Xbox Jedi

Though a European trailer for No Heroes Allowed, the third game in the What Did I Do to Deserve This, My Lord!? series, was released during Gamescom, news of a North American release remained up in the air (instead of buried in a hastily-dug dungeon, where it belonged). SCEA has revealed plans to release the game, but did not offer up a date for the God of Destruction's resurrection.

No Heroes Allowed offers 100 daily dungeon design challenges, along with a new cooperative play mode that stars Badman and his daughter, Badmella. In the new addition, two players collaborate to dig a deadly, devious and dangerous dungeon.

Holy localization, Badman! It's No Heroes Allowed for PSP originally appeared on Joystiq on Fri, 03 Sep 2010 09:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

If you found yourself particularly inspired by the quartet of southern rock troubadours prominently featured in Left 4 Dead 2's "Dark Carnival" campaign, you can now stretch your creative muscles to give one of the fictional band's hit songs some visual flair. Valve recently announced a contest to create the best music video for the Riders' chart topper "Save Me Some Sugar (This Won't Take Long)," which will make its debut in the upcoming "The Sacrifice" DLC campaign. The winner of the contest will receive a Valve "gift pack" and a guitar signed by all four members of the band.

The manner in which you create this video is entirely up to you -- will it be live action, in-game footage or a hybrid of both? Regardless of what you go with, we hope you first seek out some thematically appropriate inspiration.

Make a music video for Left 4 Dead's Midnight Riders originally appeared on Joystiq on Fri, 03 Sep 2010 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

If you're interested in jailbreaking your iPhone without voiding the warranty, then check out The Open App Market, a third party store for developers who can skip the Apple approval process to showcase their wares for the iPhone.

Are you ready, Steef? Just Add Water is working on a high-definition remake of Oddworld: Stranger's Wrath. The Gravity Crash developer announced the project earlier today, highlighting it as the first in a "long and fruitful relationship" with the original game's developer, Oddworld Inhabitants. "Having a chance to update the great title and release it on PS3 is just a brilliant opportunity, not least for us, but for the fans too," added Just Add Water MD Stewart Gilray.

Set for release on PlayStation Network during Easter next year, the PS3 remake of Stranger's Wrath will offer enhanced 720p visuals, more detailed character models, remastered dialogue, PlayStation Move support and "additional bonus material."

When it launched on Xbox in January 2005, Oddworld: Stranger's Wrath was notable for being, well, a really bizarre first-person shooter. It placed the franchise's environmental missive inside a wild and weird Western aesthetic, and replaced ammunition with ravenous fuzzballs. An EA-developed port for PlayStation 2 never made it to stores.

Oddworld: Stranger's Wrath remake coming to PS3 in 2011 originally appeared on Joystiq on Fri, 03 Sep 2010 07:17:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

A game based on roller derby is something that never occurred to us, but it seems incredibly obvious now that someone's doing it. Frozen Codebase announced Jam City Rollergirls, a WiiWare game based on women's flat track roller derby and featuring real roller derby leagues. This is the second "official," licensed WiiWare game for an unconventional sport that we can think of, and it's far less disgusting than its contemporary.

Frozen Codebase plans to release the circular skating and violence sim in the fourth quarter of this year. Jam City Rollergirls will also be at PAX this weekend for the curious to give it a spin.

Jam City Rollergirls rolling out on WiiWare later this year originally appeared on Joystiq on Fri, 03 Sep 2010 07:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

SNK's oddball bullet hell shmup, KOF Sky Stage, has finally been dated for Xbox Live Arcade -- in Japan, at least. Masochists can check it out on September 15 for 800 MS Points ($10). That's a small price to pay to see Terry Bogard and company fly around and shoot stuff. And, y' know, play a super-tough game.

The game originally launched in Japanese arcades back in January. PSP users can also access KOF Sky Stage right now in Neo Geo Heroes, while those of us in the US can likely look forward to a localized release, so says an ESRB listing. If you're looking to get an early start at finding all of those sweet hiding spots to take refuge from the impending bullet swarms, head past the break for a new trailer.

Continue reading KOF Sky Stage shoots up Japanese XBLA on September 15

KOF Sky Stage shoots up Japanese XBLA on September 15 originally appeared on Joystiq on Fri, 03 Sep 2010 06:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

Erin Robinson's excellent Puzzle Bots was chosen as one of the PAX 10 winners for this weekend's Seattle convention, and as a result, Wadjet Eye games has it on sale all weekend long. By entering the code "PUZZLEPAX" at checkout, you can play the cheerful little strategy puzzle title for $4.99 instead of the usual $10.

