Portugal probably doesn't spring to mind as a hotbed of video game development, but the strangely named GameInvest is based in beautiful Lisbon and its first title, Sarah's Emergency Room, "revives the time management genre with fun, challenging levels and a frenetic pace with simulation management skills."
The game is being developed for the Nintendo DS, Wii, PlayStation Network, Xbox Live Arcade and PC platforms and allows you to assume the role of a graduate nursing student named Sarah as she moves from California to manage a busy emergency room in Arkansas. There "she discovers that managing an emergencyroom is a bit harder than she expected." Nothing like gender stereotyping with a female nurse who thinks life is hard. What's next, Sarah's Lunch Rush Hour where she runs coffee and waffles?
The guilty pleasure that was is PAIN for PS3 is finally getting some substantial new content. By "substantial" we mean a new level – which will join the game's only level – called "Uncle Jimmy's Fun Spot Amusement Park." Sony and developer Idol Minds reckon it's more of an abusement park (their pun, not ours) and it's bringing more than just fresh scenery to the game.
Slated to arrive "this summer," the PAIN Amusement Park add-on will introduce new player-requested features, including online multiplayer and PlayStation Trophies. These are in addition to the abundance of added moving set pieces you can see in the above video. Looks like in the case of PAIN and new content, it does hurt to ask.
Not too long from now, at a Media and Business Summit not all that far away, LucasArts may be announcing a new game in the Star Wars Battlefrontseries. Online shopping megalith Amazon.com has added listings for Star Wars Battlefront III ... for no less than six platforms. The game is available for pre-order and has what we can only imagine is a tentative March 15, 2009 release date.
A new game in the series is hardly surprising; after all, Battlefront is the best selling Star Wars video game franchise of all time. Reports of it being in development also popped up following LucasArts' recent layoffs, though the company would not comment on it or any other unannounced titles at the time.
Amazon has Battlefront III slated for availability on PS3, 360, Wii, PS2, PSP, and DS. If this holds true, it would certainly debunk an old rumor that the game might only hit Xbox 360. Now there's the matter of a developer. With Pandemic – the studio responsible for the first two games – now owned by EA, and internal development slowing down at LucasArts, a new hope must arise. Our best guess at the moment is the rebel forces at Rebellion, the UK-based studio responsible for the generally well received Star Wars Battlefront: Renegade Squadron on PSP.
A Wal-Mart spreadsheet allegedly listing products that the company is having difficulty stocking states that the 40GB PS3 "will be replaced with [a] new model in early August." We received this sheet from an employee that's sent us solid information in the past though s/he can't confirm the origin of the note that the model will be replaced. Of course, in the eternal battle over semantics, "replaced" could simply mean some minor tweaks to the model and the addition of the DualShock 3.
For those keeping track, if the 40GB version actually ceases production it would be the third version of the PS3 to do so. Let's take a trip down memory lane: The 60GB PS3 was last seen in late 2007 roaming the plains of retail (some still speak of finding them in random places today) and the 20GB was officially declared dead in early 2007 after it went missing from retail for months. Perhaps next week's E3 will shed some light on the fate of the 40GB unit.
Update: Adjusted for the possibility that "replaced" could mean basic changes to 40GB model, like the addition of DualShock 3.
And here we go again: After IGN backtracked on comments that seemed to indicate that Rock Band 2's biggest perceived shortcoming – spreading the rhythm game "platform" onto multiple discs, thereby tossing our precious monolithic library of songs to the wind – would in fact be be addressed by the sequel comes word from GameSpot who say ... well, the exact same thing and ... look at that, they backtracked later as well.
Their original story said that Rock Band 2 "will feature full support for all of the original Rock Band songs, all of the downloadable content" as well as the 80 songs on the RB2 disc. GameSpot evidently got their purportedly faulty information from IGN's piece, and a Harmonix representative tells us that both stories were incorrect (both have been updated).
Even so, that doesn't stop us from dreaming of our perfect solution: You mail in both the Rock Band 1 and Rock Band 2 discs; include $5 for shipping & handling along with three cereal box-tops; wait 4-6 months; get Rock Band 2: MEGA edition back in the mail including all tracks from Rock Band 1 and Rock Band 2 (including bonus Sgt. Slaughter or William "The Refrigerator" Perry action figures). See? Perfect.
Confirming an earlier report, Midway has announced plans to return to the line of scrimmage this fall with its everything-but-the-license take on American football in Blitz: The League II for the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3. While details remain scant, the company notes that the game's story mode will be penned by ESPN Playmakers writer Peter Egan, while former New York Giants linebacker Lawrence Taylor will also lend his chemically-enhanced likeness to the title as well.
Even so, with Electronic Arts' seminal Madden franchise slated to take to the field and bankroll retail shelves this August, how exactly Midway plans to sack EA's tough actin' fat man still remains unclear.
We're putting two and two together and getting ... Lost Planet. First we were tipped by a source close to Capcom that the company would have a movie-related announcement at next week's E3, and that it would involve someone "well known to gamers." Next we read that David Hayter, voice of Solid Snake and screenwriter for such films as X2: X-Men United and the upcoming Watchmen, was talking Lost Planet at last week's Anime Expo '08. It all adds up.
As reported by IGN, Hayter said he is "just closing the deal with Warner Bros." to pen a Lost Planet flick while speaking at AX08, although "nothing is confirmed yet." Of course, Capcom's E3 announcement could always be concerning another movie, but the evidence before us is compelling.
