song
Latest
Sing, sing a song for GoW
If you walk around singing that Mad World song because you can't get it out of your head, this "Gears of War Idol" contest, sponsored by Unscripted 360, is for you.[Thanks DeaconBlade 360]
PaRappa to feature downloadable music, but no new levels
PaRappa is one of those games PSP owners would love if the developers put just a little bit more effort into it. Many have questioned Sony's decision to simply make an updated port and put it on UMD, when a game like PaRappa would be an ideal candidate for PSone emulation. Siliconera reports that the game will offer something new for PSP owners: the ability to download new songs through Infrastructure mode. Strangely, the new songs will not affect the gameplay in any way: the levels and corresponding button presses will not change when you download these songs. Gyuh? Sounds strange. Hopefully, Sony's been hiding something from us. The game hits Japan on December 7th.
WoW Moviewatch: Bubble Hearth
Be warned, something about this little music video is extremely catchy..! And while I'm somewhat concerned that I'll have this song stuck in my head for days, I think it was probably worth it. Update: Multiple commenters have posted saying that the music (the most charming thing about this particular movie) was created by Mickey-C of WoW Radio.
PodBuffet - an iTunes Kiosk on its way?
How many times have you found yourself out and about somewhere when 'the iTMS itch' strikes? You know, that catchy song playing over the mall speakers, or a kid's headphones at the airport blaring loud enough for you to jam along. But how are you supposed to scratch that itch if your computer and iTMS account are sitting at home?Fortunately, 22Moo, an Australian hardware and software company, hopes to lend you a hand with the PodBuffet, an iTunes Kiosk they're developing that is powered by a Mac mini with a 15" touch-screen LCD and a "customised application for timed access to iTunes". Their press release doesn't reveal much more information, so we're assuming they're working out a method for allowing those itchin' for a fixin' to purchase music and load up their iPod on the go, without having to deal with any of that library-linking silliness. 22Moo's site isn't very forthcoming either, so here's hoping these kiosks don't join the ranks of countless other vaporware.[via MacMinute]
Widget Watch: Check new releases by artists in your iTunes library with newTunes
Tired of browsing the (often late) New Release emails from the iTMS to find out whether an artist you actually care about has released a new album? Sick of adding an 'Artist Alert' for each of the hundreds of artists cataloged in your vast library? Well pound those keys no more, frustrated iTMS shopper, for the newTunes widget has arrived. This widget tells you when new music you actually care about has been released by watching for new and upcoming work from the artists already in your library.Don't you love it when computers actually do the work for you, instead of creating more work for you to do? newTunes is freeware and can be had from Apple's Dashboard downloads section.
Chicago signing for Uematsu, Aki, & Roth tonight
Are you in Chicago tonight for the big PLAY! concert tomorrow, but weren't willing to shell out $125 for the VIP meet-and-greet at the event? Well, you might be in luck (even if you're not attending), as a few famous folks from the concert will be on hand to sign autographs in Chicago proper for free tonight.From 7 to 9 PM (presumably Central time) at the Tower Records store on 2301 N. Clark St., Final Fantasy composer Nobuo Uematsu, bilingual songstress Angela Aki (who wrote and sang the theme song for FFXII), and Principal Conductor and Music Director of PLAY! Arnie Roth will be signing autographs to promote the world-tour premiere of 'PLAY! A Video Game Symphony' and the CD for More Friends - Music from FINAL FANTASY.While this blogger is sadly occupied with prior engagements tonight, gamers in the area are more than welcome to mob that Tower Records and cause the store's employees much consternation and bewilderment. If you don't have any imported CDs to sign, however, don't fret: the store's web site claims to have "some awesome Japanese imports available for you to purchase and have autographed at the event." Not only that, Angela Aki will be performing live as well. Score! Anybody wanna tell us how this evening turns out when it's all sung and done?[Via The Daily Northwestern; image culled from Angela Aki's blog, Nobuo Uematsu's Squenix profile, and Arnie Roth's 2005 interview with IGN]See also: Official page for Tower Clark Street (with details on the signing) Ticketmaster site for the PLAY! concert debut tomorrow Sonic and Chrono composers to join PLAY! in Chicago
Preview of new Guitar Hero II co-op mode
In case you missed it on Friday, IGN posted a pre-E3 hands-on preview of Guitar Hero II's new co-op mode. It's a departure from the first game's multiplayer mode in that the two players have to depend on each other a lot more to pass each song and thereby make beautiful music together.While the old multiplayer option will still be around in the sequel, the new mode mixes distinct lead guitar and bass or rhythm parts where each player affects the other in various ways, whether by failing if either performance slips (as in DDR), sharing the same Rock Meter (with mistakes from either player resetting the score multiplier), and needing to both go vertical at the same time to activate the shared Star Power. Thankfully, different difficulty levels can be assigned to each player.The Joystiq team out in L.A. will probably find something to do until they get their sweaty paws on a guitar controller or two on the E3 show floor (maybe one of those wacky press conferences will help pass the time), but we're sure the wait to try the latest build of this rockin' series will be worth it. The seven songs available at E3 are listed below.[Thanks, murph]
1000 song hack for iTunes phones?
