[Hawkeye_a]

Oh... and just for the record. I think the Wii (from a technical perspective), has reached it's limit, now that developers are pushing the HD hardware in games such as Uncharted2. As i said at the beginning of this thread, 2010 would be the year i move to HD, and i am intent on getting a PS3 now (price is right, form factor is acceptable, BR won(i was wrong about this), enough games i actually want).

So the Wii has served it's purpose since late 2006....and now, i believe the PS3 is in a good position to take over for my entertainment purposes(unless some major announcement from the big 3 during E3 this year). And hopefully, given MOVE we'll see some cool new concepts....although i still find the device fugly.

PS>>I think Uncharted2 would have been cooler with Wiimote pointing controls for aiming.

[Jawbone54]

Originally Posted by Hawkeye_a 

PS>>I think Uncharted2 would have been cooler with Wiimote pointing controls for aiming.

At least you're going the PS3 route. Be sure to pick up a 320 or 500 GB hard drive to install on your PS3. If you want to import any music/movies, that hard drive space empties out quickly. I just freed up around 13 GB in game installs and saves today.

[The Final Dakar]

Originally Posted by Hawkeye_a 

On XB360's win for February...congratulations to Microsoft. In all honesty that's like claiming it's the tallest midget, in a month which saw a significant drop from last year. But congratulations to them for maintaing stock levels and overall beating the competition for the month.

You're trying too hard.

[ajprice]

Ben Heck ponders Xbox 360 Slim: Motherboard, Memory Unit support, internal hard drive -- Joystiq


Ben Heckendorm has worked out most of whats what with the possibly new, possibly slim, 360 'Valhalla'. This motherboard isn't confirmed by MS. Nothing there that looks like a 360 memory card reader, two SATA connectors for DVD and maybe an internal hard drive.

[The Final Dakar]

Bungie Reveals Halo: Reach Matchmaking and Social Features - Shacknews - PC Games, PlayStation, Xbox 360 and Wii video game news, previews and downloads

Active Roster - This is a throwback to Halo 2. When you boot up Reach, right at the main menu or lobby, you'll see a list of what your Xbox Live friends are doing within Reach. You'll get detailed information about any friends playing Reach including who they are partied with, what game they are in (plus score and remaining time), and more.

Queue-Joining - In Halo 3, it was difficult to join friends that were already playing in a match. You had to wait until they were finished. If you started a game while you waited, they would then have to wait for you. Instead of going back and forth, Reach will support queue-joining. Simply put, Reach will automatically join up as soon as your friends are joinable.

Improved Voting System - Halo: Reach will utilize a new voting system, which Bungie described as "Veto 2.0". Each playlist will provide players with four options. The first will be a combination of map and gametype, much like you would see in Halo 3. The other three options will offer players additional choices to vote on. Thankfully, you'll know up front what your four options are so you no longer have to risk voting down a favored map, but unfavored gametype and getting an unfavored combination.

Ranked and Social Combined - Since the hardcore will be in the Arena, Bungie doesn't want to further splinter the community. In Halo 3, Ranked and Social playlists served two different purposes. Ranked games were generally of a higher quality, while social games were more casual.

In Reach, the playlists will be smart enough to put you and your party in the proper match based upon how many players you have. Say you're looking for a game in a four-on-four playlist. If you bring four people, Reach will attempt to match your team against another group of four at a similar skill level. If you go in with more than four, it will properly split your party across the teams and fill in the blanks with additional players.

All things I would have done for MW2 (Particularly the Queue joining, even though it'd probably only aid boosting). All good stuff, however.

[Kevin Bogues]

Great stuff, as much as halo can be unbalanced and full of boosting, Bungie really has there act together on multi, how many times can we say we wish other games had the back up that Bunge provides

[Leonard]

Agreed, Bungie has always provided the most and best features for multi-player.

I like the sounds of the new voting system. You know what your choices are.

One of these days, I'll have to head back in Halo 3 MP. MW2 MP, has kept my interest, lately.

[sek929]

All good stuff. Bungie are the console multiplayer kings and it's nice to see them innovating again.

[KCrosbie]

USB storage device support coming to the 360

1. You can only enable two USB storage devices on your console simultaneously.
2. You can only use a maximum of 16 GB of space per storage device.
3. The storage device must have over 1 GB of available space.

