SymphonyOfTheNight
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XBLA file size limit raised to 250MB? [Update: nope]
[Update: Looks like 1UP was off by just about 100 emm bees ... alright, exactly 100 emm bees. The official XBLA file size limit has been raised to 150MB, not 250MB.]It seems that the upcoming Castlevania: Symphony of the Night will no longer be the exception to the rule -- 1UP's Luke Smith reports that the Xbox Live Arcade file size limit has been bumped up from 50MB to 250MB. The move should allow less agile developers to slip beneath the Limbo pole without winding up in a painfully awkward position. Just ask last year's Lumines Live! how chopping a game into 50MB chunks can make microtransactions even harder to swallow.Luke also notes that with Microsoft's approval, certain games might even span 450MB. Returning to the earlier Limbo analogy, this would likely be reserved for developers that insist on wearing full suits of armor to the party. The relaxed rules may lead to games becoming more bloated, but the developer is surely better off worrying less about compression and more about, you know, making a good game. It's worth nothing that owners of the Core Xbox 360 are adversely affected by this decision, as they still find themselves restricted by measly 64MB memory cards (remember those quaint little things?). Microsoft is likely already working on larger memory cards, though even the rumored 256MB variant won't be able to hold many games, much less a 450MB title. [Thanks, Jonah!]
Castlevania punctures XBLA's 50MB size limit
Castlevania: Symphony of the Night, considered by many to be the best game in the series, is set to bend the rules by exceeding Microsoft's imposed size limit on Xbox Live Arcade titles, which is currently set at 50MB. The exact size of the download was not revealed.Microsoft explains to GameSpot that the 50MB cap is so that XBLA titles can fit on memory cards and played on a friend's console, and that SotN would be an exception to the rule. Though we do enjoy the fast downloads, now that background downloading is possible (and hard drives potentially expanding), perhaps Microsoft ought to raise that size limit to a point where all of Lumines Live can be downloaded as one purchase.Sony has implemented a cap of 500MB for downloadable titles, though the downloads currently (and annoyingly) take center stage. Symphony of the Night, when it is released (date as of yet unknown), will have a demo that does stay under the 50MB limit.See Also: Enough talk, have at this Castlevania XBLA video
Castlevania breaks 50MB Arcade limit [update 1]
GameSpot reports today that Castlevania: Symphony of the Night will be the first Xbox Live Arcade title to break the 50 MB size limit (we were wondering how the hell they got the voice acting and audio in there). The limit was imposed so that 360 owners could transfer Arcade games to memory card, allowing them to be played on another 360. Xbox Live's Greg Canessa told GameSpot that the cap is still in effect, but Microsoft can and will make certain exceptions. Citing SOTN as one of the "most popular games of all time," Cannessa felt that an exception was in order. He further notes, however, that the trial version will fit on a memory card.We've blogged about the 50 MB limit before, and it will be interesting to see how (and if) Castlevania will affect future developments on Live Arcade.Update: It looks like GameSpot got the trial version info wrong. MS informed us (and GameSpot) that it will not fit on a standard memory card.
Enough talk, have at this Castlevania XBLA video
Warning: Watching this CES video may lead to excessive yearning and gnashing of teeth upon the realization that the game in question, Castlevania: Symphony of the Night is not yet available for download on Xbox Live Arcade. To cope with this inescapable sensation, distract yourself by contemplating your existence as a miserable little pile of secrets (sadly, Dracula neglects to mention exactly what a woman is). Joking aside, let's ask a serious question: are "fresher" console titles like this more welcome on XBLA than popular coin guzzlers?
Most wanted PS1 to PSP games 2 [Update 1]
We've been reviewing the PSP playable PS1 games that have been released thus far, but are they what we really want? We listed what we'd like to see from the PS1 library last month, but Modojo has their own list now. The list includes the predictable like Castlevania: Symphony of the Night, but it also includes more cult games like Klonoa: Door to Phantomile (the ending of which made me cry). To see the rest of the list you'll have to go read the article. After you've done that though, come back here and let us know what games that you'd like to see make the leap from PS1 to PSP. [Thanks Justin ][Update 1: Linked to our previous list of Most Wanted PS1 games]
Using your own PSone games for emulation [Update 1]
That Dark_Alex kid is up to it again. His custom firmware currently cracks the protection that PSone games from the PlayStation Store utilize. However, it looks like the next revision, called 3.02 OE-B, will support the ripping of ISO files and turning them into EBOOT files to launch via XMB. This means almost any PSone game you own can be transferred to your PSP. You'll see Castlevania: Symphony of the Night at work in this YouTube demo. Amazing, isn't it? Hopefully, this will convince Sony to release their PlayStation Store games at a much less craptacular rate.[Thanks, jamie!][Update 1: Now available for download at MAXCONSOLE.]
Castlevania heading to PSP?
One of my favorite games on the DS is Castlevania: Dawn of Sorrow. The series has always mesmerized me, ever since I started playing the Game Boy Advance games. Konami gave me a huge castle to explore, and tons of ways to traverse through it, and I loved it. Unfortunately, I missed what people call the best Castlevania game ever: Symphony of the Night. Yes, it's coming to Xbox 360, but wouldn't it be absolutely lovely on the PSP screen? 1UP spoke with Koji Igarashi and forced the issue:1UP: Castlevania series seems to always stick to the Nintendo handhelds, the GBA and DS. So I'm wondering, do you see yourself doing any PSP Castlevanias in the future? I mean, Konami seems to support the system pretty well -- so I'm wondering if you're personally interested in doing a PSP game. And in the very least, would you want to bring Symphony of the Night to the PSP, given that Sony is eager to start offering PS1 games for download? Igarasahi: I think the PSP is an interesting platform with a big and beautiful screen, so I would like to put my hands on a PSP version. As for offering SOTN, yes, I would love to provide it as a download if the users would want that.This is where, if I were the interviewer, I would turn into a rabid dog and scream "YES!!!" while potentially frothing at the mouth. But the love for the PSP doesn't stop there. It appears that Igarasahi-san wants to develop original games for the system as well:1UP: Can you just clarify your comments about developing for the PSP? Igarasahi: Basically, I would like to move to a multiplatform basis, so PSP is included as one of my targeted platforms.
Symphony of the Night on XBLA!
Fans of androgynous vampires rejoice, 1UP reports that Castlevania: Symphony of the Night -- widely regarded as the best in the series, and frequently listed in various "greatest games of all time" lists -- is coming to Xbox Live Arcade. It is, unfortunately, the Playstation version which does not include the Saturn's bonus area. Still, this is incredible news for Castlevania fans and gamers everywhere -- enough to wash away the taste of the awful 3D Castlevanias perhaps? Oh, and Konami is planning quite a few more classics as well (Time Pilot, anyone?). Hit the read link for the whole story.[Thanks Joe(dragonjoe) and Rivithed
Symphony of the Night to be heard on XBLA
At last, every miserable little pile of secrets that owns an Xbox 360 will be able to experience Castlevania: Symphony of the Night, a game considered by many to be the best in Konami's esteemed franchise. According to the September issue of EGM, the game is scheduled to hit Xbox Live Arcade in early 2007. It'll be a torturously long wait, though it leaves us time to ponder how exactly a Playstation (and Saturn!) classic will slip under XBLA's 50MB Limbo pole. It seems likely that by next year, the size requirement will have been given a significant bump by larger memory cards and hard drives. After all, we doubt fans would be pleased if anything were to happen to the game's wonderful soundtrack in order to cut down on space.But enough talk. Have at you![Thanks soco and doomx24!]
