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Monday , November 13, 2006 |
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Rainbow Six Vegas Goes Gold 03:15 pm
- Andrew Burnes
- Consoles: Xbox 360
(0 comments)
Out November 20th, only for the Xbox 360:
Today Ubisoft, one of the world's largest video game publishers, announced that Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six Vegas for the Xbox 360 video game and entertainment system from Microsoft has gone gold and will ship to stores in North America on November 20, 2006.
Developed by Ubisoft Montreal Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six makes its next-generation hardware debut in the most dramatic installment of the renowned first-person shooter franchise to date. Rainbow operatives take to the chaotic streets of Las Vegas as an escalating terrorist siege in "Sin City" threatens to take world terrorism to new, uncontrollable heights. The future of global security hangs in the balance as you battle to defend classic Vegas locations and environments like Fremont Street, the Strip and casinos. Experience Las Vegas like never before - through revolutionary next generation technology as you work against the clock to protect one of the world's most recognizable cities from utter devastation.
Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six Vegas will be available for Xbox 360 at the manufacturer's suggested retail price of $59.99.
Don't forget to get a Vision Live camera so you can use your ugly mug in multiplayer!
Sony on PS3 Back Comp: No Sound is Ok 02:28 pm
- Robert 'Apache' Howarth
- Consoles: PS3
(5 comments)
PS3.IGN has a response from Sony in regards to some backwards compatibility problems for over 196 PlayStation 2 titles: In response to these issues, Sony's PR department pointed out that it, from the start, expected backwards compatibility to be less than 100%. It was also good enough to point out that some people can put up with playing games that lack sound.
Regardless of this somewhat arrogant response, an official statement issued at the PlayStation.com site states that Sony will fix the problems with a future system update, and may even resort to individual patches for certain titles. When this will happen has yet to be specified.
Twilight Princess First Review 02:22 pm
- Robert 'Apache' Howarth
- Consoles: Nintendo Wii
(4 comments)
GameSpy has the exclusive first review of The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess for the Nintendo Wii. Overall score was a 3/5. JUST KIDDING! In the end, there's no way that The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess disappoints. It's an excellent addition (and homage to Ocarina) to the franchise, and you'll have an enormous amount of fun playing it from start to finish. Get over the fact that the Wii's hardware is simply not as powerful as the other next-gen machines and get into the fact that Twilight Princess is one of the best games you'll play this year. If you've been on the fence in any capacity, then please rest assured that you'll not be disappointed. I'm looking forward to checking out the GameCube version later next month, but I'm having a hard time imagining it being any better than the Wii interpretation. Nintendo's flagship game has finally arrived and you better damned well appreciate it. It's ultimately fantastic.
The Week Ahead... 12:17 pm
- Andrew Burnes
- Games: General News
(13 comments)
Your guide to all that is being released in the week ahead.
PC:
- Agatha Christie Murder on the Orient Express
- Aircraft Power Pack for Microsoft Flight Simulator X
- Best of Games RPG
- Best of Games RTS
- Bionicle Heroes
- Catz 2006
- Charlotte's Web
- D.I.R.T.: Origin Of The Species
- Dark Age of Camelot 5th Anniversary Edition DVD-ROM
- Deal or No Deal
- Dogz 2006
- Emperor's Treasures
- Eragon
- EverQuest II: Echoes of Faydwer
- Face Factory 2
- Fifth Disciple
- Gothic III
- Great Invasions
- Happy Feet
- Heroes of Annihilated Empires
- Heroes of Might & Magic V: Hammers of Fate Expansion Pack
- Hipsoft Puzzle Game Collection
- Horsez
- Medieval II: Total War
- Model Train 3D
- Mystery Case Files: Prime Suspects
- Safari Photo Africa: Wild Earth
- Sonic Riders
- Star Wars The Best of PC DVD-ROM
- Teddy Factory
- Warhammer: Mark of Chaos
- World War II Online: Battleground Europe
Playstation 3:
- Call of Duty 3
- Genji: Days of the Blade
- Madden NFL 07
- Marvel Ultimate Alliance
- Mobile Suit Gundam: Crossfire
- NBA 07
- NBA 2K7
- NHL 2K7
- Resistance: Fall of Man
- Ridge Racer 7
- Sonic the Hedgehog
- Tiger Woods PGA Tour 07
- Tony Hawk's Project 8
- Untold Legends: Dark Kingdom
Playstation 2:
- Barbie 12 Dancing Princesses
- Bionicle Heroes
- Capcom Classics 2
- Drive to Survive
- Eragon
- Happy Feet
- Hard Rock Casino
- Horsez
- Naruto Uzumaki Chronicles
- Need for Speed Collection
- NFL Street Vol 3
- PS2 Wireless Guitar Hero Controller
- Shrek Smash and Crash
- Singstar Rocks
- Thrillville
- Victorious Boxers 2: Fighting Spirit
- WWE Smackdown vs Raw 2007
- Xiaolin Showdown
Playstation Portable:
- Eragon
- GitarooMan Lives!