Kind of weak. I guess it can be good for DLC.

[Stogieman]

I could have used this feature when I was transferring all my game data & DLC from my old busted xbox to the new one. I was a pain in the ass having use a Memory Card and redownload all the DLC.

[Hawkeye_a]

With a PS3 Slim, can i plug in an external HDD, format:FAT32, and browse the media (videos, music, photos) on the HDD using the PS3 interface ?

[exca1ibur]

Yup, you can even play it directly off that drive if you don't want to copy it over. I do this often when I take movies over a friends to watch on his system.

[sek929]

[The Final Dakar]

That's a Daily Show quality burn.

[slugslugslug]

You could probably find at least 3 examples of Steve Jobs saying “Why would we do x? x is stupid.” a year or two before announcing Apple’s version of x.

[The Final Dakar]

That doesn't make it any better. No one respects that aspect of Steve Job's personality, either.

[The Final Dakar]

Apple Cuts a Larger Slice of Mobile Gaming Pie - Apple - Kotaku


I don't think they're marketed towards the same demos, (with some gray area thanks to FF remakes and WiiWare minigames) but whatever.



Sony Thinks Kids Playing 3D Is "A Stretch" - PSP - Kotaku
Likens it to lollipo-- nevermind.

[Jawbone54]

Originally Posted by The Final Dakar 

Apple Cuts a Larger Slice of Mobile Gaming Pie - Apple - Kotaku

Somewhat related...

Games command 44% of apps tested by Apple for use with iPad

New statistics from analytics firm Flurry provided to AppleInsider show that the lion's share of applications being tested on the iPad are games, which command 44 percent. The next most popular App Store category, in a distant second place with just 14 percent, is entertainment.

While I'm positive I'd never like a FPS or most action titles on the iPad, it would be absolutely perfect for games like The Sims, Civilization, and nearly any puzzle game imaginable. I'm not buying one at launch, but I'm saving up for the possibility of a June/July purchase based upon my impressions. Several of my friends are buying one, so I'll test drive the thing.

[The Final Dakar]

I'd love to give this a try.

The Next Smart Video Game Only Lets You Kill Once - Spy party - Gizmodo

Everyone in the party talks, walks around, looks at some statues in the corner, wanders over to the book case, laughs and so on. The spy is among them, but the sniper just watches. The sniper player can move their camera view to any windowed side of the room and zoom in for inspection. They can highlight characters they are suspicious of and darken those who they are sure are genuine. A laser sight from their gun exposes the sniper's viewing angle to the spy and they only get one shot. Lock onto the shadiest character and fire a can't-miss bullet. And hope you murdered the right person.

Spy Party has already proven to provoke devious actions. Hecker said that some of his spy-side game testers have taken to tapping on buttons that the 360 controller doesn't use, in order to make the sniper player think that a spy action is being committed. If they hear come clicking then they'll assume, perhaps, that one of the statue idols is being replaced?

[Hawkeye_a]

I'm curious (genuinely)....

With the PS3 Move coming out.... If third parties were to port their unsuccessful core Wii titles over to the PS3, with up-scaled graphics(higher poly counts, more detailed textures) and similar gameplay/controls... do you think they will sell more ?

Games like Dark Space: Extraction, Madworld, Deadly Creatures, Spyborgs, etc.... Some of you claimed they didnt sell well cause the audience for core gamers on the Wii does not exist, and that they do on the PS3/XB360. So, to those of you who made that claim....do you think the games mentioned would be a success on the PS3 ?

In fact can you think of any unsuccessful core Wii game, that if ported over to the PS3 would do better on the market ?

Cheers

[exca1ibur]

I wonder how long till someone makes a killer RTS with this...

PS Move 3D Demo

[jokell82]

Originally Posted by Hawkeye_a 

I'm curious (genuinely)....

With the PS3 Move coming out.... If third parties were to port their unsuccessful core Wii titles over to the PS3, with up-scaled graphics(higher poly counts, more detailed textures) and similar gameplay/controls... do you think they will sell more ?

Games like Dark Space: Extraction, Madworld, Deadly Creatures, Spyborgs, etc.... Some of you claimed they didnt sell well cause the audience for core gamers on the Wii does not exist, and that they do on the PS3/XB360. So, to those of you who made that claim....do you think the games mentioned would be a success on the PS3 ?

