Nintendo Power, the gaming magazine most likely to give older gamers a blast of nostalgia, is halting publication after 24 memorable years, with its last issue coming to stores in early December, it was announced last week.

The announcement comes five years after Future US, a magazine publishing company responsible for other tech and gaming magazines such as the Official Xbox Magazine and MacLife, took over Nintendo Power. The announcement also reveals an ongoing transition, where videogame magazines are slowly phased out in favor for online gaming news. At this time, however, Nintendo has not expressed interest in continuing the magazine online.

Many of the drawing points of the magazine—most gaming magazines can be found now online. Walkthroughs, previews, leaderboards, lists of release dates, even videogame awards are a click away on the Internet. And, seeing as Nintendo Power was made mainly to hype fans up (what with Nintendo games getting higher reviews than other games and Nintendo games almost always winning Game of the Year), it comes as no surprise that now that more unbiased sources are more readily available the magazine has slowly been loosing its readership.

Still, many are mourning the magazine. After its debut in 1988, the kid-friendly Nintendo Power quickly became for many the sole source of videogame information. The magazine chronicled the early days of the Nintendo Entertainment System, reported on the console wars when the Sega Genesis challenged the Super Nintendo, and served as a bastion for diehard Nintendo fans when gaming shifted from 2D to 3D and the PlayStation was trouncing the Nintendo 64. It covered five gaming generations, from the Nintendo Entertainment System to the Wii, over 24 years and almost 300 issues. Even the New Yorker published an article reminiscing about the magazine.

As the New Yorker notes, gaming has become more and more mainstream over the years. A magazine such as Nintendo Power closing, one that premiered on the scene when gaming was still just for nerds, shows how far gaming has come. Guitar Hero was for a time a favorite activity at parties, and first person shooters are now just as popular.

For better or for worse, gaming is definitely out of its ghetto. While hardcore gamers bemoan the current state of the industry, there is no denying gaming is doing better than ever. And, in a world where information is as readily available as air, where hardcore gamers can effortlessly search for the hardcore games that satisfy their needs, is this really such a bad thing?

As for those who still rely on Nintendo Power for news, refunds will be given for subscriptions that run past December. Although Nintendo Power’s popularity has waned these past years, the warm memories many harbor of it ensure its place in videogame history.

For those now looking for a place to get their gaming news fix, there are still plenty of other sites, like, for example, IGN, Gamespot, or, say, Toonari Post.

The article Nintendo Power to Cease Publication after 24 Years appeared first on The Toonari Post - News, Powered by the People!.

Berlin, Germany — Germans spent over €845 million on games in the first half of 2012, according to the latest data from German Trade Association of Interactive Entertainment Software (BIU). The slight increase from the first half of last year came from a variety of gaming products, including PC, mobile and online games.

The German gaming market caters to 25 million active gamers and the country is an investment haven for firms from all over the world. Industry experts from Germany Trade & Invest will be at this year’s gamescom from August 15-19 in Cologne to highlight opportunities for international companies in Germany’s gaming industry.

“Germany is home to the largest gaming industry in Europe. Programmers and game developers from across the globe are moving to innovative hotspots throughout the country,” stated Julia Oentrich, gaming industry expert at Germany Trade & Invest in Berlin.

Germany’s gaming workforce is among the world’s most skilled. Roughly 40 public and private universities across the country offer gaming-related concentrations. Highly qualified graduates and international professionals support approximately 275 computer game developers and publishers nationwide.

“The huge market has created seven gaming clusters nationwide and each hub has its strengths. Whereas Berlin is famous for its international start-up culture, Hamburg’s reputation is growing as a gaming city with multinational companies such as Bigpoint and Intenium. The variety of regions makes it easy for companies to find a home in Germany,” continued Oentrich.

Gaming is becoming increasingly popular across a broad demographic. As game segments diversify, so do gamers, who tend to be multi-platform users. The average social gamer in Germany is now a 27 year old female, contrary to industry stereotypes.

Germany Trade & Invest is the foreign trade and inward investment promotion agency of the Federal Republic of Germany. The organization advises foreign companies looking to expand their business activities in the German market. It provides information on foreign trade to German companies that seek to enter foreign markets.

The article German Games Market Grows Slightly in 2012 appeared first on The Toonari Post - News, Powered by the People!.

Helsinki, Finland — Umbra Software, the provider of state of the art rendering optimization middleware, have announced that Guild Wars 2, the highly-anticipated MMO from ArenaNet, is taking advantage of Umbra’s occlusion culling technology. ArenaNet has integrated Umbra’s technology into its rendering pipeline early on in the development process to make sure that the beautiful world of Tyria where Guild Wars 2 is set in is realized in the most optimized fashion possible.

“Umbra 3 provides an excellent solution for our expansive, open world environments. We are very happy with the choice we made with Umbra and the support we’ve been given by the Umbra team” said Patrick Laukaitis; the Senior Software Engineer at ArenaNet who has worked closely with Umbra’s engineering team throughout the production of Guild Wars 2.

“ArenaNet are one of Umbra’s earliest clients and closest partners, so we are excited to see the game nearing completion. Guild Wars 2 is epic in scope, so it’s been a fun challenge to meet the technological needs of Patrick and his team; they’ve really pushed us to take our middleware to the next level” stated Umbra’s Chief Technology Officer Otso Mäkinen.

Guild Wars 2, which has already garnered several most anticipated games of the year awards, is currently in beta and will be released on August 28, 2012.

Umbra 3 is a rendering and performance optimizing middleware that is used to improve frame rates and help to create visually striking game worlds.  Umbra 3 does this by optimizing critical parts of a game such as rendering, audio and game logic. Umbra automatically generates portals for game environments, no matter how large or continuous – completely taking away tedious manual work from artists.

Developers taking full advantage of Umbra’s technology include: Bungie, BioWare, Giant, Guerrilla, IO Interactive, Sony Online Entertainment, Square Enix Inc., Tripwire, NetEase, Remedy Entertainment and many others.

Umbra 3 is available for evaluations from http://www.umbra3.com

The article Guild Wars 2 to Use Umbra’s Rendering Optimization Technology appeared first on The Toonari Post - News, Powered by the People!.

Cologne, Germany — Your dreams of leading a global empire have laid dormant for too long. Now, Paradox Development Studio and Paradox Interactive promise to bring those dreams to life with Europa Universalis IV.

The award-winning series that has sold over a million copies and redefined grand strategy gaming for a generation is back with unprecedented flexibility, new options for imperial management, and the same deep commitment to historical gameplay that has made Europa Universalis the legendary franchise it is today.

Prepare to join a worldwide community of over half a million players and experience the drama and tension that only the grand stage of history can provide. Following on the success of the critically acclaimed Crusader Kings II, Paradox Development Studio is ready to take you to worlds both old and new – each yours for the taking.

View the Europa Universalis IV Announcement trailer here:

Europa Universalis IV Features:

• Make your own decisions: Nation building is completely flexible.
• Use your Monarch Power: In this new system, a leader’s traits will direct the ebb and flow of gameplay.
• Experience history coming to life: The great personalities of the past are on hand to support you as you make your mark on thousands of historical events.
• Turn the world into your playground: Enjoy over 300 years of gameplay in a lush topographical map in full 3D.
• Gain control of vital trade routes and make the wealth of the world flow to your coffers in the all-new trade system.
• Bring out your negotiating skills in a deeper diplomatic system.
• Go online and battle against your friends in an all-new multiplayer game mode that features hot-join, improved chatting, a new matchmaking server, and support for a standalone server.
• Create your own history and customize your game: Europa Universalis IV gives you the chance to customize and mod practically anything your heart may desire.

