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Good old Phil Harrison would have you believe there’s not much of a market for games that are only for a single player. Alone in the Dark will be the last “huge-budget, single-player” game from Atari, as they move towards Phil’s view of a more and more networked future. The producer of the new Prince of Persia game, Ben Mattes, was asked about Harrison’s comments in an interview with Eurogamer, to which he said, “I read that, and I don’t totally agree.”

“I know where he’s coming from - I certainly see a lot of the industry moving in the direction of more community, more multiplayer, that sort of stuff,” Mattes continued.

“But in my opinion, there are things you can do in a carefully crafted single-player game - experiences you can create, emotions you can elicit and magnitudes of engaging the player - that you’re not going to reproduce in the uncontrolled environment of multiplayer.”

Most of you seem to be on Mattes side of the argument, if the comments on a previous story are any indication. I don’t disagree, but I think more developers are feeling the pressure to include some sort of multiplayer mode. I know quite a few people who pick up a game, see it doesn’t have multiplayer, and completely dismiss it as a “full game.” I then proceed to ask them if they want a multiplayer mode like The Darkness had, and they usually shut up.

Mattes concluded, “For some time yet, there’s going to be a market of people who say, ‘You know what, pander to me. Suck me into your world and just make me believe. I don’t want to be distracted by griefers and high scores, and dealing with the stuff not everybody loves about multiplayer games.’ I do think there is still a significant market there.”

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Armchair puglists rejoice - here’s another opportunity to get in touch with your street-fighting side, as the guys over at Capcom have just released a completely new trailer about their upcoming opus, Street Fighter IV(PS3, Xbox 360, PC) - and it’s looking pretty awesome. It even manages to tie up the past and the present, to prepare us for the future - that is, future dragon punches to the FACE.

So, what’s so epic about this latest trailer, then? The fact that it pretty much shows off some of the fighting game icons from Capcom doing what they do best: beating each other up. From fireballs to helicopter kicks to a spinning piledriver, the gang is all here indeed. And with the game coming out on all fronts of next-gen(including arcades), it won’t be long before we’re making that all-too-familiar quarter-circle motion for Ryu’s signature move. Enjoy the video!

Speaking at the D: All Things Digital conference this week, Activision CEO Bobby Kotick painted a clearer picture of exactly what motivated the merger between his company and Vivendi. As you might have guessed, the motivation was precisely what seems to be driving a large chunk of the industry: World of Warcraft.

“We kept looking at it, and realizing that even if we put hundreds of millions of dollars of capital towards it, and had the very best intellectual property, we still would very likely be unsuccessful,” Kotick explained.

“So the merger was really our mechanism to get access to Blizzard’s talent, Blizzard’s capability, their infrastructure, from the multiplayer matchup standpoint, from a multiplayer gaming standpoint, but also in areas we would never have had an opportunity to participate.”

It’s certainly a smart investment, in my opinion. As Ron recently talked about, even Age of Conan — with as successful a start as it’s off to — isn’t much of a threat to WoW’s market dominance. So while it might have taken quite a lot of capital for Activision to make this happen, at least they can feel fairly safe in believing they’ll be #1 for the foreseeable future.

via Gamasutra

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Over the past several years, Sony has had a variety of PR problems, as any company in this business will from time to time. But their marketing campaigns at times have been so utterly horrifying that you seriously have to wonder if the people responsible for them wanted Sony to crash and burn.

So what site better than PSP Fanboy to compile a list of the various disturbing, bizarre, nonsensical and downright stupid advertisements that Sony has issued to “promote” the various PlayStation products.

The scary baby above didn’t even top the list, so that should be a good indicator of how awful things have been at times.

As for number one? I’ve got eight words for you: All I want for Christmas is a PSP.

(pee-ess-pee, pee-ess-pee… that song will never leave my head.)

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If you’re itching to get your hands on Tom Clancy’s EndWar, then you’re in luck. Ubisofthas just opened the official website for its private beta, and it seems like invitation is open to all.

Of course, there are requirements, so make sure you’re fully geared up for this:

• Xbox Live Gold Member
• broadband Internet connection
• 3 GB free space on your Xbox 360 Hard Drive

Well now, those didn’t seem too hard to meet, right? The Private Beta, so says the site, will be available only in English, and obviously, only for the Xbox 360. It will commence for three weeks in June and July, and will be featuring three maps, plus with playable exclusivity online in 1v1 and 2v2 matches.