In fact can you think of any unsuccessful core Wii game, that if ported over to the PS3 would do better on the market ?

Cheers

If all they did was port the game with better graphics? Some probably wouldn't sell. I think Madworld could, but even then most of the reviews I saw of that game were just OK. Dead Space already has a better version on the other platforms, and a sequel in the works. Why play a gimped on-rails version when something better is just around the corner?

[The Final Dakar]

I expect Tiger Woods will be the main piece of software to move this on the PS3. Especially with the added "fingerbang" mini-game.

[Jawbone54]

Obligatory Tiger jokes aside, I'm definitely on board with a PS3 Move Tiger 11. Tiger on Wii is actually a blast to play, even for extended gaming sessions.

I just wish they'd leave the LBP controls as they are for the sequel. I'm sure the Move will be optional, but I want the new content to be the focus, not the waggle.

[Hawkeye_a]

Originally Posted by Jawbone54 

At least you're going the PS3 route. Be sure to pick up a 320 or 500 GB hard drive to install on your PS3. If you want to import any music/movies, that hard drive space empties out quickly. I just freed up around 13 GB in game installs and saves today.

http://forums.macnn.com/57/consumer-...e/#post3949937

Ended up going in for a WDHDTV (for now). Was a very tough decision.

Cheers

[Jawbone54]

Originally Posted by Hawkeye_a 

http://forums.macnn.com/57/consumer-...e/#post3949937

Ended up going in for a WDHDTV (for now). Was a very tough decision.

Cheers

Gotta do what you gotta do when you've set a max price. Probably a smart move, especially if you're content with your Wii.

[The Final Dakar]

Kotaku Census 2010: The Results - Census 2010 - Kotaku

I was a little surprised at pirated console game %, but then I realized even I had a cracked slim PS2 (when my original died, I decided paying for most games went with it).


GameStop Hit With Class Action Suit Over "Deceptive" Used Game Sales - GameStop - Kotaku

According to a class action suit spotted by IGN, GameStop is being sued for "fraudulently, unfairly, unlawfully and deceptively [misleading] consumers at the time of their purchase to believe that the game comes with free downloadable content, when it fact, it does not." Basically, the suit is being filed over the fact that downloadable content—characters, maps, gameplay modes—are promised on the box, but are not available to second hand buyers, unbeknownst to those consumers.

Odd, but interesting. I imagine EA is somewhere silently smirking.

[Stogieman]

Originally Posted by Hawkeye_a 

http://forums.macnn.com/57/consumer-...e/#post3949937

Ended up going in for a WDHDTV (for now). Was a very tough decision.

Cheers

I knew all along you weren't getting a PS3.

[The Final Dakar]

Heh, give him some credit. In the early going most people didn't buy a PS3 to play games either.

[Hawkeye_a]

Originally Posted by Stogieman 

I knew all along you weren't getting a PS3.

Hehe.... believe it or not, after debating the issue for a couple of months, i spent 20 minutes at the store trying to make up my mind. I genuinely want a PS3, primarily for the BluRay. I was actually ready to drop the money for a system (and a couple of games n movies)...but the process of converting my media drive to FAT32 and/or getting a new HDD altogether(+35% $$$) just seemed too much of a hassle. I even considered DLNA running on my Mac with the HDD plugged in to go through the PS3, but it just seemed like too complicated and unnecessary.... with each step involved in assembling a 'solution' the ROI just kept going down.

Then i remembered that i want an iPad as well....so....it was either PS3+HDD or WDHDTV+iPad(total price was approximately the same).

If i got a PS3...i would have 2 gaming consoles i barely use (im not a hardcore gamer, maybe 2 games a year)...2 HDDs with one superfluous.

With the WDHDTV.... 1 gaming console, 1 HDD, 1 media set top box.

I still might end up getting a PS3 eventually, if i end up wanting 'Last Guardian' bad enough. Like i said, if my drives were formatted as FAT32 or if the PS3 supported HFS+, i would have definitely purchased a PS3 2 days ago.

Cheers

[Hawkeye_a]

Originally Posted by The Final Dakar 

Heh, give him some credit. In the early going most people didn't buy a PS3 to play games either.

Well to be fair i wanted the PS3 to be the only thing i needed to have hooked up to my TV...primarily as a media player and BR player....gaming was a 'bonus'. It would have been the first time i purchased 2 consoles within the same generation. (I HATE doubling up on stuff). If only the PS3 supported HFS+ or my HDDs were in FAT32, i would have had a PS3 now.

