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She Tried To Make Good Video Games For Girls, Whatever That Meant 
The Story Of Doodle Jump: Brotherly Love And Digital Snacks It’s not like Japan didn’t have enough exclusive PSP colours as it was, but hey, nobody said they couldn’t have more. On February 28, Sony will be releasing a new “Mint Green” PSP in the Japanese market. And…why mint green, exactly? It continues the PSP’s recent trend of sticking with light, flowery colours, which Sony believes (and sales figures support) are starting to become a bit of a hit with the ladies. It’ll retail for a suggested price of ¥19,800, and has a 99% probability of never being released in the West. Fresh-breathed press release follows.
And the Xbox Live renaissance continues. Ikaruga and Rez was good enough news as it was, but Peggle? Appears so! An ESRB rating for a 360 version of the game’s turned up, which while not guaranteeing any kind of timeframe does at least guarantee an eventual appearance. Which is super-great news. Peggle on a big TV while sitting on the couch has “good times” scrawled all over it. Also appearing are listings for XBLA/Xbox Originals versions of Bliss Island and Ultra Bust-A-Move, but after Peggle we don’t have enough care left in us for them. Sorry. Rumor: Peggle, Bliss Island and UBAM to XBLA [X3F]
Call of Duty 4 was a break in the series, something different. While previous entries were set in World War II, the latest one is not. CoD4 takes place in the Iraq war, and players kill Iraqis. Much more real and hard-hitting compared to the Nazi boogeyman. In games and movies, Nazis do make fantastic bad guys. In a black and white world, it’s easy to point to them as pure evil. Over at the For Lauderdale Sun-Sentinel, writer Ralph De La Cruz offers this:
I mean, our family is not into any sort of violence. But who could possibly begrudge a man and his boy from killing a few Nazis? …And so we went through three Call of Duty titles. That’s because it sends you, as British trooper Sgt. John “SOAP” MacTavish, into the teeth of the Iraqi war. Yep. The war that’s going on right now. The one I don’t believe we should be fighting. The one I vow my son will never take part in.
…And there he is playing it out on his Xbox 360. Offing Iraqis for entertainment’s sake, as other Americans sacrifice their lives on real-world battlefield…
“Actually, they’re not Iraqis, they’re insurgents,” consoled a friend with whom I shared my dilemma. “Most of them probably aren’t from Iraq.” Well, actually, they’re not insurgents. They’re computer code and graphic animation.
The problem isn’t what they are, or are not, but what they represent. What they say about me and my son. What it says about our perception of this war vs. past wars.
…Somehow I found it morally easier to kill Nazis…
Has anyone else have face similar moral issues? Virtual History Lesson [Sun-Sentinel via GamePolitics]
That red thing right there is AMD’s latest attempt to wrest graphics card supremacy from the cold, vice-like grip of rivals NVIDIA. Dubbed the ATI R680, specs, pricing and performance boasts are all still top secret, though we do know it’ll not only be based on two 55nm processor cores, but can also slice an apple into 17 pieces in less than a second. This being a premium card, you can expect it’ll also be suitable for root vegetables and cheese (both sliced and grated). ATI R680 Graphics Card Is 1000X Faster Than a Cray-1 Supercomputer [Gizmodo]
Our favorite Chinese copycat the Vii has another ripoff rival: the, are you ready, “Winner.” It’s not just a game machine, it’s a super clone! The Winner features a photo player, karaoke functions and SDHC for media storage. It plays 2D and 3D games with online. There’s even a Wii-mote knock-off (not a SIXAXIS!) with motion sensing capabilities. It will sell for somewhere between US$120-$150. The maker is promising million consoles for the North American and Japanese markets. The line starts here! The Winner [Engadget]
After going on a bit of a holiday break, Media Create sales figures are back, showing that Wii Fit will mostly likely be a million seller by the time you read this. Incidentally, the next batch of MC sales data is expected tomorrow, so we’ll most likely have confirmation supporting or disproving that soon. Dragon Quest IV for the Nintendo DS ticked over the million mark during the week of December 24 to 31 and a handful of new PSP games charted in the top ten. For the rest of the week’s software sellers and a chance to see how Call of Duty 4 performed, hit the jump.
Oh yeah. Haruhi! I know you’ve been waiting…
Ask what the teeming masses of PS3 owners want most from a firmware update, and their response will come in unison: In-game XMB support. Well, you want it, you got it, because according to The Game Reviews, SCEA’s Paul Purdy told them it’s definitely coming in 2008. Definitely. Nothing more concrete than that, so it could be anytime from tomorrow to December 31, but sometimes it’s nice just to have a timeframe to settle yourself down in, make yourself comfy. Sony Confirms In-Game XMB Sometime in ’08 [The Game Reviews]
Bless you, Nyko. Rather than wait for Harmonix and Activision to sort out the whole Rock Band/Guitar Hero/PS3 guitar incompatability fiasco, they’ve gone ahead and released their own guitar, one that avoids the whole mess and gives PS3 owners a single peripheral that’ll work on both games. Dubbed the Front Man, it’ll come bundled with a dongle that lets you select which game you’re playing, and the guitar will respond with the requisite compatibility. It’s due in March, so Nyko had best hope Activision and Harmonix don’t settle their differences by then. CES 2008: Nyko Solves Rock Band’s PS3 Woes [1UP]
To: Ash From: Crecente Re: Do People Still Play With Analog Toys?
In short yes. Tristan and I love to play tag, though he totally cheats. And we spent the holidays playing way too much croquet and badminton, which by the way is the man’s version of Table Tennis. Kite flying can be fun too, though I’m a bigger fan of the Frisbee.
I woke up early this morning with a painfully tight chest and shooting pain down my left arm. Oh and my right eye was throbbing. I lay there, in the dusk of consciousness, pondering whether I was having a heart attack, or a stroke or both. I thought about how the arm and chest pain were classic symptoms of a heart attack. About whether the blood in my body was pooling in my arms, deciding stubbornly to no longer circulate to my brain. I remembered reading about a neurologist, a woman who specialized in treating strokes, having a stroke while she was showering. How on some basic, fundamental level, she understood parts of her brain were dying, but that she couldn’t seem to get her brain to take the whole thing seriously. Eventually I drifted back to sleep, gently rocked between the dueling worries of heart attack or stroke, heart attack or stroke. This morning I awoke delighted to find I wasn’t dead.
Hmm, maybe I should get a physical.
What you missed: Rumor: Live Issues Wiped Some Unlocked Achievements Sid Meier To Get GDC Lifetime Achievement Award ‘Slash’ Shreds on the Air Guitar Rocker, I Give Impressions LittleBigPlanet Team Talks DLC, Show New Levels At CES PS3 Preview Samsung 3D TV Gaming Capabilities Underwhelm, Nauseate PSP GPS Hands-On At CES
In his editorial column in the latest issue of EGM, editor Dan Hsu has named three companies that, thanks to negative reviews coverage, have stopped submitting products to the magazine. Those he names are Ubisoft, Sony’s sports game division and Midway’s Mortal Kombat team. While there’s always been a healthy dose of scepticism surrounding advertiser and publisher pressure on gaming press (particularly in light of recent events), I can’t remember the last time a major commercial publication came out and publicly named names like this. Bravo, Dan. Publishers Get a Taste of “Shoe” [VGM Watch]
