Warner-Bros-Interactive
Latest
'Tis the season for new Scribblenauts artwork
Click to download in Santa-sizeWe thought the Scribblenauts Halloween wallpaper was a one-off, an excuse to promote the game a bit more in the period immediately following its release. But, to our delight, 5TH Cell has delivered the Christmas present we didn't dare hope for: new Scribblenauts artwork by character designer Edison Yan. It's a Christmas miracle! Well, okay, it may not be miraculous, but it's really nice! We don't even care if it is a promotional effort to remind people to put Scribblenauts on their holiday shopping lists. There are also two new Christmas-themed screenshots in our gallery. In retrospect, it was a pretty clever idea to make a game that includes multiple holiday-themed items as part of its nature. %Gallery-39784%
5th Cell on Scribblenauts' control scheme, and more insights
In a postmortem article for Game Developer magazine (excerpted by Gamasutra), 5th Cell co-founder Joseph Tringali offered some inside information about the development of Scribblenauts. The control scheme, one of the major complaints about the puzzle-adventure title, was something that 5th Cell wanted to fix in a couple of ways. However, the developer ran into time and budget constraints. "We knew this was going to take a big hit from reviewers," Tringali said, "but we could only spend a limited amount of work on it. We discussed a secondary D-pad control option midway through development only to come to the conclusion it would take a single person 3-4 weeks to integrate it. On our self-funded schedule, that route was not an option." Tringali said that to free up time to tweak the controls, another feature, like online connectivity, might have had to be lost. But when those decisions came up, it was already too late.
Celebrate Halloween with Scribblenauts
If you're planning to visit the London Dungeon this Halloween, you may get a scare of some kind, but more importantly, you can also get an exclusive Scribblenauts level. An exclusive Halloween level will be distributed in line at the Dungeon from 12 to 3pm wirelessly. If you're not planning to go to the London Dungeon, you can still enjoy some spooky Scribblenauts goodies in the form of this wallpaper (1024x768, 1280x1024, or 1600x1200). It's full of creatures that we haven't seen before, including the Candy Corn Man and whatever that adorable giant eyepatch-wearing cat is. If you know the word that summons the Candy Corn Man, please, please let us know.
Scribblenauts achieves noteworthy 194K sales in September
In its first two weeks on the market in North America, Scribblenauts sold 194,000 units, making it the third highest-selling DS title in September, behind Mario & Luigi and Kingdom Hearts sequels. That's 105,000 more copies than Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars moved in its first month. We asked 5TH Cell creative director Jeremiah Slaczka if it met his expectations. "I didn't have any expectations," he told Joystiq. "I just hoped it'd do well. It's awesome for a completely new, original 3rd party IP on DS to do so well." Does this strong debut mean a sequel is guaranteed? "Way too early to tell that," Slaczka said. "We've only seen 2.5 weeks of sales." He told us that Drawn to Life, which went on to break a million worldwide, only sold 40,000 copies in its first month, with one more week of sales in that month.
Scribblenauts Facebook page teases 'special announcement'
The Facebook page for 5TH Cell's Scribblenauts is teasing ... something. "Get your rooster hats ready!" a message posted on the game's "Wall" reads. "We have a very special announcement coming very soon..." We have no idea what's being announced, or even when, but it seems really early for a sequel announcement. Maybe another platform? Or maybe something outside the game, like a contest. In any case, if you like Scribblenauts, 5TH Cell is going to tell us all something that will probably be delightful. Speaking of delightful, the pictured object is "Game of the Year" as rendered by the game. That's just adorable. [Thanks, Josh!]
5TH Cell: Scribblenauts' scandalous-looking 'sambo' item is a misunderstanding
Reader Zachary spotted a rather unfortunate term in Scribblenauts entirely by accident: "sambo," which summons ... a watermelon. We thought there was no way 5TH Cell would intentionally hide racist, or even racially charged, imagery in its game, so we contacted creative director Jeremiah Slaczka to figure out what happened. It turns out that like Zachary's discovery, the item was an unfortunate accident. Slaczka explained to Joystiq that "sambo" is used in the game as an alternate term for "fig leaf gourd," an ingredient in the Ecuadorian dish fanesca. "Sambo" is the local term for the gourd. As for the watermelon-like appearance? "We reuse art," he said. "Fig leaf gourd looks a lot like a watermelon. It's just an alternative name in a giant list of tens of thousands of names." Slaczka noted, offering evidence to the contrary of calls of racism, that many of the human characters in the game, including the fireman, winemaker, and dancer, manifest as black, as does "Brandon," the in-game representation of a 5TH Cell "wordsmith" (one of the employees tasked with finding words for the database), who is of course black in real life. He also mentioned Isaiah, a major character in the developer's last game Lock's Quest. We must admit, a random, potentially slightly embarrassing art/word pairing in the game seems a lot more likely to us than endemic racism expressed through antiquated epithets. Slaczka told us he didn't even know "sambo" (the slur, not the gourd) until tonight.