There's a free demo available if you want to try before you buy and the game will also be playable on the PAX show floor -- so if you have a friend in Seattle, ask them what they think. An excellent deal on an excellent indie title, even for those of us who aren't partying with Tycho and Gabe this weekend.

PAX 10 winner Puzzle Bots available for half price during expo originally appeared on Joystiq on Fri, 03 Sep 2010 05:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

Shin'en, developer of the DS shmup Nanostray and its sequel -- and, most recently, WiiWare platformer Jett Rocket -- has begun to tease its next project for Wii's digital platform: FAST Racing League. Only a single piece of promotional art (pictured) has been revealed so far, but this image is worth at least a couple dozen words. Like, for example, the game looks to be a futuristic racer and the ship design bears an uncanny similarity to those of a certain Sony racing franchise.

It's too soon to hope for an F-Zero style racer on Wii (where is the Wii game in that series, anyway?) but at least those of us who like our racing fast and future-focused have something to put on our radar.

Futuristic 'FAST Racing League' due on WiiWare from Jett Rocket dev originally appeared on Joystiq on Fri, 03 Sep 2010 04:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

(Music Downloads Not Rated by the ESRB.) Purchase this Premium Song to add "Break Your Heart" as performed by Taio Cruz feat. Ludacris to your Lips library. You’ll get the song’s track, chart, lyrics, and original video. A Lips game disc is required to play this downloadable content. Once your purchase is complete, go to Get Music in the game, and then add this song to your library. Visit lips.com to check out all the songs you can get, song credits, news, and join the Lips community. There are no refunds for this item. For more information, see www.xbox.com/live/accounts.

Ready for a bloody Spring break? Download the BGT trailer and join a cast of mad actors who would kill to make it big in Hollywood!

(Music Downloads Not Rated by the ESRB.) Purchase this Premium Song to add "Donuts, Go Nuts!" (from 'Splosion Man) as performed by Matt "Chainsaw" Chaney to your Lips library. You’ll get the song’s track, chart, and lyrics. A Lips game disc is required to play this downloadable content. Once your purchase is complete, go to Get Music in the game, and then add this song to your library. Visit lips.com to check out all the songs you can get, song credits, news, and join the Lips community. (Note: No original video is available with this Premium Song offering.)

(Music Downloads Not Rated by the ESRB.) Purchase this Premium Song to add "Bad Day" as performed by Daniel Powter to your Lips library. You’ll get the song’s track, chart, lyrics, and original video. A Lips game disc is required to play this downloadable content. Once your purchase is complete, go to Get Music in the game, and then add this song to your library. Visit lips.com to check out all the songs you can get, song credits, news, and join the Lips community. There are no refunds for this item. For more information, see www.xbox.com/live/accounts.

Do you feel the inexplicable compulsion to map the contours of your grotesque visage on a professional level? MakerBot Industries has come up with a clever device that should let you do so using a gaming peripheral you might already own: The PlayStation Eye.

The MakerScanner (which isn't available for purchase yet, though interested parties can put their names on a mailing list) is designed to let users create a full 3D geometric scan of an object using the PS Eye and a laser line pointer. This results in a data map that can be used to create 3D models or, with the right -- presumably expensive -- equipment, a physical statuette. We think it would be worth the investment to fill our apartment with busts of ourselves. "Oh, this one," we'd tell our visitors, "this one's us in repose."

MakerBot mod turns PlayStation Eye into 3D scanner originally appeared on Joystiq on Fri, 03 Sep 2010 03:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

Gaijin Games (of Bit.Trip fame) announced during GDC that it is was bringing Different Cloth's award-winning inside music game, Lilt Line, to WiiWare. The first video of the port in action is out -- which looks and sounds just like the iPhone original (i.e, great.) Now all we need is a date!

Continue reading Look and listen: Lilt Line for WiiWare in motion

Look and listen: Lilt Line for WiiWare in motion originally appeared on Joystiq on Fri, 03 Sep 2010 02:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

Lording over your Keflings in A Kingdom for Keflings was easily one its most amusing aspects. Watching this trailer for the sequel, A World of Keflings, confirms your duty has risen to a whole new level. Really, why would you help them build things when you can just stuff them into cannons?

Continue reading World of Keflings trailer debuts tiny man cannons

World of Keflings trailer debuts tiny man cannons originally appeared on Joystiq on Fri, 03 Sep 2010 01:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

Well, what do we have here? While visiting lovely and scenic Redmond, WA to spend some time (about two hours, to be exact) with Fable 3, we accepted an invitation to swing by one of the Xbox buildings and check out the new (and, yes, improved) Xbox 360 wireless controller with transforming D-pad. We not only played with a final prototype controller, but also got a first look at the retail packaging, lenticular image and all.