The article Europa Universalis IV Announced appeared first on The Toonari Post - News, Powered by the People!.

We have already covered various aspects of Nintendo’s peripherals from Nintendo’s Laser Guns to the infamous Power Glove. In part two of Nintendo’s peripherals, we examine devices from the Roll ‘n Rocker to the Wii U’s controller.

The Roll ‘n Rocker

In 1989 the company LJN develops the Roll ‘n Rocker for the NES. The Roll ‘n Rocker is a balance board with a ball on the bottom. The Roll ‘n Rocker works by plugging the NES Controller to the Roll ‘n Rocker. The A, B, and Start buttons are used on the controller while the Roll ‘n Rocker is used as a glorified D-Pad. That is all the Roll ‘n Rocker is good for. With shoddy controls, poor functionality, and only a 100lbs weight limit, the Roll ‘n Rocker is one of the most useless peripherals for the NES.

R.O.B.

Jumping back to 1985, Nintendo introduces the Robotic Operating Buddy (R.O.B.) to Japan and North America. R.O.B is one of Nintendo’s most intriguing inventions even today. R.O.B. is an interactive robo buddy that the user is able to interact with on various games that came out for R.O.B.

The two games that came out for R.O.B. are “Gyromyte” and “Stack-up”. Both games require R.O.B. to do various tasks in order for the user to progress through the game. R.O.B. may be primitive at best, but he functions well. Though there are not too many other games released for R.O.B., he still is a predominant player in the gaming revival back in the videogame saturation of 1983.

Nintendo up to Today

With the many different peripherals on the NES, Nintendo is continuing to focus on new means of gameplay, and a lot of what they have today seem to be variations of their past projects. For the Nintendo 64 (N64) and the Nintendo GameCube, Nintendo tries two different voice recognition gameplay with “Hey You Pikachu” on the N64 and “Odama” on the GameCube.

Though both work better than their Laser Scope counterpart, they both suffer from command issues and are panned greatly for that. As for the Wii Speak, its only function is to communicate with other gamers.

As part of a new focus to get its gamers healthy, Nintendo introduces the Wii Balance board with the Wii Fit. The Wii Balance Board shares a strikingly similar function with the Roll ‘n Rocker, except the Wii Balance Board actually works and offers a lot more features that the Roll n’ Rocker cannot do.

The biggest development to come from Nintendo is the Wiimote (Wii Remote). From what seems like a combination of the NES Zapper and the Power Glove, the Wiimote masters functionality as well as gives gamers a completely unique gaming experience that no other developer is able to offer.

This leads to the possibility that the Power Glove was probably to advanced for its time and also shows that Nintendo had the technology back then, but needed time to perfect it before it could be a viable function as a gaming device.

Currently known as the Wii U Controller, the WiiPad a combination of an iPad with a basic gaming controller. Its style is very similar to the DS’ base and functions just like it. It will be interesting to see how Nintendo’s WiiPad will function once the Wii U officially comes out to the public Winter of 2012. Nintendo has certainly come a long way through the years and still continues to push gaming to the limit in how people play games.

To classics like the Nintendo Zapper, which to this day the only thing the Zapper is not able to shoot is the dog from Duck Hunt, and the abysmal failures of the Roll ‘n Rocker, which only accomplished making games unplayable, Nintendo stood up to their mistakes and flaunted their triumphs. It will be interesting to see what others successes and possible failures Nintendo will come up with in their future of video game peripherals.

Image Courtesy of   Barone Firenze / Shutterstock.com

The article Evolution of Nintendo’s Peripherals: Power Glove to WiiPad Part 2 appeared first on The Toonari Post - News, Powered by the People!.

The Nintendo Company is known for experimenting with different means of gameplay and coming up with the next big thing in interactive gameplay. With so many different types of games to choose from, Nintendo wants to introduce to gamers many different ways to play these games. What better way to examine Nintendo’s methods of gameplay than to look into its evolution from the experimental phase of the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) to the more professionally established peripherals of Nintendo’s later systems.

Nintendo Laser Guns

One of the Nintendo’s first peripherals, and probably most famous one, was the NES Zapper. The NES Zapper came out in 1985 with “Duck Hunt”, but could also work on various games that used the shooting gallery type function. The way the Zapper works is when the user pulls the trigger on the Zapper, it causes the entire screen to go black for a split second, except for the target area, which flashes white. By doing this, the sensor in the gun reads the white area and if a shootable object is caught in the white block, it would register as a hit.

Back in the day it was seen as a marvelous technical advancement, and even today the game Duck Hunt is still seen as a must-play classic with the NES Zapper, though the Zapper’s function can only work on CRT display TVs and cannot work on LCD or Plasma TVs.

In 1992 Nintendo came out with the Super Scope for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System (SNES). The Super Scope is about twice as large as the NES Zapper and functions a little differently by shooting out an ’0′ signal as it reads the various 1’s and 0’s that shoot through the TV signals. With this, the game retrieves the data to acknowledge the target position of the Super Scope and is then able to register a hit or a miss. But like the Zapper, the Super Scope can only work on CRT display TVs.

The Laser Scope, developed by Konami for the NES, is a device that the player wears like a headset. The Laser Scope is one of the first peripherals that introduces voice activated commands for gameplay. The Laser Scope includes a laser guided crosshair, which sits just above the user’s right eye, and a microphone attached to the left earphone.

The laser crosshair works just like the NES Zapper, but instead of pulling a trigger, the user merely has to say “Fire.” The issue with the Laser Scope is that it picks up any sound and causes the device to misfire. The device is big, clunky, and does not function the way it is intended to work. The Laser Scope came out in 1990 with the game Laser Invasion.

The Power Glove

In pop culture the Power Glove is seen at the butt of many jokes as well as a popular internet meme. As most of its critics discuss the Power Glove, they always refer back to the 1989 movie “The Wizard” and deliberately misquote the line “It’s so bad” when referring to the Power Glove, mainly because the Power Glove is in fact “so bad.”

Licensed by Nintendo, but developed by Abrams Gentile Entertainment, the Power Glove is intended to be one of the first interactive motion sensor games, in which the user’s hand was the controller. The Power Gloves works by having the user enter an input code found on the forearm of the controller.

This code is used to set the control system to designated games. Once the controller is “linked” to the game, the user’s hand movements are registered for gameplay. One of the games designed specifically for the Power Glove is “Super Glove Ball,” in which the user throws balls to destroy walls.

The Power Glove itself became an utter failure. The controls are unresponsive and it is almost impossible to get the device to function properly. Power Glove, now, is merely used as a glorified NES controller, since the controller buttons are also built on the forearm.

Part two will continue on Nintendo’s development from the Roll ‘n Rocker to the Wii U’s controller system.

Image Courtesy of   Barone Firenze / Shutterstock.com

The article Evolution of Nintendo’s Peripherals: Power Glove to WiiPad Part 1 appeared first on The Toonari Post - News, Powered by the People!.

Nintendo recently posted a net loss of 43.2bn yen (530 million dollars) for the 2011 fiscal year (which stretches from April 2011 to March 2012), a first for the company. These losses were in spite of their newly released 3DS handheld console dominating the Japanese market, outselling Sony’s PlayStation Vita 10:1. Last year the company reported a net gain of 77.6bn yen (959 million dollars). The companies’ losses this year were not, however, as bad as previous estimates had predicted.

