G-News

It’s the last day of the weekend, how depressing. Let’s talk about something entertaining to pick up the mood. Here’s some news on Jack Thompson.

Thompson, who was recently disbarred, has taken his appeal to the United States Supreme Court. He asked for a deadline for the filing of his petition for writs of certiorari. That’s legalese for “give me a chance.”

The Supreme Court granted his extension, and he now has until February 18 to file his petition. What are his chances for the SC to hear his case? Well, according to their website, the SC is presented with 10,000 cases a year. Only 100 of these are granted a hearing.

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Some people describe the Xbox 360 as a watered down version of the PlayStation 3. Those people are more right than they imagined.

A new book, entitled “The Race For A New Game Machine” reveals that the Xbox 360’s tech was built around the technology of the PS3’s Cell processor. The book was written by David Shippy and Mickie Philips, two major figures behind the design of the Cell.

The book reveals that back in 2001, Sony partnered with Toshiba and IBM to make the Cell chip. During its development, Microsoft approached IBM to have their own chip built around components of the Cell chip. From Wall Street Journal:

All three of the original partners had agreed that IBM would eventually sell the Cell to other clients. But it does not seem to have occurred to Sony that IBM would sell key parts of the Cell before it was complete and to Sony’s primary videogame-console competitor.The result was that Sony’s R&D money was spent creating a component for Microsoft to use against it.

Mr. Shippy and Ms. Phipps detail the resulting absurdity: IBM employees hiding their work from Sony and Toshiba engineers in the cubicles next to them; the Xbox chip being tested a few floors above the Cell design teams.

Mr. Shippy says that he felt “contaminated” as he sat down with the Microsoft engineers, helping them to sketch out their architectural requirements with lessons learned from his earlier work on Playstation.

You may be wondering, if they both had the same tech, how did the Xbox 360 get to the market first? Explains WSJ:

Both designs were delivered on time to IBM’s manufacturing division, but there was a problem with the first chip run. Microsoft had had the foresight to order backup manufacturing capacity from a third party. Sony did not and had to wait another six weeks to get their first chips.

So Microsoft actually got the chip that Sony helped design before Sony did. In the end, Microsoft’s Xbox 360 hit its target launch in November 2005, becoming its own success. Because of various delays, the Playstation 3 was pushed back a full year.

Probably the most painful part for Sony is that they paid US 400 million for the technology.

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• U.S. Air Force wants 300 PS3 units for cell processor research
• Square Enix: Xbox 360 easier to work with than PlayStation 3

How far would you go for your favorite video game character? This kid went all the way to court.

11-year-old Judson King was such a Sonic the Hedgehog fan that he decided he wanted the real thing - only to find out that hedgehogs were illegal in his city of Lawrence, in Kansas.

What’s a boy to do but convince the court that hedgehogs are fudgy-wudgy creatures and not a danger to civilization as we know it? After three years of work, he finally built up his case enough that when he finally got his day in court, it was “no contest.”

The court found no real reason to maintain the ban, and the woodland critter was legalized. Judson finally got his first hedgehog last Christmas. Now let’s hope he won’t paint his new pet blue and throw it through rings.

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• Sega prez: Sonic to go MIA for make-over treatment

The Nielsen Company has published their annual report of consumer activity for 2008. You can see the entire report through the source link below - there’s lots of Top 10 lists there, ranging from most watched shows to most downloaded songs. But what’s relevant to us, of course, are the video game lists!

Still retaining their kingly titles from last year, both World of Warcraft and the PS2 reign supreme once more in their respective lists for 2008. It’s a shame they don’t keep track of console game usage - that way we could have seen which console games of 2008 was played the most. But as for PC games, here’s the list:

Meanwhile, the console usage breakdown is as follows:

The Xbox… more used than the PS3… Who’d have thought? And seeing GameCube useage not lagging far behind the PS3’s is sort of shocking too. I wonder if “others” include handleds though.

