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2007 E3 attendee list lookin' bleak
Remember those suffocating crowds and the completely non-game-related overload that eventually caused a restructuring at E3? If not, we certainly do, and you won't find us complaining about a more focused approach for 2007. Of course, toning down the antics inevitebly leads to less attendees, and such looks to be the case for the July convention in Santa Monica, CA. Reportedly, a paltry 32 companies are signed up to take part in this year's festivities (larger list after the jump), but big-timers such as Microsoft, Nintendo, Sony, Electronic Arts, and Square Enix (just to name a few) will still be making the hike. Still, going from some 400 exhibitors to less than 40 in a single year should make for a very different experience when July 11th rolls around, and considering that "only 3,000 to 4,000 invitations" will purportedly be sent out, getting a little hands-on time with an actual game will hopefully be less of a chore for the ones that get in.[Via ArsTechnica]
German police raiding CeBIT, wiping out infringing kiosks
Talk about a royal buzzkill. It seems like several demonstrators at CeBIT are having their parties cut way short by German officials, as local customs and police offers have "confiscated products from the stand of at least one exhibitor on suspicion the devices infringed on MPEG audio patents." Currently, the authorities wouldn't divulge exactly which companies are getting nailed for patent infringement, but they did insinuate that most of the products in question made issue with "a portfolio of patents" that primarily focused on "MP3 players, MPEG2-compliant set-top-boxes, DVB satellite receivers, PDAs, and computer sound boards." It was stated that Mele Digital Technology was "targeted" and could be facing the stiff arm of the law, and while we certainly feel for those affected by bogus patent filings, this certainly isn't the first time a company has been embarrassingly interrupted while plugging its product line at a major trade show. Note to vendors: it's probably not in your best interest to bring along products that contravene with an outstanding patent, capiche?
The Game Boy musical teaches addict a lesson
So long as there are fanboys roaming the streets (and electronics aisles), weird fetishes and unashamed overkill will still have their places, but it's not too often that a gaming addiction finds a home on Broadway. In The Game Boy, Matthew Gandolfo and Robin Rothstein's family-friendly musical, a well-taught lad dubbed Chase purportedly falls a bit too head over heels for his dear Game Boy, which presumably leads to all kinds of childhood development issues. According to the production notes, the kiddo is simply consumed in the pixelated universe, and strives to "always being the best," regardless of the real folks he ignores in the process. As predicted, this behavior eventually results in a life of loneliness and dread, probably forcing poor Chase to switch off the Nintendo handheld and seek out his long lost friends. Of course, his parents could have just shipped him over Amsterdam to remedy the issue, but if you're interested in seeing the outcome yourself, be sure to hit up the Vital Theater Company in New York City from now until April 22nd.
Quartet Project showcases robotic dance partner
Why bother Dancing with the Stars when you can bust a move with your very own trained robot? Sure, we've seen robots teaching humans and even robotic ballroom partners before, but the Quartet Project seeks to integrate robots into dance by using sensors to create a fairly intelligent and dynamic counterpart. Dubbed an "investigation into the kineasthetics of music," the live stage show melds dance, music, and a load of sensors into a new form of entertainment where the human dancer grooves to the music, only to be followed and "danced with" by a robot that senses its surroundings. Finally assembled after years of collaboration from experts in art, music, biomedicine, computational science, 3D animation, and motion control, the "mechanical and live elements" came together for a series of recent shows in the Great Hall at St. Bartholomew's Hospital. Unfortunately, we weren't there to witness the next metallic superstar showing its stuff, but we're fairly confident seeing a man-made terpsichorean breakin' a leg was a tad more exciting than listening to the Bacterial Orchestra.[Via MAKE]
Origami TV Remote Control redefines remote simplicity
Every so often, it pays to go completely and utterly against the grain, so while Logitech and friends are pumping out remote controls that could arguably be used in another life to launch space shuttles, the Origami TV Remote Control delivers just the basics for those who don't mix well with instruction manuals. The device, shown at the Work in Progress Show of Design Interactions in London, was designed for youngsters (and let's face it, adults too) who are downright intimidated with the smorgasbord of remotes used in most homes to "get the TV to work." This two-handed controller brings back fond memories of a paper-related game we all played in grade school, and is apparently used to dictate "only the essential functions" of a TV set such as channel selection and volume control. Designed by 1-week Electronics, the cordless remote reportedly relied on a sensor board and "Max/MSP" to get the signals across, and while we do appreciate the beautiful simplicity, the geek in us can't help but wonder what one of these bad boys in each hand could accomplish with a well-integrated DVR setup.[Via Uber-Review]
E for All Expo takes the reigns, stays in Los Angeles
Those of you so deeply saddened and hurt by E3's sudden departure can take heart, as there's a new trade show coming to town, and hopefully it'll be half as good as the tried-and-true Electronic Entertainment Expo of days past. Slated to open its doors to the public and adoring media on October 18th through the 20th, the Entertainment for All Expo sports a kinder, more inviting title, that apparently hopes to focus more on the general public rather than industry insiders and advertising giants. Clearly hoping to garner more attention by continually stating that "this show is for everyone," IDG World Expo also claims that we kiddos will be able to "test drive the latest in games and gadgetry" as well as purchase things we like right on site. So while it'll (probably) never live up the expo of old, we're still down with ginormous trade shows with too much to do in not nearly enough time, and hey, now you've already got something to look forward to in October.