Hardware sales were not able to reach predictions Nintendo announced three months ago, predictions Nintendo had reworked downward from previous estimates. Globally, the Nintendo 3DS sold 13.51 million units, the Wii 9.84 and the DS ‘family’ 5.1, while expectations had had the 3DS at 14 million units, the Wii at 10 and the DS ‘family’ at 5.5. Even though actual hardware sales did not fall too far from what Nintendo had predicted, the results are still disastrous for the company. Software sales, meanwhile, were 36 million for the 3DS, 102.37 million for the Wii, and 60.82 for the DS ‘family.’

Regarding these results, the company stated: “While [Nintendo] did post a loss for the recently completed fiscal year, the continuing momentum of the Nintendo 3DS and the global introduction of the highly-anticipated Wii U home console will drive the company back into profitability in the current year.” In a separate announcement, Nintendo predicted a net profit of $245 million for the upcoming fiscal year.

Nintendo went on to say that by the middle of its current fiscal year (around August 2012), the 3DS will cease to be sold below cost of making one, meaning they will start to see a profit from the handheld. The company also announced that New Super Mario Bros. 2, Animal Crossing and a new Brain Age series title are in the works, with the latter releasing in Japan sometime this summer. These games, along with other upcoming ones, will definitely give Nintendo a boost in software sales and help move consoles.

In addition, Dragon Quest X: Waking of the Five Tribes Online was reported to have a Japanese release date set for August 2. No release date for other regions has been announced yet. The title marks a first for the Dragon Quest franchise: never before has an MMORPG entry in the series been released. A Wii U version will follow, although at this time there is no information on it available.

Dragon Quest X is set to sell for 6,980 yen ($86), and a separate version will also be available that includes a USB flash drive for 8,980 yen ($110). A flash drive is required to play the game.

Although details are scarce, these big games look to get Nintendo out of the red this coming year and hopefully help the company reach its $245 million goal. Stay tuned at Toonari Post for more details.

Image Courtesy of   Barone Firenze / Shutterstock.com

The article New Losses, New Games for Nintendo appeared first on The Toonari Post - News, Powered by the People!.

London, UK – Moshi Monsters’ debut video game Moshi Monsters: Moshling Zoo has become the longest ever number one in Nintendo DS chart history by knocking Nintendo’s Dr. Kawashima’s Brain Training from the top spot.

Launched just six months ago in November 2011, Moshi Monsters: Moshling Zoo has made video game history by holding the top position for a record breaking 15 consecutive weeks.

The game has fought off stiff competition from Nintendo classics such as Mario Kart DS, New Super Mario Bros, Professor Layton And The Spectre’s Call and Pokémon Black Version.

“This is the first video game we’ve ever published at Mind Candy so we’re delighted and amazed by how well it has done. We’re lucky to have such a passionate fanbase of Moshi players” said Michael Acton Smith, creator and CEO of Moshi Monsters.

Developed by well-renowned US based gaming developer, Black Lantern and published by Activision Publishing, Moshi Monsters: Moshling Zoo offers fans a fresh new take on the Moshi Universe by building on the popularity of the collectable ”Moshlings” (pets for your pet monsters), and  provides a new way to interact with their favorite characters.

The game features new locations and an exclusive new Moshling - Nipper the Titchy Trundlebot. From the common to the rare, there are 52 Moshlings to collect including the elusive ‘ULTRA-RARE’ – find them if you can! Children can also play new mini-games, educational style puzzles, as well as win awards and trophies to take back to their zoo.

The monster success isn’t just confined to the video game charts – the recently released debut music album, Moshi Monsters: Music Rox!, reached number four in the Official Music Charts this month ahead of Madonna and Jessie J with no TV or promotional airplay.

Moshi Monsters: Moshling Zoo is available now on Nintendo DS priced £29.99 (RRP) from GAME, Tesco, ASDA, Argos, Sainsbury’s, Smiths, Amazon and Play.com. The game has been classified PEGI 3, which means suitable for all.  For more information please visit http://www.moshlingzoo.com or http://www.Activision.com.

The article Moshi Monsters: Moshling Zoo at Top of Nintendo DS Chart appeared first on The Toonari Post - News, Powered by the People!.

Gameloft, a leading global publisher of digital and social games, and Classic Media, a global media company with a portfolio of some of the world’s leading family entertainment brands, announce the release of  Where’s Wally Now? for Android smartphones & tablets.

Based on the publishing phenomenon, Where’s Wally Now? allows fans of the elusive world traveller to enter scenes from of the acclaimed book on their mobile phones, enabling them to find Wally anytime, anywhere!

In Where’s Wally Now?, Wally uses Wizard Whitebeard’s magic walking stick to travel through space and time as players follow his journey through seven unique levels. Putting players search-and-find skills to the test, each level provides a challenging variety of searchable content, opportunities to unlock bonus content and never before seen mini-games featuring Wally and his friends.

With a new adventure at every turn, Wally blends into crowds throughout time from the Stone Age to the Future, leading players to ask – where IS Wally now?

“The Where’s Wally? books have enjoyed international success for years. We are excited to partner with Classic Media to let fans of the series rediscover such an iconic character as Wally on their mobile phones,” announced Karine Kaiser, VP Marketing and Licensing for Gameloft

“We’re very excited to partner with Gameloft to provide fans everywhere with a new Where’s Wally? mobile adventure.” said Nicole Blake, EVP, Global Marketing & Consumer Products, Classic Media. “With Android smartphones & tablets fans can continue the search for Wally on-the-go!”

“Where’s Wally Now?” is now available for Android smartphones, tablets and feature phones.

About Where’s Wally? Created by Martin Handford and first published in 1987, Where’s Wally? is one of the most recognisable characters in the world and a pop-culture icon. A global publishing phenomenon with 56+ million books sold worldwide, the successful series is published in more than 38 countries, and has been translated into more than 30 languages and has sold 5.8+ million Apps to date.

JOIN THE SEARCH! as the ultimate world traveller embarks on A Fantastic Journey to celebrate his 25th Anniversary in 2012. Online, in-store, or at events-who knows where Wally will be spotted next? Keep your eyes open. You won’t be the only one searching. http://www.whereswally.co.uk

The article Where’s Wally Now? for Android Smartphones & Tablets Out Now appeared first on The Toonari Post - News, Powered by the People!.

505 Games, a global publisher of video games, has announced that Top Gun: Hard Lock for the Xbox 360 video game and entertainment system from Microsoft and PlayStation3 computer entertainment system has shipped to North American retail outlets. The Windows PC version is available for download at http://www.impulsedriven.com/.

Top Gun: Hard Lock lets fans fly into the danger zone as an all-new crew of elite naval aviators taking air combat to new heights.  Players engage in adrenaline-fueled, dog fights to tailgate MiGs at Mach 2 and master the game’s Hard Lock feature to perform high-G aerial combat maneuvers in order to destroy enemy pilots.

“More than 25 years after its debut the ‘Top Gun’ brand is still going strong and we are proud to be part of that heritage with the release of  Top Gun: Hard Lock ,” said Ian Howe, president, 505 Games North America.  ”Our game lets fans experience an all-new storyline as well as the same high-octane action found in the film, allowing them to immerse themselves in the ‘Top Gun’ universe like never before.”

