Gaming Signal: March 2008 Archives

Monday March 10, 2008

Rumor: Bioware's next RPG?

Today, I find myself coming into some information about an upcoming computer RPG from the folks over at Bioware. The news was delivered from sources that wish to be unnamed, and until I can verify the information, will be marked as a rumor. So with that little bit of qualifying and covering of my own rump out of the way, I can move back to the news.

Bioware is working on a RPG based on the A Song of Fire and Ice series by George R. R. Martin. Furthermore, the timing of this game may come to match the release of the series that HBO is producing. The source for the rumor indicated that EA has purchased the rights for video games based on the series and EA owns Bioware, therefore it is a logical progression.

My own take on this is that it would be great news for gamers since the series is quite rich and has a lot of story to draw from. The cynic in me questions the information since Bioware has been working on Dragon Age for quite some time, and this would be something very new from them. It will be interesting to see how this plays out, and we can hope that the information will be true...

Wednesday March 05, 2008

Dungeons and Dragons 4E Preview

Wizards of the Coast are preparing for the launch of a new version of the venerable classic co-created by the late Gary Gygax. This new version has a great preview up over at the Wired GeekDad blog, and is scheduled for release in June of 2008. The preview overviews the data gleaned from two books, Wizards Presents: Worlds and Monsters and Wizards Presents: Classes and Races, that WOTC are using to promote the new series.

As a summary of the GeekDad entry, the designers over WOTC seem to focused on making the game play a little easier for entry level players. They have removed the whole spell casting limitation (wizards would have a set number of spells they can cast per day) which was a tenet of the game for a very long time. They also seem to want to simplify the number of creatures available. There is a lot of data to consider and I would like to check out the new system. I just question if I really need another stack of RPG books considering my 3E stuff is still pretty pristine.

Tuesday March 04, 2008

Console Exclusivity Overrated?

I was taking a look at the top console games (according to Gamespot and Game Informer, although I'm confident it holds true with whatever source) by console and noticing a major trend. Except for the Wii, 80% of the top games for each console are multi-platform titles.

If you look at the PS3, the only exclusive titles that are on the top of the heap are Resistance: Fall of Man and Uncharted: Drake's Fortune. The XBOX 360 has a few more maybe (especially if you discount the Arcade games): Halo 3, Forza Motorsports, and Project Gotham Racing. The Wii is the only console with an almost completely exclusive list of top games. In fact, it's the rare game that is multiplatform on that list: Madden NFL 07, Guitar Hero 3, and The Sims 2 (odd that!)

Is exclusivity overrated? Really - does it even matter anymore? If you discount the Wii and its totally different gaming experience, does it really matter which of the other two you have? What will you really be missing out on if you only have a 360 or only have a PS3? It just doesn't look like that much from here.

RIP: Gary Gygax

A loss among gamers everywhere...

Slice of SciFi reports that Gary Gygax has died at age 69.

The "Dungeons and Dragons" (D&D) co-creator and legengary gaming pioneer E. (Ernest) Gary Gygax has died at the age of 69 from complications arising from past multiple strokes.

A gamer all his life, Gygax started out like most kids playing strategy games such as chess and the card game pinochle, as well as others. His love for games found a different outlet in the late 1950's with miniature war games like "Gettysburg." His fascination grew to the point where gaming for him became an art form and then he found and fell in love with science fiction. Thus was born his lifelong quest to develop some of the best genre-related gaming in the industry.

Our best wishes go out to his family and friends.

I'm Lego Batman!!!

Traveller Tales and Lego have given my son and I hours and hours of enjoyment with their Star Wars titles, and now there is a trailer for another property getting the Lego treatment. Its the world of Batman from DC Comics. The first teaser trailer is out and can be found below:

I so want to be the Joker now!!!

Game Bits For 03/04/2008

Wired has a look at the new fourth edition of D&D, complete with scans of the new character sheets. Tiefling Wizard anyone?

If you're wonder what the Diablo II clone, Mythos looks like, then head on over to Compuer and Video Games for a 5 minute gameplay video that shows off the upcoming 3rd zone. I'm in Mythos and really like it. If I ever get any more invites, I can hand them out if needed.

At the GDC08, Abandon Interactive unveiled their new kid friendly MMO, Freaky Creature. Think Webkins crossed with Pokemon, wrapped up in a cage match. You buy the figure at the store, bring it home, pop the included flash drive in and upload your furry monster to the website, then set them loose on one another in grudge match only Michael Vic could love. OK, I don't know if the Vicster loves to fight virtual monsters, just doggies.

You want to know more about Realtime Worlds' new MMO, All Points Bulletin? How's this: No grind. That's right, gone are the days of grinding monsters to reach the next level. There is no experience point system at all. Instead, they are focusing on gameplay and customization. Count me in.

I think I've found the perfect game for Kevin: Mabinogi. Not only are they giving away 10000 cowboy hats, but fishing looks to play a large part in the game, along with other exciting pastimes like farming and mining! Woot!

Here's a new SF board game to keep an eye on: Ascendency. Sounds a bit like the old Cosmic Encounter.

The new 360 horror/SF game, Dead Space, now has it's own 6 issue comic from Image Comics. How does that work where an unreleased game gets a comic series?

Monday March 03, 2008

Piracy Causes Iron Lore Shutdown?

Last week, Iron Lore Entertainment announced it was shutting down due to the inability to secure another round of funding. Iron Lore is the creator of Titan's Quest and its expansion. Both of these are fine games that leverage Greek/Roman, Egyptian and Chinese mythology in a Diablo style (which is now called "action RPG"). The situation is very sad since the game was well received with a GameRankings score of 80%, but they were still unable to stay in business.

The latest comment in this story was made by Michael Fitch, THQ Creative Director, who states that piracy was part of the reason for the closure. He indicated THQ made money on the game, but had a larger number of sales occurred then the situation would have been much different.

The question I ask is, would ILE been better served by making Titan's Quest for the Xbox 360 or PS3? While there is piracy in almost every area of gaming, it seems to be much less on these newer consoles. It is also a reason that we are seeing some decline in PC gaming since game developers wish to recoup the cost of developing games and not suffer such high losses. Mr. Fitch quoted a number of 80% and that may be valid for some titles, and that is not a good thing...

GamingSignal does not condone piracy, but instead encourages the dressing up like a pirate and making pirate like statements. Also, there are plenty of ways to obtain games at less than retail including the "wait for it to go on clearance" option.