Afrika sure looks nice! Pity we haven’t heard a thing about the game for, oh, nearly nine months now. And even then have no idea what the game’s about, or what you’re supposed to do in it. So if you’re of the feeling the project’s either vapourware or has been canned, it’s OK, that’s totally understandable. Understandable, but wrong, because composer Wataru Hokoyama has just been tapped to lead a 104-piece orchestra in scoring the game. No, we haven’t heard of him either (seems he’s worked with 30 Seconds to Mars, Joss Whedon and on a bunch of short films), but since we’ve heard next to nothing of the game either that would make the two a perfect fit.
Game Christmas trees are the new game pumpkins which were the new game cake. Previously, we’ve seen the D.I.Y. Halo tree and jaw dropping Pac-Man tree. Now, Gay Gamer brings us the 8-bit tree. Decorated with Perler bead creations that include Bubble Bobble, Pac-Man, The Legend of Zelda, Final Fantasy, Super Mario Bros. and Castlevania among others. If that wasn’t enough, just check out that wall!
8-bit Christmas [Gay Gamer]
Johnny Lee’s a smart kid. First he shows us how we can use our Wiis to track finger movements ala Minority Report, now he’s showing us something even more exciting: how to use the Wii Remote as a whiteboard marker. OK, it doesn’t sound that exciting, but free up a few minutes from your busy modern lifestyles to watch this clip and you’ll see it actually has some serious potential.
[via Giz]
So, Suda51′s No More Heroes doesn’t look like it’s a breakout Japanese hit. That fact alone has made many people quite blue — glum, even! Reader Frank sends this:
I felt sad that NMH ain’t doing good in Japan, I decided to show some love to Suda by asking you to post my Wii which is not finished yet but to show support and respect to Suda for making what I know to be a great game, already pre-ordered it but no keychain or toilet paper Damn It! Well thanks for listening!
Hey, thanks for sharing! Hit the jump for another pic of this instant pick me up.
Get that smirk off your face. While you might think that 2D graphics, being old and mouldy, are easier to cobble together than fancy new 3D graphics, you’re missing an important point. One Marvellous Interactive’s Yoshifumi Hashimoto is only to happy to point out to you: It’s harder now to make 2D-graphics games. Before, everything was 2D, so you had enough people who were actually specialised in making 2D characters. But now, everything is 3D. So now, to find a good team that can make 2D games, even if you have better technology and more RAM or whatever, it’s really hard now.
See? All the RAM and teraflops in the world can’t replace a few artists with a keen eye and a deft touch.
The smart Sony ads continue! Here’s a Gran Turismo 5 spot that has a family marvelling at Sony Bravia. The daughter suggests that they buy the television and “this” — which the father thinks means a car. She explains that she meant a “game.” The father can’t believe that he’s been watching a video game and not regular television. The mother and the son chime in that it is in fact a video game. The sales clerk pops up and does a sales pitch. Love it!
It’s a Game [PS3 Fanboy]
Come the Age of the Chosen update on December 14, players of Auran’s hack’n'slash MMO Fury will be given the option to play the game minus the monthly subscription fee.
According to the release, the free mode, called “Chosen”, will give players access to all game types, weapons and abilities. Chosen however will gain gold and essence at a reduced rate and will be unable to swap goods with other players.
If a player is willing to spend a bit of cash, an upgraded “Hero” mode is available that will increase the gold and essence gather rate. Players are also free to buy gold from Auran directly.
This news however is foreshadowed by this grim statement from Auran CEO Tony Hilliam, included with the release Kotaku Australia received from the company:
We will then have some bad news to follow (unless a miracle occurs), but there will be a very positive end to the week.
A mixed message if I ever saw one, especially considering the events of earlier today.
If you’d like to shape your own opinion of events (which I encourage you to do) check out the full release after the jump.
After months of pining, longing and (mostly justified) whining, the Xbox Live Video Marketplace has finally gone global. As of, oh, right now, Xbox 360 owners in the UK, Ireland, France, Germany and Canada can download a variety of SD and HD content, though be warned: prices vary between regions. If you’re in the UK, they’re not far off American prices, so you’ve done OK for once. Canada, though… well, let’s just say that at 610 points for a new HD movie, Canada is getting crammed in the nether-regions and leave it at that.
Square Enix doesn’t mess around. After a music video from Korean pop star Ivy looked too much like Final Fantasy VII, Square Enix dragged the video’s maker Fantom Entertainment to court. The music vid’s director claimed that it was merely a “parody” and that he “wanted to contact Square Enix to get permission, but couldn’t find their contact info”. Seoul Central District Court judge Gu Hoe-geun ruled that Fantom “illegally used 80 percent of the storyline, setting, characters and their styles of dress and their demeanors from video game Final Fantasy VII“. Fantom was fined $US 10,900. The company’s director and the video’s director were both fined an additional $US 6,500 each. There is still a civil suit against the video’s creators as well. If Square Enix won’t even let people take snapshots of in-game demo kiosk footage, it certainly won’t let something like this slide.
Final Fantasy Court [Hollywood Reporter, Thanks Evening Aura!]
Tony Hilliam, speaking exclusively to Kotaku Australia, has stated that the company will tomorrow announce further restructuring plans for Auran, along with a new business model for its MMO Fury.
Hilliam has said that he will reveal all to us tomorrow, so make sure you’re here bright and early to hear the good (and not so good) news.
Auran has had its fair share of our attention lately. First there was the Angry Gamer story that boldy stated that the company had “run out of steam“. Then, Tony Hilliam stepped forward to nip the rumour in the bud.
I should mention that this was off the back of a darker rumour Kotaku Australia caught wind of today, and one I won’t mention here, as Hilliam assured me that is was “categorically false”. What I can say is that regardless of the tale Auran will tell tomorrow, you’ll read it here first.
