes to the gameplay make you want to put some more time into Lost Planet's multiplayer?Oh, and one more thing...Brian Dunn says that the downloadable maps should be available March 9th or in close to that date.[Thanks, AoE]
Live top ten: Agency Ascension
Last week, we had 4 demos on the Xbox Live Activity top ten. This week, we only have one on the list. Gears of War and Rainbow Six: Vegas continue to hold their respective top two spots. Crackdown comes in strong taking third place, pushing Call of Duty 3 down a notch. The Crackdown demo holds its middle of the pack position, even after its retail counterpart has been released. Madden and Lost Planet continue to follow behind, while Oblivion moves up a spot. Pro Evolution Soccer 6 comes in ninth and Saints Row makes a return to the list at tenth. We've got a list ready for you after the break with the title's standings last week in brackets for those statistic hungry types.
Screens of new Lost Planet maps
As you may have noticed from the previously reported video, Capcom is releasing new content over Xbox Live Marketplace for Lost Planet: Extreme Condition. It will come in the form of two new maps named "Island 902" and "Radar Field", and will be priced at slightly expensive 400 Microsoft Points. That's an Arcade title right there! Well, none the less, the screens look pretty, so its not all bad. Still, two maps for 400 points seems a little sketchy. Is that a little too pricey for you, or given how Ubisoft has been acting lately, is it par for the course? More screens after the break.
Lost Planet producer: "western developers are leading the industry"
Capcom marketing specialist Brain Dunn has posted an "exclusive" interview with co-worker Keiji Inafune, Mega Man creator and one of Lost Planet's executive producers. While we shouldn't overlook Dunn's access to Inafune as a potentially convenient PR moment, the conversation is not without its honest details. Within, Inafune offers his insight into Capcom's resistance to expanding its content for a worldwide audience, revealing managements' initial rejection of the Lost Planet and Dead Rising concepts. "Actually for a while there we were practically on the verge of having the projects cancelled," Inafune told Dunn. Having convinced Capcom to invest in these properties -- both now commercially successful -- Inafune believes the company is entering a new era; in the same line as past milestones Street Fighter II and Resident Evil. "I think Dead Rising and Lost Planet have helped established Capcom not just as a Japanese developer, but as a developer that is on par with, and that can compete with, the top developers in the US," offered Inafune; important because the producer believes "western developers are leading the industry, with Japanese developers falling behind." Inafune suggests that Japanese companies need to improve working environments, imagining that western developers aren't nearly as over-worked or underpaid as their Japanese counterparts. He muses that by coupling an American "quality of life" with Japanese "diligence" (and selflessness) Japan can turn things around -- with some risk-taking too. "There are more titles like [Lost Planet] in store for fans: risky, challenging games, with a lot riding on them," promised Inafune.
IGN reviews Lost Planet
IGN got their chilly little mitts on Capcom's Lost Planet and came away feeling pretty satisfied. In IGN's review they felt Lost Planet's graphics were on par with what was expected (especially the billowy smoke) and they loved the variety of enemies, but a few things missed their radar of perfection. Negatives included controls that were sometimes awkward or loose, average audio, and the storyline not making much sense. Multiplayer was implemented well, but still suffers from the same awkward controls found in the campaign. In the end IGN gave Lost Planet a respectable 8.5 out of 10 making it a pretty darn good game. Also, be sure to check out their video review if you have something against reading ... but then why would you be reading this blog?
UK and AU: Win a free copy of Lost Planet
PALGN and Capcom have partnered up to give away ten copies of their snow-gem Lost Planet in a contest starting December 25th and running through January 25th. To have a chance at winning all you have to do is answer the question "If you were going to be stuck by yourself on a planet for ever what would you take and why?" in 25 words or less and submit it here. Please note that they are only giving away ten copies of the PAL version of Lost Planet even though the contest is open to anyone worldwide. So, North American fanboys can still enter, but no guarantee you'll be able to play your winnings on your NTSC console. Good luck and remember to thank us when you win![Via, Xbox 360 QJ]
Could Lost Planet come to PS3?
Speaking to 1UP, Lost Planet co-producer Jun Takeuchi (alongside Keiji Inafune) admitted that the sci-fi shooter might eventually come to the PlayStation 3. "We will try to keep it as a 360 exclusive," he said, "but, from the company's point of view, when you think about the business, in the future it's something [port the game to PS3] we might have to do." The Xbox 360's performance is rather abysmal in Japan, but we can safely say that the Microsoft's box has always been one of the top 10 best-selling game consoles in the Land of the Rising Sun. Needless to say, for Capcom to reach the largest possible audience with its IP, they might have to port it to the PS3. It all depends on Sony's success, and it wouldn't come out for some time after Lost Planet hits the Xbox 360. Capcom has ported successful IPs before. At one time, Resident Evil 4 was a GameCube exclusive, but was later ported onto the PlayStation 2 following critical acclaim. See Also:Behold! Lost Planet multiplayer footage!
Xbox 360 impressions: Lost Planet: Extreme Condition
Capcom's third-person Xbox 360 shooter shares many qualities with the brilliant Resident Evil 4, most notably in its emphasis on survival. The planet you find yourself on is unbelievably harsh, with thick banks of snow, blizzards and freakish monsters attempting to foil your progress at every turn. That's why you're equipped with up to three big and satisfying guns (with more mysteriously littering the icy wastelands) and a suit that keeps you nice and warm. Unfortuately, the suit requires an orange substance called T-Eng to maintain your body temperature and it is continuously exhausted as you traipse about in the cold environment. It's awfully convenient then, that the vicious creatures so fond of attacking you release this substance upon their death. Kill to stay alive.