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Related articles:

• Nielsen Ratings: WoW king of PC gaming, PS2 king of consoles

A six-track Rock Band (Xbox 360, PS3, PS2) DLC pack featuring songs by legendary guitarist and rock and roll pioneer Roy Orbison has been confirmed by way of a Harmonix press release. Here’s what the track pack will include:

• Oh, Pretty Woman
• Ooby Dooby
• In Dreams
• Claudette
• Mean Woman Blues
• You Got It

The Orbison track pack will be on the Xbox Live Marketplace come Tuesday, January 6. PS3 owners will have to wait until January 15 to download it from the PlayStation Store, though. Price has been set at US 1.99 (160 Microsoft Points) per track and US 9.99 (800 Microsoft Points) for the 6-pack.

Also note the track pack’s name: The “Roy Orbison Track Pack 01″. Hmmm. Interesting. We’ll keep an eye out for any news regarding “02″ so keep checking back here for updates.

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• Foo’shizzle! Foo Fighters back on Rock Band DLC next week

Gino D:

Best New IP: LittleBigPlanet

Runner’s Up: Professor Layton and the Curious Village, Patapon

Comments: Of all the new IPs seen this year, you can’t compete with LBP. It’s been nothing but a phenomenon of late, with Sackboys invading the other forms of media and culture like crazy. As for Layton, it’s an old IP in Japan, but for the west, it’s getting cult status quicker than you can say “Studio Ghibli movie please”.

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Isaac C:

Best New IP: LittleBigPlanet

Runner’s Up: Left 4 Dead, Mirror’s Edge

Comments: LittleBigPlanet wins hands down because my Sackboy will cry otherwise. I didn’t particularly find Mirror’s Edge engaging, but it deserves a vote.

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Mabie A:

Best New IP: Mirror’s Edge

Comments: Mirror’s Edge also is winner, although I would have preferred for it to have an optional third person view instead of just the standard first person view. I mean, yeah, it’s cool to see how it’s like to leap off building rooftops and scale fire exits. but to just have that view all the time, it kinda takes away from the gameplay experience, cos I can’t appreciate the stunts she’s doing.

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Glenn M:

Best New IP: Mirror’s Edge

Comments: The runner isn’t a runner-up.. the concept may not be unique, but it certainly carries the concept and owns it.. the first person pov simulates the feeling of actually doing all that jumping so well that I actually imagine myself jumping across office buildings through outdoor smoking areas..

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Chris C:

Best New IP: Dead Space

Runner’s Up: LittleBigPlanet, Mirror’s Edge.

Comments: High production values, slick presentation and a gripping story mean I can’t wait for the inevitable follow up to Dead Space.

Crash Commando is a fast-paced, side-scrolling humorous multiplayer action game with over-the-top, slap-stick action that features exaggerated gore and effects. Combining the thrill of frenzied multiplayer combat with the straightforward nature of a classic side-scrolling platform title, Crash Commando is the perfect combination of modern, sophisticated technology and traditional arcade gameplay.

The player controls a commando soldier and navigates through the maps on foot and with a high-powered jet pack. Each map consists of two gameplay layers the player can seamlessly move between via portals in the environment. Enemies will attack from the sides, as well as from above and below. With a host of both multiplayer and single player modes included, players can enjoy Crash Commando either on or offline.

Key Features:

• Weapons and Explosives Galore – Master an array of weapons, from machine guns, shotguns, rocket launchers, to grenades, C4, mines and more. Or you can jump into any of the controllable vehicles, such as jeeps and tanks, to deal even more damage
• Fun and Frenzied Multiplayer Action – The intense yet hilarious action never slows with 12 players battling online
• Single Player and Multiplayer Modes – Crash Commando features multiplayer modes like Death Match and team-based game modes as well as single player modes like Boot Camp and custom games versus AI-controlled bots
• Player Profiles – A Duty Records Award system, along with Player Rankings, Trophy Support and online Leaderboards, will track player stats and accomplishments

Gino D:

Best XBLA Game: Super Street Fighter II Turbo HD Remix

Runner’s Up: Portal: Still Alive, Braid

Comments: Actually, SSF2 not only competes as the best XBLA game this year, but to some degree, it can also stand its ground among other console games for “best fighting game” too!

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Isaac C:

Best XBLA Game: Geometry Wars: Retro Evolved 2

Runner’s Up: N , Mega Man 9

Comments: Trying to eliminate the universe of armed and hostile polygons always gives a good natural high. Very healthy.

