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One Shots: A tribute
I wanted to start our daily screenshot feature on Massively off with something, well, massive. A memorable, recognizable, and important scene from MMO history.... and while you may all argue with me about what makes this particular shot important, it was the first thing that came to mind. Here we see a group of City of Heroes players gathering at City Hall in Atlas Park to, "salute the memory and inspiration that is Christopher Reeve on the 2nd anniversary of his death." It's rare to see an in-game event that brings players together for a cause other than slaying dragons and similar.But perhaps you have a screenshot of your own that you think expresses a unique or memorable moment in your MMO of choice? Send 'em my way with a description and you may see it posted here for tomorrow's One Shots.[via City of Heroes Official European forums]
HDTV Listings for June 16, 2007
What we're watching: Sure we already saw it on Blu-ray, HD DVD and Xbox Live, but it Superman Returns on Cinemax gets yet another look tonight.Our traditional high-def listings continue below.
Saturday PSP background explosion
Every week, PSP Fanboy brings you new backgrounds to rejuvinate the look of your PSP. Remember, you can save these images directly to your PSP by accessing the site wireless at m.pspfanboy.com. The fan requests, we've been doing lately have proved to be very popular, so this week there's another set of fan requests fulfilled. Continue on to find out if your background request has materialized into the real thing. Backgrounds after the jump ...
Superman 64 almost had an evil twin on the PS1
Universally recognized as the worst video game ever created, Superman 64 was this close to unleashing a spawn on the original PlayStation. According to an article at PlayStation Museum, when Titus was wrapping up development on the game in late '98, plans were to port the title to the PS1.But then Superman 64 was released and began to induce physical pain on players. Even though the PS1 game was approved for release by Sony and issued a product code, it's obvious someone decided to hit the eject button on the project. Officially the game was canned due to "licensing difficulties", but we know it was a merciful act of God.[Via GameSetWatch]
Warner officially announces Total Hi Def hybrid disc
Warner Home Video's press conference concerning the Total Hi Def disc that has HD DVD and Blu-ray all on one disc is currently ongoing, and it stated that the discs are able to contain dual layers of both HD DVD and Blu-ray on one disc. The first Total Hi Def releases will hit in the second half of this year, but no specific titles have yet been announced. At the conference, Warner used a copy of Superman to show off how it worked in an HD DVD player, Blu-ray player, and the recently announced LG Super Multi player that plays either. Finally, Warner claims it will not cost "materially" more than a regular disc. At the conference, already an exec from Best Buy has come out in support of the format, but whether or not other studios would ever pick up on Total HD releases is still unknown, although Warner claims they would not have to pay any licensing fees to Warner for using it. For more information, check out our live coverage of the Warner Home Video press event.
Superman Returns now on Xbox Live Video Marketplace
We were wondering how long it would take to get a high definition blockbuster movie onto Xbox Live Video Marketplace, and it looks like Microsoft and Major Nelson just got in under the wire for 2006, adding Superman Returns yesterday. Weighing in at 7 GB for the 720p HD version (2 GB in 480p SD... for the masochists out there) for the 154 minute movie, it's finally time to clear off some of the Xbox 360 demos we downloaded and see if digital distribution works better in 2007 than it did last year. We'll be back with our impressions of the service, now that they've posted something we want to watch on our HDTVs.
Matinee at the Bijou to bring classic cartoons to PBS-HD
Those glorious Saturday mornings filled with cartoons and a complete lack of responsibility will always hold a special place in our hearts, and we're thrilled to hear that some faithful classics are about to get reborn on PBS-HD. According to Bijou Bob's official weblog, PBS has given "the green light" to producers to revive some of the greatest 'toons of the past, and just as soon as sufficient sponsors are found, you can expect to see the renditions in stunning HD, which will likely prove that Betty Boop actually is forever young. The 12-episode season is slated to air sometime in 2007, with "Betty Boop, Tom & Jerry, and the Fleischer Superman cartoons being named as potential candidates for the show." Additionally, you can expect to see see "a short subject, a serial chapter, and a feature film" to go along with the newly-rendered cartoons, all of which will be hosted by Debbie Reynolds. So if you're looking to relive a bit of your past, and don't mind the HD makeover, the Matinee at the Bijou should be right up your alley.[Via ToonZone]
Walmart Video Download Follow-Up
The Walmart/Superman FAQ just went live and here are a few more facts to follow on our earlier story. The "portable format" will use PlayForSure. The "standard format" will be 640x480 at approximately 1500 kbps and will occupy about a gigabyte of storage. You can't transfer the videos between computers. There's no Mac support whatsoever. There's no iPod support whatsoever. There's no Zune support whatsoever. Playback depends on Windows Media Player 10 or higher. Oh well. As Emily Litella would say, nevermind...
