Natal Could Be Used On Halo: Reach
In an interview that appeared in yesterday’s Seattle Times newspaper (yes, a few newspapers still exist!), Bungie revealed that their upcoming title Halo: Reach might use the Natal interface first introduced at this year’s E3 convention.
From the article:
“Bungie also received an early look at the “Project Natal” motion-sensing controller Microsoft is developing for the Xbox. Studio President Harold Ryan said he’s enthusiastic about the device and it could be used in “Reach,” another version of “Halo” expected in the fall of 2010. “I absolutely think ‘Reach’ could be enabled with it,” he said.”
You can read the full interview, which also discusses Halo 3: ODST and Bungie’s new studios HERE.
Game on!
2 commentsPAX 2009 Keynote Speaker Announced
PAX 2009 organizers humbly announced today that industry legend Ron Gilbert will grace the stage as keynote speaker at the sixth annual gaming festival to be held Sept. 4-6 at the Washington State Convention and Trade Center.
Legendary storyteller, game designer, programmer and producer Ron Gilbert has created countless classic video games, including the seminal LucasArts works Maniac Mansion and first two installments in the Monkey Island adventure series. His more than 20-year career in the games industry encompasses co-founding three game studios, creating the famous SCUMM scripting language and being inducted into the Computer Game Hall of Fame. He is currently creative director at independent development studio Hothead Games in Vancouver, Canada.
“This is an unbelievable moment for us,” commented Penny Arcade’s Robert Khoo. “I wasted an entire family vacation one year trying to figure out how to win that stupid spitting competition.” Gilbert joins an illustrious group of past PAX keynote speakers, including noted geek icon Wil Wheaton and innovative game designer Ken Levine.
In addition to the highly anticipated keynote address, numerous panels and game demonstrations, Omegathon and The PAX 10 independent games showcase, PAX 2009 will offer attendees an unparalleled musical experience with performances from Freezepop, Jonathan Coulton, MC Frontalot, Paul and Storm, Anamanaguchi and Metroid Metal. As if all of this weren’t enough, PAX organizers further confirmed that this year’s Exhibition Hall is down to its final availability.
Game on!
No commentsHalo : ODST Achievements Leaked! Rumor or Truth?
Can’t wait to get you hands on the latest Halo game? Well check out these achievements to tame your hunger.
Potential spoilers in the video. Watch it here. Discuss here.
No commentsFallout 3 DLC:Point Lookout Available NOW!
Point Lookout is available now on your Xbox 360 Marketplace. If you are unsure of what this is, it is the fourth DLC for one of the best RPGs released in 2008. A trailer for it is here and you can read our review of the game here.
Game on!
No commentsHalo:ODST Collectors Edition
Are you ready for Firefight?
Pre-order “Halo 3: ODST” now and receive Sgt. Johnson as a playable Firefight character
Listen up rookies! “Halo 3: ODST” drops on September 22, but will you and your team have what it takes to survive the Covenant onslaught in the new cooperative multiplayer mode, Firefight? Firefight will put you to the test as you and your friends assume the role of an ODST squad and fight together to take on increasingly challenging waves of enemies. It’s where new “Halo” heroes will be born, and an opportunity to step into the boots of a legend. If you pre-order “Halo 3: ODST” at participating retailers, you will receive a token to unlock grizzled UNSC hero Sgt. Johnson as a playable character in Firefight.
Fan favorite and “Halo” series stalwart Sergeant Avery Junior Johnson is a tough-as-nails career Marine who has been in more life or death battles than you’ve had hot meals. He’s survived more infectious Flood outbreaks, greased more Covenant bad guys, and earned more medals than any other twenty soldiers. And now you get to walk a mile in his shoes.
New campaign
Developed exclusively for Xbox 360 by acclaimed developer Bungie, “Halo 3: ODST” is a new game in the “Halo” saga that lets people experience events leading up to the epic story told in “Halo 3” through the eyes of an ODST (Orbital Drop Shock Trooper), as they search for clues leading to the whereabouts of their scattered squad and the motivations behind the Covenant’s invasion of New Mombasa.