For those out there who find the 100 song cap (amongst other things) on iTunes phone a deal breaker, Engadget Mobile might have found your saving grace. A forum at MotoModders has the details and simple steps you can take to run a simple hack on any iTunes phone (except the v3i) to raise the song cap to 1000. Unfortunately, there's one catch: the little app you have to run is Windows-based, so you'll need a PC or Boot Camp to actually do this (sorry, Parallels doesn't support USB devices - yet).Obviously this is a hack, so don't blame us or MotoModders if something goes wrong. However, if you do try this, please post your thoughts and let us know if it really works.
God of War's Jaffe inspired by Britney vs. Christina
Sure you knew that God of War was inspired by Clash of the Titans and Raiders of the Lost Ark, but did you know that Christina Aguilera influenced its development as well?In an interview conducted by Lorne Lanning for a session at GDC last week, David Jaffe revealed that thinking of (the workplace tension between him and) his lead programmer during a Christina Aguilera song about Britney Spears helped him get the game to work.So identifying with the arguably lesser end of the Christina-Britney rivalry helped Kratos make it out of development hell? Sounds like a surefire way to create a hit game! We also take it then that the song in question wasn't "Genie in a Bottle," 'cause that would've made for one interesting unlockable costume for our marked man. Cameo in the sequel, perhaps?[Britney 'n' Christina pic found via an old BBC MTV VMA story found here]See also: David Jaffe, blogger extraordinaire, WRU?!? God of War 2 GDC video leaked online Budget power from the Gods, under the hood
iTunes phone upgrades only for non-U.S. phones with < 100 song limit
I hope no one ran out and bought a ROKR or slick new SLVR after last night's post about the ability to upgrade iTunes phones. Turns out it was more or less a false alarm - at least for those who already have a phone with a 100 song limit. Eddie Cue, iTunes' product manager, got in touch with Engadget to let them know that yes, the upgrade exists, but it's only for non-U.S. iTunes phones that unfortunately had a song cap set at less than 100. Apparently, some phones were set as low as 25 songs, so this upgrade was meant to bring everyone up to the same, yet highly limited, 100 song cap.I have to agree with Ryan's Engadget post though: if Apple wants to make any headway with this whole musicphone idea, that silly 100 song cap needs to go.
Apple removing the iTunes phone 100 song cap?
I can neither confirm nor deny the legitimacy of this, but TUAW reader Jake sent us a tip with an iTMS screenshot detailing an upcoming possibility of removing the 100 song cap on iTunes phones. From the screenshot it looks like Apple might soon offer the ability to purchase what I would assume to be a software upgrade to remove the software-based 100 song cap on the phone.Jake claims to have followed a number of code snippets he found in the latest iTunes update, version 6.0.3. Check out his post for the full details on the steps he took, and check out the actual page in the iTMS. For now, however, I don't know anyone with a ROKR who could take this one step further. If anyone can confirm this page in the iTMS is real, is brave enough to plug their ROKR in and click OK, feel free to sound off. If this is true, it could be a sign that Apple and Motorola are finally listening to the market and removing a silly limitation that should never have existed in the first place. One can only hope.
