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Mikami explains why Vanquish is single-player only
During the recent Vanquish media unveiling in Tokyo, creator Shinji Mikami outed the action-shooter game's lack of multiplayer functionality. "That's the main reason we're keeping Vanquish as a single-player experience -- to deliver the level of impact, the level of detail and the visuals we want to offer," Mikami offered at the press event, reports Eurogamer. Apparently, due to the fact that the single-player game is "very intense" and "full of action," a multiplayer compo nent would require "shaving a lot of things off" in order to make them work. It would seem that Mikami's more interested in Vanquish's main campaign impressing than the title having legs, though he would argue that a tacked-on multiplayer does little in the interest of serving gamers. "It kind of boils down to whether you have the multiplayer but you don't have that much impact, and end up being like everyone else ... or even below par." Yep, we're just as shocked and appreciative of his refreshing honesty as you are. %Gallery-87352%
MadWorld for an insanely low $10
Look, we don't like giving out ultimatums here; people are free to do what they want and we wouldn't dare dream of interfering. But we feel like we just can't go on if you don't own a copy of Platinum Games' MadWorld -- or have at least played it -- at this point in time. So, we'd like to point out this sale over at Newegg. The game will only set you back a double sawbuck ($10) and even has free shipping -- there's really no excuse for you to refuse our request. Fine, you don't even have to play it. Just give it to a friend and hang out while they enjoy the over-the-top carnage and hilarious commentating duo of Greg Proops and John Di Maggio. Relationships are give and take, so work with us here, guys! [Via Cheap College Gamers]
First screens of Platinum's Vanquish aren't doing it for us
It's not that the first screens from Shinji MIkami and Platinum Games' Vanquish look bad necessarily -- far from it. It's just that ... well, they look a little common, don't they? We've flipped through that gallery below a few times but couldn't find an image that got us even a little more excited for the futuristic shooter than we were yesterday. It wouldn't be so bad if that first trailer for the game hadn't seemed like such a breath of fresh air. Oh well, these are just a few still images. Let's withhold judgment until we see it in action, hmm? %Gallery-87352%
Shinji Mikami's Vanquish headed to 360, PS3; 'Winter 2010' release worldwide
As listed in the most recent issue of Famitsu (and translated by Andriasang), Platinum Games' fourth effort for Sega, Vanquish, is headed to the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 this winter. The game's director, the acclaimed Shinji Mikami, spoke with the Japanese mag recently about how the game is taking shape. Apparently, Atsushi Inaba (ex-CEO of Clover Studios) will be serving as producer on what Mikami calls a "shooter that places importance on the good tempo and feeling of rhythm you get from playing an action game." The game's said to be set in a near future where US/Russian Cold War relations have resulted in a standoff. "There are lots of games where you shoot and kill people, so this time we wanted to try and see how we could convey the good feeling of shooting robots." Truer words, Mr. Mikami. Truer words. Allegedly the game is around 80 percent done at this point, with only "annoying" work left to be done -- Mikami's not a fan of enemy and ally AI development, it seems. Will we see Vanquish on North American shores this winter as well? We're not sure yet, but with the game "developed with overseas markets in its sights," we have to imagine Platinum Games would like its latest title to land in our trigger-happy hands as soon as possible.
Infinite Space lands on DS March 16
Ready to leave your boring home planet and take off on a grand, spacefaring adventure in your very own spaceship? Like, with a crew and everything? Sega has issued the North American release date for Platinum Games and Nude Maker's Infinite Space for DS. You'll be able to build onto your spaceship, engage in space battles and do other space things on March 16. There's a new trailer above -- not as far above as space, just at the top of this post. For some reason, every game from Platinum has been released in the first quarter of the year -- MadWorld in March 2009, Bayonetta in January 2010, and now Infinite Space in March. Will Vanquish debut in Q1 2011?
