Remember that horribly unmotivated Chaos Wars voice work? If not, watch the above clip and never forget. According to game site Insert Credit, there’s a good reason for that crummy VO. That is… nepotism! The CEO of O3 Entertainment is Chris Jelinek. The voice actors apparently include Quest Jelinek and Tyler Jelinek, with special thanks to Kay Jelinek and Lee Jelinek. Blame the Jelineks for this dubbing travesty!
Employs CEO’s Family [Insert Credit]
Previously we brought word of the tragedy that hit Tokyo’s gaming/anime/manga district Akihabara. A 25-year-old-man attacked 17, killing 7. Horrible, horrible stuff. When reporters showed up on the scenes, some idiots got very excited to be on TV! Because when people have been mowed down with a truck and stabbed, there’s nothing more exciting than getting on TV. Forget that, you know, the streets were literally covered in blood. Huge Japanese forum 2-channel has launched an effort to actually expose the identities of the shameless dummies who grinned and waved at the TV cameras. A “Wanted” YouTube video even popped up recently. Certainly, these people acted disrespectful, but not sure if vigilante internet justice is appropriate either.
Hit the jump for the YouTube video.
It’s been quietly (very quietly) announced that a new expansion pack for classic PC title Neverwinter Nights 2 is in development at Obsidian. Called Storm of Zehir, it brings some pretty considerable changes to the game, like “full party customisation, dungeon crawling, and free exploration of a non-linear game world via an Overland Map”. No idea on a release date, but seeing as the game’s nearly three years old, I’m sure you can wait it out.
NX2 Anunciada: Storm of Zehir [Neverwintos, via IGN]
Russian game publisher 1C has its sights set on the global market. The company has announced two multiplatform titles: the in-house developed Captain Blood for Xbox 360 and PC and the outside developed multiplatform IL-2 Sturmovik: Birds of Prey. Says 1C Company’s International Sales Director Nikolay Baryshnikov:
1C is using cutting-edge technology, including the amazing power of modern consoles, to bring superior games to every market… Our aim is to bring our games to even more players and expand our vision with cross platform development. We are embracing any new gaming technology that will improve our products including digital downloads, consoles, handheld gaming, Epic’s Unreal 3 Engine, NVIDIA PhysX and DirectX 10.
Both games will be out late 2009 and will be the first cross-platform titles “from 1C to be developed and published worldwide”. Seems like multiplatform is the new, big thing.
And by “best”, I don’t mean most awesome. This is no Vii. No, by “best” I mean most slavish attention to detail, because these Wii Remotes and Nunchuks aren’t trying to look like the Wii’s peripherals. They’re trying to be the Wii’s peripherals. Though restricted to Asian markets (for now), from the outside these knock-offs look near-identical to the real thing, and it’s only when you crack them open and compare them to actual peripherals that you can tell the difference. YYJoy have a neat guide up showing you how to spot the difference: a good read if you’re in the market for Wii controllers and are also the type to succumb to the lure of cheap online shopping.
组装来袭—-组装Wii遥控器和摇杆手柄评测 [YYJoy, via Wii Fanboy]
Tonight’s Microsoft Japan RPG press event wasn’t all about announcements. There were videos, too! Here’s two of them. Above, a trailer for Squeenix & Tri-Ace’s Star Ocean 4, helpfully (and relatively tastefully) dubbed in English for all us English-speaking sorts. After the jump, an Infinite Undiscovery clip that takes the old trailer, keeps the cheese and throws in a few new scenes to try and hold your attention.
You, uh, like Indiana Jones, Britain? Seeing as four versions of Lego Indy made last week’s top 10, I’ll take that as a “yes”. It’s money-generating debut week pushes GTA IV to the fringes of the charts, with the PS3 one hanging on at #10, while Nintendo – long-accustomed to taking up around half the charts – have to settle for a sole entry, Wii Play, because for some reason Nintendo Europe are unable to actually ship units of Wii Fit into the UK.
Announced earlier tonight at the Microsoft Japan RPG press event, here’s a better look at the Japan-only Tales of Vesperia hardware bundle that’ll go on sale on August 20. To recap, it includes: Tales of Vesperia (the game), a Tales faceplate, a copy of the game’s script and a 20GB 360. All that can be yours if you live in Japan and can be parted with ¥37,800 ($AU 373.23). Box art is above, click through for what’s in the box.
Been a while since we last saw Jamzy. So what’s Japan’s #1 Microsoft fanboy been up to since? Oh, he’s been keeping himself very busy. Busy designing games! Not real games, as in ones you can one day walk into a store and buy. Dream games, as in ones that Microsoft Japan aren’t making, but in Jamzy’s dreams, probably should be (that’s his dog, and the text reads: “Oh, long time no see. Well, today, Jump In”). I mean, shit, I’d pay $AU 52.87 for a game about little dogs and wacky hairstyles. Bet most of Japan would, too.
【雑記】インサイドXbox、リニューアルです。[Famitsu]