First, the obvious attraction: The new "transforming" D-pad. With a not-so-simple twist of the D-pad, the corner quadrants drop out of the way leaving just the cross-shaped D-pad. I say "not-so-simple" because it actually requires a little bit of effort; after all, you don't want to go from cross-shaped to old-fashioned in the middle of a hadouken. Using two thumbs to spin the D-pad improves the process though, when not being twisted deliberately, it remained firmly in place. We were told that engineering the transforming D-pad was no easy feat and the final product is not only the result of several prototypes, but all sorts of stress testing.

Continue reading Hands-on with the new Xbox 360 controller with transforming D-pad

Hands-on with the new Xbox 360 controller with transforming D-pad originally appeared on Joystiq on Fri, 03 Sep 2010 00:10:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

That mysterious Telltale mashup game teased last week? Telltale laid its cards on the table, revealing ... Poker Night at the Inventory, the second "pilot" game from the adventure publisher, which brings Team Fortress 2's Heavy, Penny Arcade's Tycho, Homestar Runner's Strong Bad, and Sam & Max's Max together for a little good-natured gambling. Now, we know what you're thinking. How can Strong Bad play cards with boxing gloves on?

Poker Night at The Inventory features fully voiced characters utilizing Telltale's dynamic dialog system," according to the announcement. "All the characters will talk trash, give unique tells, and react to the game dynamically as it is being played, providing a unique experience with each round played." It also features Steamworks integration, a first for the publisher. Oh, and pre-orders from Telltale for the fall release ($4.95!) come with coupons for 25% off your order. If we knew the first thing about poker, we'd totally relate that to a hand of cards you'd be confident about holding.

[Thanks to everyone who sent this in!]

It's Poker Night at the Inventory for Max, Tycho, Strong Bad, and the Heavy originally appeared on Joystiq on Thu, 02 Sep 2010 23:35:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

Filed under: Podcasts

We've just touched down in Seattle for PAX Prime, but we've already made a brief stop in Redmond to check out a few hours of Fable 3 and get hands-on with the new Xbox 360 controller.

Chris and Justin found a few minutes as they waited for a pizza to talk about what they've seen so far. So come, pull a chair, grab a beer and enjoy the calm before the storm with us.

Get the podcast:
[iTunes] Subscribe to the Joystiq Podcast in iTunes
[Zune] Subscribe to the Joystiq Podcast directly in the Zune Marketplace
[RSS] Add the Joystiq Podcast feed to your RSS aggregator
[MP3] Download the MP3 directly

Hosts: Justin McElroy (@justinmcelroy) and Chris Grant (@chrisgrant)
Music: "Gravity (Don't Let Me Go)" by Jon Black, "Red Eye" by Ben Kweller
For fans: Joystiq Podcast Facebook group
New to the show?: Listen to Episode Zero
The Do It Line!: 1-(877)-JOYSTIQ

See all of this week's links after the jump.

Joystiq Podcast PAX Prime 2010 #1 originally appeared on Joystiq on Thu, 02 Sep 2010 23:16:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

We don't think it would really be all that nice to bathe in a hot tub of money. It makes for a pretty memorable image in this Yakuza 4 trailer, though. Head past the break to see the yen-soak. Plus guns! Explosions! Tattooed gangsters fist fighting! Men in black suits looking tough!

Continue reading Yakuza 4 trailer revolutionizes expensive bath products

Yakuza 4 trailer revolutionizes expensive bath products originally appeared on Joystiq on Thu, 02 Sep 2010 23:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

When Supergiant Games opened its doors during GDC earlier this year, it revealed it was working on a digital title to be released in 2011. This week, Giant Bomb unveiled that title -- it's called Bastion and should be available for public consumption by next summer.

Supergiant explains Bastion as an "action role-playing game set in a lush imaginative world, in which players must create and fight for civilization's last refuge as a mysterious narrator marks their every move." The "mysterious," somewhat lyrical narrator makes his first appearance in the game's trailer -- which we've dropped after the break. Considering Supergiant's pedigree (ex-EALA Command & Conquer devs) and how beautifully detailed this initial media is, we have high hopes for Bastion.

The game will be playable at PAX Prime this weekend as part of the "PAX 10."

