February 2010 – Page 2 – The Recycle Bin

Maintenance Weekend – Featuring Sporadic 404s, Outages, and Other Nonsense

I plan to perform some much needed site maintenance over the weekend. Hopefully most of this will be transparent to the masses. Starting tonight you may see some error messages, strange behavior, and otherwise stuff that may make you scratch your head.

You need not worry. While maintenance on this site has long been neglected, I am in the opening throes of moving from the Recycle Bin (call in CG 3.0) back into the realm of Calvert Games. Yes, CG 3.5 is calling. Maybe.

And all the choir girls said hell yes…

PS3 Becoming the Sex Console

In the latest sex article to grace a PS3 site, PlayStation LifeStyle details the God of War III “mini sex” game via the ESRB write-up of what is in store for overzealous sex starved gamers.

The game contains a sex mini-game. Players will encounter a goddess and her two hand maidens, all topless, all holding and caressing each other. If players wish to, they may join the goddess (and only the goddess) in bed. Actual sex is never depicted as the camera drifts, then fixes on the two maidens, who watch from a distance. As players respond to the on-screen prompts with button presses, the topless maidens will continue to watch, and sometimes caress. Moaning sounds from the bed can be heard throughout the sequence.

Good times. I guess I am going to have to pre-order now. Probably.

The 360 Beat Down Continues

Another day gives us more flaming articles on how the 360 version of Final Fantasy XIII does not feature all the graphical goodness of the PS3. The funny thing about these “FFXIII 360 is not HD” articles is that they all shoot up the N4G charts even though they basically say the same thing.

I guess all the 360 owners are busy playing their exclusive games and third-party multiplatform titles that dare I say for the most part feature better graphical ports than their PS3 counter parts. Meanwhile the PS3 gamers are actively in defense of their wunderkind, posting articles near and wide about how the 360 version of FFXIII features inferior graphics. Don’t tell me to look in a mirror; I’m just making an attempt at providing entertaining op-eds for your reading pleasure at o’dark-thirty in the morning!

Of course from the best I can tell none of the mainstream mega web sites are actually releasing reviews for the 360 version; Square Enix may have some sort of embargo at play. A couple of screens do not make or break a game, but tell that to all these folks following the madness [raises hand]. Following my typical contrarian view, if I had a 360 I would buy that version to help rain on the PS3 parade. No; I probably wouldn’t – not if all things being equal the PS3 features better graphics on a single Blu-ray.

Capcom – 360 Content Removal
In more anti-360 news, Sankaku Complex [Warning: Very Much Not Safe for Work] posted an article about Capcom cutting content from its latest 360 title.

Capcom has publically lamented having to cut large amounts of content from Lost Planet 2 in order to fit it onto the Xbox 360’s piddling DVD capacity without the game turning into a swapfest, but promises users will be able to buy everything they cut as DLC.

Speaking with rag Famitsu about the production of Lost Planet 2, now in the fine-tuning stages, producer Jun Takeuchi complains of the constraints imposed by Microsoft’s refusal to employ Blu-ray; in previous interviews he made much the same comments about Resident Evil 5, saying he would like to see a “complete” version on the PS3…

While this may trouble the developer, and to some extent the gamers that think they are getting screwed, I am sure that Microsoft and Capcom [wearing the publisher hat] very much appreciate all the DLC they can muster from any title released, regardless of platform. Any revenue earned post game sale is a major asset to the bottom-line.

Reading between the lines, as games get increasingly larger, more and more content may have to get removed. This may not be a problem for 360 exclusives, but any multiplatform release may be perceived as better on the PS3 if the Blu-ray release features more gaming elements that matter – i.e. levels, missions, extra boats, airplanes, trains, and Legos. It is a travesty if the rumors about content removal from FFXIII prove true – the PS3 could have had more stuff [just what TBD], but it was removed in the name of multiplatform parity.

This speculation on my part will largely depend on how long this console generation lasts; with a piss poor economy I doubt we will see any new hardware in the next 18 months. Regardless of PS3 capacity advantages [thanks to Blu-ray] publishers near and far are increasingly going in the premium DLC direction, which sucks for all gamers if content that would normally be included on a game is getting removed in favor of future revenue opportunities.

MLB 10: The Show – Atlanta Braves Rankings

As we draw ever closer to the March 2nd release of MLB 10: The Show, I read every new article with anticipation and excitement. Yesterday, pastapadre revealed the MLB 10 team rankings. I was happy to see my beloved Braves garnered an overall ranking of sixth (22nd Defense; 4th Pitching; 9th Batting). I’ll be tickled pink if the Braves can carry that over into real life; back in the playoffs again?