Featuring 14 playable planes, including a selection of licensed planes such as the iconic F-14 Super Tomcat, Top Gun: Hard Lock also features a single-player campaign that spans 15 exhilarating missions and an all-new modern-day storyline.  Players can also compete online in an addictive multiplayer campaign that supports up to 16 players.

Top Gun: Hard Lock was developed by Headstrong Games, a division of Kuju Entertainment, under license from Paramount Digital Entertainment.  The Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 system versions are available for a SRP of $39.99 and the downloadable Windows PC version is available at http://www.impulsedriven.com/ for $29.99.  The game has been rated “T” (Teen – language and violence – content that may be suitable for ages 13 and older) by the ESRB.

Be a part of the action at http://www.facebook.com/topgunmovie and for more information about Top Gun: Hard Lock please visit www.topgungame.com. To view the explosive launch trailer visit http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xj8K-wx027Q

The article 505 Games Released ‘Top Gun: Hard Lock’ appeared first on The Toonari Post - News, Powered by the People!.

Eyelead Software [http://www.eyelead.com], a leading developer of next generation 3D entertainment applications and state-of-the-art visualization technologies, announced at GDC worldwide availability of its Bunny Maze 3D [http://www.bunnymaze3d.com] game optimized for Sony Xperia smartphones and a variety of Android smartphones powered by Qualcomm’s Snapdragon processors.

In Bunny Maze 3D, players help the adventurous Bunny get its stolen carrots back from evil Bunnies, in a cheerful journey through a magical world. The existing Bunny Maze 3D was enhanced to appeal to an international audience ranging from casual gamers using smart phones with a touch based interface, to game enthusiasts using the Sony Xperia PLAY controls.

Eyelead created Bunny Maze 3D on its Hive3D Development Platform [http://www.hive3d.com] for a wide variety of Snapdragon powered devices and optimized it in record time for Xperia S, Xperia ion and other smartphones from Sony with the expert knowledge provided in Sony Mobile Communications Developer World program.

“By joining this program, we optimized game performance for multiple smartphones from Sony within just a few days,” said Nikos Vassiliou, Chief Software Architect at Eyelead Software. “Furthermore, the Xperia PLAY controls provided a new level of gameplay immersion with a real physical button experience and better precision control compared to touch based devices” he added.

“The Developer World team is excited to be involved in the optimization of Bunny Maze 3D for Xperia products. As part of our collaboration with Eyelead Software, we have provided the tools, tech specs, and support needed to quickly optimize Bunny Maze 3D for our Xperia smartphones, including our new Xperia S. We are very pleased to see how the Xperia PLAY gamepad has been used to enhance game experience in this fun title,” said Magnus Ekenheim, Head of Developer Program at Sony Mobile Communications.

“Qualcomm is excited to collaborate with Eyelead Software to provide an exciting 3D mobile gaming experience for consumers with Bunny Maze 3D,” said Raj Talluri, vice president of product management at Qualcomm. “With Qualcomm’s dedication to bringing an immersive gaming experience to mobile devices coupled with Eyelead’s next generation 3D entertainment applications, we are thrilled to bring these new experiences to life on Snapdragon powered devices.”

Future generations of higher performance smart devices coupled with the cloud promise to transform the 3D gaming experience from traditional console games at home, to multi platform gameplay anywhere. Eyelead is committed to continue bringing and enabling killer 3D content for a wide variety of home and mobile devices by leveraging its advanced technology that allows production of optimized 3D content to multiple platforms in parallel.

The article Bunny Maze 3D Game for Sony Xperia Smartphones appeared first on The Toonari Post - News, Powered by the People!.

Earlier this week it was revealed in the German magazine GameStar that a new game in the popular “SimCity” series was in the works.  Although no worldwide announcement has followed, a host of details are already available.

The game will be called SimCity, with no number or subtitle following it.  The graphics have been reworked, leading to more intricate and beautiful details, such as signs plastered up around town and on buildings along with people walking around and going through their lives, occasionally visiting eateries and other stores.

These details also add an extra element to the gameplay: it is now possible to see how a factory is running based on its animation.  At this point, however, there are no screenshots that actually depict how the finished game will look, as currently the only thing available is concept art.

The camera can also now be repositioned, moved around, and zoomed in and out, meaning fixed viewpoints are a thing of the past.  It is possible to zoom in on individual buildings and people, and doing so has a quirky effect: the closer the camera is zoomed in on the city, the louder the noises of the streets and people will become, but the farther out it is, the more quiet everything will seem.

The grid format the series has become associated with is getting redone, and it is now possible to create curved roads, as opposed to only straight ones, which will give the game a more realistic appearance.

Multiplayer has also been added, enabling trade between friends for different materials and resources, as well as leaderboards to show how individual players rank in terms of things like finance.  In addition, prices for resources in single-player may be regulated by the actual online economy of the game (although GameStar was vague here, leaving room for the possibility that the economy will be actually fluctuate based on events that happen in the real world).

Other bits shown reveal that buildings do not stay the same over the course of the game.  As time goes on buildings can unlock new powers, like a fire station being able to put out a fire that much quicker.  Graphs and charts telling the player the status of their city have also been simplified and made more modern in order to help make them more player-friendly.

At this time there is little other information available, but stay tuned for more details in coming months.

The article New SimCity Game Announced appeared first on The Toonari Post - News, Powered by the People!.

The Princeton Review has announced their “Top Schools to Study Video Game Design for 2012,” ranking The Art Institute of Vancouver, BC, Canada number five on the top 10 of the list for undergraduate schools.  This is The Art Institute of Vancouver’s third appearance on the list and the only school from Canada included in the top 10.

The Princeton Review conducted a comprehensive survey with 150 colleges in the United States and Canada. The survey asked approximately 50 questions associated with the video game design courses offered at these schools, with topics ranging from the quality of academics to the institutions’ facilities. Other important factors taken into consideration by the surveyors were faculty credentials and career opportunities. The company’s full report on the 2012 list is accessible now at http://www.princetonreview.com/game-design.aspx.

“We are very proud to be ranked again in the top ten list by The Princeton Review,” said John Mazzoni, President of The Art Institutes. “It is a testament to the great work by our faculty and staff at the school who are dedicated to achieving excellence and helping students reach their educational goals.”

Marc Aubanel, Academic Director for Media Arts at The Art Institute of Vancouver, has set the precedent for his school. Aubanel has an extensive background in the media arts industry including producing the TV program “Sanctuary,” which is now shown on the Syfy network.  In addition, Aubanel was previously a Vice President and Executive Producer at Electronic Arts Canada.

“Academic and professional programs in video game design studies – from very specialized college majors to highly concentrated graduate degrees – have evolved tremendously over the past 10 years,” said Robert Franek, Princeton Review’s Senior VP/Publisher at The Princeton Review, in a statement made for the press release announcing the study’s results on March 1, 2012 (http://www.princetonreview.com/game-design-press-release.aspx).

“We salute the schools on our list this year for their commitment to this burgeoning field and the innovative programs they offer. For students aspiring to work in this more than $10.5 billion industry and for the companies that will need their creative talents and skills, we hope this project will serve as a catalyst for many rewarding connections,” said Franek.

To learn more about The Art Institute of Vancouver’s Game Art & Design program, visit:http://www.artinstitutes.edu/vancouver/media-arts/game-art-and-design-d-curriculum-13615.aspx.To learn more about The Art Institute of Vancouver, go to www.artinstitutes.edu/vancouver.