- Gunpey
- Hammy Goes Nuts
- Hard Rock Casino
- Luxor: The Wrath of Set
- Mortal Kombat Deception: Unchained
- NFL Street Volume 3
- Platypus
- Sega Genesis Collection
- Sonic Rivals
- Star Trek: Tactical Assault
- Thrillville
- Warhammer: Battle for Atluma
- Xiaolin Showdown
- Yu-Gi-Oh! GX Tag Force
Xbox 360:
- Bionicle Heroes
- Blitz: The League
- Dead or Alive Xtreme 2
- Eragon
- History Channel: Civil War
- Pimp My Ride
- Sonic the Hedgehog
- World Championship Poker: All In
- WWE Smackdown vs Raw 2007 Special Edition
- WWE Smackdown Vs. RAW 2007
Xbox:
- Bass Pro Trophy Fishing
- Capcom Classics Collection Volume 2
- Dance Dance Revolution: Ultramix 4 with Bonus!
- Eragon
- Teen Titans
- Thrillville
- Xiaolin Showdown
Nintendo Wii:
- Avatar: The Last Airbender
- Call of Duty 3
- Cars
- Dragon Ball Z: Budokai Tenkaichi 2
- Grim Adventures of Billy & Mandy
- GT Pro Series with Wheel
- Happy Feet
- Madden NFL 07
- Marvel Ultimate Alliance
- Monster Truck
- Rampage: Total Destruction
- Rayman: Raving Rabbids
- SpongeBob SquarePants: Creature From the Krusty Krab
- Super Monkey Ball Banana Blitz
- Tony Hawk's Downhill Jam
- Trauma Center: Second Opinion
Nintendo GameCube:
- Bionicle Heroes
- Happy Feet
- Tomb Raider: Legend
Nintendo DS:
- Asphalt: Urban GT 2
- Bionicle Heroes
- Brain Boost: Beta Wave
- Brain Boost: Gamma Wave
- Charlotte's Web
- Eragon
- Final Fantasy III
- Gunpey
- Happy Feet
- Monster Bomber
- Spider-Man: Battle for NY
- Tamagotchi Connection: Corner Shop 2
- Tomb Raider: Legend
- Uno/Skip-Bo/Uno Freefall
- Yoshi's Island 2
DVD:
- 49 Up
- Accepted (Full Screen)
- Accepted (Widescreen)
- Adventures of Superman: The Complete Fifth & Sixth Seasons in Full Color
- Bah, HumDuck!: A Looney Tunes Christmas
- Bing Crosby: Screen Legend Collection
- Black Books: The Complete First and Second Series
- Black Books: The Complete Second Series
- Boffo! Tinseltown's Bombs & Blockbusters
- Brothers of the Head
- Cary Grant: Screen Legend Collection
- Chip 'n Dale Rescue Rangers: Volume 2
- Clash
- Columbo: The Complete Sixth and Seventh Seasons
- Conversations with Other Women
- CSI: Crime Scene Investigation - The Complete Sixth Season
- Detroit Pistons: 1989 Champions - Born to be Ba
- Disney's Adventures of the Gummi Bears: Volume One
- Drop Dead Gorgeous
- DuckTales - Volume 2
- Family Guy: Volume 4
- Flavor of Love: The Complete Second Season
- Forbidden Planet: 50th Anniversary 2-Disc Special Edition
- Forbidden Planet: Ultimate Collector's Edition
- Friends: The Complete Series
- God's Gift
- Gunsmoke: The Directors Collection
- Harper
- Hate Crime
- Home Improvement: The Complete Fifth Season
- John Tucker Must Die
- Joyeux Noel (Merry Christmas)
