It’s about that time of year where people are getting jacked up for madden like baseball players getting jacked up when their career starts to flag. A couple weeks ago, Madden 2010 was formally announced, then followed the cover athletes, and now we get to learn what’s new in the game.
Pro –Tak™ – This all new animation technology provides unprecedented control over the outcome of every play. Drag defenders towards the first down marker, including up to 9-man gang tackles, fight for a fumble at the bottom of the pile, and evade the rush with all-new quarterback avoidance actions. Enhanced play at the line of scrimmage features a new blocking system that allows the quarterback to step into the pocket and gives the defensive line more control over the rush.
Unprecedented Authenticity – Referees peeling players off a fumble pile, the chain gang rushing in to measure for a key first down, and all-new player equipment ensure that if you see it on Sunday, you’ll see it in Madden NFL 10.
Fight for Online Dominance – Delivering the most comprehensive online offerings in franchise history, Madden NFL 10 includes new modes to satisfy the competitive and cooperative football gamer.
More details coming soon!
The Emotion of the NFL – New TV broadcast-style presentation and cinematic cameras bring the suspense and intensity of the NFL to your living room.
More details coming soon!
Enhanced Franchise Mode – Run each aspect of an NFL franchise: draft players, sign free agents, manage the salary cap – just like a real GM. Enjoy all of the action throughout the league via a new, network inspired highlight show.
More details coming soon!
Madden NFL Your Way – The most customizable version of Madden NFL to date! Alter gameplay options to adjust the experience to your liking. A revamped play calling system and menu takes you to kickoff faster than ever before. Speed up online matches with accelerated clocks, streamlined presentation and more.
Well it looks like things are getting fleshed out, and it seems like this will be the most solid version of Madden yet.
Are you a PC gamer? Have you not yet sold out and jumped on the steam-rolling bandwagon that is Left 4 Dead? This Friday (May 1) is your chance to join in the fun as Steam will be dishing out Z-Day goodness at 12:01 AM.
Steam users will be able to download Left 4 Dead as a free 24-hour trial. Not only will they get the game itself, but it will include the newly released “survival pack” DLC. This is awesome news as the DLC includes “a new multiplayer game mode and two additional Versus campaigns.”
Big news today from Greg Miller of IGN. BigBig Studios, developer of MotorStorm for the Playstation 3 is bringing the mud bogging racer to the powder on Sony’s handheld. MotorStorm is a beautiful and intense offroad racing game featuring different vehicle classes and multi-path courses. For a couple years the series has visited the mountain sides and the tropics, but now it’s time for the series to take on the arctic.
The new title for the game is MotorStorm: Arctic Edge and it’s set to arrive in August 2009.
The game itself will have tierd levels that wrap their way around a mountain. Each stage takes place at differernt heights and as the player comes closer and closer to the summit, the track hazards become more numerous.
While the environment is largely in place to hamper the player’s progress, there is the possibility of utilizing the envirionment to great effect.
Miller says, “Avalanches, for instance, will play a part in the races. If you’re near an avalanche warning site and cause a bit of noise, either by laying on your horn or, say, exploding, you could cause a ton of snow to come crashing down on the course, blocking the way of or even taking out other racers (and perhaps yourself).”
MotorStorm is a fun, fast-paced racer that is known for over the top crashes featuring dynamic damage. The PSP version will feature the same insane crashes, but it appears that the limited hardware will only allow predefined damage effects. Never the less, MotorStorm has a pedigree for being a fun balls-out racing game and should be high on any PSP owner’s list.
MotorStorm: Arctic Edge is also slated to appear on the PS2 (will. not. die).
It’s official, Max Payne is now available on Xbox Live as a digital download. While the 1200 MSP download ($15) may be a little steep for an original xbox game, Max Payne is definitely worth the download.
Sunday was a day for gamers to rejoice and be glad. Not because Miyamoto revealed himself as the one true God (Although I’m willing to bet he is) but because Best Buy selected some choice titles to reduce to bargain bin prices. The experience I had wasn’t much, I walked in and got what I wanted. Other shoppers were less fortunate as one expressed in the Cheap Ass Gamer forums:
“OK so I head down to Best Buy just now and get there about 10 minutes before they open. I notice a line of NERDS in front of the store. I stuck out like a sore thumb since I wasnt wearing an under-sized Donkey Kong or Naruto T-Shirt (that wasn’t an exaggeration, they did exist). The doors finally open and you should have seen the first guy, he couldnt even wait for it to open. He jammed his hands between the door and tried with all his might to assist the opening mechanism. Unable to do so he forced himself against the door until he was JUST able to squeeze through. I laughed as his shirt got caught on the lock and he had to do a double-pump to get through.