For more information on The Princeton Review’s rankings for the top 10 graduate and undergraduate programs for video game design in North America, visit:  http://www.princetonreview.com/game-design.aspx.

The article Video Game Design Courses to Be Offered in North-American Colleges appeared first on The Toonari Post - News, Powered by the People!.

Asura’s Wrath may not be the best game you’ll ever play, it certainly won’t be the longest game you’ll play, and it definitely isn’t the most interactive game you’ll play. But it is still worth a play. After hearing the things I’ve already said about the game, you may be asking “Why?” and I don’t think you are crazy to wonder that.

So let me explain. Simply put, the game offers a fun and unique experience unlike any other. In all actuality, Asura’s Wrath is closer to an interactive anime as opposed to an action game, like God of War III.  In fact, I think Dragon Ball Z deserves a place amongst contemporaries just as much as the God of War games.

Asura’s Wrath’s roots as an anime can be seen in the game’s presentation. One thing that the game does to mimic the anime experience is present itself as episodic content, rather than one continuous story. The episodes are even broken up with little manga like segments and a “On the next episode of…” type of transition.  Don’t forget the over-the-top action in both the gameplay and cut scenes, which are a staple of almost every anime.

Then there is the ridiculous, but entertaining storyline which may seem like your cliché tale of betrayal and revenge. Still, it has its own unique flair that separates it from all the other, more mundane plotlines. After all, where else are you going to take on a giant Buddha in space? So now you have a chance to enjoy a piece of visual media that combines all of your favorite aspects of anime/manga, and video games,  in one tight, concise package.

While bursting at the seams with action, the parts where you are actually fully in control seem few and far between the segments of cinematic storytelling and Quick Time Events. Not to mention, the action is quite shallow. Your main source of damage output is the Light attack combo, which involves pressing square with the occasional triangle, which unleashes a heavy attack that changes based on context.

There are also cool counter attacks that change based on which faceless grunt’s skull you are bashing in at that particular moment. Bosses don’t have health bars, which makes these potentially epic duels reminiscent of your favorite anime’s battles. They are little more than a vehicle to get to the next cut scene. You just fill up your “burst” meter by bashing everyone’s face in, and when it’s full, you “burst” into yet another QTE that will shove you along to the next part of the story.

5. Presentation

Asura’s Wrath’s style is by far one of its best traits. The game is also certainly beautiful to look at, and it is both very, very unique and very, very odd. Not to mention it is also incredibly and unashamedly over-the-top.

4. Graphics

Everything looks good and is complemented by a unique art style.

3. Sound

Asura’s Wrath’s music is fantastic and does a great deal in sucking you into the action. The voice actors also do a pretty good job of delivering their lines and making them feel authentic.

2. Gameplay

Think of God of War III. Now think of God of War III with less complex actions and more QTE. Now you have Asura’s Wrath: satisfying gameplay with no “wow factor,” and a heck of a lot of interactive cut scenes. This applies to at least the first two-thirds of the game. The final third takes a page from Panzer Dragoon’s playbook, and turns into a similarly styled shooter.

1. Lasting Appeal

Let’s be honest here, single-player games almost always offer less value than games with multiplayer, and the divide is even greater when the single-player experience only lasts 6 hours. Asura’s Wrath isn’t quite justifiable with its $60 price tag, so either find a friend or two to split the bill with, rent it or wait until it is less than $40 is my personal recommendation.

Final Score: 3.5/5

This game is a great game, but it simply has a hard time justifying you spending your hard earned dollars on it. So while I do think it is worth a play, I think it isn’t worth it at this time. I am also to inclined to note that if you aren’t in it for the spectacle and are more concerned about the gameplay, then chances are that at the very least you will be a little disappointed.

Image Courtesy of    https://www.facebook.com/asuraswrath

The article Game Review: Asura’s Wrath appeared first on The Toonari Post - News, Powered by the People!.

March has a lot of huge video game releases, namely Mass Effect 3, MLB 12: The Show, Street Fighter X Tekken, Ninja Gaiden 3, Mario Party 9, and Resident Evil: Operation Raccoon City. There are also a few releases that will not make a huge splash, but will be eagerly received by fans of their respective series.

Examples are Silent Hill HD Collection, The Sims 3 Plus Showtime, FIFA Street, Naruto Shippuden: Ultimate Ninja Storm Generations, Silent Hill: Downpour, Tales of Graces f, Yakuza: Dead Souls, Rayman 3 HD & Warriors Orochi 3. There are also some big digital release-only games that gamers should look for, such as I Am Alive (which is XBLA only for now, but there will be a PSN release later) and Journey, a PSN exclusive. If you want to check out the full list of March releases look no further than the list below.

Note: These are North American release dates ONLY, so if you live outside of North America you will have to double check as the release date may be different in your region.

CONSOLE AND PC

1-Mar

• Deep Black: Reloaded – PC
• Vessel – PC

6-Mar

• Major League Baseball 2K12 – PS3, 360, Wii, PC
• Mass Effect 3 – PS3, 360, PC
• miCoach – PS3, 360
• MLB 12: The Show – PS3
• MLB 2K12/NBA 2K12 Combo Pack – 360
• Silent Hill HD Collection – PS3, 360
• Street Fighter X Tekken – PS3, 360
• Top Gun: Hard Lock – PS3, 360, PC
• Ridge Racer Unbounded – PC
• The Sims 3 Plus Showtime – PC
• XCOM – PC

7-Mar

• I Am Alive – 360

11-Mar

• Mario Party 9 – Wii

13-Mar

• FIFA Street – PS3, 360
• Journey – PS3
• Naruto Shippuden: Ultimate Ninja Storm Generations – PS3, 360
• Shoot Many Robots – PS3
• Silent Hill: Downpour – PS3, 360
• Tales of Graces f – PS3
• Yakuza: Dead Souls – PS3
• Warp – PC
• Sledge Hammer – 360

14-Mar

• Warp – PS3
• Shoot Many Robots – 360

20-Mar

• Armored Core V – PS3, 360
• Ninja Gaiden 3 – PS3, 360
• Rayman 3 HD – PS3
• Resident Evil: Operation Raccoon City – PS3, 360
• Warriors Orochi 3 – PS3, 360
• Kinect Rush: A Disney-Pixar Adventure – 360

21-Mar

• Rayman 3 HD – 360

23-Mar

• The Dark Eye: Chains of Satinav – PC
• Total War: Shogun 2 – Fall of the Samurai – PC

27-Mar

• Combat Wings: The Great Battles of WWII – PS3, 360
• Ridge Racer Unbounded – PS3, 360
• Test Drive: Ferrari Racing Legends – PS3, 360
• Tiger Woods PGA Tour 13 – PS3, 360
• Capcom Digital Collection – 360

29-Mar

• Rayman Origins – PC

31-Mar

• Birds of Steel – PS3, 360
• Blades of Time – PS3, 360
• Sorcery – PS3

HANDHELDS

6-Mar

• CRUSH3D – 3DS
• NCIS 3D – 3DS
• LEGO Harry Potter: Years 5-7 – PSV
• MLB 12: The Show – PSV
• Unit 13 – PSV

7-Mar

• 50 Classic Games – 3DS

13-Mar

• Planet Crashers 3D – 3DS
• Supremacy MMA: Unrestricted – PSV

20-Mar

• Rayman Origins – 3DS
• Ridge Racer – PSV

23-Mar

• Kid Icarus: Uprising – 3DS

27-Mar

• Alien Chaos 3D – 3DS
• Boulder Dash-XL 3D – 3DS
• Funky Barn 3D – 3DS
• Reality Fighters – PSV
• Silent Hill: Book of Memories – PSV

31-Mar

• Deer Drive Legends 3D – 3DS

Image Courtesy of    http://teamninja-studio.com

The article March Video Game Releases appeared first on The Toonari Post - News, Powered by the People!.