[Hawkeye_a]

Took the WDHDTV back, picked up a PS3 slim.

Tomorrow i have to beg forgiveness from Nintendo.....

Jeeze, if only id known about the PS3 before..its so awesome.

[The Final Dakar]

Before what?

[The Final Dakar]

One of stranger things I've heard in some time:
'Breach' game code theft at PAX East ends in arrest -- Joystiq

An attempted theft of Atomic Games' Breach code on the PAX East show floor on the last day of the event was thwarted by vigilant members of the studio. According to a representative for the company, the suspected thief managed to download some of the code and then run into the crowd after he was spotted. He was eventually apprehended in the large crowd and the game's code was found on his computer.

"The suspect did admit to us several times, including as he was doing it, that he was stealing the code. He said to myself and several other team members, after being caught, that it was not a big deal, he just really liked the game and wanted to play it with his friends," David Tractenberg, a spokesperson for Atomic, explained.

[Jawbone54]

Hawkeye_a...

This.
And this.

[The Final Dakar]

Wait, the PS3 plays games?!

[Jawbone54]

Some nights.

Also, I finally upgraded my PS3 hard drive to the max 500GB through New Egg for $79. Not bad, not bad...

[Jawbone54]

Hawkeye, at least you weren't this guy: Parking Lot PS3

A man from Evanston, Illinois found a PS3 for sale on Craigslist for $250. So he arranged to buy it. The meeting was scheduled to take place in a parking lot. Oh dear.

When he got there, he was greeted by two men emerging from a car. They met him, took his money, then...drove off. No violence, no threats, not even a "how do you do".

Local police are currently investigating, no doubt splitting their time between pursuing the criminals and shaking their heads at the sucker in question.

The article pokes fun at the guy, but I have to admit that I even hopped into a complete stranger's car once to sell him a PS2. The guy was a complete thug (but a nice guy). I met him at a trade-in store and told him I'd sell him a PS2 for $25 cheaper than the one he was about to buy. The employees kicked us out, so I showed him the PS2, and left it in my car.

He said, "Hop in, man, we'll just swing by that ATM." It was only about 200 yards away, so I jumped in and we chatted the whole way. It wasn't until we were almost back that I saw the gun laying half-exposed on the driver's side floorboard. This isn't actually uncommon in LA; your vehicle is considered an extension of your home in the state. You can have a gun in your car at all times without any special license.

We pulled up, swapped cash for the PS2, and then went over some game recommendations. Nothing weird ever happened, and neither of us mentioned the gun (I don't think he noticed me spotting it), but I still remember getting a massive knot in my throat when I saw it. Like I said, the guy was really nice, but the fact that I was in a stranger's car with a gun, and I unwittingly put myself in that situation...makes me a bit of an idiot.

[The Final Dakar]

Is this a story about you coming out of the closet?

[Jawbone54]

I'm no Salty.

[The Final Dakar]

Please, spare me the details.

[analogue SPRINKLES]

Originally Posted by Hawkeye_a 

If i got a PS3...i would have 2 gaming consoles i barely use (im not a hardcore gamer, maybe 2 games a year)...2 HDDs with one superfluous.

You obviously like non-casual games though as you play all the "hardcore" games on the Wii and old Mac titles.

Your problem is you are used to being a Nintendo fan and getting 1 or 2 must have franchise games a year. I was in the same mindset until I got a PS2 and was blown away by how much I like to play other games on other systems.

[Hawkeye_a]

Originally Posted by The Final Dakar 

Before what?

Before i purchased it. I mean it's a great product, you guys should really try it out, can't believe you havent mentioned it before.

Anyway, my primary purpose for getting this thing was the media center (despite the lack of support for HFS+). DVD/BR-DVD, video, music and picture files, etc look great, and the playback of my primary formats(H.264, MPEG4, DivX and XviD) look and work as expected unlike the WD HD TV.

A couple of things which pushed me to spend 3X of what i originally wanted:
-The team Ico dude has expressed interest in being SOTC over to the PS3 (which imo is probably the best game of this past decade).
-Region free games. I travel a lot and have been living in 2-3 "regions", so this was a huge plus.
-Many region free BR-DVDs. Its nice to see many studios embracing this as many of the BR-DVDs i want are 'region free'.