The nerds immediately RAN to the video games, one dude did a flanking maneuver and ran around the video games and got in through the rear opening of the aisle. He impressed me as he had a baby in his arms while doing so. There really is nothing more exciting than running with an infant through a store full of sharp cornered shelves and a hard floor, all to acquire $10 video games.
The video games were frantically searched through and people were coming up empty-handed. A store employee stated all the games on sale were in the front of the store on a shelf. One nerd in the center of the pile barreled through everyone, broke free from the pack, and then tripped on something and did that squatted over 3-step run of futility forward until he crashed to the floor. It really was one of the funniest things I had seen this quarter.
So during all this I keep my dignity by remaining calm and kept a walking pace. They always tell you when there is a fire you should walk, not run. It’s obvious why after seeing the guy wipe out. If this had been a Wal-Mart sale he would have been trampled to death. I figured that when I got to the shelf I could just muscle my way through the nerds and get what I wanted. But this was by far the tightest nerd-wall ever. Seriously, these guys were packed in front of this shelf like sardines. They were whining and huffing and video games were dropping off the shelves, crashing on the heads of the bottom layer of nerds crouched at the bottom shelf. I started to get frustrated, I saw one nerd with like 10 ******* games and I hadn’t even gotten my hands on one. I picked one nerd and followed him as he thumbed through the games. As he revealed a desired title I would quickly shoot my arm through the pile and grasp it. I managed to get 007 Quantum of Solace, but as I grabbed it I was met with resistance as a limp-wristed, overweight dork challenged me to a tugging match. I looked around the pile tracing the position of our arms and noticed it was my nemesis, Donkey Kong shirt guy. I quickly outwitted and overpowered him by using a technique where I give a slight amount of slack allowing the game to move in his direction but a forceful jerk in my direction easily removing the game case from his sweaty palm. His face winced in defeat and disappointment.
Not seeing any other titles I wanted, I decided to go back to the video game section and see if anyone had hidden any games in that area the night before. Behind a stack of Smash Court Tennis I found not only The Bourne Conspiracy, but also Silent Hill: Homecoming. I felt proud knowing I had discovered someones secret cache of bargain goodies. I desperately hunted for Pure, as it was the real reason I came to Best Buy that morning. Unfortunately the employees and/or the really good software hiders had gotten to them before me and I left without it.
So, 3 games for $30. Not bad but without Pure it barely made it worth it. If you weren’t there at opening time, you are most likely going to be left with Blitz the League and Rock Revolution. Those went untouched”
Codemasters knows racing games. They have been heralded for years for making the famous Colin McCrea Rally series and recently Dirt, Grid and the upcoming Fuel. IGN broke the announcement on Friday, instantly setting aglow my need for speed.
For those that have never played Dirt or Grid, these two are seemingly redefining the genre. Codemasters have gotten the formula down pat by combining stunning realism and arcade elements. They have achieved a perfect balance between the two so any fan of racing games should give those a look.
From IGN:
Rod Cousens, CEO, Codemasters, said, “FORMULA ONE is the pinnacle of motorsport. For many, it embraces a lifestyle and its audience is far reaching and growing. We are producing a series of games that will deliver the passion, glamour and exhilaration that fans deserve and we know how to do that. F1 2009 is the start of something very special for Codemasters and will set the standard for the high definition versions that will follow in mid 2010.”
Not a real screenshot of the game, duh.
Sure, that’s just fancy PR speak, but I honestly believe it. Codemasters is using the EGO engine which was used in Grid, so I expect that this will be nothing short of sexy at 211 MPH. The game itself is going to be fully backed by F1 so you can expect all the big names and crews to be included in the game.
This beast of a game is being designed for the Xbox 360, Playstation 3 and Games for Windows, but that doesn’t mean that the other systems will be left behind. Codemasters is setting up teams for the PSP and Wii.
The PSP will feature an online challenge system, single player modes and championships and other features “exclusively tuned for portable play.”
The Wii version will include a deep season mode and custom driving aids so that novice and expert racers can be on an even playing field.