An e-mail sent out by Sony has confirmed that all “PlayStation Network accounts” will be renamed to “Sony Entertainment Network account” or “SEN account.” However Sony assures users that it is simply a name change and a part of their effort to establish a single, unified platform where users can get video game, movie and music content all in one place.

The email also explains some of the changes that  that will be made to the Terms of Service and User Agreement and Privacy Policy:

• New terms for parents of minor, subaccount holders regarding the limitations of chat parental controls. Your reacceptance of the Terms of Service and User Agreement and Privacy Policy affirms your consent to the sharing of your child’s data that may occur if your child utilizes certain communication functionalities on PlayStation devices such as PlayStation 3 and PlayStation Vita systems.
• New terms that explain the location-based services offered through the PlayStation Vita system. For parents of minor, subaccount holders your reacceptance of the Terms of Service and User Agreement and Privacy Policy affirms your consent to your subaccount holder’s user of these services on the PlayStation Vita system.
• A description of our “What’s New” section, which provides topical information about our services and advertisements.
• Information about pre-ordering content.
• The name of your “PlayStation Network account” is changing to a “Sony Entertainment Network account.”

Dear (User)

On February 8, 2012, your “PlayStation®Network account” will be renamed a “Sony Entertainment Network account” or a “SEN account” in conjunction with Sony Computer Entertainment’s PlayStation®3 system software and PlayStation®Vita system software updates. (Note, this change will not be applied to the PSP® (PlayStation®Portable) system at this time.)

For general purposes, this account change is a change in name only. Your username or password will not change, nor are we asking you to change them. In accordance with this transition, some necessary naming changes will be made to the TOS and Privacy Policy.

This transition is based on Sony’s goal to enhance its unique digital entertainment offering. As a series of these activities Sony started last September, PlayStation®Network will be aligned with “Sony Entertainment Network.” This helps us get closer to our goal of establishing a global comprehensive network platform of services across games, movies, music and more, all accessible from one convenient account.

Thank you for your continued loyalty and support during this transition.

Sincerely,
The Sony Entertainment Network Team

Barone Firenze / Shutterstock.com

The article PlayStation Network Accounts to be Renamed ‘SEN’ Accounts appeared first on The Toonari Post - News, Powered by the People!.

Warriors Orochi 3 is a hack and slash video game developed by Tecmo Koei and Omega Force for the Playstation 3 and Xbox 360. It is part of the Warriors Orochi series, which is a crossover between two of Koei’s most popular series, Dynasty Warriors and Samurai Warriors.

It is set in a fictional universe where the Serpent King Orochi creates a time rift in time and space and creates a new universe where characters based on real warriors from the Three Kingdoms era of China and the Warring States period of Japan (which are over a 1,000 years apart from each other) are brought together. Orochi wants to test the strength of the warriors of these two eras. Warriors Orochi 3 is a direct sequel to Warriors Orochi 2. The game was released in Japan on December 22, 2011.

Tecmo Koei America and Europe have recently confirmed that Warriors Orochi 3 will be getting a North American and European release, which will be a relief to fans who were let down when Warriors Orochi Z didn’t make it overseas. The game will be released for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 on March 20th, 2012 for North America and March 30th, 2012 for Europe.

For the first time in the history of the Warriors franchise’s history, the North American version will not have English voices and will in fact only have Japanese voices with English subtitles. While this may make some fans more hesitant to buy, it was most likely done in order to cut costs as there are around 130 characters and a lot of voice work. On a more positive note, now that Tecmo Koei no longer have to cast and record English voices, it should significantly hasten the  localization of the game.

The game features three new characters:

• Kaguya (Technique): Comes from The Tale of the Bamboo Cutter, a 10th century Japanese folklore.
• Shuten Doji (Womder): Based off a gigantic ruler of the Oni.
• Ne Zha (Speed): Based off of a Taoist protection deity.
• Susanoo (Power): Based off of the Shinto god of the sea and storms. According to Japanese mythology he slayed the eight-headed serpent Orochi.

In addition to the new characters from Japanese and Chinese mythology, the game will also feature special guests characters:

• Ryu Hayabusa (Power): The main character of Tecmo’s Ninja Gaiden series.
• Joan of Arc (Wonder): One of the main characters from Koei’s Bladestorm: The Hundred Years’ War, loosely based off of the historical figure Joan of Arc
• Achilles (Power): One of the playable characters in Koei’s Warriors: Legends of Troy, based off of the hero from Greek mythology.
• Ayane (Speed): From Tecmo’s Dead or Alive and Ninja Gaiden series
• Nemea (Technique):  Koei’s Trinity: Souls of Zill O’ll

The game promises fans great hack and slash gameplay along with new and improved features such as:

• Bonds System: The forming and strengthening of relationships between all of the different playable characters that have in  game benefits, such as more in-game dialogue and more powerful musou attacks.
• Musou Battlefields: A battlefield editor that allows players to edit any stage they have cleared in either Story or Free mode to create their own battlefields.
• Online Play: Two players can now play together online in Story Mode and Free Mode. You can either recruit a partner to help clear a stage you’ve already completed or respond to a recruitment request from another player.
• New Character Development: Your officers now have a special skill that they increase in proficiency of as they defeat more and more enemies.
• Weapon Fusion: Weapons become stronger with use and now you can fuse two weapons together to create a single, more powerful weapon. Weapon Fusion also allows for the transferring or strengthening of attributes.

For more information head over to the official site at http://www.tecmokoeiamerica.com/orochi3/ for the United States or http://warriorsorochi.co.uk/3/ for the United Kingdom.

The article Warriors Orochi 3 Is Coming To North America And Europe appeared first on The Toonari Post - News, Powered by the People!.

Radical Entertainment and Best Buy have revealed Prototype 2′s exclusive pre-order bonus – Sgt. James Heller’s Hardened Steel Vehicle Armor.

Planned to launch April 24, 2012, from Activision Publishing, a wholly owned subsidiary of Activision Blizzard, North American fans who pre-order the game at Best Buy by April 23, 2012 will gain access to this unique upgrade as well as a limited edition Prototype 2 poster while supplies last.  Head over to the Prototype YouTube page to see Hardened Steel Vehicle Armor in action, and be sure to visit www.bestbuy.com/prototype2 for more information, as well as other soon to be revealed Prototype 2 Best Buy exclusives.

“Prototype 2′s Hardened Steel Vehicle Armor allows Sgt. James Heller to jump into any military vehicle and shrug off even the most devastating attacks,” said Ken Rosman, Studio Head, Radical Entertainment. “Whether fighting off individual soldiers, helicopters, tanks, and APCs or all the above at once, this upgrade provides Heller a defensive advantage as he goes head-to-head against everything the enemy Blackwatch forces throw at him.”

The sequel to Radical Entertainment’s best-selling open-world action game of 2009, Prototype 2 takes the unsurpassed carnage of the original Prototype and continues the experience of becoming the ultimate shape-shifting weapon.