Superman demo doesn't suck, hell freezes
I just downloaded the Superman Returns demo and gave it a quick play through. In short, it's actually pretty good (I invite my fellow 360 Fanboy bloggers to disagree). It seems like for all the crap EA puts on the market, there's always one or two good games, too. It's the law of averages really. After all, if you put out 500* games a year, at least a few of them have to be good, right? Superman, however, is special, and not just because he's Superman either. No, the Son of Krypton has a sordid past in the videogame world. It's arguable that there has only ever been one Superman game that was actually fun, and that was the arcade game -- in fairness, I've never played the NES Superman and I somewhat enjoyed The Death and Return of Superman on Genesis/SNES. Read on for impressions (especially Live Silver members, who, we have just learned, cannot currently download the demo).
Superman Returns demo X-rays Marketplace [update 1]
It looks like Xbox Solution was right, as the Superman Returns demo is now available on Marketplace. Clocking in at just under a gig, it will take you some time to download. As we've said, we're cautiously optimistic about this game, so here's hoping the demo can fill those big red boots. We'll update you with impressions as soon as we get the chance.(By the way, we're aware of the Halo news. We're working on it. I promise.)Update: 360 Fanboy has just learned that this demo is currently unavailable to Silver members. Our condolences to you, because it's actually pretty good.
Superman demo tomorrow?
We revealed two weeks ago that a Superman Returns demo was on the way, and now Xbox Solution reports that it should show up tomorrow. We haven't seen anything official regarding the demo (and Xbox Solution curiously neglects to cite the source of their info), so chalk this one up to a rumor for now. If any of you have seen this info reported elsewhere, let us know. Frankly, we hope it does come out tomorrow, because we're actually pretty anxious to give Supes a try. Anyone else out there (cautiously) optimistic about this title?
Superman demo flies to XBLM in two weeks
During an interview with the supervising producer of Superman Returns, Gamertag Radio unearthed some good news. Expect a demo of Superman Returns to hit Xbox Live Marketplace within a week of the game's release (November 20). It's only natural to have doubts about any Superman game, so it's nice that we'll have a chance to try before we fly (ba dum bum). Is there any chance that Superman Returns, by EA mind you, could break the Superman game curse? Expect to find out in two weeks. GTR's interview with the producer should be up later today. Be sure and check it out.
Newsflash: Superman game might not suck
We saw a new trailer for Superman Returns this morning and were stricken with strange thoughts. We were thinking, "Hey, that doesn't look that bad. Looks pretty fun, actually. It's a Superman game that might not suck. And it's made by EA. Wha?" We know, it was a very strange thought process, and one that is not likely to repeat itself. The most compelling thing about the trailer might actually be the music. Much like the recent Gears of War teaser, the music complemented the action very well.Still, there are other Superman trailers that don't look so hot. General gameplay trailers, for example, leave a lot to be desired. So, as a public service, we've embedded two videos after the break. The first is the slickly produced trailer, and the second is straight gameplay. Both of them were released this month, so these are from the same build.
Metareview - Justice League Heroes
The success of the X-Men Legends series proved that there is still a market for good hack-and-slash RPGs. But Warner Bros. Interactive wasn't about to let Activision and Marvel Comics have all the fun -- not when the WB is home to DC Comics and some of the most beloved superheroes of all time. The resulting Justice League Heroes falls a little short of its mutant counterparts, despite the efforts of Snowblind Studios (Baldur's Gate: Dark Alliance, Champions of Norrath) and Justice League Unlimited writer Dwayne McDuffie. Die-hard fans will be disappointed by the omission of some popular Leaguers, although the alternate costumes and their unique modifiers might make up for that. More unforgivable is that the members of Gotham City's impressive rogues gallery are absent from a JLH villains roster that sorely needs them. How about a Batman Legends next? Game Informer (73/100) was generally displeased, but cited a first for The Man of Steel: "It only offers two-player offline cooperative play. Enemy types and environmental architecture are highly recycled. The plot reads like a kindergartner's first attempt at writing. On the plus side, this is the first game that successfully makes Superman a fun character to play." 1UP (65/100) wasn't content throwing down with Lex Luthor, Braniac, and Gorilla Grodd: "Maybe the drama would have been more believable if the villains weren't downright dumb. A talking gorilla, an intelligent robot, and a killer bee? That's all you got, DC? Where are all the Batman villains? The Joker, Two-Face, Catwoman -- now those are villains worth fighting. Not some dude who calls himself 'The Key'." IGN (64/100) thinks JLH's character balance is a little off: "Surprisingly, Zatanna is the most potent character in the game. She can heal, cast an over-powered fire attack at low cost (when leveled up), and can turn 95% of all enemies into harmless rabbits. Sadly, Batman is easily the most useless and joyless character you can select. Even Aquaman is more fun to play. Batman's powers, such as calling in a fleet of bats, just don't cut it."
