The Reboot

Unfortunately I wasn’t able to make it to E3 this year, but I can find comfort in knowing that I can “be” at E3 without actually “being there” thanks to the wonders of the Internet. Trustworthy gaming blogs like Destructoid and Joystiq are on top of things, providing gamers with a plethora of E3 info. Links to the biggest news so far can be found below.

6/2/2009
Joystiq - Hands-On with the PSP Go
Destructoid - MGS Rising for Xbox 360
Kotaku - God of War III Release Date Announced
Shacknews - Super Mario Galaxy 2 Trailer
1up.com - Gran Turismo 5 Debuts and Sony Press Conference
Voodoo Extreme - Metroid: Other M Trailer (Redux)
Gamespot News - Nintendo E3 Press Conference Wrap Up
Slashdot - Microsoft Debuts Controller-less gaming
Sony Reveals Motion Controller at E3
Gamevideos - WET E3 2009 Trailer
Loot Ninja - Gran Turismo 5 E3 2009 Trailer
IGN - New Games Revealed for Wii Sports Resort
Evil Avatar - MGS: Peace Walker for PSP

6/3/2009
Pastapadre.com - Madden 10 and NCAA Football 10 Videos from E3
TeamXbox.com - Perfect Dark Confirmed for XBLA
G4tv.com - New Zelda Game Announced for Wii
Crispygamer.com - FF VII Re-released on PSN
Nowgamer.com - Castlevania: Lords of Shadow Announced at E3

This month is big in terms of sports coverage. The NBA Playoffs, NFL OTA’s and the MLB regular season are just a few of the things going on in the world of sports. To commemorate the time, I decided to do an episode on the top five sports games of all time. One thing is for sure, Madden didn’t make my top five. But another football game did..

Pacquiao vs. Hatton, Street Fighter style.

A Chinese blog has posted pictures of what looks like a slimmer version of the Playstation 3. The rumored new model is similar to the PS2 redesign in terms of size and could be unveiled at E3. A smaller version of the PS3 would likely be welcomed by Sony fanboys, as there’s no denying that the current console is a behemoth of a machine.

I read the news over at 1up.com that Activision, the makers of the popular Guitar Hero series, is planning on releasing a rhythm-based game for the hip-hop heads. DJ Hero will include music in the following genres: electronica, dance, hip-hop, R&B, and Motown. A photo of the turntable peripheral has also been released.

I’ve had conversations with gamers in the past while playing Rock Band/GH. You know, the “yo, they should make a hip-hop/rap version of Rock Band..that would be SIIICCCK.” However, I’ve always been skeptical about this idea. I just don’t think you can replicate DJ’in on two turntables and a mic in a video game. How will the game play? Will the gamer just “scratch” to the beat while pressing a combination of buttons? Unless a mixer/fader is implemented into the game, I could see this getting old FAST. Nas might have been right after all..hip hop IS dead.

EA Sports unveiled a new trailer for Fight Night Round 4. The trailer features several new “fighter styles,” meaning a heavyweight will fight like a heavyweight and a welterweight will stick and move like he should. Fight Night Round 4 looks light years ahead of its predecessor, Fight Night Round 3. Here’s hoping the game is more like Manny Pacquiao as opposed to Ricky Hatton.

Via Joystiq

A demo version of UFC: Undisputed is now available on Xbox Live. Being a huge UFC fan, I have been anxiously waiting for the release of this game. The demo features only two playable fighters, Chuck “The Iceman” Liddell and Mauricio “Shogun” Rua. The two went toe-to-toe at last Saturday’s UFC 97 Pay-Per-View, with Rua practically forcing Liddell into retirement with a huge shot to the dome. I was hoping this demo would be as good as the Iceman-Rua finish and for the most part, it is. However, there are some minor issues that will hopefully be fixed by the time the game is released on May 19.

Positives:
-Deep controls scheme that’s easy to learn, but challenging to master.
-Moves and controls give an accurate representation of MMA. Striking is performed with the face buttons, grappling and jockeying for positions (side-mount, full-mount, half-guard, etc) is done using the right stick and submissions are done by clicking down the right stick and pounding down the face buttons.
-Fighters looks dead on like their real-life counterparts.
-Mike Goldberg and Joe Rogan do an excellent job analyzing a match. The play-by-play doesn’t sound “canned” and gives you the feeling you are watching a real UFC match. Bruce Buffer doing the intros is also a nice touch.

Negatives:
-Animations could be improved. Some of the transitions (grapple to takedown, knockouts, live action to replay) are terrible. In one case, I threw an uppercut that knocked Rua out, but the replay clearly showed that I didnt even hit him.
-The tutorial “guide” mode is way too slow. Before you perform any move in the tutorial, you are forced to watch a video of the move being done. Annoying. I’ll stick to exhibition mode, thank you.
-Fighters do not walk down the arena before stepping into the octagon, nor do Mike and Joe go over each fighter’s strengths and weaknesses. How could you not have this in the game?
-A.I. is not a challenge. I’m sure the demo is on it’s easiest difficulty level, because I button-mashed myself to victory too many times.

I just received an email this morning from Capcom. The company unveiled new details behind Street Fighter IV’s Championship Mode. Some of the highlights:

-Randomly seeded, single-elimination tournaments based on player skill.
-Double-blind character selection, which means you won’t be able to see who your opponent has picked until you’ve both made your choices.
-Those who disconnect during a match will be punished. The system will dock your progress in the tournament if you ‘pull’ during a match, so pullers will never be able to advance into the higher ranks of tournaments.
-The ability to upload replays from the Championship Mode tournaments.

Championship Mode is expected to be available for both Xbox 360 and PS3 April 24. How much is it? Absolutely FREE.