» ~RSS~ Super Mario Galaxy Inspired by Pet Hamster |
|
- by Sparky
|
Shigeru Miyamoto's hobbies are a well-guarded industry secret at this point, and for good reason: Games like Pikmin, Nintendogs, and Wii Fit all sprung from the day-to-day occurrences in the Mario creator's personal life. But what about the inspiration for Super Mario Galaxy? Has Miyamoto developed a thing for space travel? Might we soon see the legendary Nintendo designer take to the stars like Richard Garriott before him?
Actually, Super Mario Galaxy's existence can be traced back to a tiny, seemingly-insignificant hamster. Miyamoto revealed as much during a symposium at this year's Japan Media Arts Festival over the weekend (via Andriasang).
During his speech at the conference, Miyamoto discussed the difficulties of allowing players to control Mario in a 3D environment, and how breaking the levels down into spheres let even inexperienced users run freely without fear of getting lost -- an idea the designer credits to a hamster he was caring for during the game's development.
Article source...
|
|
|
» ~RSS~ TT Games Announces Lego Star Wars 3: The Clone Wars |
|
- by Sparky
|
If your passion for Danish building toys and space operas hasn't been satisfied by the other Lego Star Wars titles, Traveller's Tales is ready and more than willing to give you another. Today the company announced Lego Star Wars 3: The Clone Wars, based on the popular Cartoon Network animated TV series. The game is set for Wii, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, PSP, DS, and PC this fall. The company promises characters from both seasons of the series, along with cameos from the movie characters. TT is working to make this game an improvement over previous installments with an enhanced level builder, Jedi and Separatist factions, and new attacks and abilities.
"LucasArts is an amazing partner, and working with them on the next iteration of the Lego Star Wars continues to be a great experience," said TT Games director Tom Stone in the press release. "The team at TT is working hard at making this simply the best Lego game ever with all new gameplay and features never before seen in a Lego game."
While TT Games has made two Lego Star Wars games (and one compilation) in the past, we'll see a shift in the art assets for this installment. The games have always been based on the actual Lego sets, and sets produced for the Clone Wars television series have had a stylized look to more closely resemble the cartoon. All the same, we can't help but wonder if this installment is destined to eventually be bundled with the other two existing games. They could call it, "Lego Star Wars: The Complete Saga, For Reals This Time."
Article source...
|
|
|
|
» ~RSS~ BioShock 2 Review |
|
- by Sparky
|
BioShock 2 has a big reputation to live up to. The critically acclaimed BioShock put together a stylized, provocative world; it wasn't a perfect game, but the story -- a red-herring-filled plot mixed with existentialist (and objectivist) philosophy -- turned the game into much more than a shooter; BioShock was a game that made you think. And while BioShock 2 borrows heavily from its predecessor's aesthetic and solid gameplay, it fails to provide the strong narrative that made the original so compelling.
In case you're not up on all your BioShock lore, here's a quick recap: Andrew Ryan built the underwater city of Rapture to be the first true Utopia. While living there, a member of his team found a species of sea slug, which excreted a substance called ADAM that allowed instantaneous genetic modification; ADAM serves as the in-game currency that allows you to purchase Plasmids. And Plasmids allow for a wide-range of swappable abilities, such as shooting fire or ice from your fingertips, or hypnotizing foes to fight each other instead of you. To harvest and process this material, young girls were turned into mobile ADAM refining units called Little Sisters, and Big Daddies were made to protect them. And the Little Sisters needed these Big Daddy bodyguards because of the ADAM-addicted Rapture citizens (called "splicers," due to them splicing genetic modifications into their bodies) who still patrol the mostly abandoned city.
Article source...
|
|
|
|
» ~RSS~ Blaster Master, Fieldrunners Explode Onto Nintendo Downloads |
|
- by Sparky
|
Today's biggest release snuck up on us. After a quiet weekend announcement of Blaster Master: Overdrive, the game has already hit the Nintendo download service. This Sunsoft-produced sequel to the NES classic costs 1,000 points ($10), and seems to hit the right pitch of what made the original game so revered. But, a demo is available if you want to take the old tank for a test drive first. Of course, that isn't the only game on WiiWare this week. Tomena Sanner is a fast-paced platforming game for 500 points ($5). Bloons is a mobile port of a puzzle game in which the player pops balloons with darts. It costs 500 points and includes a level editor. Finally, Hubert The Teddy Bear Winter Games also costs 500 points, and includes a variety of minigames like fishing and snow fighting for up to 16 players. It also includes a Christmas tree decorating minigame, making us suspect that maybe it missed its release date. The Virtual Console offering this week is the cult NES title Princess Tomato in Salad Kingdom.
The popular iPhone game Fieldrunners can be played on the DSi now for 500 points. Oscar in Movieland costs 800 points ($8), and features platforming action through a variety of themed stages. Link 'n' Launch is a tile-based puzzle game for 500 points. Sudoku 4Pockets is (yes, another) Sudoku puzzle collection for 500 points. Finally, Extreme Hangman costs 200 points ($2), and gets its sick thrills out of torturing a defenseless hangman with threat of being shot, strangled, or erased.
Article source...
|
|
|
|
|
» Site Navigation |
|
|
|
» Stats |
Members: 484
Threads: 5,886
Posts: 102,129
|
| Welcome to our newest member, ViprLJ |
|
» Friends Network |
|
|
» Online Stores |
|
|