I have to now, take the piss out of Nintendo for going the opposite way with their products regarding region coding (even in their portables, which is ridiculous).

The first thing i need to get for the PS3 is a remote, cause using the controller is awkward. And another hard drive ... <sigh>.

As far ass games..... i'm in no rush at the moment as i still have a few on my plate...MadWorld, Zack & Wiki, which i havent played in over a month.

But it seems that as a media center, the PS3 is tops...especially since it supports external HDD and even media on optical discs. I hope they eventually support HFS+ and NTFS, just for the compatibility.

Cheers

[Jawbone54]

Don't buy a third-party remote. I did so, and have regretted it ever since. It feels cheap and lacks several essential buttons.

The official Sony remote is highly recommended.

[Hawkeye_a]

Yeah i usually stick with the first party accessories. The remote looks an awful lot like my Bravia remote.

Alright, i know this is a bit off topic here, but i'd appreciate some advice, as i have not reached my goal of 'media center' yet:

-So, i now have a MacBook, a PS3 and a 1TB HFS+ external drive. Most of my media is on the external drive.

-I want to be able to browse/view that media on my TV via the PS3.

-I do not want to have my MacBook involved in the solution.

Can someone present a solution, with as little hassle as possible ?

What i've come up with:
Buy a second drive and format it to FAT32, transfer all the media i want to view on my TV onto it (no files are larger than 4GB) and have it plugged into the PS3. This is an extreme solution in that i will probably have to rename some files to conform to FAT32, not to mention the time involved in transferring the stuff.

Is there any other, better way of going about this ?

Cheers

[The Final Dakar]

Originally Posted by Hawkeye_a 

Before i purchased it. I mean it's a great product, you guys should really try it out, can't believe you havent mentioned it before.

*slow clap*

[The Final Dakar]

Weird 3DS Reveal Was Journalist's Fault - Nintendo 3ds - Kotaku

"Apparently, the Japanese press was all over it and talked with suppliers there and Nintendo just wanted to get out ahead by breaking the news to prevent a leak," says analyst Billy Pidgeon. "Does it clash with the DSi XL? Yes it does."

What strange days we live in. Sony and Microsoft stuff leaks all the time, but Nintendo is usually tight as a drum. For word to slip out ahead of an official reveal means either Nintendo is getting sloppy or, as is more likely (and more hopeful for future scoops), the Japanese press is finally realising that getting hold of this information isn't as hard as they once thought.

Welcome to hell, Nintendo.



http://kotaku.com/5505341/suspected-game-code-thief-on-the-lam-[update]

A Boston court has issued an arrest warrant for the man detained by police Sunday for allegedly trying to copy early code for upcoming shooter Breach, Kotaku has learned.

Justin D. May, 20, of Delaware, failed to show for his arraignment this morning and an arrest warrant has been issued, Suffolk County District Attorney press secretary Jake Wark told Kotaku.

I can't find it in the updated article, but I swear they said someone saw his gamertag online, but when they contacted it it signed off.



The Conduit 2 coming to Wii -- Joystiq

n short: It's due this fall, it picks up right where the first left off and it's embracing its sci-fi vibe more than the first game did. Like we said, plenty of details are forthcoming; however, at the moment, it sounds like High Voltage is hoping to ratchet up pretty much every aspect of the first game. Here's hoping we have some official assets for you soon.

You spend all that time making an engine for a game, making a low-cost sequel makes sense (But still, we'll see if the my general "sequels tend to sell better" works here).

[jokell82]

Originally Posted by The Final Dakar 

http://kotaku.com/5505341/suspected-game-code-thief-on-the-lam-[update]

I can't find it in the updated article, but I swear they said someone saw his gamertag online, but when they contacted it it signed off.

Joystiq said he was playing MW2 when they wrote the story.

[The Final Dakar]

Maybe that's where I read it. Hilarious, either way.

[sek929]

The Conduit 2 could be a killer Wii game. The first one was very good for a Wii FPS (especially with the Wii Motion+) in every area except the online matchmaking, which constantly freezes the system.

However, the graphics are laughably bad, even when compared to Metroid Prime (which came out 8 years ago) and the story is nonexistent. It's good for a Wii game, but can't hold a candle to FPSes released on 10 year old systems.