PlatinumGames' Infinite Space docking in Europe on March 26th
Infinite Space, the upcoming DS space RPG from Platinum Games, has gotten itself a European release date in the form of March 26th (or as you might call it in Bangladesh, "Independence Day"). Strangely, we still haven't heard an official US date yet -- the closest we've got is Spring 2010, which despite all of the snow you might be seeing lately, is approaching quite quickly. Assuming that the EU and US dates aren't too far off from each other, by the end of March you too might be saying, "I'm... in space!" just like the wince-worthy voice acting we've experienced so far.
Swag Sunday: Bayonetta (360) [update]
Update: The comments have been closed and a winner has been chosen! Check your commenter email inbox, folks -- it could be you (it could also be that dude right next to you, though). Look, alright, we'll level with you -- we've got a short supply of schweet schwag hanging around Joystiq Prizeland as of late. That should at least partially help to explain last week's absence of a contest. We also kind of felt like you might've been overloaded with games during our holiday giveaways at the end of 2009. What's that? No, you say? Well we suppose that the first few months of 2010 are unusually flush with quality content, so giving away a bit couldn't hurt, right? We certainly hope a nine foot tall bullet witch will do it for you, because that's what we've got. One lucky winner (chosen at random) takes home Bayonetta on Xbox 360, chosen from the comments below (please leave one and only one) that are left in the next 24 hours. You tell us what you think is the most annoying song you've ever heard used in marketing a game and you may very well win yourself a vidjagame. How about that?! Leave a comment telling us what you think is the most annoying song you've ever heard used in marketing a game. You must be 18 years or older and a resident of the US or Canada (excluding Quebec, due in part to our aversion to snowy owls). Limit 1 entry per person per day. This entry period ends at 11:31AM ET on Monday, February 8. At that time, we'll randomly select one winner to receive one copy of Bayonetta for Xbox 360 ($59.99 ARV). For a list of complete rules, click here. %Gallery-22955% What is Joyswag? Since we don't keep the games and merchandise we receive for review or promotional purposes, it becomes "Joyswag," which is passed along to our readers. Please note that Joyswag may be in "used" condition. For more info on our policy, click here.
Bayonetta moves 1.1m units in Sega fiscal Q3 2010 results
After surviving harrowing losses of ¥22.8 billion (nearly $254.8 million) during its fiscal year 2009, Sega Sammy Holdings (parent company to Sega, which you've probably sussed out) has managed to revive its faltering bottom line. According to the company's latest financial report, Sega Sammy brought in a net income of ¥16.9 billion ($189.5 million) during the first nine months of its fiscal 2010 (April–December 2009). This income came in spite of the fact that Sega's total game sales had dropped 13 percent from the same 9-month period the previous fiscal year -- however, thanks to the company's massive restructuring last February, operating income skyrocketed to ¥28.8 billion (about $323 million), which more than softened the blow. The company's highest-selling title was, alarmingly, Mario and Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games, with 5.6 million units sold (and probably counting). Bayonetta, which was only available in Japan (released October 29) during the period covered by the report, came in a distant second with 1.1 million units sold. It looks like the company's managed to recover from an extremely painful fiscal 2009 -- at a cost.
Platinum Games' fourth game is Vanquish
On this evening's "World Exclusive" laden episode of GameTrailers TV, host Geoff Keighley unveiled the latest game from Japanese development all-star team Platinum Games, a futuristic shooter named Vanquish. From the bit of trailer we saw in tonight's show, the game is set on US soil sometime in the future. Also, hey, there are some mechs -- it's from Japan, right? We've got the whole thing embedded after the break, should you be so inclined. As noted earlier this week, the upcoming game comes from Resident Evil designer Shinji Mikami and marks the fourth title from the development studio -- the last of a four game deal with Sega inked back in 2008. Though we've got tonight's game announce still fresh on our brain box, we have to wonder what this means in terms of a publisher for upcoming games from all those other famous developers sitting around Platinum Games HQ, wondering what to do next. Okay, okay, they're probably not just sitting around. But still! No consoles were named or release windows given -- heck, the whole trailer was live-action -- but we have to imagine that kind of info isn't too far off.