As the game’s all-new infected protagonist, Sgt. James Heller, players will cut a bloody swathe through the wastelands of post-viral New York Zero with unparalleled locomotion, building up a vast genetic arsenal of deadly, biological weapons and abilities as they hunt, kill and consume their way toward the ultimate goal – to kill…Alex…Mercer!

To find out more about Prototype 2, follow us on Twitter at www.twitter.com/radical_ent or check out www.prototypegame.com for the latest trailers, screenshots, special promotions and more! And for the truly dedicated, go to www.facebook.com/prototype and join the Prototype Army – a community of over 360,000 (and growing) fans that receive constant updates from the team at Radical, and early sneak peeks at new information and assets.

Prototype 2 is currently in development for Xbox 360 video game and entertainment system from Microsoft, PlayStation 3 computer entertainment system and Windows PC. The game is rated “M” (Mature – Blood and Gore, Drug Reference, Intense Violence, Sexual Themes, Strong Language. Content suitable for persons ages 17 and older.) by the ESRB.

The article Radical Entertainment’s PROTOTYPE 2 Pre-Order Bonus at Best Buy appeared first on The Toonari Post - News, Powered by the People!.

Singer songwriter Larry g(EE) recently debuted his EP, entitled Weekends. Released on December 10, Weekends showcases four unique songs from Larry g(EE) that highlight his strengths as a singer and his creativity as a songwriter. This Texas native brings a soulful charm to his music, along with a powerful band full of drums, piano, guitar, and a unique brass section that takes his songs to new heights.

His single entitled “Yo Mama” is a great introduction into Larry g(EE)’s signature style. This upbeat tempo track tells a story of a woman who has caught his attention. The powerful soul in his voice is something that’s not easy to produce, but he does it brilliantly. Backed by a talented band, this song is heavy with brass instruments which brings a musical element not normally heard in current mainstream music.

Aside from the musicality of the song, Larry g(EE)’s lyrics are well written and the hook is easy to sing along to.  The catchy bridge is a playful take off of Kelis’ popular hip hop song “Milkshake”, as he sings “Your milkshake may bring boys to the yard but that’s not how I’m playing these cards.”

The music video for “Yo Mama” highlights the distinct style and nature of the music. Dressed in suits, Larry and his band bring a retro flavor into the mix as he strays away from the often overdone melodies in current pop music. The natural soul in his voice comes out when he sings throughout the hook of “Yo Mama” and his individual sound helps him stand out from other current singer songwriters.

“I’m Your Fool” is another song that continues to show the promise in Larry g(EE)’s music. Starting off with a piano intro that builds up and continues throughout the song, “I’m Your Fool” brings an air of style heard from decades ago. Like his other songs, there is a presence of horns that is something special, and not widely heard in music today. He sings of past relationship regrets in this track.

“Now I know I’ve done a million things to push you away, and I can’t take back the games you never wanted to play.” The harmonies in this song help Larry’s voice shine as background singers pay homage to soul music of the past. “I’m Your Fool” is a more emotional song that shows the artist’s creativity. His voice is a bit more subdued than in other songs, but doesn’t take away from his special blend of talent.

Weekends continues on with “Camera Phone,” a fun song that depicts a man trying to pick up a girl that has caught his eye. “And my mind’s still buzzing from the night before,” Larry g(EE) sings, as he sees the woman he is fixated on. The retro feel of the song mixes with the contemporary vibe of the camera phone, while his playful lyrics are heard throughout.

“I’m thinking you and me tonight, tell your friends they can come on by, it’ll be alright,” he sings. It’s an energizing song that shows the singer’s versatility in his vocal strengths, as he goes from soft tones in the verses to the more soulful and powerful hook.

“Game” rounds out the group of distinct songs on Weekends. This fast paced song brings forward emotions of stepping away from a relationship where games are being played. His voice is continues to shine soulfully as he sings of his fed up attitude. A strong piano accompaniment is heard throughout and marries wonderfully with the horn section. The song ends off solely with instrumental music and highlights how talented his band is.

Larry g(EE)’s signature blend of contemporary lyrics and soul inspired music heard throughout Weekends is both creatively and expertly done. What he has uniquely done with music makes him hard to compare to other current artists, because his talent helps him positively stand away from the crowd.

Track Listing for Weekends – have a look at Larry g(EE) facebook as well for updates:

1. Yo Mama
2. I’m Your Fool
3. Camera Phone
4. Games

The article Larry g(EE)’s Weekend: A Promising EP appeared first on The Toonari Post - News, Powered by the People!.

The Square Enix Group, an integrated entertainment group, announces its first game title developed with Native Client, an open-source technology for running native compiled code in the browser. Launching with Native Client was made possible by the close work between the Square Enix Group and Google, who share a similar vision for bringing immersive applications to the web within the browser.

Yoichi Wada, chief executive officer of Square Enix Holdings, presented the group’s first title, Mini Ninjas, at a Native Client event held at Google’s headquarters in Mountain View, California to showcase the Square Enix Group’s commitment to industry-leading innovation in the browser.

“Gaming in the browser greatly expands the video game market to new consumers, devices and platforms,” commented Mr. Wada. “Native Client enables the same consumer experience in the browser as in a native application. With the power of this technology, Square Enix is pushing the boundaries of the browser gaming market to include high quality games in addition to our popular portfolio of casual games.”

“We’re excited to see developers such as Square Enix bring their rich, immersive content to the web with Native Client,” said Ian Ellison-Taylor, Director of Web Platform at Google. “Online games are a great showcase for the power of the open-source Native Client technology as it enables demanding applications such as console-quality games to run seamlessly and securely inside the browser.”

The first title to be launched, Mini Ninjas will be entering an open beta in December without download or installation of game software, bringing high definition, console-quality gaming to the Chrome Web Store. Mini Ninjas charts the journey of Hiro, the world’s smallest hero on his biggest quest, as he embarks on an epic quest to restore harmony to a world on the brink of chaos.

Guests invited to the Google launch event are able to play a demo of Mini Ninjas for Chrome. Additional titles from Square Enix’s group-wide lineup are planned to be made available in the browser within the next year. In order to play the Mini Ninjas open beta, you will need an upcoming beta version of Chrome (Chrome 17), which will be available in the coming weeks.

The article Google to Host Square-Enix Games in Chrome Browser Online appeared first on The Toonari Post - News, Powered by the People!.

Blizzard Entertainment has announced that Diablo III, the latest installment in their hugely-popular action RPG franchise, won’t hit shelves until 2012. “With every game we make, the temptation is always very strong to launch as soon as possible. However, we didn’t put so many years of work into Diablo III to release a game that was almost ready,” said Blizzard CEO and co-founder Mike Morhaime.

“The beta test is going very well, and we look forward to making the most of the extra time we’re taking to deliver an experience that lives up to our vision for the game and the expectations of our players. Next year is going to be an incredibly busy one for Blizzard, and we hope an incredibly fun one for Blizzard gamers,” he continued.

The announcement was not entirely unexpected, as Blizzard is notorious for the slow pace of their development process. Although Diablo III was announced in June 2008, its designers have adamantly refused to tie themselves to a release date, telling impatient gamers that the game will be released “when it’s done.”

Previously, Blizzard had hinted that they were hoping to release the game by the end of 2011. However, many fans began to question whether they would meet that target when the closed beta test didn’t begin until September 20.