White Knight Chronicles: International Update

As I have written on several occasions, when I actually have time to play, I am enjoying this JRPG, which features hybrid turn-based/pseudo real-time gameplay elements. It is certainly not for everyone, but I think it is a real gem.

Over the weekend I ordered the strategy guide, which is something I only rarely do for games that I really enjoy. I think the last guide I purchased was maybe FFX. Of course I will never be able to defend my position, much less convince non-JRPG fans that I only order guides to enhance my gaming experience.

I’ll comment on the guide later this week. My only initial comment is that I have already noticed some errors where the map/grid references are actually incorrect.

I other WKC news, according to PlayStationUniversity, Japan is getting some new DLC on Feb. 25. Hopefully new content works its way to the U.S. PSN servers.

Final Fantasy XIII – The 360 Implodes

It has been a long time since I remember seeing this much fervor over a game, but I guess that is what happens when Final Fantasy goes multi-console.

Why so much fervor? I guess it is an emotional reaction from youngsters that grew up with the PlayStation. Of course they probably do not realize or understand that once upon a time Nintendo was the home of all things Final Fantasy.

In the case of the PS3 vs. 360 debate, Square Enix has not helped the situation by releasing doctored graphics, which PS3 conspiracy theorists say indicates that all things 360 must suck. Never mind some of the piss poor ports on the PS3 that have gone in the other direction.

Me? I will continue to watch it unfold and chime in from time-to-time as I see fit. Some of debate is actually interesting and does matter – Blu-ray capacity, disc swapping, HD graphics, and the removal of content. I can appreciate that the developer made every attempt at platform parity, but from what I have read too many compromises were made.

PSN Capcom Sale

The “official” PlayStation Blog has an article from the good folks at Capcom announcing five weeks of PSN Capcom games at the low, low price of 50% off. The schedule includes …

* February 18, 2010 – Marvel vs. Capcom 2 for only $7.49!
* February 25, 2010 – Super Street Fighter II Turbo HD Remix for only $7.49!
* March 4, 2010 – Super Puzzle Fighter II Turbo HD Remix for only $4.99!
* March 11, 2010 – Age of Booty for only $4.99!
* March 18, 2010 – 1942: Joint Strike for only $4.99!

I already have 1942, which may not be worth the full price, but is a pretty good deal at less than $5. Lord knows when I would have time to play Age of Booty, but I have wanted to give this one a spin for a while. $4.99 is a pretty decent price point. As much as I love the Street Fighter, especially the Alpha renditions, I just don’t see putting these in the shopping cart – I have too many new games as it is and my best gaming days for dexterity intensive fighters are far behind me.

Final Fantasy XIII – Inside The Technical Details

While looking for more news, notes, and whatnots of the upcoming Final Fantasy XIII (FFXIII), I came across this great article on the DigitalFoundry blog (EuroGamer) that takes us inside the math, art, and science of FFXIII. I don’t think I have every come across an article that goes to this length, with this much detail, comparing the PS3 demo of FFXIII against the actual Japanese release of FFXIII. If you are interested in this type of technical details, this article is definitely worth a read.

For me two things stood out, neither of which are part of the detailed technical feature analysis.

Overall, the leaps made by Final Fantasy XIII over its predecessors are mostly visual in nature and that’s clearly been the focus of this tech analysis. However, bearing in mind the four-year gestation period Final Fantasy XIII has had, it’s disappointing that all the key improvements have been in the audio-visuals.

Of course, these are hugely important factors in FFXIII’s make-up, but gameplay-wise this feels like it could’ve been done on PS2. Clearly, there’s much to enjoy in the nature of sumptuous visuals and what is clearly the best-quality CG we’ve seen on a Square-Enix videogame, but early importers of the Japanese version of the game are divided about the merits of the actual game underneath.

To be completely fair, I think this can be said about many of the games in this generation. They are just visual upgrades over their PS2 and Xbox predecessors.

The other item of note fills the entirety of the last page of the three page article, covering speculation on the potential compromises made to port the PS3 originated title to the 360.

However, porting the game across to the 360 must have been a daunting proposition. Taking a look at the structure of the Blu-ray disc, we see an absolutely colossal 32.6GB of what looks to be pre-rendered movies, while the actual gameplay content itself is a more reasonable 6.8GB. Co-incidentally, 6.8GB is also the maximum usable space developers have on the dual-layer DVD (yes, Xbox 360 games theoretically have less storage available than PS2 and Wii titles).

