WWII
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Medal of Honor: Heroes with 32 player (online) multiplayer
Gamespot's On the Spot recently showcased an exclusive preview of Medal of Honor: Heroes, an upcoming PSP game which Peter Dille accidentally revealed during an interview a few weeks ago. Thankfully, the power of YouTube has given those of us that missed the show a chance to rewatch this amazing trailer. There will be "all new adventures" across "12 new European battlefields." Even more excitingly, there will be 32 player multiplayer, and as -Xenofreak- from the IGN Boards has pointed out, the PSP is capable of only 16-player Ad-Hoc. What does that seem to suggest? Yes, it looks like there might be 32 player ONLINE multiplayer! The game is set to hit in Fall, so the wait won't be too hard.
Next Call of Duty answered, previewed
If the mention of World War II still compels you to go about shooting things (typically Nazis) from a first-person perspective, you'd best check out 1Up's weeklong feature that promises to detail every pixel, polygon and private that constitutes the upcoming Call of Duty 3. Taking over from Infinity Ward, developer Treyarch is keen on capitalizing on next-gen technology and the creative freedoms it provides -- with any luck, that means we'll actually be able to open doors in this one. Oh well, we suppose loads of on-screen enemies and trampled blades of grass are just as useful.The screenshots and video provided are enough to convince us of the game's technical gravitas, but we're quite interested in the Wii version and how it looks to take advantage of the unique control system. A small blurb in the first part of the preview suggests how, while at the same time suggesting that the other two versions of the game are the main focus here. "The Wii version, in development outside Treyarch, shows some potential to bring the player into the game during the Battle Actions in a way the PS3 and 360 won't be able to. Actually wrestling with a German for his gun or actually disarming that explosive are things only the Wii will let you do this gen."Battle actions are Call of Duty's answer to Shenmue's Quick Timer Events. At certain points during the game, you're required to press certain buttons in order to escape a cinematic struggle or situation. Failure is likely to result in far more unpleasantness than getting smacked in the head by some Japanese kid's soccerball. These sound particularly intriguing if done correctly for the Wii and should make up for some of its inevitable graphical shortcomings. Even then, we have to wonder how long it'll take before we grow tired of crawling through trenches and taking out tanks. Is World War II the new Hoth?[Thanks to everyone that sent this in!]
'Wii' not unique enough, search engines yield strange results
Anyone that has conducted a simple online search for "Wii" since the name of Nintendo's next-gen console was officially unveiled less than one month ago has undoubtedly turned up some interesting results. PunchJump.com has put together a status report of the search term, which still yields the Wildlife Institute of India as the top result on Google. Turning to the websites of many major retailers, "Wii" searches often produce shopping lists of World War II memorabilia.But Nintendo's Wii is quickly gaining ground, already nabbing most of Yahoo's top results. Now, it's only a matter of time before Nintendo's console dominates search engines across the 'net. Still, the current results suggest that "Wii" isn't as unique a name as it's been chalked up to be.
Call of Duty 3 announced; leak confirmed [update 1]
Call of Duty 3's just been confirmed, and it looks like we were right on the money with our early leak of the WWII-related game.Back in early March, we printed the following information (and a whole lot more) on the focus of an upcoming sequel: "'CoD 3' ... is being produced by Big Red One dev Treyarch. ... The next Call of Duty World War II-based title will return gamers to the battlefields of Normandy as the Allies take on Nazi Germany to drive them out of France once and for all. This time around, American and British forces are joined by Canadian troops, Polish tanks, and French freedom fighters in a reenactment of the bloody Normandy Breakout campaign spearheaded during the summer of 1944. In the push to Paris, you'll get to choose how you approach each mission, free of menu screens and jarring non-interactive cut-scenes."Here's what IGN quoted from Activision for the announcement yesterday: "Through the eyes of four Allied soldiers, Call of Duty 3 brings players closer to the fury of combat as they fight through the Normandy Breakout, the harrowing offensive that liberated Paris and changed the fate of the world. Developed by Treyarch, Call of Duty 3 is the follow up to the #1 next-generation game and is scheduled for a 2006 release." Fingering the developer and the setting? Not too shabby -- while Joystiq pats itself on the back.Check out the IGN trailer below for a first-person look somewhat reminiscent of the FPS sequence in the Metal Gear Solid 4 trailer from TGS. At the end of the "official E3 teaser" trailer, a number of platforms are listed, with the major manufacturers (including a small "Nintendo Revolution" in text) and publisher/developer combo listed. We suspect that versions for the PC and possibly the current-gen consoles will be covered with ports as well. Now all we have to do is wait for the word on Call of Duty: Modern Warfare. (Infinity Ward, we're looking at you!) More info obviously hitting at E3.[Thanks, icemorebutts, jason, & Hiro Protagonist][Update 1: Had to fix a verb. Thanks, Hiro Protagonist, John Q, & Jiiiiihad!]See also: Official E3 teaser trailer for Call of Duty 3 Next Call of Duty leaked: Modern Warfare tackles terrorists Rumor: Call of Duty joining the Revolution Kojima interacts in real-time with MGS4 trailer at TGS
Blazing Angels demo drops into XBLM
A demo for World War II dogfighter Blazing Angels is now available in the Xbox Live Marketplace for the Xbox 360. The marketing hype promises an environment "so real you'll feel like you're the pilot in a famous WWII movie." Wait a minute! Let's do some close reading on that bit o' marketing mummery. When did we suddenly become one more level removed from the actual experience? Today's game audiences can't know what it was like to be a pilot in an actual WWII dogfight and can only know what it's like to be an actor in a movie based on what some director imagined WWII to be. Sixty years from now, when few living gamers will have seen a WWII movie, marketers will be promising games that are "so real you'll feel like you're controlling a famous game based on a famous WWII movie based on a famous historical novel of a famous WWII battle." We tingle with excitement in anticipation of that glorious day. [Via Xbox360Fanboy.com]
The Outfit multiplayer demo moves out March 3rd
Frustrated with another WWII themed 360 titles lackluster online play? In a couple short weeks, THQ will release a multiplayer demo for their upcoming 360 dubya-dubya-eye-eye title, The Outfit. The 500MB demo will support up to 8 players and will be available March 3rd in the XBLM and bundled in the Official Xbox Magazine. [Via Joystiq]
