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Rock Band's bundled guitar to be wired on Xbox 360, wireless for PS3
Now that you've gone and pre-ordered Rock Band, here's a tidbit about what will actually be included. According to Harmonix CEO Alex Rigopulos, the guitar that comes bundled in with the Xbox 360 version will not be wireless, as he reportedly states that "the cost of wireless technology on the Microsoft side is higher." Notably, the PS3 bundle will indeed include a wireless axe, and before you get too riled up, Xbox 360 users will still be able to purchase a wireless shredder separately if it's a make-or-break scenario for ya. Oh, and the drums and microphone will be wired on both platforms, but Xbox 360 buyers will purportedly get a USB hub thrown in to hook it all up.[Via GamingToday]
Harmonix CEO confirms Rock Band's Xbox 360 bundle guitar is wired
In the latest OXM Podcast, Harmonix CEO Alex Rigopulos confirms that the Xbox 360 guitars for Rock Band are wired in the bundles. There will be wired and wireless versions available for the Xbox 360, but once again, the retail bundles will come with a wired guitar. The PS3 guitars are all wireless. The Xbox 360 bundle will also come with a USB hub for all the peripherals to plug into. On both the Xbox 360 and PS3 version the microphone and drum kit will be wired. Rigopulos says, "The cost of wireless technology on the Microsoft side is higher and to be able to offer those bundles at a price point that would be reasonable for consumers it was necessary ... on the 360 side we are also bundling a hub." And no, there is no official price yet. It's starting to look like the $20 difference between the Xbox 360 wired and wireless guitar we reported after receiving an internal Game Crazy memo is holding up. So, that's that, the Xbox 360 bundle of Rock Band has a wired guitar and you'll get a little hub to plug everything in. Now comes the question if Microsoft will loosen their grip on the cost of licensing the proprietary wireless tech if the PS3 version of Rock Band sells stronger (comparatively given its lower install base) due to its wireless advantage. In the end, we don't blame Harmonix/EA/MTV for this wired issue -- although it was shady of them to hide it this long -- we're more upset that the consumer is going to get an inferior product due to an obnoxious licensing issue. It's deja vu all over again.[Thanks sm0ke]%Gallery-3923%
Wired drops Halo 3 content bomb
If you're eagerly awaiting Halo 3 like a good gamer, you're probably looking for any scrap of new info you can find on the game. Good news: Wired magazine is cordially inviting you to feast. That link will take you to a fascinating article about how Halo 3 was scientifically tuned to rock your face off. Don't miss the color-coded maps that show Bungie when one side of a playing field has an advantage. (And you thought that you were playing the beta for fun!)There are also pictures of Bungie staffers, a video primer of Halo and, of course, gorgeous screenshots. Unfortunately, after sating your Halo 3 thirst with this new content, you're probably just going to want the game even more. We're sorry. It's a vicious cycle.[Via X3F]
Wired chronicles the development of Halo 3
If you've moseyed on by your local newsstand, or whatever the kids call 'em these days, you may have seen the Master Chief plastered on the cover of Wired magazine. As our more astute readers have probably surmised, the issue contains a lengthy article on Halo 3. Specifically, the article deals with the extensive testing process that Halo 3 has undergone to ensure that the game is as close to perfect as it can be. Believe it or not, Bungie knows that lots of people were unsatisfied with Halo 2 (many Bungie employees weren't satisfied with it). The combat wasn't balanced, there were plenty of glitches, and the story, well, the story wasn't what Bungie wanted it to be. This time though, Bungie has employed an army of testers to make sure that the game is satisfying to everyone from the pros to Halo n00bs to Grandma (well, maybe not Grandma). As noted by the article, the Halo 3 testing process leans more towards science than artistry. Bungie recorded play sessions, recorded players' reactions during those play sessions, had players stop to note their satisfaction every 20 minutes, and much more. The amount of statistics recorded is really staggering, and all of it done to make sure that Halo 3 -- particularly Halo 3's campaign -- is the best damned game it can possibly be. The article hasn't made it online yet, so you'll have to pick up a copy of Wired if you want the full scoop. [Image: 360WTF]
EA confirms Rock Band in US 2007 despite AU and EU delays [Update]
According to Red Octane COO Charles Huang "multiple territories ... will not see Rock Band this Christmas." Now remember, Red Octane makes Guitar Hero and is the competitor to the Harmonix developed, EA published, Rock Band. Huang believes Australia and New Zealand are out this year and expects those territories to pay $275 Australian for the game and peripherals. Speaking with Gamespot AU, he says possible release delays can be attributed to peripheral manufacturing output and that this could reach beyond the Asia-Pacific region. Huang says, "I'm not singling out Australia -- probably it will be multiple territories that will not see Rock Band this Christmas is my guess." EA Australia won't confirm the information, but GameSpot UK was told by their EA rep, "We don't think [Rock Band] will be released in Q4."EA confirmed with Joystiq that Rock Band is still coming to the US in 2007. Although there is still no announced release date, no confirmed peripheral price, and we've heard hardly a peep about the game from the corporate side since the good buzz generated by E3. And we know we were working with "prototype" peripherals that hadn't gone into mass production at E3. We've asked for comment from EA about what's going on with the game and its peripherals. We'll update as soon as we hear back.Update: EA got back to us and said that "everything is on track to launch the game on time" in the US. They'd also like to clarify that no European or Australian ship dates were ever announced and "at this point everything else is pure speculation." They won't answer specific questions regarding US peripheral supplies, we asked if they can guarantee at least a guitar for every copy of the game, but they do say that they're "working as hard as [they] can to produce as many copies of the game as quickly as [they] can." And finally, in terms of a release date, "We're almost there! Rock Band will ship this holiday in North America for the PS3 and Xbox 360."