The article mentions that 360 users will only have to switch games at two points in the game, so that does not seem to be much of a burden. I also doubt that 360 owners will care (maybe not even notice) if the movies are not pre-rendered, if they are compressed, or if the sound is compressed. I also think that dual system owners will pick up FFXIII for the PS3 over the 360. In the U.S., due to its larger install base, 360 numbers will slightly surpass the PS3, but elsewhere FFXIII will lead the charge on the PS3.

MLB 10: The Show – The Waiting Game

After skipping a year [really seems like I skipped the last 2-3 years of gaming entirely] I am really excited about this year’s game, which is set to arrive while I am out of country for work!

The “official” PlayStation Blog site, like any good official mouth-piece runs some great articles pimping their first party offerings. MLB 10 is not an exception.

This year, we have added “calling pitch selection” and “calling pitch location” to your RttS catcher’s responsibilities. When you are in the game defensively as a catcher, you will be responsible to select the pitch that you want thrown. The system works just like it does for selecting pitches as the pitcher does. The pitcher might shake you off, or he might accept that pitch. If he does shake you off, you choose a pitch again. If you choose the same pitch, he will figure it’s really what you want and will accept it, at this point. Once you have selected the pitch, you will be responsible to select where you want the ball thrown. You can choose any of the nine zones within the strike zone, or you can choose eight areas outside of the zone if you want the ball off the plate (four outside edges and four outside corners). Now just like in real life, this doesn’t mean the pitcher will hit his spot. It just means this is where he is aiming. The better the pitcher you have throwing to you, the more effective your location calling will be.

MLB 10: The Show is going to be the real deal and will be a system seller for console baseball fans. I cannot wait to get my hands on this one!

FFXIII Sucks on the 360

OK, not really, but as I said earlier today, just for the hell of it I will fan the flames. According to NOWGamer, some sacrifices had to be made in order to accommodate this game on the 360:

* While facial detail appears largely unchanged, the characters’ clothes appear at first glance to be lacking finer details, with notably lower resolution textures.
* Incidental environmental objects and enemies appear less detailed, both in texture and geometry.
* The game’s CG is extremely compressed and pales alongside the stunning HD goodness which blu-ray offers.

It would be a travesty if 360 gamers had to experience less detailed incidental environmental objects. You have been warned! Now go have a cold one and celebrate the goodness of Blu-ray. It is calling your name, even if Sony is not allowed to advertise how much goodness awaits your cotton candy, graphic whoring FFXIII pleasure.

FFXIII – Console Debates Rage As Release Draws Near

This morning I was looking for some new information on FFXIII and came across some interesting articles via N4G. The console wars are far from over, and FFXIII is at the center of the latest rounds of internet fodder. Meanwhile, as a self respecting Final Fantasy fan and Sony loyalists [I don’t own a 360], I am just fanning the flames.

This op-ed from Ironstar discusses Microsoft’s willingness to throw a ton of cash at the 360 release of FFXIII.

Those who look at FFXIII from Sony’s perspective shouldn’t care one bit about Microsoft’s desperate marketing. For one, God of War 3 releases no less than a week after that title; if Sony were to market that game as much Microsoft probably will they would be competing with themselves. Pretty much every enthusiastic Final Fantasy fan will purchase XIII on the PlayStation 3 regardless of it appearing on other platforms. The capacity of Blu-Ray relieves the hassle of having to deal with the tedious disc swapping of 360’s FFXIII. Its 2010 nobody wants to get out of their seat to switch a DVD because the game can’t fit on 1 disc, we dealt with disc swapping 10 years ago via Final Fantasy 7.

The fanboys are all aglow that Microsoft is attempting to “trick” consumers into thinking that FFXIII is a Microsoft exclusive. I did not really think this was the case until I saw this article from the Unofficial Final Fantasy Site that furthers this claim.

Sony should somehow market the FFXIII as the true home of FF titles with references back to all the previous releases, especially bestsellers such as FFVII and FFX. Unless Sony cannot advertise FFXIII for the PS3 due to an exclusive marketing window wrapped up by Microsoft, which would be a new one on me.

After the poor reception of White Knight Chronicles: International I have to wonder if PS3 owners even care about JRPGs. Who I am kidding? FFXIII will sell like hotcakes.