Missed out on picking up Doom for XBLA during Amazon’s discount week? Then you’re in luck because we’re giving away a free copy this week! To enter to win this sweet FPS classic all you have to do is post a comment on what your favorite Doom weapon is (from any game in the series) and why you chose that weapon. From there we will select the best answers and announce the final winner on the Heads Up! Display Show this Friday so post your entry by Friday morning at the latest! (the winner will also be notified through email as well).
Update: Feel free to email me your answers as well at jimpower05@gmail.com
Achievement points are the worst plague to attack the world of video games since the rise of 12 year olds with a microphone and a DSL/Cable modem. Back in the days of less than impressive graphics (which we thought were quite impressive) children like us got enough joy out of beating impossible games, and then gloating to our friends only to find out they beat it the week before.
The landscape of gaming has changed so drastically that games are defined as hard only if one would be compelled to play on that difficulty. I never beat a video game until I played Metal Gear Solid on the PSX. Before that, I simply gave up after getting to the second level. (Why was it that games always ramped up the difficulty on the second level? The first level was always a breeze, and it served as the titulation before the game mercilessly slapped me in the balls and called me a fool for thinking I’m the man for beating the first level.)
The new difficulty in the game is acquiring the “really hard” achievements. Sure you’ve got the Alpo achievements, those are always a joy to get, but they are just way too easy to get. They are the little treats you get for progressing through the game. They tell the gamer, “Good job! You’re the man!” but really it means that you’re so below average that the company gave you the achievement just so you won’t kill yourself.
It’s ridiculous to see people with astronomical achievement scores just because they’ve played nearly three quarters of the Xbox 360 library. People become so obsessed with achievements that they seemingly forgive really horrible games just because they have achievement points. It’s like a publisher gives you a spunk sandwich and says, “You’re a monkey with money, give us some of that money and you can get this sandwich.” Common sense would tell the monkey that it’s a spunk sandwich, but the ace in the hole obliterates it. All the game needs to have is easy achievement points and the gamer will be happy.
Achievements seemingly take the place of “secrets” of old games, but the problem is that the achievements are revealed from the start. Then you have the games that feature “secret” achievements, but that’s five achievements out of the forty that are already revealed. I could forgive developers if only they would decide to go all the way or not at all. It’s unfortunate because if all achievements became secret then the entire gaming community would flip a collective shit over the fact that they can’t be spoon fed achievements anymore.
If achievements are to become respectable, it will be through the immediate evaluation of how they work. Achievements should make the gamer feel like they accomplished something. When I get achievements now, I feel absolutely numb. Achievements need to be secret in order to work, and people should have to work to find out how to get them.
In this week’s podcast, Jim finds out that he is no longer the achievement whore of Madison, SD. BryanOban1701 is now the lady in the red dress, sucking up achievement points for $5 a pop.
I’m extremely biased towards the Street Fighter series. Today when I saw IGN’s release for the Championship Mode, I about ruined my jeans.
IGN UK has broken the news that Street Fighter IV will receive a free upgrade across the 360 and PS3 platforms. Within this upgrade, players will be able to run online tournaments, earn grad points for top tier tournaments and a replay function will also be included. That’s correct, you’ll now be able to record online matches and analyze some of the best players in the world, or even your own matches.
This is huge news for a few reasons; one, this makes SFIV an even more spectacular game, and two, this relieves some of the tension Capcom stirred up with charging for their RE5 content.
Capcom Unity has the full story on their blog, but here are a few details to rundown for the update:
dagamdagee
jimpower05
Big news today from Greg Miller of 
It’s official, Max Payne is now available on Xbox Live as a digital download. While the 1200 MSP download ($15) may be a little steep for an original xbox game, Max Payne is definitely worth the download.
Sunday was a day for gamers to rejoice and be glad. Not because Miyamoto revealed himself as the one true God (Although I’m willing to bet he is) but because Best Buy selected some choice titles to reduce to bargain bin prices. The experience I had wasn’t much, I walked in and got what I wanted. Other shoppers were less fortunate as one expressed in the Cheap Ass Gamer forums:
Achievement points are the worst plague to attack the world of video games since the rise of 12 year olds with a microphone and a DSL/Cable modem. Back in the days of less than impressive graphics (which we thought were quite impressive) children like us got enough joy out of beating impossible games, and then gloating to our friends only to find out they beat it the week before.
In this week’s podcast, Jim finds out that he is no longer the achievement whore of Madison, SD. BryanOban1701 is now the lady in the red dress, sucking up achievement points for $5 a pop.
