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EA announces NASCAR Kart Racing
EA has announced a new title in their NASCAR franchise and it represents a drastic change from previous titles. NASCAR Kart Racing features a fun and over the top racing experience that is sure to be a hit for the whole family.
NASCAR Kart Racing will feature 14 real world drivers and 10 fictional characters created by EA that run the full gamut of potential competitors for the NASCAR folks and include European drivers, Motocross drivers, and even a few female drivers. 2 of the real drivers will be mystery drivers that you can unlock in the game.
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Dec 3, 2008 - 6:29 am | 5 comments
Second Life loses news bureau
Reuters has closed its office in Second Life and pulled its reporter from covering the virtual world.
Reuters had opened its bureau in 2006 to much fanfare with a dedicated website for Second Life news, which hasn’t been updated since September.
Silicon Valley Insider has a post from ex-correspondant Eric Krangel on why Reuters left and why he believes Second Life’s hype has faded.
Community sites such as the Second Life News Network and New World Notes still offer news about Second Life.
Nov 27, 2008 - 10:12 am | 2 comments
New Commenting System
I know how painful it's been in the past to want to comment on a piece of news only to have to hit the forums and carry on that discussion there. I've taken some time to roll out a new commenting system for the site. As of right now, you can make a comment directly from the news post. Enjoy and let me know if you find any problems with it.
Nov 25, 2008 - 2:26 pm | 15 comments
Tabula Rasa closing down, free to play from Jan 10 to Feb 28
NCsoft will close down the servers for sci-fi MMO Tabula Rasa on Feb. 28, 2009.
The news was posted on the game’s Web site, along with plans for the game to be free between Jan. 10, 2009 and the day of its closing. The post by the Tabula Rasa team promises “some really fun things” will happen in the game before it ends.
Designed by Ultima creator Richard Garriott who recently left NCsoft, Tabula Rasa did not attract enough subscribers to keep it going. The title, released in November 2007, accounted for only 2 percent of the South Korea-based publisher’s revenue in 2008’s third quarter, which saw the company’s profits fall by 50 percent.
Subscribers with accounts active as of 10 a.m. on Nov. 21, 2008 will receive three free months of play for both City of Heroes and Lineage II, plus beta access and one free month for NCsoft’s upcoming MMO Aion. Players who pre-paid for subscription time beyond Jan. 10, 2009 will have their money refunded.
The notice alerting players of the game’s demise said the team still believes Tabula Rasa was an innovative experience and are disappointed to see it end:
“Last November we launched what we hoped would be a ground breaking sci-fi MMO. In many ways, we think we've achieved that goal. Tabula Rasa has some unique features that make it fun and very different from every other MMO out there. Unfortunately, the fact is that the game hasn't performed as expected. The development team has worked hard to improve the game since launch, but the game never achieved the player population we hoped for.”
Nov 22, 2008 - 6:49 am | 3 comments
Obama transition team includes World of Warcraft, Second Life players
GigaOM reports two MMO players and net neutrality advocates will lead President-elect Barack Obama’s transition team for the Federal Communications Commission.
Last week, Obama appointed Kevin Werbach, assistant professor of legal studies and business ethics at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, and Susan Crawford, a teacher of communications and internet law at the University of Michigan, to co-chair his FCC transition team. Among other duties, the two will provide advice to the president-elect on the government’s internet policies.
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Nov 22, 2008 - 6:42 am | 1 comments
Rock Band DLC for the week of 11/25/2008
The hits keep coming in numbers as nine new tracks will be available in the Rock Band Music Store for the week of November 25, 2008. A three-pack from The Killers and Yngwie Malmsteen as well as two tracks from artist Soundgarden and one track from metal band Lamb of God. The Killers three-pack consists of "Mr. Brightside," "Smile Like You Mean It," and "Spaceman." The three-pack from Yngwie Malmsteen will include tracks "Caprici Di Diablo," "Damnation Game," and "Red Devil." Soundgarden tracks "Jesus Christ Post" and "Pretty Noose" will join "Blackhole Sun" and "Spoonman" already in the Music Store. Lamb of God's single "Laid to Rest" will also become available.
