Tag: Video Games

17 Year Doom ban dropped in Germany

Freedom isn’t free, unless you’re willing for fight for it…and wait…a long time. After nearly two decades Doom and Doom 2 have been approved by Germany sensors and made publicly available in the country. The Federal Department for Media Harmful to Young Persons (Bundesprufstelle) obviously had a bone to pick with Wolfenstein 3D but their reasoning for Doom had long been, “drastic portrayals of violence directed against human or human-like beings”.

BBC reports the lift on the ban came after the ban’s expiration on August 31 and a majority vote to drop it. That’s right, some members of the board STILL wanted to uphold the ban and although this is a notable event in gaming history, according to Gamespot the North American version of the game is still unaccepted as it recycles levels from Wolfenstein featuring swastikas (so developer laziness is partially to blame). But the majority in favor vote felt the title had become “mainly of historical interest” as there are more bigger fish to fry with more detailed “portrayals of violence”.

Some of these modern targets include: Condemned 1 and 2, Dead Rising, Left 4 Dead 2, and Mortal Kombat 1, 2 and 3. While these games do depict more realistic violence it is unfortunate that gamers are outright denied quality titles in an age of unambitious titles.

When Doom does go on sale it will still only be sold to those over 16. It’s worth mentioning the GBA version of the game was approved long ago. Meanwhile in the land of the free the games are available on PC, PSX, SNES, SEGA SATURN, 3DO, JAGUAR, GBA, 32X, and Xbox Live Arcade. The game became a revolutionary step for first-person-shooters with it’s visual prowess, ludicrous violence, and lightning speed gameplay. Hey Bundesprufstelle! Welcome to the year 1993!

Epic Working on ‘New Unannounced IP’, Is Hiring

That is, if you have strong C++. And maths. Lots of maths.

Continue reading “Epic Working on ‘New Unannounced IP’, Is Hiring”

Imagine a Game That Lasts a Thousand Days

1000 Heroz Comes to iPad, iPhone, and iPod

PRESS RELEASE

Finland —June 8, 2011 — Finnish game studio RedLynx is proud to announce the 1000 Heroz App for iPad, iPhone and iPod touch is now available on the App Store.

1000 Heroz is an original and addictive blend of platforming and racing, which brings users new characters and levels each day for 1,000 straight days.

“1000 Heroz delivers something new every day – for a thousand days,” said Tero Virtala, CEO of RedLynx. “That works out to something like three cents a month over the life of the game. That’s a tremendous value for such a high quality title. Only the App Store, with its legions of gamers, could provide us an opportunity like this to put our creative minds to work.”

The game is a 2D, time-based platformer with a physics running engine. Each day players direct a new hero, as he or she runs, jumps and slides through that day’s level. The goal is to either earn three stars on each level and top the global leaderboards, or battle against friends by creating a Custom League. All told, there are 1000 heroes to guide, 1000 levels to explore and 1000 relics to gather. Along the way, players gather gold, earn relics, and, through Game Center, challenge friends and other players from around the world. Previous levels are playable at any time, and players can pick up the game at any point without missing anything, as each day features a new leaderboard.

The 1000 Heroz App is available for $1.99 (iPad) and $0.99 (iPhone, iPod Touch) from the App Store on iPad, iPhone and iPod Touch.

SUPREMACY MMA GOES UNDISPUTED AT ELECTRONIC ENTERTAINMENT EXPO (E3) 2011

505 Games’ controversial arcade MMA fighter reigns supreme with eye-popping KO’s and lightning fast moves

Jen

PRESS RELEASE

Woodland Hills, CA – June 7, 2011—Take him down! Global videogame publisher 505 Games and Kung Fu Factory go for the throat with Supremacy MMA™, unveiling the most brutal knockout system in MMA gaming history at the Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3) next week in Los Angeles, CA.

Hailed as “…the dirtiest MMA game yet” on the cover of Gamepro (July 2011, Issue 274), Supremacy MMA stuffs the competition at E3 2011 with a first look at its insane Knock Out system, fighting style-specific movesets and the fastest MMA gameplay in history.

“From our first announcement of the game until now, Supremacy MMA has been the only MMA game to deliver true-to-the-sport-brutality and arcade-like speed, and we’re the only MMA game coming out in 2011,” said Ian Howe, President, 505 Games North America. “We know exactly who we are: M-rated and proud of it. We’ll drive that point home even further when we debut our brutal KO finishers and show off the depth of our movesets at E3.”

Dominating the fighting market this fall, 505 Games will release the only MMA fighting game this year when Supremacy MMA bully’s its way onto store shelves September 20, 2011 for Xbox 360® video game and entertainment system from Microsoft and the PlayStation®3 computer entertainment system.

Armed with arcade-like speed and real in-game fighters—including former UFC champ Jens Pulver, K1 kickboxing legend Jerome Le Banner, and the first real female fighters in an MMA game, Felice Herrig and Michele Gutierrez—Supremacy MMA favors fast-and-furious gameplay and underground aesthetics over boring simulation-style presentation. Published by 505 Games and developed by Kung Fu Factory, Supremacy MMA raises the bar in the MMA space by bringing an unprecedented level of fast, fluid combat, intuitive controls and true-to-the-sport brutality.

Pre-order Supremacy MMA at GameStop and expand your roster of fighters to include undefeated fighter Shane Del Rosario. Pummel your opponents as this invincible 6’4’’, 250 pound fighting machine. Known for both his incredible strength and speed, Del Rosario holds the distinction of being the first American to become the WBC Heavyweight. His flawless record is crowned by the fact that every single one of his fights end in a KO or Submission, with only a single fight making it into the second round. Make them submit! Pre-order today!