New cooperative multiplayer experience
In addition to a brand new campaign, “Halo 3: ODST” introduces a new cooperative multiplayer mode called Firefight which allows “Halo” fans to experience co-operative gaming in a whole new way: they will be fighting as members of an ODST squad against waves of increasingly challenging enemies across a variety of battlefields. This experience is made even more intense with the integration of “Halo 3’s” “skulls,” which progressively activate as time goes on to alter the gameplay and up the challenge. Players will battle through wave after wave in search of high scores, Achievements and bragging rights.
The complete “Halo 3” competitive multiplayer collection
“Halo 3: ODST” also includes a second standalone disc with three new “Halo 3” multiplayer maps, all original “Halo 3” maps, as well as the “Legendary,” “Heroic,” and “Mythic” Map packs for a total of 24 maps.
Ensure your place in the “Halo: Reach” beta
Purchasing “Halo 3: ODST” will ensure “Halo” fans get access to the “Halo: Reach” multiplayer beta when the beta goes live in the future. Announced at E3 2009, “Halo: Reach” is the prequel to the blockbuster “Halo” trilogy and is scheduled for release in fall of 2010.
“Halo 3: ODST” is available for pre-order in both a standard package and a “Halo 3: ODST Collector’s Pack” which includes the game and an exclusive, laser etched Wireless Controller. The “Halo 3: ODST Collector’s Pack” is available for pre-order in the US exclusively at GameStop, and is available worldwide at other participating retailers. “Halo 3: ODST” will have a suggested retail price of $59.99 USD and the Collector’s Pack will have a suggested retail price of $99.99 USD. “Halo 3: ODST” is rated “M” for Mature by the ESRB and PEGI 16+.
Game on!
No commentsYou’re Going To Hell!
At this year’s E3 convention in Los Angeles, there was a protest group calling EA the ‘Electronic Anti-Christ’. Why? Aparently, the religios are upset over EA’s upcoming (and great looking!) title, Dante’s Iferno; and especially it’s tag-line: Go To Hell!
Say the protestors:
“We are on a crusade to stop the blasphemous glorification of HELL and its minions as presented by Dante’s Inferno. The ever decaying youth and slovenly adults who engage with Dante’s Inferno are a victim of our society’s pointless need to flirt with Satan and his lustful campaign to corrupt human souls…We say NO. We say inferNO.”
The glorification of Hell, huh? Yeah, Hell will be my next vacation spot; unbaptized babies, eveil demons to battle left and right, and an epic quest to save your love from Lucifer himself all await you. Glory indeed!
Gamers, familiar with the game’s concept and underlying literary influences, passed by the protestors all day long, snickering at their ignorance. I guess they didn’t have anything more important to ‘crusade’ against this week.
Ready to trade in your PlayStation for PrayStation? Yeah. Me neither.
And the total number of people they managed to sawy away from the evil that is Dante’s Inferno and the Electronic Anti-Christ? Zero.
Those poor gamers. They have not heeded the call of the lord and rejected gaming. I guess we’re all just going to hell. See you there. I’ll bring the beer.
EDIT: It turns out EA hired these guys to stage the protest, in order to draw more attention to the game. Sneaky, EA. Sneaky!
Game on!
1 commentE3 Trailers
Here are some of the game trailers shown earlier today, at MS’ press briefing:
Lionhead Studios ‘Milo’ project (Natal demonstration)
Game on!
No commentsMS’ E3 Press Conference - Minute-By-Minute
E3 is here and the MS press conference & briefing will be taking place today at approximately 10:30AM. 360 Rant Rave will be watching the live feed of the press conference & will be updating this post with all the details of MS’ big announcements this year.
Here’s a shot of the stage, where the press briefing will be taking place:
Here come the announcements…
10:32 - Rock Band Beatles - you can use up to 3 mics.
10:33 - Includes fully remastered songs, backstage discussions, etc.
10:34 - First game trailer shown.
10:37 - Abbey Road will be the first full Beatles ablum ready for download.
10:37 - All You Need Is Love is a 360 DLC exclusive.
It looks/sounds good & Beatles fans will enjoy it, but IMO, they’re starting to ‘over-milk’ the Guitar Hero franchise.
10:38 - Yoko, Paul, Ringo & Olivia give their opinion of the game.
10:41 - John Schappert takes the stage.
10:43 - Tony Hawk takes the stage to discuss Tony Hawk Ride & show the final design of the new controller.