Continue reading Bastion is Supergiant Games' first title, playable at PAX

Bastion is Supergiant Games' first title, playable at PAX originally appeared on Joystiq on Thu, 02 Sep 2010 22:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

The bump in cost for a Gold membership on Xbox Live is just the tip of the iceberg, according to game industry seer Michael Pachter. Predicting a $100 plan as the next evolutionary step in subscription options soon to be available to Xbox Live consumers, he told IndustryGamers reports that while the initial extra $10 "translates to around $100 to 150 million per year in additional revenue for Microsoft," the company will "reinvest at least this much in developing other new applications, and will roll out a premium service with $100 to 200 million worth of enhancements. If they can get 2 million users to switch from the $60 plan to the $100 plan, they'll make an extra $80 million a year, and can keep investing to try to grow that business."

It makes sense: Xbox Live is easily one of the biggest draws of the console and consumers have already shown they're willing to pay a premium for it. But even if Microsoft were to offer a "Platinum" service, what could justify what is comparably such a heftier price tag?

"For all I know, the Platinum plan might include virtual goods credits for various Microsoft games," Pachter posits. "If members could get specialized Halo armor or weapons worth the extra $40, they might be more willing to sign up, and it doesn't really cost Microsoft anything to offer things like that." You know what? We may know a few people willing to pay for something like that.

[Thanks, Mark]

Pachter predicts $100 'Platinum' Xbox Live membership originally appeared on Joystiq on Thu, 02 Sep 2010 21:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

At last year's TGS, Capcom producer Keiji Inafune had some pretty grim things to say about the Japanese game industry. "I said that comment hoping that the Japanese creators were going to wake up," Inafune told Videogamer in a new interview. "However, there has been no change whatsoever to the situation since last year, so I'm still very pessimistic."

Inafune said that some Japanese developers are "still living the glory of the '80s and '90s," when the NES, Super NES and Genesis delivered a steady stream of hit games from Japan to the world. "So they don't admit that there is a problem to start with." He advised his colleagues to "get humble and start learning what's going on."

Inafune also added that just buying Western companies isn't enough, unless publishers "start working with them properly, rather than just commissioning a game and then putting their name on the final product." One company must be feeling that one in its Extreme Edges.

Inafune: Japanese devs have to 'get humble' originally appeared on Joystiq on Thu, 02 Sep 2010 21:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

A feast of XBLA games may be headed to Xbox Live Marketplace soon, but that's not all there is. First up, there are a lot of festivities planned for the launch of Halo: Reach. Microsoft is dubbing September 14-20 "Invasion Week," and plenty of Halo goodies will be available "including new gear, exciting content, spectacular prizes and a chance to play with the creators of the game." Microsoft will also be offering opening up Xbox Live Gold features to Silver members from September 17-20. Finally, "all fans that jump online" can download a free "Invasion" theme. It's a bit unclear exactly what's meant by "jump online," whether it be players that play Halo: Reach or simply anyone that signs into Live. We've contacted Microsoft for clarification.

New Deals of the Week are headed down the pipeline as well, with Resident Evil 5 "avatar outfits and game add-ons" receiving as yet unspecified discounts next week. The week of September 13, several puzzle games will get the DoTW treatment. Bust-a-Move Live, Puzzle Chronicles and Tower Bloxx Deluxe are all being knocked from 800 MSP ($10) to 400 MSP ($5), while Gyromancer will drop from 1200 MSP ($15) to 800 MSP ($10).

If you still have money to spend after all that, some new Rock Band 3 Avatar items are now on Marketplace, as are two new Games on Demand, Bully: Scholarship Edition and Cabela's African Safari.

Xbox Live in September: Halo goodies, free Live Gold, cheap puzzle games originally appeared on Joystiq on Thu, 02 Sep 2010 20:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

Poor ol' Hideo Kojima has apparently been on the receiving end of a plethora of demands from his rabid fanbase, all crying out for the integration of some of the PS3's patched-in features into Metal Gear Solid 4. The idiosyncratic developer took time out of his busy schedule of eating bizarre-looking foodstuffs to respond by saying, "I wanted to make a 'Complete Version' with trophy support and 3D, but if I did that I wouldn't be able to work on a new game. I wonder if someone else would make it for me."

Well, gang -- any takers? It really shouldn't be too hard. Just drop a trophy in for completing each boss fight, one for beating the game on its hardest difficulty, and one for beating the game using only your wits and a pornographic magazine. Give them some clever names ("I Only Read It For The Articles," for instance), and baby, you're good to go.

Kojima wants a 'Complete' edition of MGS4, if someone else makes it originally appeared on Joystiq on Thu, 02 Sep 2010 20:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

Before you and the many thousands of other yous gets a chance to go hands-on with Killzone 3 this weekend at PAX Prime, Famitsu has a smattering of new images to hungrily dig through for new information. One thing solidly confirmed by these shots? Dusters. Hooded dusters, no less!