Bayonetta PS3 patch available worldwide today
If you've been playing Bayonetta on PS3, there's a chance you've been making sandwiches just as often as you've been vanquishing virtual angels. We admire your productivity during the loading screens, but perhaps it's time to accept the aid of Sega and Platinum Games. The developer has confirmed the worldwide availability of a title update that allows the game to be installed to the hard drive. All you have to do is boot up your game and you'll be prompted to download the update. Of course, you've also been known to make sandwiches during installations, so ... well, they must be really delicious at this point. That's a win, no matter what.
Bayonetta PS3 patch adds hard drive installation option
Sega of Japan announced that it will release an update for the PS3 version of Bayonetta tomorrow, which adds an "Install" item to the game's main menu. The patch, first tentatively announced in November, is intended to cut down the long load times that have perturbed Bayonetta's PS3 players. The update doesn't mean the PS3 game will have achieved total parity with the Xbox 360 version -- visual discrepancies, like frame rate issues, will still persist -- but at least Sega has now taken one step towards improving the experience on PS3. The Bayonetta update has only been confirmed for Japan, but its release just happens to fall on this Thursday, when the PlayStation Store updates worldwide, so we wouldn't be shocked to see it arrive everywhere tomorrow. [Thanks, Copland]
Platinum Games' fourth game to be announced on this week's GTTV
Here were are again, folks, for another edition of "Turn a Tweet Into a Full Post." This time we've got word from the always exciting Twitter feed of Geoff Keighley that this week's episode of GameTrailers TV will reveal the fourth game from Japanese developer Platinum Games. So far, after inking a publishing deal with Sega in 2008 for four games, all we've heard of the mysterious fourth title is that it will be headed up by Resident Evil designer Shinji Mikami. Considering the somewhat confusing wording of Keighley's tweet, we asked the man himself to clarify what we're going to see on Thursday evening. "It's an exclusive reveal trailer for the game inside the show this week. The news breaks during GTTV on Thursday night. We're really excited to have the Japanese developers/publishers working with us on reveals like this." He also pointed out that this countdown on Platinum Games' Japanese website has been counting down towards Thursday's reveal -- aha! For all the steaming hot scoops, you'll have to peep the show when it airs this Thursday evening/Friday morning at 12:30AM ET.
Kamiya keen on returning to Bayonetta, considering spin-off
Speaking to Game Informer, Platinum Games' Hideki Kamiya discussed the possibility of a sequel to Bayonetta. Kamiya noted that the Bayonetta team has "love" for the game, saying, "I don't see anything wrong with Bayonetta 2." (If you're reading this, Mr. Kamiya, neither do we.) He elaborated that he'd like to approach a sequel "from a different angle, in the form of a spin-off." Game Informer goes on to speculate that a sequel could star Bayonetta's rival, Jeanne. Honestly, we don't care who stars in the sequel. As long as the action is just as solid as it is in the first game, it really doesn't matter. As long as someone is kicking ass in a stylish, intuitive way, we're sold.
UK charts: Just Dance on Modern Warfare 2's grave
For nine straight weeks, the UK's gamer populace has been mesmerized by the siren's song of Modern Warfare 2. Today, that's all changed, with the latest Chart-Track data showing a new entry usurping Modern Warfare 2's top spot: Just Dance. Ubisoft's quirky dance title for the Wii has enjoyed a level of success there we would never have thought possible. Can its performance be attributed to good advertising or simply the United Kingdom's unrestrained love of Kevin Bacon? And MW2 wasn't even in the second spot, either. Wii Fit Plus managed to grab the silver, while Infinity Ward's shooter was bumped down to a respectable bronze. Newcomers Bayonetta and Darksiders also managed to stay on the list, along with Ubisoft's Assassin's Creed 2, which stealthily secured the tenth spot.