SofaTube - Not a cylindrical couch
The defining use for the Wii Opera browser, is, of course, watching all the insanity of YouTube on your fancy-big TV. The site, however, is not quite conducive to the low-resolution viewing conditions found on the Wii, and is thus rather inconvenient to browse effectively.Enter: SofaTube. A website dedicated to the perusing of not only YouTube but also the Revver library of videos, using a convenient drag-and-drop interface and large text for easy reading. So sit back, relax, and enjoy that Opie and Anthony video one more time ... it's that easy.(That link involves some NSFW and rather gross comedy, though we can't seem to take our eyes off it. Click at your own risk.)[via Joystiq]
Toshiba's 55-inch SED TV to be a no-show at CES
If you had high hopes of seeing Toshiba's "soon-to-be-released" SED TV showcased at CES in just a few weeks, well, you can probably already read the writing on the wall. Unsurprisingly, the set has seemingly hit another snag on its journey to retail reality, as Toshiba has announced that "technical issues" will keep the 55-inch surface conduction electron emitter display from being present at the show. While another delay hasn't exactly been confirmed, in all likelihood there's yet another one behind the scenes, and it could be due to the tension between Canon (Toshiba's partner) and Nano-Proprietary. Reportedly, the two firms are in "closed-door settlement talks" over licensed technology to be used on SED TVs, and the matters at hand could be forcing Toshiba's hand to hold back at CES. Nevertheless, it's a shame we won't be getting up close and personal with the mystical display in just a few weeks, but Toshiba feels that the issue(s) should be "resolved soon," and insinuated that we'd see a demo here in the States before too long.
More Times Square silliness
As sort-of promised, we've got some more coverage for you. After meeting up with various head honchos of the geeky online blog community (Christopher Grant, Andrew Yoon, Raw Meat Cowboy from GoNintendo, Chris from Advanced Media Network, I'm talking to you), the "festivities" started. They opened with a rather lackluster performed by someone named "DJ Ravidrums", who was essentially a drummer playing along to some prerecorded music. Bah. But then ... wait! It's friggin' Reggie!This man should have received a deafening applause. Eardrum-destroying. And truth be told, it wasn't bad. But Nintendo made the mistake of setting up the stage on a side-street, in which there was no way anyone standing in line could watch. As such, the viewers of the event were curious bystanders and members of the media, such as myself. Can you imagine this sad scene?"Hey, guys, it's great to be here. You can fill in the blanks, right? My name is Reggie, and I'm about ...!"Only around nine or so people shouted the obvious answer, including myself. How horrible.Still, the speech he gave was decent, and the rest of the stage performance consisted of some TRL/Miss USA woman and more of that weird drumming guy. Exit, stage left.Where to now, we asked ourselves? Well, let's check out the Wii display upstairs and then HOLY CRAP it's Reggie again! Yes, the Regginator was giving yet another interview for a major station (don't ask, we don't know), and right afterward, a few well-informed fans ran up to him to get their DS Lites signed. He was busy, he was in a rush, but Nintendo Wii Fanboy was able to edge in one question! And here it is."Reggie. Honestly, and PR spin aside, do you truly believe that the Wii is going to take first place in sales in the next generation against the Playstation 3 and Xbox 360?"A slight pause. He turns to stare me down."Absolutely. There's no doubt in my mind. We're offering what gamers want, and they're going to love it."Hear that? It's the sound of oh snap.And by the way, that man's handshake is a vice of absolute death.
The Wii makes its way to the Today Show
In this minute-and-a-half clip from the Today Show, Weatherman Al Roker takes a turn at trying out Wii Sports: Tennis. The man very much has no idea what is going on as he swings wildly without any sense of timing, making us wonder if the press is even worth it. If Al Roker makes the thing look broken, doesn't that deter from the console's (and game's) appeal?As always, the video is embedded into the post past the break.