Furthermore, feedback received during the initial stages of the beta test have convinced Blizzard to make some significant changes to the game, including a major overhaul for the Demon Hunter, one of the game’s five playable character classes. During the course of its extended development cycle, Diablo III has weathered a number of controversies.

Shortly after its initial unveiling, a vocal group of fans protested against the new art direction. They claimed that it was too colorful and too reminiscent of Blizzard’s other hit franchise, World of Warcraft. Despite howls of outrage on fansite forums, Blizzard refused to change direction.

More recently, Blizzard has caught flak for requiring players to be connected to the internet at all times while playing Diablo III, even when playing the game’s single-player mode. Additionally, they announced that players will now be able to purchase (and sell) in-game items for cash via an auction house, giving rise to claims that players who are willing to spend top dollar for items will end up having an unfair advantage.

In spite of the controversy, Diablo III remains one of today’s most-anticipated games, and the response to the beta has been overwhelmingly positive.

The article Blizzard: No Diablo 3 Until 2012 appeared first on The Toonari Post - News, Powered by the People!.

Microsoft has announced the release of their Windows phone 7.5 “Mango.” It will be released in September. This anticipated phone is set to include almost 500 new features.

A Feature of the phone makes it easier to stay in touch with friends and family, by integrating a new method of communication known as threads. With threads you can see if your friends are online on any social media platform.

These networks are intertwined in order to simplify conversations between friends. For example, if a friend starts up a conversation via Facebook and is no longer available on that particular site, then there are other services listed where that person can be contacted through, if they happen to be logged on elsewhere.

Multitasking is also very simple on the Mango phone. While running an application, the user simply holds the back button, and a screen displaying all the open apps springs up. He or she can then pan over to the open application of their choice.

Internet Explorer, quoted by the Corporate VP of Windows Phone, is said to be blazing fast, faster than the internet service provided on iPhone, Blackberry, and Android phone. Along with speedy internet, Windows included a new feature called Local Scout.

This feature tracks your location and makes suggestions of places to eat, activities nearby, shopping areas and highlights of areas that should not be missed. This feature will make searching for entertainment a lot easier for customers.

There are now more than 30,000 apps available in Microsoft’s App Hub but it still has a long ways to go to catch up to Apples App store with 420,000 Apps and Googles 250,000 Android Apps.

It was only about a year ago Microsoft launched their first version of the Windows phone 7. The phone received positive reviews but failed in the market after the release of several android phones and updates to the Apple iPhone. Microsoft has worked hard and has made many improvements to their smartphone in such little time.

International Data Corporation expects this phone to be a high competitor against Android and iPhones, predicting a market share of 20.9 percent by 2015.

pcruciatti / Shutterstock.com

The article Microsoft Windows Mango, Officially Windows Phone 7.5 appeared first on The Toonari Post - News, Powered by the People!.

Nintendo sold 3.61 million 3DS’ in its previous quarter. Since then, sales have dropped to 710,000 units in the last three months. Profits have also declined from lack of sales for other Nintendo products. The company lost 25.5 billion yen in the last 3 months ending June 30. They also had to lower profit and sales forecast by 82 Percent and 18 Percent, respectively.

Hearing news of this, Nintendo slashed the price for its latest innovation, the Nintendo 3DS, to $169.99 from its original price of $249.99 — a 30 percent drop. Price will come into effect as of August 12, making for a successful holiday season for Nintendo.

This was not the first price cut they made this year. Due to a drop in sales earlier this year, the Nintendo Wii also went down in price, from $200 to $150 on May 15. In the eyes of the consumer, spending $249.99 on a handheld system is no bargain, when a Nintendo Wii system costs $100 less.

What does this mean for the majority of consumers who have already purchased a Nintendo 3DS?  According to Nintendo, loyal customers will receive 20 free downloadable games from the Nintendo eShop. For 10 of those games, Nintendo has no intention of selling them in the future and they are redesigned exclusively for this purpose. Games included on that list are: Yoshi’s Island: Super Mario Advance 3, Mario Kart: Super Circuit, Metroid Fusion, WarioWare, Inc.: Mega Microgames and Mario vs. Donkey Kong, all originally from Nintendo’s Gameboy Advance console. Starting September 1, those members will also have access to 10 new games before they become available to the public. Super Mario Bros., Donkey Kong Jr., Balloon Fight, Ice Climber and The Legend of Zelda are some of the games featured on that list.

Another way Nintendo is trying to boost sales and profit is by releasing remakes of Nintendo classics such as Zelda: Ocarina of Time, Mario Kart, Starfox 64 and Kid Icarus.

They are hoping that its features will be enough to sell the product as well, with its access to Netflix, they are calling it a must have. In addition, the Nintendo Video service provides access to all sorts of 3D video viewing. Finally, Users have access to the Nintendo eShop, where they can purchase downloadable games, view game trailers and have access to product information.

Satoru Iwata, the president and CEO of Nintendo, is taking full responsibility for their losses, which has led him to voluntarily cut his $2 million pay check by 50 percent. He is not the only one taking a pay cut. Other representative directors are taking a 30% pay cut, and executives are deducting 20 percent from their salary. These will be very favorable moves for shareholders.

Nintendo is in the process of working on a new project, Wii U, which is expected to launch next year. In an interview, Iwata says that this new project will not be cheap and sell for about $250. Due to the company’s sacrifices and innovations, Nintendo expects to see an increase in its profits.

The article Nintendo Sales Dropped to 710,000 Units appeared first on The Toonari Post - News, Powered by the People!.

With the mass popularity of smartphone devices, nowadays, there is an ever increasing amount of the population with near-constant access to a very powerful, highly refined piece of technology. It’s not as if the basic idea behind the communication aspect of cell-phones is evolving much. People are simply finding more and more that having a powerful device with them at all times can be quite convenient.

Especially, it turns out, for the sake of mobile gaming, a relatively recent statistic published at Flurry.com (a mobile application marketing and analytics company) has revealed.

Revealed in the same blog entry is the fact that there are an estimated 250 million iOS and Android devices around the world, compared “to the 180 million Wiis, Xbox 360s and PlayStation 3s currently on the market.” Given this sort of information, what does this say about who “gamer” is now personified by? To have access to a seemingly endless number of games, one no longer needs to purchase a dedicated gaming machine (e.g. Xbox 360, Wii, Playstation 3, etc.).

Gaming is now a secondary function to a device that many individuals in the Western world clarify as a necessity. Yet, as Flurry.com’s study has shown, people are using their smartphones more and more frequently to game, with as many as 37% of the apps launched by smartphone users being games.

John Carmack, a long-time veteran of game development, recently stated that he believes smartphone devices will soon be “more powerful than the current-gen consoles.” At that point, when games like the ones we now play on consoles can be played on a phone, how will one distinguish “gamer” as a hobby? You may have heard some disambiguation with terms like “hardcore gamer” and “casual gamer” being thrown around, with the latter having a greater inclination toward mobile gaming. But these are also misleading.

What isn’t “casual” about only spending three or four hours a week playing games on an Xbox 360, and what isn’t “hardcore” about those who check up on their iPhones every ten minutes to play a few minutes of a game they’re currently invested in?

Perhaps the next few years will manage to distinguish these two very different types of enthusiasts, as differences in hardware become reduced on the respective gaming platforms, and the decision of gaming software becomes the clarifying criteria.

The article Mobile Gaming: Confounding the Gamer Title appeared first on The Toonari Post - News, Powered by the People!.