-Some cool footage shown - the controller is a big part of it - will recognize grabs, etc. Included short testimonials from some who have tried it. It looks like real-world skating skills may actually help you in this game.
-Users at E3 will get to try the game/controller.
10:48 - Modern Warfare 2 trailer shown - impressive.
10:49 - Jason & Vince take the stage & show live play of Modern Warfare 2 - looking pretty darn good so far!
-Ice/Snowstorm battlefield - infiltrating a bass & taking over communiations.
Not bad looking so far, but it took a while to get to the ‘action’. They’ve done another great job of giving you that ‘on the battlefield’ feeling. Everyhing is hectic all around. The snow drifts make it difficult to see enemies at a distance.
The snowmobiles look fun to ride - great snomobile/shooting section shown.
10:57 - 2 DLC map packs coming to Xbox Live first.
10:58 - Into for Final Fantasy XIII
I’ve never been big into the Final Fantasy series (first FF release in 1987), but I know many 360 gamers are eager for this.
10:59 - 1st Trailer (running on 360) shown. Very nice graphics - but this has always been true of the FF series. Giant ‘megabot’ boss battle shown.
-Spring 2010 release date.
11:02 - EVERYTHING FROM HERE ON IS 360 ONLY
11:02 - Donald Mustard & Cliffy B take the stage & announce a new arcade title: Shadow Complex. Donald takes the game for a spin…
It’s a bit of a surprise that Epic’s next ‘big’ 360 game is an arcade title. I must say, however, that it looks great - especially for an arcade title. Cliffy claims 10+ hours of gameplay & some great boss battles.
-Coming this summer.
11:05 - Gears 2 Dark Corners content shown at E3 (not in this press conference).
11:06 - ‘Joy Ride’ announced - new racing game using our Xbox 360 avatars.
-FREE TO DOWNLOAD & PLAY (Buy cars, upgrades, etc.)
-Coming winter 2009
11: 07 - Crackdown 2 trailer shown!
11:09 - Left 4 Dead 2 trailer shown (360 & PC) (Coming November 17th)
11:10 - Splinter Cell Conviction trailer shown.
-Sam no longer ‘plays by the rules’. This is a ‘new’ Sam Fisher (in attitude - same look). He’s more brutal/lethal & has a new ‘Mark & Execute’ move. As always, darkness is Sam’s friend. He can hide & prepare sneak attacks.
-E3 playable demo shown live. Looks to have the same high quality graphics/gameplay most Splinter Cell games have had. The game/gameplay is definitely ‘grittier’ than previous SC titles.
-Shown more in-depth than any other title announced so far. Looking great. I’ve been a fan of the SC series since the start & I’m sure I’ll pick this one up too.
-Coming fall 2008.
11:18 - Turn 10 Studios takes the stage to announce - Forza Motorsport 3 (Dan Greenwalt)
-Teaser intro video looks amazing.
-They’re calling it ‘The Definitive Racing Game Of This Generation’
Holy crap! The in-game play looks JUST as good as the teaser did.
-New graphics engine (60FPS) - best looking racing game on any console.
-Biggest racing game of the gen (cars/tracks/etc.)
-Player created content features/community features expanded, including an HD video editor.
-Coming October 2009
11:24 - Joe Staten (Bungie) takes the state to announce Halo 3: ODST & show a preview video.
-Game timeline starts weeks before the Halo 3 timeline. You start out as rookie who has been seprated from your drop team.
-ODST troops have access to silenced weapons & a low-light visor mode.
-The ODST pistol is very similar to the original Halo pistol we all loved.
-You’ll play as different OSDT troopers, working to solve the ‘mystery’ of New Mombasa.
-New game mode - Firefight.
-Coming September 22nd
11:30 - New Bungie project announced…watching intro now…..
11:31 - HALO REACH! (Coming 2010)
-You’ll get a beta invite in Halo 3: ODST
11:32 - Sam Lake takes the state to introduce ALAN WAKE!
-In game playable demo shown. Looking good - lots of flashlight use shown in demo.
-Some slo-mo combat effects shown as Alan is being attacked.
-Coming spring 2010 - geez! More waiting.
11:38 - Last FM coming to 360.
-Coming later in 2009 for no additional charge to Gold members.
11:40 - Netflix upgrade - browse available movies right from your 360
-UK & Ireland getting live SkyTV starting this Fall. This is BIG news. LIVE TV on a game console /w no additional hardware needed.