- King Kong: Deluxe Extended Edition
- King Kong: Deluxe Extended Limited Edition DVD Gift Set
- Lassie (Widescreen)
- Leonard Cohen: I'm Your Man
- Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman - The Complete Fourth Season
- Looney Tunes: Golden Collection - Volume Four
- Maniac Cop: Special Edition
- Masters of Horror: John Mcnaughton - Haeckel's Tale
- Mickey Mouse Clubhouse: Mickey Saves Santa and Other Mouseketales
- NCIS: The Complete Second Season
- Northern Exposure: The Complete Fifth Season
- Oldboy (Widescreen Special Edition)
- Quantum Leap: The Complete Fifth Season
- Reba: Season 4
- Red Doors
- Rock Hudson: Screen Legend Collection
- Six Feet Under: The Complete Series Gift Set
- Sophie Scholl - The Final Days
- Strangers With Candy
- The Best of the Electric Company: Volume 2
- The Da Vinci Code (Special Edition, Full Screen, 2 discs)
- The Da Vinci Code (Special Edition, Widescreen, 2 discs)
- The Da Vinci Code Giftset (Special Edition, Widescreen, 2 discs with Cryptex and Langdon Journal)
- The Golden Girls: Season Six
- The Green Mile: Special Edition
- The Groomsmen
- The Paul Newman Collection
- Who Killed the Electric Car?
Blu-Ray:
- ATL
- Behind Enemy Lines
- Black Hawk Down
- Fantastic Four
- Kingdom of Heaven (Director's Cut)
- Kiss of the Dragon
- Million Dollar Baby
- Speed
- The Da Vinci Code
- The Last Samurai
- The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen
- The Omen
- The Transporter
- X-Men: The Last Stand
HD-DVD:
- Casablanca
- Forbidden Planet: 50th Anniversary 2-Disc Special Edition
- Forbidden Planet: Ultimate Collector's Edition
- King Kong
- Mutiny on the Bounty
- Waterworld
Movies - Now Showing:
- A Good Year
- Copying Beethoven [Limited]
- Fuck [Limited]
- Fur: An Imaginary Portrait of Diane Arbus [Limited]
- Harsh Times
- Stranger Than Fiction
- The Return
Movies - Opening Friday October 27th:
- Candy [Limited]
- Casino Royale
- Come Early Morning [Limited]
- Fast Food Nation
- Happy Feet
- Hood of Horror [Limited]
- Let's Go to Prison
- The Aura [Limited]
Here's my plan of action this week - Bash an old lady over the head for a Playstation 3, buy Yoshi's Island 2 to play while waiting around for the old lady to get her PS3, buy Rayman: Raving Rabbids and Trauma Center: Second Opinion a week ahead of the Wii launch just in case there isn't enough Zelda stock, buy Medieval II: Total War and download the forthcoming patch that fixes stuff such as missile troops standing around idle while being pelted by enemy arrows, rent the HD-DVD Forbidden Planet release to watch on the 360 drive, and then hit up the cinema to watch Casino Royale.
What will you be spending your money on in the week ahead?