MadWorld director 'definitely' interested in doing a sequel
Platinum Games' Shigenori Nishikawa, the director on MadWorld for the Wii, has told Official Nintendo Magazine that he wouldn't mind taking a second crack at the violent Wii game. "I think MadWorld was very well received and was acknowledged for its innovative graphical style and gameplay," Nishikawa said in Friday's upcoming issue. "We would definitely be interested in making a sequel in the future." Of course, you might have a tough time believing that Sega would also be on board. The company has said it would probably not be interested in more mature Wii games, which means Platinum Games would have to shop around for a new publisher first. Psst, we may know a publisher that isn't afraid to put out unique, mature games on the Wii.
Infinite Space trailer has voice acting
The latest trailer for Platinum Games's latest, Infinite Space, features some brief clips of the shipbuilding and space combat elements of the RPG's gameplay. It also features voice acting. Yes, those are human voices speaking lines of dialogue from the game. We don't want to make any judgments about the quality of the voice acting, but we can confirm that it is, in fact, voice acting. On an unrelated topic, we'd like to talk about the Nintendo DS's volume slider (and the DSi's rocker switch). Isn't it great how the volume can go all the way down? Why, with the volume minimized, you could enjoy all kinds of interesting games, even if there's some kind of audio issue!
Anything Bayonetta can do, Mega64 does better
We were unbelievers at the beginning of this new Bayonetta ad (after the break), in which Mega64's Rocco Botte insisted that he could emulate -- nay -- top any of the titular action star's moves. But he's definitely shooting bullets with his feet and he promises repeatedly that his hair is a demon, so now whose face has got egg on it? That's right: Ours. ... Hey, he wouldn't lie about his hair being a demon, would he? No, of course not. Who would lie about that? We're probably just being paranoid.
Review: Bayonetta
digg_url = 'http://www.joystiq.com/2010/01/07/review-bayonetta/'; The first thing you should know about Bayonetta is that the story is entirely unimportant. It makes no sense. At all. Period. There's something about two warring clans, one of witches and one of sages (Light vs. Dark -- yada yada yada). There's a "journalist" who inexplicably carries a grappling hook; an ancient god that's being resurrected; and, at one point, there's even a dance-off. Now, forget about all of that. You'll be skipping through it on your second playthrough anyway. And that's really the point. If you like action games in the vein of Devil May Cry or Ninja Gaiden, you'll probably start your second playthrough of Bayonetta exactly when I did: immediately after the first. %Gallery-22955%
Metareview: Bayonetta
We may still have a few more weeks before the hair-based weapon wielding Bayonetta arrives on US shores, but that doesn't mean that reviewers haven't gotten their hands on the region-free, fully translated PlayStation 3 Japanese release (and the lucky folks at Official Xbox Magazine seem to have secured an extra early Xbox 360 review copy). Regardless of the downright silly nature of the game's story and characters, Bayonetta has thus far received universal acclaim from the critics. Here's what some had to say. Edge (100/100): "A beautiful and graceful fighting game that lets imagination loose, and winks before slapping Dante, Kratos and every other hero back to the drawing board." Eurogamer (9/10): "It's in combat that Bayonetta's splendour is fully revealed ... a blast of creative brilliance, both technically accomplished, strategically deep and infused with rare imagination, Bayonetta represents the pinnacle of its chosen niche." Official Xbox Magazine (90/100): "Every one of these dazzling battles is thrilling without overstaying its welcome - and also challenges you without being cheap" Play.tm (95%): "Bayonetta could - and should - breathe fresh life into the ailing Japanese action genre ... an unrivalled showcase of imagination and creativity." Source 1 - Metacritic PS3 Source 2 - Metacritic Xbox 360 %Gallery-22955%
Bayonetta trailer invents unsettling new term: 'hair moves'
Thus far, Bayonetta has exposed us to a litany of disturbing oddities. First we were exposed to the expression "non-stop climax action." Then came the uncomfortable revelation of Bayonetta's "sexy" dancing. And now, we must forever live with the term "hair moves." As the ancient Egyptians figured out long ago, hair is gross. Short of the occasional Rita Hayworth hair toss, hair really shouldn't be moving at all. And it certainly shouldn't be transforming into giant boots, fists or demons. Alas, this is the proposition you face should you desire to play Bayonetta. You've been warned.