More Superman for HD DVD
Superman is making more appearances on HD DVD after the Superman Returns announcement last week as Warner Home Video is bringing the classic flicks of Superman: The Movie and Superman II: The Richard Donner Cut out this fall. Both films will be presented in 2.40:1 widescreen along with the normal 1080p/VC-1 video and while there isn't any word about HD-exclusive content just yet, the full release deets is set to come within a few days from Warner. The prices are set at $28.99 each along with a November 28th that coincides nicely with the Superman Returns release and while this may not be the trilogy (i.e. The Matrix, LOTR, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles) that many people are waiting for, they are still great films that should end up in a HD DVD box set sometime soon.These titles have been added to our Google HD DVD Release Calendar.
Superman Returns to DVD, HD DVD and Blu-ray Nov. 28th
Summer blockbuster Superman Returns has a date from Warner Home Video, and VideoBusiness says you'll be able to see it no matter what side of the format war you're on. While The Lake House will still be the first triple-release later this month, you can pick up Superman Returns on DVD, HD DVD & Blu-ray November 28th. The standard DVD will be available either as a single disc (MSRP $28.98), 2-disc special edition (MSRP $34.99), HD DVD Combo disc (MSRP $39.99), or Blu-ray (MSRP $34.99). The special edition DVD will come with several hours worth of extras, but no word on the high definition IME extras we've already heard so much about. Still, considering such a high profile release and that they've already got HD extras ready, it seems likely that Superman follows Fast and the Furious 3: Tokyo Drift in being a 30GB/9GB combo disc. We're still not sure how many people are willing to pay a few extra bucks for a combo disc, but Warner is putting a lot of weight behind them. Information on whether or not the disc would allow buyers to fly merely by putting on a cape and yelling "I'm Superman" is also unavailable at this time.
Justice League Heroes gameplay screens fly onto PSP
Somewhat like God and Lucifer, man and mosquitoes and my wife and I, DC Comics and Marvel have been locked in an age-old battle against each other. And over the past couple years, Marvel has had its time in the video game limelight, showcasing its best group of superheroes - The X-Men. But now it's DC Comic's time to fight back, and they are bringing Justice League Heroes.Up until now, all we've seen is character art of the game, but Gamespy has just posted nearly 10-new gameplay screens that show all your super heroes in top form. And judging by these screens, the game seems to be coming along rather nicely.Developed by Snowblind Studios, Justice League Heroes puts the player in control of Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman, The Flash, Green Lantern, Martian Manhunter and Zatanna to try to stop the diabolical Braniac. And what will surely give the fanboys a wet dream, Heroes is chock full of extras like unlockable costumes and characters.You'll get your Justice League fix when the game releases Nov. 10.[Via Gamespy]
MC360 XBMC Superman Returns theme
The lameness of most of the themes available on Marketplace (shift a color here, shift a color there) makes this sweet Blackbolt Superman Returns theme for the MC360 XBMC skin look that much cooler. Once again the hacking community puts the pros to shame. Put some effort in it Microsoft, especially if you're going to charge us for this stuff.
Superman Returns looking bizarre
In a move seemingly inspired by Ultimate Spiderman's villainous gameplay, EA is including the famed super-clone Bizzaro as a playable character in Superman Returns. Bizarro Jerry is surely pleased. Of course, the mere hint that a Supes game doesn't suck is the clearest indication yet that we're all living in an alternate universe.[Via VideoGameJocks]
EA's second half lineup for 2006
Electronic Arts has confirmed their release list for the remainder of the year, and according to studio president Paul Lee, "this is an extraordinary time to be a gamer."EA Sports titles include 07 editions of NCAA Football, Madden NFL, NASCAR, NHL, Tiger Woods PGA Tour, and NBA Live, while the EA Sports Big label will deliver the third iteration of NFL Street. FIFA 07 has not been confirmed, but even though EA has already released two other FIFA games this year, plan on seeing the franchise's flagship title updated in Q4.Next gen and portable versions of The Godfather are also due to arrive in September, followed by Need for Speed Carbon, Superman Returns, and shooters Battlefield 2142 and Crysis. How many of these games are on your list?See also: World Cup keeps EA at top of sales charts EA's plan to rule Asia EA E3 lineup includes playable Wii, PS3 Madden [via Pro-G]