VE Votes 2006: Best PC RPG? 03:15 am
- Robert 'Apache' Howarth
- Games: Role-Playing
(34 comments)
This week's VE poll asks, Best PC RPG of 2006? Vote on your right!
Too many options to list on last week's best website/blog poll, but the top ten were: Shacknews, Bluesnews, Penny-Arcade, WorthPlaying, IGN, Anandtech, GameSpot, Hard|OCP, Slashdot and Digg.
All the poll winners will be included in the Best of 2006 awards at the end of the year.
Hardware & Tech Nuggets 01:00 am
- Robert 'Apache' Howarth
- hardware: General News
(0 comments)
RPG Vault Goodness 12:45 am
- Robert 'Apache' Howarth
- Games: Role-Playing
(0 comments)
Game Reviews 12:30 am
- Robert 'Apache' Howarth
- Games: General News
(0 comments)
In Other News... 12:15 am
- Robert 'Apache' Howarth
- In-House: In Other News...
(17 comments)
This week we have the big North American PS3 launch. Good luck getting one!
Today's question:
How long do you think it will take developers to fully harness the power of the PS3?
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Sunday , November 12, 2006 |
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Gears of War Review @ VE 08:45 pm
- Robert 'Apache' Howarth
- Consoles: Xbox 360
(60 comments)
Here is our review of Gears of War, a little game you might've heard of from Epic Games on the Xbox 360. Here's a taste: All of that Unreal Engine 3 hype must be real, as Epic managed to produce what I believe to be the first true next-generation action game. It just took a year, but the Xbox 360 finally has a killer app. What makes the graphics so good is the level of detail on the characters, the awesome shader effects and overall excellence of the art and texture work. Particle effects are amazing and the bad guys look great—especially when you hack them apart with your chainsaw bayonet assault rifle. Frame rates are perfect in-game, but do suffer some mild slowdowns during cutscenes. Nothing major, but they do momentarily snap you out of your Gears of War dreamworld.
Sunday Rewind 05:06 pm
- Robert 'Apache' Howarth
- In-House: In Other News...
(0 comments)
Warhammer Online Beta News 04:25 pm
- Robert 'Apache' Howarth
- Games: MMOG
(0 comments)
Mythic has given a tentative schedule for the Warhammer Online beta test:
Beta 1.7, After Things Stop Going Boom Every Day: This is the stage you'll start seeing community testers. People who have tested for Mythic for years, or have been otherwise recommended to us as quality volunteer testers, are starting to be included. There is usually a restriction on how many people get in at this point, and often perfectly wonderful people are left out. STARTS: TENTATIVE DATE: Early 2007
Beta 2: Still closed and covered under NDA, invitees include prize winners, guilds that win the guild contest, and some members of the print and web media - usually the ones we have relationships with. People who work at GW retail shops are getting in here, and we've got some plans for existing Dark Age of Camelot players to be invited to check out their new sibling. There will be up to a thousand people by the end of Beta 2. STARTS: TENTATIVE DATE: Early Spring 2007
Beta 3: Closed, NDA. This is where Lady Luck will wave her wand. We will be choosing randomly from the giant pool of people who are subscribed to our newsletter. This phase will have thousands of people invited, possibly as many as ten thousand. STARTS: TENTATIVE DATE: Summer 2007
Final Beta: No NDA. Because there is no NDA, people often refer to this as "open beta." But I wanted to be really clear with you guys - we are not planning the kind of open beta where everyone with internet access can download the game and hop in. That's nutty. Right now, we are tentatively considering having everyone who pre-orders the game invited to this phase of beta. This phase will also invite winners from our big media promotions. STARTS: TENTATIVE DATE: Summer 2007
CoD 3 and GoW Matchmaking Issues 01:21 pm
- Robert 'Apache' Howarth
- Consoles: Xbox 360
(12 comments)
It seems some folks are having issues joining games in both Call of Duty 3 and Gears of War.