5th Cell: Leaked Scribblenauts word list is incomplete
Of all the criticisms that could fairly be leveled against Scribblenauts, the fact that it only recognizes 22,802 words is not among them. 5TH Cell creative director Jeremiah Slaczka told Fast Company that the leaked word list was not comprehensive, though he said it much more colorfully than we did: "That was leaked by a hacker who does not know anything," Slaczka said. "It's more than that." Slaczka also revealed the last word to be added to the game's database: "Low Rider." Presumably this was added at the insistence of his friends, all of whom love a low rider. [Via VG247]
Review: Scribblenauts
There's this part I love in the movie Ratatouille where a critic says, "The world is often unkind to new talent, new creations. The new needs friends." It's something I always try to keep in mind and it's moved me to first, before we do anything else, celebrate what a staggering accomplishment Scribblenauts is. It's a game where you solve simple puzzles with almost any object you can dream up (as long as it's not libations, licensed or lascivious) and every item acts the way you'd expect: bears chase honey and dogs chase cats. It's a game where you can spend hours just messing around to see what creatures can beat God in a fight (zombies: no; vampires: yes). As a technical achievement and as a toy, it's really brilliant. Scribblenauts is a thing of wonder. %Gallery-68669%
Watch this Scribblenauts ad with your pterodactyl
How often does a company get TV advertising for games absolutely right? There's usually some aspect of a game's presentation to the general audience that is groan-worthy or embarrassing -- and potentially damaging to the game's perception. That's not the case with the Scribblenauts ad!This live-action ad does a great job of getting the gameplay across, and presenting it in an appealing way. In fact, the events of this commercial would work as a real Scribblenauts level. Bonus points for using the real Scribblenauts art style for the summoned objects.
Toys R Us writes in $15 launch day savings on Scribblenauts
If you missed out on GameStop's rooster hat offer, or you decided against filling your home with pre-order novelties, you should consider Toys R Us for all your Scribblenauts needs. This Tuesday (and only Tuesday), according to CAG's NeoStrider, in-store purchases of Scribblenauts will be rewarded instantly with $15 gift cards, effectively dropping the price of one of the most promising video games of 2009 to $14.99.There you go. If you live near a TRU and you've been on the fence (for some reason) about this game, consider your decision made.[Via GoNintendo]
Scribblenauts UK release date erased, 'October 9' written over it
WB has announced a new UK release date for 5TH Cell's Scribblenauts: October 9. The company previously planned to release the title on September 25, then "October" (according to GamesCom press materials). Somehow, we doubt localization concerns are to blame. The North American version is still on track for September 15, which is so soon! So soon, in fact, that you could probably order one from the US and get it shipped to the UK before October 9. Just throwing that out there.In other Scribblenews, a bunch of fun downloadables are available at the website now. Your wallpaper could have more panda-riding on it.
Batman: Arkham Asylum receives uninspiring Guinness World Record
Okay, we like Batman: Arkham Asylum and all, but our goodwill has limits -- and they stop right at the acceptance of a Guinness World Record for "Most Critically Acclaimed Superhero Game Ever," which was announced today. It's a nice achievement for the game (and especially notable for a Batman game, given their history), but that's not a Guinness World Record. That's a marketing blurb. In fact, we're awarding it the Joystiq.com Award for Most Transparent Marketing Effort of the Day Presented by Windex™. Now, when Batman: Arkham Asylum lifts more than 160 pounds of weight with its ear, that's a Guinness World Record.Who decides what a superhero game is anyway? Plenty of people don't consider Batman a superhero, given that he has no superhuman abilities beyond super-wealth. %Gallery-31781%
Eidos investigating 'bad' Batman collector's edition DLC codes
PS3 owners who scooped up the formidable Batman: Arkham Asylum collector's edition are going a bit batty on the game's official forum due to seemingly botched DLC codes. The codes, included only with the CE, enable two challenge map downloads -- but, so far, have only unlocked ire. Not to fear, as Eidos community reps are asking for the spurned downloaders' codes so that they can be "passed on and investigated." The publisher is definitely on the case, although there's no clear ETA for a fix. We suggest bookmarking the thread if you're having problems, as it seems to be a source of frequent updates. We also suggest that you don't think of doing anything crazy with that replica Batarang. They're just DLC codes, folks. It'll be OK.