Rock Band bundles have wireless guitar on PS3 and wired on Xbox
We've been working on getting answers to what's going on with Rock Band's peripheral pricing for a long time. There are still no "official" prices to be found, but there is one anomaly regarding the wireless Xbox 360 guitar that is really starting to kick up questions. This $20 difference in the prices between the Xbox 360 wired and wireless guitar, which Joystiq first reported on back in May, has come back around in a sneaky way with the Rock Band bundles. Both Amazon and GameStop currently sell the Rock Band bundle for $199, with one key difference: The PS3 version comes with a wireless guitar and the Xbox 360 version is wired.So, for gamers looking to avoid the currently marked $20 difference between the PS3 ($59.99) and Xbox 360 ($79.99) wireless guitar prices, the bundle is apparently not the answer. We also spoke with Red Octane yesterday, following up on questions we had at E3 about the price point of their Xbox 360 wireless guitar. Given Red Octane's already dramatic history on this wireless issue with Microsoft, we wanted to know if licensing issues and cost to the consumer had been worked out for this guitar and Guitar Hero III's release. They couldn't officially answer at this time, but the GH III bundles are currently identically priced on GameStop's website."Officially" none of this information means anything at this point. Although consumers should be made aware that the Rock Band bundles they're currently purchasing on GameStop and Amazon for the Xbox 360 are officially marked as wired, while the PS3 version is marked as wireless.[Thanks Zachary]
Martha Stewart on how to bake an edible Wii
Martha Stewart has managed to bag a front cover appearance on Wired, a publication which somehow has convinced Martha to "geek out." Translation: Martha baked a cake in the shape of a Wii, and wanted to show it off. Although this example may not be in the same league as our birthday cake competition -- she ain't winnin' no Alienware with that thing -- we'll give Martha a respectable grade for her first effort: we wish her better luck next time with the "geeking out."
Geekdad gets Halo 3 voice-acting cameo
Remember, if you meet Bungie's Marty O' Donnell be sure to get him liquored up real nice, good things can only come from it. Wired's own Geekdad did just that a few years back while chatting it up over dinner and got a Halo 3 voice-acting cameo out of the deal. Back then, Marty (sipping the wine) jokingly promised the Geekdad a recording session in Halo 3 and stuck to his word allowing Geekdad to come to Seattle this week to record a few lines for the game. Not only did he get to record for the game, but also got to see (under NDA) Halo 3 in all its glory, drool over the mixing tables, etc. etc. Lucky little Wired Geekdad. Check out video above where Marty explains how the Halo 3 announcement trailer music came to be and be sure to make the jump to read Geekdad's full recap. Oh, and for the Halo-curious out there, Geekdad posted the list of lines he read for the game. Maybe you can find some Halo 3 storyline snippets in there ... probably not.
Wired EIC talks Halo 3, voice acting
You probably wish you had Chris Anderson's life. Not only is the guy the head of Wired Magazine and the author of best-selling book The Long Tail, but he also got a sneak peek at Halo 3 through connections with Bungie Audio Director Marty O'Donnell. Oh yeah, Anderson also got to lend his voice to a few nameless grunts in the game. Jealous much?Anderson unfortunately can't reveal much new information about the game because of a non-disclosure agreement, but he did say in a blog post that he was particularly impressed with the game's previously-discussed replay function. He was also able to share scans of a couple pages of dialogue from the game, including such scintillating bombshells as "Ooh-rah! Damn right!" and "There! Over there!" Wow! Who says video game script writing sucks?