CBS green lights 'Genius Bar' TV show
Apple's Genius Bar will soon be able to add 'entertainment' to its list of things it does for people, as CBS has given two thumbs up for a show pilot titled Genius Bar. The show apparently follows the employees of a place similar to Apple's Genius Bar and their adventures with "the cool, hip and beautiful" employees of a nearby Ambercrombie & Fitch-like store.Excuse me while I gag.Ok, and.. we're back from the gagging break. What on earth are these people thinking? Granted, Apple is flying high right now, but hold the phone. If Apple wanted a show to pimp themselves and their products, they could have conjured (or had CBS conjure) anything cooler than this: a Matrix rip-off where all the white and candy blue code looks like AppleScript, and the Agent Smiths look more like clones of Bill Gates, or a CSI spin-off where all the lab machines are Xserves and Mac Pros, and all the camera work in the field is done with MacBooks and iSights. Knowing CBS, the hip but slightly-too-arrogant Johnny from the Kinda-Genius Bar will have to cancel his date with Electra from Kimbercrombie & Fitch because he has to fix Heath Ledger's iPod. Ugh. But who knows - maybe the saving grace of the show might be that its straight-from-radio pop soundtrack will be available from the iTunes Store.
TGS 2006 wrap-up: the Wii, videos, and you [update 1]
Now that the Tokyo Game Show has come to a close and you've been assaulted with numerous videos, we can all finally take a deep breath and carefully scrutinize all of this new data following the event. For Nintendo having no presence of their own at the show, the Wii was out in full-force. Before we get into what we liked and didn't like from the show, let's recap on what the show brought us, for both the DS and Wii: Dragon Quest Monsters: Joker in-game footage A new Bleach trailer A pretty sweet Elebits booth Kingdom Hearts creators unveil new DS game FFXII: Revenant Wings trailer and art Heroes of Mana animated trailer New Sonic and the Secret Rings trailer Best in Show: Elebits The TGS booth to rule them all New footage for Q? Entertainment's Gunpey It's a Wonderful World gets the preview treatment Lost in Blue 2 trailer More Final Fantasy remakes coming to the DS? So how did Nintendo do? The DS certainly rocked the house! Even though the DS was literally bombarded with nothing but RPGs, it still had a great show. A slew of new content will keep the already incredible platform from going stale. Those with an insatiable appetite for turn-based battles and potions will get their fix with Square-Enix's incredible lineup of RPG games to come. As for the Wii, it had a smaller presence through third-party publishers this year. Konami had the award-winning Elebits on-hand for eager attendees, as well as Sega tossing down the red carpet for their mascot with Sonic and the Secret Rings. Nintendo failing to make a unified presence themselves could've hurt their momentum going into launch, but we aren't worried. If we should be, then why?For all of Joystiq's Tokyo Game Show 2006 coverage, click here.[Update 1: Added in the interview with the Final Fantasy III developers.]
TGS 2006 wrap-up: the DS, videos, and you [update 1]
Now that the Tokyo Game Show has come to a close and you've been assaulted with numerous videos, we can all finally take a deep breath and carefully scrutinize all of this new data following the event. For Nintendo having no presence of their own at the show, the Wii was out in full-force. Before we get into what we liked and didn't like from the show, let's recap on what the show brought us, for both the DS and Wii: Dragon Quest Monsters: Joker in-game footage A new Bleach trailer A pretty sweet Elebits booth Kingdom Hearts creators unveil new DS game FFXII: Revenant Wings trailer and art Heroes of Mana animated trailer New Sonic and the Secret Rings trailer Best in Show: Elebits The TGS booth to rule them all New footage for Q? Entertainment's Gunpey It's a Wonderful World gets the preview treatment Lost in Blue 2 trailer More Final Fantasy remakes on the DS? So how did Nintendo do? As for the Wii, it had a smaller presence through third-party publishers this year. Konami had the award-winning Elebits on-hand for eager attendees, as well as Sega tossing down the red carpet for their mascot with Sonic and the Secret Rings. Nintendo failing to make a unified presence themselves could've hurt their momentum going into launch, but we aren't worried. If we should be, then why? We can't forget about the DS, either! Even though the DS was literally bombarded with nothing but RPGs, it still had a great show. A slew of new content will keep the already incredible platform from going stale. Those with an insatiable appetite for turn-based battles and potions will get their fix with Square-Enix's incredible lineup of RPG games to come. For all of Joystiq's Tokyo Game Show 2006 coverage, click here.[Update 1: Added in the interview with the Final Fantasy III developers.]