This Wednesday: The NBA drafts the Watchmen on XBLA [update]
Update: Invincible Tiger: The Legend of Han Tao is also releasing this week.This week, we're officially jumping straight from the Summer of Arcade into the winter of our discontent with ho-hum XBLA releases. Don't get us wrong -- we have nothing against basketball, but NBA 2K10 Draft Combine (400 / $5), which lets those who purchase it build and train a player for use in October's NBA 2K10, ain't exactly Shadow Complex. Its title does makes it sound like the NBA is going to draft the bad guys from Half-Life 2, though, which we'd totally pay to see.So, that's about it -- oh, that's right, there's another Arcade release this week. It's part two of Watchmen: The End is Nigh, the movie tie-in beat-'em-up best known for exposing those who've played it to near-lethal levels of boredom. If you really, really love Watchmen and really, really don't mind the liberties this game takes with the license, it can be yours for 1200 ($15). Wow, really? Actually, if you simply must have the game, it's been available on disc along with part one since late last month ... for $20 on Amazon.
Buy Nvidia graphics card, get Arkham Asylum free
If you're planning on beefing up your compy's visual capabilities any time soon, you might want to turn your attention to this fairly amazing offer: If you buy a graphics card containing Nvidia's GeForce GTX 260, GeForce GTX 275 or GeForce GTX 285, then you'll get a coupon for a free download of the PC version of Batman: Arkham Asylum.This partnership between Nvidia and Eidos isn't that surprising -- the PC version of Rocksteady's surprisingly wonderful stealth-action title was delayed to September 15 to allow for the implementation of Nvidia's PhysX technology. However, interestingly enough, Bruce Wayne is actually a 30 percent stockholder in AMD. Scan-da-lous.[Via Big Download]
GamesCom Scribblenauts booth is wide, wide-ruled
5TH Cell creative director Jeremiah Slaczka pointed out this picture, taken by Krystian Majewski, of the GamesCom 2009 Scribblenauts booth. It's ... a bit bigger than the E3 booth, which consisted of two demo DS stations in the back of the largely Batman-themed WB enclosure. Like, behind it. "It's awesome WB is embracing it so much," Slaczka told us about the increased presence, "and really supporting the game."Majewski's Flickr gallery also contains images of items summoned in Scribblenauts, including stuff we hadn't seen before like "river," "echidna" and "lich." Hey, topical! For more Scribblenauts fun, check out the newly redesigned US site, which now shows a Flash simulation of gameplay in the background!
Bat-Knowledge! Bone up on your Arkham Asylum history
With Batman: Arkham Asylum's release just around the corner, and a slew of videos introducing the game's cast of characters already available, we didn't think there was much more to say about Batman's upcoming video game adventure (until our review later today!). We were wrong. In the latest and perhaps last trailer for Batman: Arkham Asylum, Eidos drops knowledge on something we're (admittedly) not familiar with: the history of Gotham's Arkham Asylum. Listen carefully to a haunting journal from the asylum's founder Amadeus Arkham, as the 1920s-era mogul slides deeper into madness attempting to rehabilitate Gotham's worst citizens. If only Amadeus would have lived long enough to see a giant bat punching the "criminally insane" in the face, maybe things would have worked out better for the good doctor. It really is amazing how much medicine has progressed over the years. %Gallery-31781%
Lego Rock Band DS is peripheral-free
Warner Bros. has finally revealed the first screenshots and information about the mysterious DS version of Lego Rock Band. Unlike its DS Guitar Hero counterparts, Lego Rock Band doesn't make use of any peripherals beyond the standard DS stylus. Instead, it's an experience similar to Rock Band Unplugged on the PSP, also developed by Backbone -- in which players use the buttons to hit notes, switching between instrumental tracks throughout the song. This is wonderful news for those of us who loved Frequency and Amplitude.The major differences between Lego and Unplugged include, of course, the Lego styling and character building options, as well as the ability to hit notes using either buttons or the stylus. Lego Rock Band includes multiplayer for up to four people, and will be out Holiday 2009 along with the other platform versions. Check after the break for the first known tracks!%Gallery-70600%
Scribblenauts trailer highlights press scribblings
The latest trailer for Scribblenauts reveals that lots of websites, including this one, have written words about the game. Many of those words even reflect positively about it! While we knew that a bunch of words had been typed, having been responsible for the typing of some of them, we were still impressed by the number of websites whose writers took time out to write (at least) one word about Scribblenauts. Oh, the trailer also reveals Abraham Lincoln with a minigun. For those of you crying foul because "Abraham Lincoln" is a proper noun ... it's an Abraham Lincoln, not necessarily the Abraham Lincoln. %Gallery-68669%
Where the Wild Things Are gameplay trailer starts a wild rumpus
click to wild thing-size Sure, we could chastise the upcoming Where the Wild Things Are game for being a cash-in on the upcoming Spike Jonze movie. And yes, the first trailer (found after the break) could be as unexciting for you as it was for us from a gameplay standpoint. But hey, it's Where the Wild Things Are. We're kind of giving it a pass based on the sheer adorability of it all. Go ahead, try not to smile at all the 'wild rumpusing' taking place. We may not be super interested in running around whacking stuff as the book's main character Max, but we sure do like all the nods to the eponymous book. Please excuse these rose-tinted goggles, but we'll be needing to keep them on until October, thank you very much.%Gallery-68360%