No more mile high club for Japanese gamers
Most airlines don't allow you to use wireless devices on airplanes. In Japan however, gamers have been able to multiplay to their heart's content while in flight. That's changing now though. Japan's Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, and Transport has decided to ban wireless gaming from all flights. The reason for the move is because apparently wireless devices can interfere with the airplane's instruments. Maybe this move was done because a small Japanese child controlled a plane with his stylus. That or it's just precautionary (but I do like the touch screen pilot idea). [Via Wired]
Nintendo featured in the Wired 40
If you're unfamiliar with the Wired 40, don't panic, it's nothing more than a "list of the 40 most wired companies in the world." The inclusion of Nintendo comes as such a surprise since the company is the only new entrant in the list, which has long been dominated by the likes of Google and Apple. In the list of the top 40, the Wii debuts with a very impressive slot of sixth place. As you can see above, it's the fun control scheme that won them over, as well as the incredible sales numbers, not the graphics. [Via Joystiq]
Nintendo in The Wired 40: Here comes a new challenger!
Nintendo sits as the lone new entrant in the top 10 of Wired's 10th annual Wired 40, a "list of the 40 most wired companies in the world" ... got it? While the other nine top slots were dominated by familiar faces from previous lists -- Google and Apple flipped first and second place -- Nintendo made the biggest splash debuting at an impressive number six. What's the rationale? The Wii, of course. The "acrobatic controller," coupled with brisk sales and buzz you can't buy, was enough to earn the Big N a place amongst other tech pantheons all while throwing in the requisite dig at Sony. Other notable gaming highlights from the list include Nvidia, creeping up to number 10; Electronic Arts dropping to 20; IBM down to 38 (provides "chips powering all three top game consoles"); and Microsoft, scraping by at 40. For the statistically curious (or just impatient), pick up this month's issue 15.03; for everyone else, we imagine the entire list will make it onto their website shortly.
Wired offers up 5 reasons Apple TV rules, and sucks
Now that the Apple TV is shipping lots of people have opinions about it (imagine the amount of opinions we'll hear once people get to use it!). Wired's Rob Beschizza has compiled 5 reasons why he thinks the Apple TV will rule, and 5 reasons it'll suck.This list of 10 things nicely sums up the current zeitgeist about the Apple TV. Most tech types think it'll fail because it doesn't do enough (OMG! NO DVR!), while most analysts seem to think it'll do OK (thanks to that iTunes lock in we all know and love).It is an interesting product, no doubt, but I'm waiting for Apple TV 2.0. How about you? Have you ordered an Apple TV? If not, why not? Sound off in the comments.
Hotel Dusk: worth reading or worth playing?
In his attempts to solve the enigma buried within the story of Hotel Dusk: Room 215, Wired's Clive Thompson gets caught up in another mystery entirely. Is Hotel Dusk a game or a novel? While the general consensus is that the DS adventure is somewhat of a novel game (see what we did there?), the copious amounts of text, glacial pacing and rigorous story lead Thompson to believe that the distinction between Hotel Dusk and an "average airport novel" is less than clear.Interestingly, he suggests that interactive elements like branching dialogue are the prime culprits in not only seperating the game from a novel, but preventing it from telling a story on par with the best of books. The piece concludes that games like Hotel Dusk and Phoenix Wright represent compromises between the interactive nature of games and the unresponsive presentation of books -- terms like "novel" and "interactive" don't quite capture the experience the games try to convey. It's a good read, but we'd be remiss not to append our own conclusion: Hotel Dusk is a choose-your-own-adventure novel!
Wired trains its brain
The January issue of Wired magazine includes a few short columns about writers trying to improve their abilities; Joshua Green's story about improving his brain functions relies on Nintendo's Brain Age game, a better diet, and more sleep. His non-scientific study left him with a brain age improvement from 44 to 34 after four weeks of work.Now that Brain Age has been out for a while, do you think it has sharpened your mind? Anecdotally, we like the game, but we think it just makes us better at Brain Age.