I'm not sure if this will work in Call of Duty 3, but Jess pointed out a thread on the Xbox boards that fixes the Gears of War issue. All you do is spam the X while it's "searching/refreshing" and it will get you in. I think the problem is more with Xbox Live than the games...
Emergence Day Emerges, or something 01:11 pm
- Robert 'Apache' Howarth
- Consoles: Xbox 360
(2 comments)
Microsoft has proclaimed today to be Emergence Day for Epic's Gears of War.
Xbox Live® celebrates Emergence Day with 24 hours of special events beginning at 12:01 A.M. on Sunday, November 12 on Xbox Live. Gold members in North America can join online tournaments, download exclusive videos, win cool prizes, and participate in variety of other activities:
- Leaderboard tournament: The 24-hour leaderboard tournament winner receives a one-of-a-kind Gears of War branded guitar as well as an automatic bye to the finals of a global Gears of War tournament planned for 2007.
- Hourly sweepstakes drawings: Prize giveaways mean you could win one of several Samsung HT-P29 Dolby 5.1 Surround Sound Systems.
- Gamer pic and theme: Score the exclusive free Gears of War gamer pic and theme, only available on Emergence Day.
- Game with Fame: Play with legendary heavy metal band and Gears of War fans Megadeth, the game's lead designer Cliff Bleszinski, and other members of the Epic Games team.
- New videos: Check out the never-before-seen videos including a special Emergence Day transmission from Cliff Bleszinski.
- MTV Special: Watch the MTV "Gears of War: The Road to Launch" sneak preview.
Game with Fame Schedule
On Sunday, November 12, The Gears of War development team and some other surprise celebrities will be taking on the Xbox Live community to celebrate Emergence Day. Here's your chance to see how the game is played by taking on the guys that actually built the game! Stick around, you don't want to miss a chance to test your skills against Gears of War designer Cliff Bleszinski.
Dave Mustaine from Megadeth: Challenge this rock star (and avid gamer) at 3 P.M. Pacific / 6 P.M. Eastern. Look for the gamertag GWFMegadeth.
Epic Games Team: 4 P.M. to 6 P.M. Pacific / 7 P.M. to 9 P.M. Eastern. Be on the lookout for the gamertags below. The team members will be popping into existing games or inviting Xbox Live members into games throughout the evening.
- EpicMarkRein: Mark Rein, Vice President
- EpicRodF: Rod Fergusson, Producer
- EpicLeeP: Lee Perry, Lead Level Design
- EpicRayD: Ray Davis, Lead Programmer·
- EpicJimB: Jim Brown, Multiplayer Level Design
- EpicDevTeam1, EpicDevTeam2, EpicDevTeam3,
- EpicDevTeam4, EpicDevTeam5, EpicDevTeam6: Various additional team members
Cliff "Cliffy B" Bleszinski: 4 P.M. to 6 P.M. Pacific / 7 P.M. to 9 P.M. Eastern
To try your hand against Design Lead Cliff Bleszinski, be on the lookout for Xbox Live Gamertag EpicCliffyB.
There's also a new GoW picture and theme available for download on Live today only.
In Other News... 01:00 pm
- Robert 'Apache' Howarth
- In-House: In Other News...
(43 comments)
The Playstation 3 and Wii launches are creeping up on us. The PS3 is some crazy cool hardware with a serious lack of launch games. The Wii, on the other hand, has the games, but other than the wacky controller, is big a step backwards in technology. I'd like to buy both, but I doubt I'll find a PS3 in stock anywhere until at least March. The Wii, you can probably buy on day one. Amazing what you can do when you're selling systems for a profit. I've been warming up to the 360, so I might blow that cash on games instead. Maybe one of those new HD drives too. I'm also saving up for a new PC, so we shall see.
I'm not sure what we're going to do yet for the Game of the Year poll for this week. I'm trying to think of any genre that has fired off its load, so to speak, and has no GoTY worthy candidates still coming out. Maybe RPGs? Might do the best fansite poll if I can't think of any.
Today's question:
Who plans on camping out for a PS3 or Wii?
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