As the Beta will be in a Test state, do not be surprised if you encounter bugs and crashes. After all, that’s what you testers are there for. To check out how smooth things are going for the game, and if there are any improvements necessary, to tell Ubisoft so they’ll get right on it for that pretty li’l fix.

To register, just follow the source link below. It should bring you directly to the official Beta site. Good luck!

Microsoft has confirmed the repackaged release of the third-person shooter masterwork Gears of War(Microsoft Xbox 360, PC) by Epic Games. Along with that, some intriguing new details were revealed.

The re-released adventures of Marcus Fenix will come in two discs, with the first featuring the game and the second featuring some nice extras that we’ve reported before. The goodies include new maps, multiplayer modes, Achievements for more Gamerscore, and Gears of War 2 assets.

Unfortunately, the gnarly Tingad level will stay exclusive to the PC version, so that means console users won’t be getting any Brumak action. No matter, the Annex mode should provide enough carnage to go around.

On June 4th, the regular versions of GoW will get a price drop. The Xbox 360 version will go for US 39.99 while the PC version will be even more affordable at US 29.99. The repackaged versions hit North America on the 24th and will carry the same price tags. Go get yours before the Locusts do.

Buy: [ Gears of War (Xbox 360) ]
Buy: [ Gears of War (PC) ]

It’s been a while since we last heard anything about Huxley, so those eagerly awaiting this ambitious MMOFPS will probably be glad that more details about the game have recently come to light.

The current issue of OXM has revealed that even though the game’s Xbox 360 version has been delayed, it will feature more content than the PC version. Said producer Kijong Kang, there will be Xbox 360-exclusive campaigns and PvP battles that will “reveal more secrets” about the Huxley world.

Also, those who opt for the Xbox 360 version can choose to stick to Huxley’s simple-player campaign without having to pay any charges or fees. Of course, those who go the MMO way will have to pay a subscription to access the game’s servers.

Huxley’s Xbox 360 version is slated for release in 2009. The PC version is coming later this year.

It’s been a long while since we’ve seen a showing from Sega’s long-running Golden Axe franchise. This Fall, however, the medieval action of the good old days is set to be rekindled as developers Secret Level prep up Golden Axe: Beast Rider (PlayStation 3, Xbox 360).

Featuring Amazon warrior Tyris Flare from the original game, Golden Axe: Beast Rider will usher in the franchise to the current generation of game technology with what looks like brutal and frantic sword-swinging action.

The trailer below lets you sample some of that mayhem. As per its namesake, Beast Rider will have you galloping atop fearsome monsters to lay some serious waste on “an ancient evil.” We guess there’s really something about troublemakers of days past that devs just can’t let go of. In any case, you may also want to see what’s up with their newly-opened site for more info. Before you do that, though, have an eyeful of this:

An updated two-disc retail version of the Xbox 360 version of Gears of War will hit North America beginning June 24. The two-disc version includes previously released multiplayer map packs, the Annex game mode, and the ability to earn up to eight additional multiplayer achievements worth 250 Gamerscore. Gamers will also get a taste Gears of War 2, through trailers and other extras.Two-Disc Version Contents:

DISC ONE - GAME DISC

DISC TWO - EXTRAS
• Map Packs 1 & 2
• Theme - ‘Emergence Day’
• Gamer Pics - ‘Gears of War,’ ‘Emergence Day’

Gears of War 2 Extras:
• Trailers - ‘Duel,’ ‘Assault’
• Theme - ‘Bare Your Teeth’
• Gamer Pics - ‘Crimson Omen’

For more information on prices and availability, check your favorite gaming store online or in person.

Via: Press Release

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It took far too long, but players of Call of Duty 4 on PC will finally be able to get the Variety Map Pack next week, and for free. According to Infinity Ward community manager fourzerotwo, Nvidia is sponsoring the release, so you can thank them for the free maps, and you can also expect other Nvidia-related promotions for Call of Duty 4, although they’re not spilling the beans just yet.

Four maps are included in the Variety Map Pack: Broadcast, Chinatown, Killhouse, and Creek. In addition to that, the 1.6 patch will be released, which will add support for the new maps, add some features, and fix various bugs. We should have a full list of patch notes next week.

So, PC players: You had to wait longer but you’re getting the maps for free. Are you satisfied?

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