They are switching up the release dates this time around and making the new DLC available starting November 25, 2008 on Xbox LIVE and the PlayStation Network. Each individual track can be purchased for $1.99 (160 Microsoft Points) and the three-packs are priced at $5.49 (440 Microsoft Points) each. All tracks are original master recordings.
Nov 21, 2008 - 1:38 pm | 1 comments
Midway ex-employees blame tinkering with Unreal Engine for financial problems
Variety reports many ex-employees from Midway say the company’s reliance on the licensed Unreal Engine weakened the struggling publisher/developer.
"The mistake we made was, instead of just taking the base Unreal 3 engine that Gears of War was made on and building games off of that, we let our tech and product development guys try to really modify the engine to add all these different things," an ex-employee told Variety’s Ben Fritz. "It was a ton of new technology which they just weren’t capable of doing. It put all the games way behind schedule."
Midway had to alter the UE3 engine, licensed from creator Epic Games, for every project individually, meaning its developers didn’t benefit from having shared resources. Many of Midway’s titles were delayed as a result.
Strapped for cash, Midway was forced to release games like Blacksite: Area 51 before they were ready, leading to very negative reviews and poor sales.
Released on Tuesday, Mortal Kombat vs. DC Universe is Midway’s best hope for significant income during the holiday season. The game has received mostly average reviews so far. Football game Blitz: The League II was released in October to mediocre reviews. Wheelman, based on a Vin Diesel action movie, and open-world game This is Vegas are scheduled for release in early 2009.
Midway posted a $75.9 million loss in its 2008 third quarter. Chairman Shari Redstone resigned and the company laid off some employees from its Chicago studio. Earlier this year, Midway laid off employees from its Austin studio and closed down its Los Angeles one.
Along with Mortal Kombat, Midway’s biggest IPs include Rampage, Gauntlet and the rights to games based on TNA wrestling.
Nov 20, 2008 - 9:54 am | 0 comments
Racism and bigotry in online gaming
Kotaku has an interesting feature on racism and bigotry, an issue you may have personal experience with in online multiplayer games. Of particular interest are the comments from a psychologist, who offers up some advice on how to deal with those personalities when they rear their ignorant head.
Nov 20, 2008 - 9:45 am | 6 comments
First GTA IV downloadable content announced
Today, Rockstar announced the first downloadable expansion for Grand Theft Auto IV, titled "The Lost and Damned." The new content will be available worldwide on February 17th via Xbox Live. Instead of picking up where Niko left off in the original game, players will now take on the role of Johnny Klebitz, a member of the biker gang called The Lost. Also expect new multiplayer modes, weapons, vehicles, and music.
Nov 20, 2008 - 8:16 am | 0 comments
Third-party publishers don’t “get” the Wii, says Nintendo’s Fils-Aime
In an interview with Forbes, Nintendo of America president Reggie Fils-Aime says third-party publishers still don’t know how to take advantage of the Wii’s success.
"I will be able to say our licensees 'get it' when their very best content is on our platform," he said. "And with very few exceptions today, that's not the case."
Fils-Aime told Forbes that while third-party publishers are taking advantage of the Wii’s motion controls in their games, they aren’t making games that satisfy the Wii’s diverse audience. He said Wii players want the same games that are popular on other consoles, but publishers haven’t been bringing them to the Nintendo system.
In the interview, Fils-Aime also said he expects production of Wii consoles will have a “good shot” of meeting demand, while admitting that Wii Fit units will likely sell out. He hinted at future plans for community features on Nintendo systems, as well. "The issue is that we define community differently than our competitors,” he said. “Our consumers do want a sense of community and we're going to deliver that, but in a way that is unique to Nintendo."
Nov 19, 2008 - 12:46 pm | 3 comments