In this article from ConnectedConsoles FFXIII producer Yoshinori Kitase claims that there are no differences in the PS3 and 360 version of the game beyond the number of discs.

“The development team created the PS3 version first, of course, but they didn’t alter the content at all in order to bring it to the 360.” said Kitase in an interview with GamingTarget. “It’s the exact same experience and the same gaming experience that they had set out to create is present on both the PS3 and 360 versions.”

He then added: “Graphics wise as well, they’re comparable there. There’s no difference there in the experience. And, I guess the only minor difference would be the fact that for the 360 version, you have to switch out the discs every once in a while.”

Does anyone actually believe this statement? While on the surface that may be a true statement, PS3 fans are buzzing that making FFXIII available on the 360 compromised the game. Development to the lowest common dominator does that to a multiplatform game.

It will be interesting to see which console wins out – the one with the strongest advertisement and installed base, or the recognized home of FF titles from the last two console generations.

US F1 To Skip Initial Races?

I missed this article from Racer last week. According to FIA president Jean Todt, the new F1 challengers do not have to show up for the first three races of the 2010 season.

Despite both teams insisting they are on course to make the first race, US F1 and Campos continue to be surrounded by speculation that financial issues will leave them unable to get their cars and outfits ready for the season opener in Bahrain on March 14. Although, under old rules, absence from a single race would result in the teams losing their privileges, F1 commercial rights manager Bernie Ecclestone and Todt have now confirmed that provisions are in place for competitors to miss a total of three races without penalty. This means that US F1 and Campos have theoretically got until the Chinese Grand Prix on April 18 to get their cars ready for action before they would officially fall off the roster.

So now the waiting begins. Will US F1 gracefully bow out given the chance?

Another interesting aspect of the story was Todt’s challenge for F1 to pull its pants up and get on with facing reality.

“We need to cut costs, improve the show and draw investors,” he said. “F1 must understand that the world has changed. How can you explain that an F1 car needs 80 liters of fuel to cover 100 kilometers?

Why not be the pinnacle of motorsports, by doing something impressive? I think this is a great point. F1 teams can achieve innovation, technological breakthroughs, and brand marketing by concentrating on some of the basics.

BTW, where is the next great F1 console title? I miss the yearly releases from back in the PlayStation days.

Madden 10 – One Final Roster Update?

Last week I complained about the final Madden 10 roster update, and how it affected the Falcons. I failed to notice that Kurt Warner (along with several other players) was removed from the game. According the pastapadre (via N4G), EA is going to correct that issues, and offer yet again, one final roster update. I think this is a great move on EA’s part.

Monday – Minimalist Gaming Update

Today is another minimalist gaming update. Not a lot to report, but I do need to get a couple of thoughts on “paper” before today comes to a close.

TheSixthAxis Does Heavy Rain
In general the metacritic scores of Heavy Rain have been fantastic, so it was interesting to see that TheSixthAxis is one of three sites (out of 43) to give the uber title a 7 out of 10.

But it’s not a game, is it? It certainly doesn’t play like one. Split firmly down the middle, half of the time you’ll be steering your character around various locales (left stick to look, R2 to walk) and the other half you’ll be performing some of the trickiest Quick Time Events since Dragon’s Lair. Heavy Rain doesn’t just want you to tap – you’ll be holding, twisting, pushing and bashing that controller before the story is done, and often doing several of those at the same time.

I agree that the controls distract from the game. Funny comment – while I enjoy reading a good review, and this one from TheSixthAxis is fantastic, I seldom make a purchase decision on the actual reviews. I use reviews as a starting point; to see if I may be interested in a game. After reading this review I was thinking about punting on the game; almost. Then I regained my senses. Funny how even this jaded gamer came close to being disappointed in a 70% review. OMG – I have crossed over to the Dark Side.

A Long Race …

I have been posting and posting and posting, for a long time. Maybe too long; maybe not long enough. For better or worse, I have thrown up daily content for something akin to 7+ months, which is a pretty nice achievement, but I am going to have to end this run sooner or later. But not today.

I considered not posting today. It would have been a good day to end my streak because the 6 hour marathon called the 2010 Daytona 500 was rather draining. So it would have been easily excusable. The Daytona 500 had a great ending, so I figured I had to at least go down swinging. Congrats to Jamie McMurray.

Sunday Gaming
I got in some quality time with Out of the Park Baseball 10 (recently joined an online league), and of course continued my assault on the surprising good White Knight Chronicles: International.