TGS 06: Lost Regnum impresses
One game that we haven't heard a lot about is Goshow's Lost Regnum, but the game, which is a dungeon-crawling hack 'n slasher, found its way to the Tokyo Game Show.While currently it doesn't seem likely the game will make its way across the pond, IGN says the gameplay is straightforward enough that it should make for a great import.In Lost Regnum, you control one of four characters and can team up with a pal to play two-player co-op throughout the game. Graphically, the game seems to be pretty impressive with nice textures and detailed characters that move very well. And to make it even better, loading was nearly non-existent. However, all good things come at a price, right? It seems Goshow had to cut some corners by limiting the draw distance by the ever-dreaded fog.The biggest hurdle Goshow has, like any developer has in making a game of this ilk, is keeping the combat fresh and unrepetitive. If they can deliver, they may have a great game on their hands and one worthy of an import.(Via IGN)
TGS 06: Gamespot goes hands on with Jean D'Arc
Gamespot has just went hands on with Jean D'Arc, the strategy RPG based on Joan of Arc, at the Tokyo Games Show. Although they couldn't read a lick of any text due to the game being in all Japanese, they did play enough to tell the main game will be similar to other grid-based games, like Nippon Ichi's insane library of great SRPGs. One aspect of the game that seems pretty interesting is when Jean receives damage, she, at times, will take a page out of the Hulk's book by transforming into superpowerful Jean and inflicting major damage upon her enemies. After a few turns, Jean returns back to her normal self. They go on to say all the basic elements of an SRPG are here and graphically, is much better than any other similar game on the PSP to date. Unfortunately for us, there's no definitive information on whether we'll get this game stateside. Keep your fingers crossed boys and girls. (Via Gamespot)
Elebits TGS booth pics and trailer
Unless you've been living alone in the desert for years, vowing to never speak, you probably know that TGS, or the Tokyo Game Show, is currently in full swing. A Japanese equivalent to the spectacle that is was the US' E3, TGS is one of the biggest events in the industry. Here companies do all they can to get show attendees interested in their titles, from booth babes to extravagant booths themselves.Here we can see the booth for Elebits, one of our must-have launch titles. During this presentation on the game, Nintendo Inside snapped many a picture of the game being demoed as well as some of the surrounding promotional material. You can also find a new trailer for the game here.Continue past the break for more pictures.
The one TGS booth to rule them all: Phoenix Wright courtroom
It's things like these that make us wish we were in the land of the rising sun. Our love of Phoenix and his "mad lawyerin' skillz" have kept us warm through many a night as we clutched our copy of Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney against our chest and fell into a sound sleep. We've also constructed a wonderful shrine in our garage. Capcom issued a restraining order, but luckily that doesn't apply to posting entries in online blogs!The pictures over at Famitsu show one heck of a courtroom mock-up. In fact, barring any items out of stock at our local Home Depot, we're fairly certain that we've found our next home project. It'll be kind of hard to do, what with us needing to keep these mandatory Joystiq employment ankle bracelets on at all times, but we'll manage.Also, be sure to check after the break for a trailer for Justice For All from TGS.[Via Go Nintendo]
TGS 06: More Metal Slug Anthology screens uncovered
I don't think I can ever get bored of Metal Slug's super expressive and detailed sprites dying ultra-violent deaths, and this year's Tokyo Game Show kicking off today, Gamespot has uncovered a cache of new screens for us all to drool over.Now, in case you don't already know, Metal Slug Anthology is a collection of six previous Metal Slug games. It is set to ship Nov. 7, 2006 and will support two-player wireless multi-player.God, I love this franchise and to think we get six games in one really gets me excited.(Via Gamespot)
HDTV Listings for August 31, 2006
What we're watching: Tonight we say goodbye to the ill-fated Windfall, disappearing forever after one disappointing season on NBC. College Football season is here and ESPN brings us SEC action featuring South Carolina vs. Mississippi State. Two for the Money is on HBO-HD while Quiz Show airs on Showtime-HD.Update: Occasio has informed us below that MHD is airing the VMAs in HD tonight, so be sure to check that out, right about...nowOur traditional high definition listings continue below.
HDTV Listings for August 30, 2006
What we're watching: What is this? New programming? Yes sir, Bones and Justice are all new on Fox tonight and you won't have to make any excuses with us for watching. Bones returns from last season while Justice is a new series. The three big HBO season finales make an encore appearance tonight in case you missed Deadwood, Lucky Louie and Entourage. Transporter 2 makes an appearance on Cinemax, and as commenters have pointed out, the US Open is running all day on Universal HD.Our traditional high-def listings continue below.