Accessory sales soared in what was otherwise a fairly dismal sales year in the videogame industry, which saw an almost across-the-board slump in sales figures.
Continue reading ‘2010 saw industry-wide gaming sales slump’
Archive for January, 2011
Below is a picture created by SplitScreen comparing the different crafting systems in “Minecraft” and “Team Fortress 2.” It’s huge and cool looking, you should read it.
Continue reading ‘Minecraft vs. Team Fortress 2 – huge infographic’
Japanese developer, Mistwalker studios, has released a new trailer for their latest Wii game, “The Last Story.” The studio is headed by Square Enix alumnus and original Final Fantasy creator Hironobu Sakaguchi, and he appears to be hard at work. Continue reading for more info and video.
Continue reading ‘The Last Story shows more promise than Final Fantasy in new video’
If you signed into “Minecraft” in the last couple of days, you probably noticed an update downloaded, but you may not know what that update includes. The “Minecraft” beta 1.2 update adds a wide array of new blocks, recipes and mobs, and it also provides more stability for multiplayer games. More info and video after the break.
Continue reading ‘The cake is not a lie: Minecraft beta 1.2 update adds cake, squids and more’
Winners of the thirteenth annual Independent Games Festival Student Showcase were announced today, with eight of the over 280 entries receiving the award. GameSetWatch reports that the winning students hail from all over the world, from Chicago to Bern, Switzerland.
Continue reading ‘Eight games win the Independent Games Festival Student Showcase’
A veritable deluge of information has surfaced about the eighth entry in the “Silent Hill” series. Game Informer Magazine reports that “Silent Hill: Downpour” will feature — no surprise here — water as the factor that transforms Silent Hill into its Otherworld counterpart.
Continue reading ‘Downpour to be the name of the next Silent Hill title’
As Ben so aptly stated in our review of the title, “Donkey Kong Country Returns” is a worthy revival of the Donkey Kong Country series that was a staple of so many households in the 90s. However, for many gamers this reunion was made somewhat awkward by Nintendo’s baffling decision to incorporate motion-initiated shake controls, which often made simple actions more complicated than would be ideal for the precise execution and timing demanded of the game.
The solution for gamers? Take matters into their own hands.
This past weekend was Nintendo World 2011, and judging by the coverage of the event, they might as well have named it “Nintendo 3DS demo extravaganza.” While some of your favorite names were there in full force, it is the newest edition to the “Resident Evil” franchise that truly shines.
Keep reading to see a video of the game in action.
Continue reading ‘Resident Evil: Revelations gets face time at Nintendo World 2011’
Five new screenshots for the upcoming 3DS remake of “The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time” have surfaced on Japanese gaming site Famitsu. Nintendo also held a 3DS demo event today in Japan, announcing that the game would not make it into the launch line-up for the Japanese release of the console on Feb 26.
At this time, it is unknown whether or not it will be available by the American launch date in March, but there is speculation that it will be bundled with the 3DS in America.
Indie developer, Tale of Tales, is giving “Fatale” away for free for the next 12 hours. The development team is headed by married couple, Michaël Samyn and Auriea Harvey, who are giving the game away for free in celebration of their eight-year wedding anniversary.
The game is based on Oscar Wilde’s play “Salome” and is described on their site as an “interactive vignette.” While not your typical gaming fare, it’s an interesting piece of interactive art that’s certainly worth checking out. Download it for free on either Mac or PC.
08
Jan
11
Torchlight Illuminating XBLA
If you own an Xbox 360, I hope you’re ready to lose hours of your life delving through dungeons. In Spring 2011, “Torchlight” is coming the the Xbox Live Arcade.
For those unfamiliar with “Torchlight’s” initial PC release in 2009, it is a “Diablo” clone in all the best ways, which is unsurprising as developer Runic Games was founded by previous “Diablo” designers. “Torchlight” features three different character classes, each with three skill trees, two different pets, endless random dungeons and hordes of loot to load your backpack up with.
07
Jan
11
Dragon Age II Day-One DLC
Continuing the trend they started with “Dragon Age: Origins,” BioWare has confirmed “Dragon Age II” will feature day-one downloadable content entitled “The Exiled Prince.” As before, it will feature an additional character with related quests.
Last month we reported that Harmonix was looking for a new home after parent company Viacom announced it would drop the game developer this year. Harmonix has now been sold to a private investment company for $49.99, the list price of its newest title, “Rock Band 3.”
Continue reading ‘Harmonix sold for the price of one of its games: $50’
BioWare announced in July that following their last 4-issue comic book series released with Dark Horse, “Mass Effect: Redemption,” they would be releasing another series dealing with the origins of the Illusive Man. You can now see a 7-page preview of the new comic, “Mass Effect: Evolution,” which is being written by returning lead writer Mac Walters.
Just when you thought Microsoft had finally fixed the RROD — by removing the red lights, right? — the Xbox 360 console error has reared its ugly head again, and rumor has it the Kinect is to blame.
Microsoft’s Kinect peripheral for the Xbox 360 appears to be causing older, pre-Slim Xbox 360 models to overheat, leading to RRODs. According to Destructoid, a 10-year-old boy interviewed on BBC radio 4’s “You and Yours” program described his issue:
Continue reading ‘The red ring of death returns, possibly thanks to the Kinect’
Ubisoft quietly removed their highly restrictive PC-only digital rights management system from “Splinter Cell: Conviction” and “Assassin’s Creed II” on Jan 1 and claims that from now on the DRM will be used on a case-by-case basis.
The DRM, which has been widely despised among gamers, requires a constant connection to Ubisoft’s servers and, if interrupted, will instantly kick players from their games until they can reconnect.
In order to celebrate this year in gaming, playWISE has featured several articles for the last few weeks detailing the most memorable games of the year. We’ve talked about our biggest disappointments, the best hidden gems and gave our picks for personal favorite games of the year.
Alas, 2010 has come to an end after the release of quite a few solid games, and it’s time to see if 2011 can conquer it. Read onward to find out what titles we’re looking forward to the most in the coming year.
Continue reading ‘playWISE’s most anticipated games of 2011′
Nintendo of America announced today that, according to internal figures, the Nintendo DS has sold 47 million units in the United States since hitting shelves in its original form in 2004, making it the best-selling video game console of all time.
Continue reading ‘The Nintendo DS is the best-selling console in the US’
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