11:42 - Zune video will replace the video marketplace
-HD library being upgraded to full 1080P
-All movies/TV shows can be watched instantly (no download first - they will stream)
-Doubling (to 18) the number of countries where it’s available.
-Coming Fall 2009.
11:43 - Movies/TV/Music Live Party will finally be lauching this Fall as well (2009).
11:44 - Facebook partnership w/ 360 - Felicia Day announced to discuss.
-Facebook w/ custom console/living room design right on your 360
-See all your friends
-Friend ‘lnker’ shows Xbox Live frinds & facebook friends together.
-View your photos & your friend’s photos.
-Post/check status updates right from your 360.
-Facebook Connect - Post screenshots & even text from your 360 directly to your facebook page in real time!
-Twitter coming as well! Tweet right from your Xbox & follow your friends.
-Facebook & Twitter coming to 360 this Fall (2009).
11:49 - Don Mattrick takes the stage (w/ Kojima) to announce that METAL GEAR SOLID IS COMING TO THE 360! (Metal Gear Assault Rising - currently in development.)
-Preview trailer shown - graphics look awsome.
-NO solid Snake!? Very few details given.
NATAL:
11:54 - Making YOU the controller…. (Full body motion capture & voice recognition).
-Shows a controller-free interface that mimics your moves on-screen (errily like the movie preview of ‘Gamer’ - see earlier posts on 360 Rant Rave for details).
The video shown looks very impressive, but I’m sure there are still serveral techinical issues to work out.
-Codenamed Project Natal.
-Using a ‘breakthrough’ 3D sensor & voice recognition software to facilitate control.
-Will work with every 360 already sold.
12:00 - Steven Spileberg takes the stage! (MS partner w/ Natal).
-Idea born from the ‘intimidation’ most ‘regular’ people have in picking up a game controller (60% of homes still don’t own a video game console).
12:02 - Kudo Tsunoda introduced to discuss Natal further.
-Early prototype/demos shown
-Will ’recognize’ you by face & auto sign you in!
-Your avatar/game character will move as you do.
-Simple hand swipes will let you control the menus.
-’Ricochet’ launched to show full body control (like 3D breakout - where your body controls the paddle/ball). Move in 3D space (move closer to/further from screen).
-Can track/recognize multiple people for multiplayer.
12:06 - ‘Paint Party’ shown (paint using Natal controls).
Natal is obviously MS’ ploy to pull ‘non-gamers’ into the fray even moreso than the Wii, by removing the need for a controller.
12:11 - Peter Molyneux introduced to talk even more about Natal.
-Shows experimentation w/ Natal at Lionhead studios. An interactive on-screen character that can recognize you & converse with you, etc.
Natal seems quite innovative, but I can also see limitations in games that require more ‘complex’ controls (swithing weapons, making spell selections in RPG’s, etc.)
-Will be shown to a selected audience at E3 this year.
12:17 - Press Conference conclusion.
Wow! MS kept saying they had a few surprises they’d held back for E3 and they were right. The games, the new features, the features like Natal on the horizon, etc. I’m impressed! I think it was a VERY successful press conference for E3. I’m looking forward to almost everything they showed.
Game on!
No commentsZune HD Announced
Microsoft confirmed yesterday that they will be launching the ZuneHD this fall. The new Zune featured HD video output (720p), HD radio, a web browser and a touch-screen - essentially making it a direct, yet more full-featured, competitor to the iPod Touch.
Microsoft will also be replacing the Xbox Live Marketplace with the Zune Video Store, increasing their integration of the Xbox & Zune brands. There’s no word on pricing yet, but expect more info/details at E3.
Could this be the precursor to a Zune Phone to challenge the dominance of the iPhone? I guess we’ll just have to wait & see.
Game on!
2 commentsHuxley At E3 - Screenshots
360 Rant Rave has obtained some new sreeenshots for the upcoming MMO title, Huxley. We’ve also received word that Huxley will be on hand for gamers to demo at this year’s E3 Expo.
Screenshots:
With Huxley and APB coming to E3, could this be the year of the MMO for consoles? I guess we’ll find out. Fore more info about Huxley, including all previously released screenshots, check out the official site HERE.
Game on!
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