Finally: a wired solution
Nintendo including wireless capabilities seemed like a boon for many ... similar add-ons for other systems can cost upwards of a hundred dollars. Still, for those not quite on the send-information-zipping-on-airwaves bandwagon, the lack of an ethernet port on the system meant either buying a router or one of Nintendo's silly USB dongles. Even if wireless is available, many users prefer the stability of a wired network anyway, and those USB ports on the back of the Wii have as of yet been unused. Until...Through some sort of electronic melding procedure, an unofficial ethernet-to-USB adapter (KINAMAX USB 2.0 to RJ45 Fast Ethernet 10/100 Base-T Network Adapter, found for sale at NewEgg here for $20) seems to send all the necessary 1's and 0's to the Wii. Why this adapter works and others not, we have no idea. Still, it's best not to look a gift horse in the mouth; if you wanted a wired connection, you've got one. Check after the break for a video demonstration.
Orson Scott Card laments publishers' grasp on creativity
Author Orson Scott Card (Ender's Game) told Wired that he's fed up with the state of gaming and not optimistic about the future. Card notes that today's gameplay is repetitive and the storytelling is minimal at best. The problem, Card says, is the publishers who don't understand the medium and are prone to financing / pushing safe bets, essentially leaving the developers pigeonholed. Let's sympathize with the publisher's position first. They largely hold a fiduciary stance, which means they act in the financial interest of the company. The goal of a business is to make money, after all, and unfortunately the safest bets are generally the same gameplay mechanics known for decades with prettier graphics and more particle effects. Assuming developers have the ability to innovate in the industry (as Card implies), is it the responsibility of publishers to advance the medium through risk-taking -- say, one art house game for every 2-3 mindless shooters, annual sports iterations, or licensed action romp? With game development costing in the tens of millions of dollars and more, and shelf space limited in brick-and-mortar stores, innovation is a hard pill to swallow for profit-seeking corporations. The hope, perhaps, lies in digital distribution or even simply online purchasing. At that point, however, the responsibility lies with the consumer to use his or her wallet and make a stance for innovation.[Thanks, trumaine]
Tingle's weird Wired ride
Let's face it, Tingle isn't exactly a normal guy. So when he gets his very own game, it's only fitting that someone step up with a review to match the man-fairy. Wired's Chris Kohler took up the challenge with his recent impressions of Tingle's Freshly-Picked Rose-Colored Rupee Land -- or is it Freshly-Pickled -- whatever, that Tingle RPG. The thrust of which is that you, as brightly-colored Tingle, need to collect a veritable peck of rupees in order to climb that stairway to Rupee Land, a heaven filled with good food, good times, and good women.Yeah, Tingle. With the women. But all questions of beards aside (though Tingle's is mighty fine), Kohler offers a nice breakdown of the game and a lot of jokes at our sassily dressed hero's expense. But beware of spoilers, as he's pretty blunt about how things go in the first dungeon. Mogitate Tingle no Barairo Rupee Land is now out in Japan. We wonder if importing it would make the game any more or less strange.
Wired asks if the PS3 can save Sony
If you're a loyal Wired reader like some of us here at Joystiq, then you would have noticed a great article in this month's edition on the PlayStation 3 and its role as savior for Sony. The article is online and we suggest you read it because it's a very objectively written piece on the PS3 and its place in Sony's past, present, and future. This graph near the end of the story sums it up best:In 30 years, Sony has transformed itself from a consistently profitable consumer electronics company with annual sales of $1.6 billion to a dangerously wobbly consumer electronics-entertainment-financial services behemoth 40 times that size. Sony Electronics needs to embrace the networked world, obviously, but does it really need to be allied with a Hollywood film studio and a consumer-wary global music label in a global campaign against Microsoft? Probably not. It just needs to make cool products for the century we live in.The article delves into Sony's risky and controversial decisions and how some of those risks have both failed and succeeded. If you're looking for a non-fanboy, purely objective look on what the PS3 means to Sony and the gaming community, then do yourself a favor and check this out.[Thanks, Richard Mitchell]
Leander Kahney and Apple sitting in a tree
Today Wired reporter Leander Kahney did the unthinkable: he admitted that he loves a multinational corporation that is incapable of every returning that love. Good thing the giant corporation he loves is Apple or I'd be forced to think there was something wrong with him.Leander points to the elegant way that Apple's Mail.app handles dates in columns that are resized. The date formatting changes so that the date is still readable within the column, just another example of Apple's attention to detail. It is these touches that make people like you and I (and Leander) love this company that does nothing for us other than take our money and manipulate our emotions so well.Why do you love Apple so (and if you're reading a blog about Apple chances are you like it more than most people do so just fess up to it)?