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Mabie A:

Best XBLA Game: Portal: still alive

Runner’s Up: Duke Nukem 3D

Comments: The Portal XBL port takes the top prize for me on account of it being such a worthwhile swag bag. It’s got the original game, new challenges and achievements — a very good and practical alternative to playing through the entire Orange Box.

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Chris C:

Best XBLA Game: Braid

Runner’s Up: Castle Crashers, Penny Arcade Adventures: On the Rain-Slick Precipice of Darkness: Episode Two

Comments: Braid is a game that wears its heart on its sleeve, Jonathan Blow put everything into making this game and it shows, it’s fun, innovative, and introspective, few games forge the intimate and personal bond with the gamer that Braid does.

So you’re tired of webcam conferences, eh? PlayStation Home is still in open beta, and already, it’s changing the landscape of how people communicate with each other. Some of you have done this casually over Home, I’m sure - meeting up with your friends in the virtual world and whatnot. But did you ever imagine using Home as a place to have a virtual corporate meeting?

This new direction of virtual meetings is being spearheaded by none other than Ernst & Young, one of the biggest firms handling professional services for over a hundred companies across the globe. Among the companies already taking part in the project are Merrill Lynch and, yes, Microsoft.

(Oooh, Aaron Greenberg might have something to say about that…)

The entire project involves some of their companies testing out how viable it is to have a meeting in Home. The goal here is to see if having virtual meetings in Home is cost-effective: no need for huge office spaces, travel costs, heck, they may even help the environment (no travel = less carbon emissions).

Andrew Mawson of Advanced Workplace Associates (they’re the guys commissioning the project) comments:

Increasingly we are living in a world without borders where workers need to collaborate on a global scale. Audio and video-conferencing solutions have emerged but the use of virtual worlds may offer the next evolution in overcoming the tyranny of distance - a more realistic and learning-enhanced environment.

Oh can you just imagine? Sealing a multimillion dollar deal with an online associate and having an epic dance-off while you’re at it! Gives an entirely new definition to “working at Home,” doesn’t it?

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Related articles:

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For over a year now, it’s been the same old story in Famitsu’s Most Wanted list: Japanese gamers who took part in their polls voted Final Fantasy XIII as the most anticipated title. It’s claimed the throne for over twelve months already, but that’s changed now.

What are Japanese gamers looking forward to the most these days? Dragon Quest IX for the DS. Yeah, leave it to the Japanese gamers to replace an RPG with another RPG - another Square Enix RPG, for that matter - on their most wanted list.

1. Dragon Quest IX (NDS, Square Enix)
2. Final Fantasy XIII (PS3, Square Enix)
3. Biohazard 5 (PS3, Capcom)
4. Monster Hunter 3 (Wii, Capcom)
5. Dragon Quest VI (NDS, Square Enix)
6. Amagami (PS2, Enterbrain)
7. Star Ocean: The Last Hope (360, Square Enix)
8. Final Fantasy Versus XIII (PS3, Square Enix)
9. The Last Remnant (PS3, Square Enix)
10. Ryuga Gotoku 3 (PS3, Sega)
11. Street Fighter IV (PS3, Capcom)
12. Seventh Dragon (NDS, Sega)
13. Ninokuni: The Another World (NDS, Level 5)
14. Gyakuten Kenji (NDS, Capcom)
15. Final Fantasy Agito XIII (PSP, Square Enix)

Total tally of games on Top 15 (by platform):

• PS3: 6
• NDS: 5
• Wii: 1
• PS2: 1
• 360: 1
• PSP: 1

Total tally of games on Top 15 (by publisher/developer):

• Square Enix: 7
• Capcom: 4
• Sega: 2:
• Enterbrain: 1
• Level 5: 1

And what’s the total tally of games on the Top 15 which were promised to be released last year, 2008? Oh, I don’t know. Most of them? You’d think that the Japanese market would lose interest what with all those delays. Then again, that’s J-RPG for ya.

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Related articles:

• Famitsu most wanted: FF13, DQ9, RE5, other acronyms; Square Enix dominates