Rock Band 2 could provide download access to all of the tracks featured on the original Rock Band disc, according IGN Xbox 360 Editor Nate Ahearn. Responding to comments made by a poster in an IGN Insider "Grudge Match" that pits Rock Band 2 against Guitar Hero World Tour, Ahearn writes, "Immediately upon purchasing Rock Band 2 you'll have the ability to download a huge library of songs, as well as all of the songs off of the original disc as a free download."
Ahearn has apparently (and probably wrongfully) answered a long-standing question about the seamless continuity between the two catalogs; from the RB1 disc to the RB2 disc. Many purchasers of the original Rock Band -- marketed as a "platform" by its developers -- had hoped that as the franchise inevitably spawned, there would be no need to swap discs. Supposedly, the solution lies in downloading the first game's disc tracks onto the hard drive. Still, there are at least two important questions that need answering: (1) Can we pick and choose our RB1 songs, or do we download all of them as one "free download?" (2) Can any RB2 purchaser access RB1 songs for free, or do we need to validate our ownership of the first game? Expect the full reveal next week. Update: According to IGN Xbox Team Editor-in-Chief Hilary Goldstein, "Nate goofed in writing that. He hopes that is allowed. Nothing about this has been announced and Nate's never even seen RB2. Sorry, guys." Honest mistake ... or covering tracks? We'll know next week. [Source - IGN Boards (registration required)]
When we first heard that Bethesda was working on a Fallout 3 game we made a pledge to ourselves that we were going to stay completely spoiler free, that we'd go into the experience fresh, with no knowledge of what surprises awaited and what mysteries we would unearth. Sadly, it didn't take long for us to remember that we worked for a video game site, and trying to remain willfully ignorant of a major title was misguided at best.
But it's not too late for you, dear reader! You can avert your eyes right now. You don't have to read this exhaustive Q and A with Bethesda wherein they discuss everything from drug use and child murder to Fallout 3's inventory system! You can still ... you already clicked on it, didn't you?
Congratulations! Your PlayStation 3 has survived the flash to firmware 2.41. Now, enjoy this lovely gift: a new redesigned Platinum Trophy icon. No, you don't get a Platinum Trophy for upgrading to 2.41 – though that would have been a nice touch, really – you just get a fancier-schmancier looking Platinum Trophy when you unlock one.
In case you never had the chance to experience the raw update fury that was firmware 2.40, let's just say that its Platinum Trophy looked very different. As in "it was a purple crown that fell prey to a rogue Bedazzler" different. We think the new Trophy looks far more classy (and far less self-important). Now we just need more games with Trophy support so we can cheer its arrival in the upper right-hand corner of our screens. <Trophy sound>
50 Cent: Blood on the Sand is a game about the time that 50 Cent went to the Middle East, played a concert and got paid with a diamond-encrusted skull. We mention this upfront, so you can understand how difficult it is to write about this game. What are we going to say that's funnier than that? Nothing!
You know what? How about we drop some truth on you: Every time we see a trailer for this game we want it to be terrible, but it just keeps looking awesomer. It's like some bizarre fever dream that F. Gary Gray would have after watching Three Kings and Romancing the Stone back to back. You know what, the internet? Do want. How is that for honesty? Do. Want.
The good news is, well, you've seen the good news. The bad news is, if you can't see the good news ... there is no good news. Speaking through semi-official community site Three Speech, SCEE has released a statement reiterating that PlayStation 3 update 2.41 (the good news) has been released, fixing the bricking issue associated with update 2.40. The statement attributes affected 2.40 users' inability to load the console's XMB to "certain system administrative data ... contained on the HDD." Spooky.
Unfortunately, if you're the proud parent of one of a "limited number" of bricked PS3s, you're stuck with your brick, a fix, and no way to wed the two. SCEE recommends contacting Customer Service (presumably for a new or repaired unit) -- or you can wipe your PS3 hard drive on your own (losing all data in the process) and try reinstalling. This is, if you haven't guessed already, the bad news.
Looks like the software engineers at Sony have finished tweaking firmware 2.40. The much-anticipated firmware update included crucial features, like in-game XMB and trophies, but was pulled shortly after its release due to reports of bricked systems. Now, a few days after the controversial removal of firmware 2.40 from Sony's servers, firmware 2.41 is available to download worldwide. Turn on your PS3 and hit Network Update to get started.
Fans are already filling our need for more Metal Gear post-MGS4. Created by The Duo Group, "Cold Blooded" is an animated short in the vein of the Kojima Productions' Metal Gear Solid: Digital Graphic Novel, with an almost story-board-like look and an intriguing twist for such a short ... short.
Now that we've watched it, we're more eager than ever to hear anything new on the Digital Graphic Novel treatment of Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty that was announced last year. The last we'd heard, the comic book adaptation is being slightly tweaked in order to better jive with the plot-bombs dropped in MGS4, in which case we're willing to wait a little longer.
The word defining folks over at Merriam-Webster Inc. have added "Fanboy," along with 100 other words, to the newest edition of its Collegiate Dictionary*. Fanboy is actually one of the "oldest" of the "new" words, with its origins dating back to 1919. The wordsmiths define fanboy as a "boy who is an enthusiastic devotee, such as of comics or movies." Fanboys should feel free to write with self-righteous fury to MW and let them know it can also apply to video games ... tell them you'll never read their dictionary again if they don't correct this grievous oversight (also make an online petition).
This isn't the first time in recent memory some bit of gaming culture seeped its way into the good word book at Merriam-Webster; "w00t" became the company's word of the year in 2007. So, w00t to all the fanboys out there, the dictionary acknowledges your existence.
*OSX users will find the Dictionary widget, which uses The Oxford American Dictionary, already defines "fanboy." Merriam-Webster is a different company.