Online Customers: A code with instructions on how to redeem SHANE DEL ROSARIO will be emailed to you when your game ships.

Store/In-Store Pickup Customers: A code with instructions on how to redeem SHANE DEL ROSARIO will be printed on your receipt at time of purchase.

Supremacy MMA is slated for release September 20, 2011, on Xbox 360® video game and entertainment system from Microsoft and the PlayStation®3 computer entertainment system.

OnLive Unveils iPad/Android Tablet App

iPad, Android Tablet Instantly Becomes Touch/Motion Controller or Standalone Cloud Gaming System with Touch/Motion or Game Controller

PRESS RELEASE

Los Angeles (E3 Expo 2011) – June 7, 2011 – OnLive, Inc., the pioneer of cloud gaming, is pleased to report that gamers throughout the world can immediately experience the seamless integration of tablets and HDTVs with high-end gaming. Their current iPad or Android tablet and current HDTV will not only provide this experience in 2011, but will provide it with far higher performance, richer gameplay and deeper social integration than any console announced for 2012, with more than 100 games available today.

OnLive is pleased to announce the OnLive(r) Player App for iPad and Android. Like the recently announced consoles, the OnLive Player App will enable gameplay of virtually all OnLive games on an iPad and Android tablet with touch or OnLive’s new Universal Wireless Controller.

In addition, the OnLive Player App allows the tablet to be used as a touch and motion controller combined with an HDTV (or PC/Mac(r) if preferred), and allows both synchronized or independent video on the tablet and HDTV screen, enabling combined gameplay with tablet and HDTV, or separate gameplay on tablet and HDTV.

Full voice chat-enabled multiplayer is supported, both in-room and with others throughout the world, providing a complete multiplayer experience whether at home or on the go with a mobile device.

Core patent-pending exclusive OnLive cloud gaming features such as massive spectating of live gameplay throughout the world, instant no-obsolescence gameplay, Facebook integration with Brag Clip(tm) videos, etc., will work seamlessly on both tablets and HDTVs and will continue to distinguish OnLive from consoles, both in 2011 and beyond.

“The power of the cloud is definitely the theme this week, displacing what had been assumed to be platforms that could never be displaced,” said Steve Perlman, Founder and CEO of OnLive. “The OnLive Player App for iPad and Android shows how with the power of the cloud, the question is not whether cloud gaming will be able to catch up to consoles, it will be whether consoles will be able to catch up to cloud gaming.”

OnLive is excited to demonstrate the first game from a major publisher supporting both OnLive’s iPad/Android tablet touch and game controller, as well as running seamlessly on an HDTV, PC and Mac, to be released later in 2011. Come to OnLive’s booth (South Hall, Booth #801) for a demo.

For gamers preferring a smaller screen, OnLive will provide the exact same functionality on iPhone and Android smartphones, allowing them to be used both as game systems themselves with touch and the OnLive Universal Wireless Controller, or as a controller to an HDTV (or PC/Mac), for simultaneous or independent play.

OnLive is also unveiling as part of this experience the first 10 gigabit cloud-based full-featured browser for iPad, Android and HDTV; bringing the full richness of the Web loading from ultra-fast 10 gigabit/second Web connections to OnLive’s cloud-based servers, including support for full-featured Flash and video sites. Mobile and home devices will no longer be limited to the speed of their local connection for Web browsing or Web plug-in compatibility, opening up access to Flash games and social gaming for tablets and HDTVs.

All OnLive games played using the OnLive Player App will play seamlessly across all OnLive-compatible devices, including iPad, iPhone, Android, on HDTV via the OnLive Game System, on connected HDTV and Blu-ray/media players and on PC and Mac.

Darksiders II Coming to Wii U

Death’s epic adventure is scheduled to release on the Wii’s successor

PRESS RELEASE

AGOURA HILLS, Calif., Jun 07, 2011 (BUSINESS WIRE) — THQ Inc. (NASDAQ: THQI) today announced that the upcoming sequel to its award-winning Action/Adventure title, Darksiders(R), is scheduled for release on Nintendo’s Wii U(TM) in calendar 2012.

The Wii U(TM) version of Darksiders(R) II will take advantage of Nintendo’s innovative new hardware with implemented functionality for the revolutionary controller.

Darksiders II follows the exploits of DEATH, one of the four horsemen of the Apocalypse, in a weaving tale that runs parallel to the events in the original Darksiders game. This epic journey propels DEATH through various light and dark realms as he tries to redeem his brother WAR, the horseman who was blamed for prematurely starting the Apocalypse in Darksiders.

Travis Plane, Vice President of Global Brand Management commented: “We are very excited about the potential Wii U(TM) offers and look forward to bringing Darksiders II to the Nintendo audience.”

Darksiders II is scheduled to be available for Wii U(TM) as well as console and PC in calendar 2012. For more information check www.facebook.com/Darksiders.

About Darksiders II

Awakened by the End of Days, Death, the most feared of the legendary Four Horsemen, embarks upon a quest to restore mankind, and redeem his brother’s name. Along the way, the Horseman discovers that there are far worse things than an earthly Apocalypse, and that an ancient grudge may threaten all of Creation . . . Can DEATH really become mankind’s savior? The original Darksiders, released in January 2010, received critical acclaim including the Best Fantasy Game 2010 award from IGN. Darksiders followed the story of WAR, wrongly accused of starting the apocalypse, on a quest to reclaim lost honor and take revenge on those who wronged him.