q&a
News
Microsoft, Sony and Nintendo Talk Edutainment
4:00AM Brian Crecente | So last month I picked a pet peeve to harp on and on and on about. I wanted to know why it is we don’t see more educational video games for this next-generation of consoles. Why no awesome Math Blasters or Reader Rabbits or Typing of the Deads for the Playstation 3, Wii or Xbox 360. One thing I learned is that there are a few of those out there, but I still wanted to hear from the three console holders on the top. So I emailed Microsoft, Nintendo and Sony to see their take on number of prepared questions. All of which lead to my final question: Why not give away an educational game on your console? Hit the jump to read the answers from Denise Kaigler, Nintendo of America’s vice president of Corporate Affairs; John Koller, director of hardware marketing, SCEA; and XNA General Manager Boyd Multerer. More »
Watch How Misinformed Aussie Politicians Are About Video Games
12:30PM Logan Booker | The above snippet is taken from a relatively new ABC show called Q&A, which gives everyday people the chance to pose questions to politicians, journalists and the like. The latest episode saw the panel field a question about the lack of an R18+ rating for video games. The result… well, all I can say is wow. At this rate, we don’t stand a chance.
Thanks to Daniel Silk, who pointed me in the direction of the clip. Daniel also went to the trouble of putting together a letter to complain about the panel, which I’ve included after the jump.
If you’d like to read more information about games classification, I urge you to check these out:
Michael Atkinson, No R18+ For Games In Australia: Why It Hurts Children
R18 Classification & Video Games: What You Can Do
Why Michael Atkinson’s Opposal Of An R18+ Rating For Games Does Bugger All To Protect Kids, Promotes Crime
Q&A episode 10 [ABC TV] More » 
Jumpgate Evolution Demands Your Attention
11:40AM Mike Fahey | NetDevil’s Jumpgate evolution is a concept that sells itself. Massively multiplayer Wing Commander, anyone? How about some co-operative Privateer? It’s a game that combines twitch-action space combat with levels and experience points. It’s an excuse to dust off those old flight sticks. You’ll even be able to play as a trader, paying more combat-ready players a cut of the action to make sure you make your deliveries safely. Space convoy! It sounds amazing and looks rather lovely for a game with a scalable engine, allowing it to run on computers old and new, which is why every time I write about the game I’m surprised more people aren’t aware of it. Hell, when I sat in with Codemasters’ Lilit Baron last week at E3, he almost seemed pleasantly surprised that I had been keeping up with the game. Codemasters is gearing up to cure the rampant ignorance over Jumpgate Evolution, and the Q&A, which you’ll find after the jump, is just the beginning. More »
Rock Band’s First Album Announced, Our Harmonix Q&A
11:00PM Mark Wilson | Today, Harmonix has officially announced the first album that will hit the Rock Band store: Judas Priest’s Screaming For Vengeance. Arriving April 22/24 on Xbox 360/PS3, this10-track album will cost $US 14.99 with individual tracks being offered for $US 1.99 apiece. Then in May, The Cars’ self-titled record will become the second full-album release from Rock Band. The Pixies’ Doolittle will follow in June. While this is precisely the news that all Rock Band fans have been waiting to hear, it raises a ton of new questions. Is $US 14.99 the new standard album price? And how often can we expect new albums? Luckily, we had the chance to discuss the announcement with Harmonix’s CEO Alex Rigopulos, who was more than happy to answer all of our fanboy questions. We posted an abridged, cleaned (sans-Mark’s-question-stuttering-and-boring-parts) Q&A after the jump. More »
Last Chance To Have Your Fury Questions Answered
11:30AM Logan Booker | Today’s the final day we’ll be taking questions for our Q&A with Auran, the Australian developer behind the MMO Fury. If you’d like your query to be considered, head over to the original post, and submit it via the comments system. Feel free to suggest improvements, changes or new features. Auran wants to know!
As a bonus, the two best questions will snag themselves signed copies of the game, so don’t dilly dally.
Ask Auran Anything You Want About Fury [Kotaku AU] More » 
Keep Those Auran Questions Coming
10:30AM Logan Booker | Remember that you have until Monday next week to submit your questions to Auran. Don’t miss your chance to ask the developers of Fury any question you want, as long as it doesn’t involve doing inhumane things to horses.
Come Monday afternoon, I’ll go through the questions we’ve received, pick the best, and send them off to Auran. Hopefully we’ll have a bunch of sexy answers by Friday.
I should also mention that Auran has two copies of Fury to give away, signed by the developers.
For all the details (and the original post, where you can submit your question), just follow the link below.
Ask Auran Anything You Want About Fury [Kotaku AU] More » 
Ask Auran Anything You Want About Fury
11:30AM Logan Booker | Yesterday, I approached Auran in the hopes of setting up a Q&A between the developer and you guys. Auran was happy to oblige.
For those of you out of the loop, Auran is the Brisbane-based developer behind the RTS Dark Reign and more recently, the massively multiplayer hack’n’slash Fury.
All you have to do have your question considered is to submit it as a comment to this post. Once I’ve had a look, it’ll be published for the world to see. If it’s particularly good, it might even end up in the final Q&A. We’ll be accepting questions until Friday afternoon so get your thinking caps/shirts/fertility pants on and your mind cogs turning.
This is a great opportunity to chat candidly with a great Australian developer. So consider your questions carefully as only serious efforts will be accepted.
As a little something extra, Auran is offering two copies of Fury, signed by the developers, for the two best questions we receive. That’s a treat in anyone’s book.
If this goes well, I’d definitely look to organise further open Q&As with other developers.
Now, start commenting! More » 
QA Is Not Taken Seriously, Seen As Career Stepping Stone
11:00AM Logan Booker | Martin Slater’s killer Bioshock post-mortem at the most recent Game Connect didn’t just highlight the less glamorous aspects of DirectX 10 – the 2K Australia lead programmer also discussed the issues facing quality assurance, and how important good QA is:
There’s a nasty trend in the industry right now, QA is not taken seriously enough. It’s not a career for people, it’s a step up for people coming out of AIE [Academy of Interactive Entertainment], coming out of Qantm, coming out of wherever. Their first taste of the games industry is a stint in QA for six months on 15 bucks an hour, [where they] knock out some bugs until they’ve been known and hopefully chat it up with a few of the other people and get a job.
According to Slater, QA needs to be taken seriously, not only as a crucial aspect of development, but a career as well. Currently, it’s perceived as a rung on the ladder to a “better” position – one that has nothing to do with QA.
More from Slater after the jump. More » 
Assassin’s Creed Faceplate With Bonus Forewarning
12:40PM Logan Booker | Fair warning now – there’s going to be a deluge of Assassin’s Creed coverage over the next few days, as the game’s creative director, Patrice Desilets, has ventured out from Ubisoft’s Montreal studio to visit Australia. We saw a presentation of Creed today, and there’s a one-on-one Q&A tomorrow, so expect me to make the most of it.
For now, here’s a shot of the official Assassin’s Creed faceplate for Xbox 360. Ubisoft handed them out today along with a quill and some pink ink, just in case I suddenly feel the need to scribe how hetero I am on the walls of my house. There’s also a close-up shot after the jump.
If you have any questions you’d like me to take to Patrice, be sure to leave a comment! More » 