And hey, if you ask us, there's a severe underuse of dusters in the world of video games. Unfortunately for the gentleman above, he seems to have been socked in the face several moments before the image was taken, so his duster is fluttering through the air along with his torso. Hopefully you'll fare better this weekend at PAX!

Killzone 3 screenshots feature hoodies, pummeling originally appeared on Joystiq on Thu, 02 Sep 2010 19:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

Oh boy -- yes, this certainly seems like an announcement for an announcement, and you know how much we love those (not at all). But 2K Games' blog has posted that "something big is going to happen at the 2K Games booth" this weekend for PAX 2010, and it's got everyone riled up. If nothing else, just consider this a PSA that there will be a live stream starting tomorrow morning at 10AM PDT, in which we'll supposedly see "something big." An elephant? An Ubisoft Toronto game? Tom Hanks after a wish?

If it helps (it doesn't), Duke Nukem co-creator George Broussard has tweeted a link to a picture of pigs flying, which some folks have taken to mean that Duke Nukem For.. -- oh, never mind, we can't even bring ourselves to say its name. Let's just all wait patiently until the live stream starts tomorrow, and then we won't be disappointed when 2K announces that it has convinced President Christoph Hartmann to attend PAX in a silly gorilla suit.

2K Games to stream 'something big' from PAX tomorrow morning originally appeared on Joystiq on Thu, 02 Sep 2010 19:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

Moving from game development to multidisciplinary writing, Irrational Games' Ken Levine and Shawn Elliott chat with Amazing Spider-Man writer Brian Michael Bendis on the second episode of Irrational Interviews, released this week. Did you know that what became BioShock was heavily seeded by a trip Levine and his wife took to Rockefeller Center? You would've if you'd already listened to the episode! What're you waiting for, dummy?

Direct Download / iTunes Feed / Irrational Interviews RSS Feed

Irrational interviews Marvel's Brian Michael Bendis on writing originally appeared on Joystiq on Thu, 02 Sep 2010 19:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

Nintendo announced the Japanese release date for Kirby's Epic Yarn -- October 14 -- and released a new trailer for the occasion. We've embedded it after the break, but we encourage you to go to Nintendo's site anyway, for the most charming video controls you'll ever, ever see.

Continue reading Thank Japan for this new Kirby's Epic Yarn trailer

Thank Japan for this new Kirby's Epic Yarn trailer originally appeared on Joystiq on Thu, 02 Sep 2010 18:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

Ubisoft Europe managing director Alain Corre isn't one to parse words -- for instance, he told GamesIndustry.biz in a recent interview, "The games that are not triple-A are not profitable anymore. And that's changed in the last 18 months." He admitted that "we are still releasing some new franchises," citing Ruse as a calculated aberration. "It's a niche so we know the size of the market for real-time strategy games ... with niche games it's possible to have a hit more than in the triple-A space, especially in the fourth and fifth year of the console cycle."

To Corre, it's a question of investment risk. "To a certain extent it becomes less risky to invest more in a single game or franchise than spreading your investment between three or four games," he explained. "If those three or four games are not at the right quality level, you are sure to lose money. So the business model has changed and we're changing our way of making hardcore games." He said we might not see a new IP push from Ubisoft until the next generation of consoles, which he foresees to be "less than five years" from now.

Oddly, he doesn't bring up Ubisoft Toronto -- a studio headed by Assassin's Creed producer Jade Raymond -- that's said to be working on both "AAA-game" and new IP. Nor did he address the fate of the scantly brought up I Am Alive, supposedly coming out next spring. Based on Corre's statements, we've at least managed to come to the conclusion that Beyond Good & Evil 2 (not a new IP) should be getting a release date during this console cycle. That's ... something?

Ubisoft cautious over new IP, remains focused on established franchises originally appeared on Joystiq on Thu, 02 Sep 2010 18:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

Sony, here's an idea: just let Kevin Butler control your entire company. Seriously, Sir Howard Stringer is a great guy and all, don't get us wrong -- we've been up plenty of nights bawling our eyes out while he cradled us in his big, burly arms, assuring us that the PS3 would in fact be okay -- but Kevin Butler has proven in his latest ad that he's more than capable for the job.

Just look at the image above and tell us the guy isn't CEO material. Heck, even better: watch the new PlayStation Move ad for yourself past the break and try to tell us it isn't the highlight of your day!

Continue reading Kevin Butler shows us the epic side of PlayStation Move

Kevin Butler shows us the epic side of PlayStation Move originally appeared on Joystiq on Thu, 02 Sep 2010 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments