If you’re someone who’s shown an interest in a Blizzard game, but doesn’t have the money to shell for a high-end PC, you’re in luck. After some vague talking, Blizzard has announced that Diablo III is coming to us console kiddies. Blizzard Community manager Micah Whipple confirmed on his Twitter when asked about the possibility:

“Yup. Josh Mosqueira is lead designer for the Diablo console project.”

Mosqueira himself decided to pitch in on the talk by tweeting that Blizzard needs designers for consoles:

“Are you a game designer? Do you love Diablo? What about Diablo on console? If so we’re looking for you…”

At this time, there haven’t been any specific consoles announced, or a release date. But still, a Blizzard game coming to the consoles. Pretty sweet, right?

via IGN

• Why Diablo 3 on Consoles Wouldn’t Be Terrible
• Diablo III Undergoes Further Beta Changes – Companion Pets Cut From Release
• Diablo III Senior Producer Leaves Blizzard for “Bigger and Better Things”
• Diablo III Rated in South Korea; The Rest of the World Still Pending
• Blizzard Denies Diablo III Release Date Rumors
• Did You Know Diablo’s Deckard Cain Is A Kid From South Dakota?

It’s about damn time.  The sequel to one of the most beautiful and well received side scrolling platformers in years has finally gotten a release date… next week!

That’s right, Trine 2 is coming to PC and Mac on December 7th and to consoles on December 20th!

Here’s the full release from Frozenbyte:

Helsinki, Finland – 5 December 2011 – Finnish game developer Frozenbyte is pleased to announce that the Steam and PC/Mac retail versions of Trine 2 will be released on December 7th, 2011.

“FINALLY!” says Lauri Hyvärinen, CEO of Frozenbyte, but continues: “Alas, fans will have to wait a little longer for the console versions. Trine 2 will be available in North America for PlayStation 3 system via PlayStation®Network on December 20, and worldwide for Xbox 360 system via Xbox LIVE Marketplace on December 21. A European release date for the PS3 system version of Trine 2 is still awaiting confirmation but we hope it won’t be far behind if delayed at all. The console releases might be arriving a bit later, but they are still in time for the holidays!”

Trine 2 is available for pre-purchase now on Steam and other channels, including GamersGate and Direct2Drive. The regular edition is priced at $14.99/12.99 euros/11.99 pounds. The Collector’s Edition is available for $24.99/19.99 euros/17.99 pounds. The Collector’s Edition includes a digital artbook with developer commentary and the original soundtrack by the acclaimed composer Ari Pulkkinen. All PC/Mac versions use Steamworks for easy multiplayer, Achievements, Steam Cloud and Steam Play support. A DRM free version of Trine 2 is coming in 2012.

Focus Home Interactive is releasing the retail, physical copy of the PC/Mac Trine 2 Collector’s Edition in Europe this week. The retail Collector’s Edition includes the beautiful physical artbook and the digital version of the soundtrack.

Trine 2 is set for December 7 release on Steam for PC/Mac, December 21 for Xbox LIVE® Arcade for the Xbox 360 video game and entertainment system from Microsoft, December 21 in North America and later in December in Europe for PlayStation®Network for the PlayStation®3 computer entertainment system, later in 2011 in the Mac App Store for Mac, and in 2012 for Linux.

So there you have it.  Pre-order now!  It’s so pretty!

• Steam Sale Day Nine: F.E.A.R, Black Ops 50% off
• Steam Sales Day 5: Dirt 3 66% off, Rage 50% off
• The Steam Holiday Sale is Now On, Until the First of January
• Ninja Release: Trine 2 Is Out on Steam?! Sweet.
• Steam Autumn Sale Day 3: Deus Ex: Human Revolution, Dead Island
• Steam Begins Autumn Sale: Day 1 Brings Savings on Mass Effect 2, Portal 2

Rockstar Games has announced that L.A. Noire: The Complete Edition is coming to the PlayStation3 nd Xbox 360 on November 15, 2011 in North America and November 18, 2011 internationally.

Similar to its PC counterpart, L.A. Noire: The Complete Edition on consoles will feature all of the previously released downloadable content for L.A. Noire, including the “Nicholson Electroplating” Arson case, “Reefer Madness” Vice case, “The Consul’s Car” Traffic case, “The Naked City” Vice case , “A Slip of the Tongue” Traffic case, The Badge Pursuit Challenge, and all weapons and outfits released to date.

As if you didn’t know this was coming.  Why do you people buy games new anymore, anyway?  :-p

For more on L.A Noire, be sure to check out the RipTen Review!

• Rockstar Says “L.A. Noire Isn’t Complete Yet”
• L.A. Noire – ‘Reefer Madness’ DLC Trailer
• New L.A Noire Trailer Reveals Release Date
• Rockstar Shows Off Their New Tech With Max Payne 3
• Grand Theft Auto V is Official – Trailer Coming Next Week
• L.A. Noire: The Complete Edition Hits PC November 8th (Includes Specs)

It’s been a long time coming, but Crytek‘s legendary PC melting 2007 hit, Crysis, is finally coming to consoles.

On October 4th, you can get Crysis on PSN and XBL for $19.99 (1600 MS Points)

However, the game will not be an XBLA title (It’s too big, baby), it will be available on games on Demand - so look for it there.

Are you a console gamer who missed out on the original Crysis?  Will you be picking up this sexy new tweaked CryEngine 3 version?

• Original Crysis Gets Release Date on XBL and PSN
• Crysis Is “Not” An Xbox Live Arcade Title
• Original Crysis Will Be a Downloadable Title on XBL and PSN
• Original Crysis Hits Xbox 360 and PS3 Next Month – Can You Run It?
• Crysis 2: Retaliation DLC Map Pack Out Today
• Direct X 11 Support Coming For Crysis 2… Tomorrow?!

Earlier this morning we reported that the orignal Crysis would be heading to Xbox 360 and PS3 sometime in October. Many of you probably thought it would be a standard retail game for $60. Well let me say, I have some great news for you. Crytek has announced that Crysis will be a downloadable title via PSN and XBL. This remastered version for console players using Crytek’s state-of-the-art CryENGINE 3 will allow all new lighting, effects and other visual optimizations.

Cevat Yerli, CEO of Crytek stated:

“We are extremely proud of what we were able to accomplish with Crysis. We set out to create a next-generation FPS and delivered a PC experience that became a benchmark for quality – and still is for many gamers even four years later. By bringing the single-player campaign to console, we believe we are again setting a new standard for quality in downloadable gaming.”

Crysis will launch on XBL and PSN next month for $19.99 (1600 MSP).

• Original Crysis Gets Release Date on XBL and PSN
• Final Fantasy V Now Available on PSN
• Crysis Finally Comes To Consoles on October 4th
• Infamous 2: Festival of Blood Scheduled to Release Oct. 25th
• Red Dead Redemption Myths and Mavericks DLC Coming This September
• Burnout CRASH! Announced with Screens

We all know PC gamers are charismatically defensive of their platform.  Yet the reluctance of allowing developers loyal to the PC onto other platforms is only holding back the industry.  Now Blizzard is seeking to defy its persistently loyal audience by “seriously considering” bringing Diablo 3 to the consoles.

Alongside the announcement of the ultra-difficult “Inferno” mode, and without saying word of a release date, lead designer Josh Mosquiera at said at Gamescom that:

“We’re trying to build the best console team at Blizzard. We’re looking for programmers, designers, artists who think their dream job would be to bring Diablo to the console.”

So, apparently, it’s been confirmed.

But the question remains: would the port be successful? None of Blizzard’s modern day iterations of their key franchises (Starcraft, Warcraft and Diablo) have made their way to the consoles properly before, so the experiment would be a huge gamble. Only going on brand recognition alone, Blizzard has consistently high sales because consumers expect quality.  Moreover, the implementation of Battle.net (Blizzard’s online profile service) has prolonged the shelf life of any iterations from the three famous franchises. Could Blizzard garner the same type of community on consoles matching what exists on PC? It’s hard to tell.

Typically, both mediums are considered separate. But PC-exclusive companies are realizing an audience exists within the console community that doesn’t slave themselves over a Call of Duty game.  Valve and Crytek, both previously PC exclusive, brought their star franchises to the console with favourable results.  Many even said Crysis 2 is the best-looking console game to date.   Valve even made it possible for PS3 and PC players to play co-op on Portal 2. A precedent does exist, and if Blizzard could establish Battle.net without any hiccups or issues with the console makers,  they could amass sufficient if not insane sales.

It’s possible! I’d love to see the console audience embrace Blizzard’s franchises with open arms. Perhaps this could further enclose the relationship between the PC and console fan base. Though, to ensure success, Blizzard should allow interconnectivity through the two platforms.

One thing is sure, next year should be fun.

• Diablo III on Consoles? You Bet Your Ass.
• Diablo III Senior Producer Leaves Blizzard for “Bigger and Better Things”
• Did You Know Diablo’s Deckard Cain Is A Kid From South Dakota?
• New Diablo III Trailer Is Epic
• Behold The Diablo 3 Collector’s Edition (Details)
• Behold the Diablo III ‘Black Soulstone’ Cinematic

Risen was a pretty good PC RPG.  It wasn’t great, but it certainly didn’t suck.  However, when German developer Piranha Bytes went ahead and tried to port it to the Xbox 360… the result was rather awful.

The average MetaCritic score for Risen on PC was a respectable 77, but the average on Xbox 360 was… 60.

The game suffered from all sorts of graphical issues, gameplay glitches and other problems as a result of it being nothing more than a “console port”

Risen publisher Deep Silver‘s brand manager Daniel Oberlerchner is well aware of this and admitted such the other day during a conference call saying that they, “utterly failed” at bringing Risen to consoles.

Luckily, Piranha Bytes and Deep Silver are determined not to have this happen again and are developing Risen 2: Dark Waters for all three platforms separately.

Hopefully now Risen 2 will not only be a fine PC RPG, but a pretty damn good console one as well.  It’s scheduled to be released in the first half of 2012.

Stay tuned to RipTen for continued coverage of Risen 2 and all things Deep Silver.

• Making the “Piratey” World of Risen 2 (Video)
• Risen 2 Will Feature 35-50 Hours of Pirate Roleplay, Personal Ships, Killer Parrots, Wenches and Whores
• Risen 2: Dark Waters Gameplay Teaser Trailer
• New Risen 2 “Making Of” Video Talks Factions
• New Risen 2 Screenshots Yarrrrrr
• Trine 2 Finally Gets a Release Date

Batman: Arkham City is shaping up to be bigger and better than it’s predecessor in every way.  That means story, gameplay, and of course… graphics.

This week I had the chance to sit down with Paul Crocker, the lead narrative designer for both Arkham Asylum and Arkham City.  Low and behold, he had some great things to say about what he and the team at Rocksteady are working so hard on.

First off, when asked about Catwoman – Paul said that she was nearly first on their list of characters they wanted to have playable, it was just a matter of ‘if’ they could pull it off.  They really wanted to push themselves to deliver a different experience from the first game, and having the two characters playable with an intertwining storyline really helped them to achieve that goal.

I pressed Paul for details about hopefully seeing Robin playable in more than just the challenge missions (since he’s so badass now) but alas, he replied that they have no plans to bring Robin into the game in a greater playable capacity at the moment.

However, when I asked if there would be any BIG surprises in store for players in the game, he replied, “Oh, yes”

He went on to say that since people know and love just about every character in the Batman universe, keeping things a secret and letting the player be surprised is that much more important to them.  The team at Rocksteady knows it’s infuriating for players who want to know every detail of the game before it hits stores, but they believe that the payoff is worth the frustration:

“You have no idea how hard we worked to keep Scarecrow under wraps the first time… it was insane.  Yet, I think everyone who got to experience the game, was thankful for that moment”

When I grilled him about how amazing Arkham City looks on PC thanks to their partnership with Nvidia, he said that it was obviously brilliant since they develop on PC, but that Rocksteady’s goal was to make the game look as good as possible on all platforms.

I then asked, “Why do you go that extra step, when so many other developers don’t?”

“What’s brilliant for us, and also terrible for us, is that we’ll make this thing look amazing on the PC, and then have to find a way to keep the quality of the visuals on consoles.”

A rough task indeed, given how capable PC’s are of pumping out next gen graphics and how far ahead of consoles they are at this point in this gaming generation.  However, when I asked if he thought it was time for new consoles yet, he had this to say:

“I would buy a new console if it came out tomorrow, but I don’t know if it really is time.  Arkham City looks great on the current gen, so I can hold onto that money for a bit longer.”

“Our goal is to make all versions of the game look as absolutely stunning as we can”

And indeed it does.  Both Paul and myself admittedly have had to do double takes when checking out Arkham City.  Only upon close inspection did we realize it wasn’t the PC version, but in fact the Xbox 360 version that was being shown.  Paul went on to say:

“I’ve walked into rooms and gone, “Is that the PC version?”  and been “Amazed” that it was the Xbox version”

So, by all accounts, it looks as if Rocksteady will prove once again that they are a developer who can go toe to toe with the best of them and deliver a gaming experience in the current generation that is second to none.

“Honestly, we just want to make the best Batman game we can”

Stay tuned to RipTen for continued coverage of Arkham City and all things Rocksteady.

Editor’s Note:  I know you guys are used to me doing video interviews, and I do indeed have this entire conversation on video.  However, it was far too noisy in the press room for me to publish it as such. 

Deal with it ^__^

• The Penguin Gets His Own Batman: Arkham City Trailer
• Watch Nightwing Kick Ass In His Arkham City Trailer
• Batman: Arkham City – Nightwing & Robin DLC Packs Dated and Detailed
• Arkham City Will Have New Game Plus+
• Batman Arkham City to Feature 3D Gameplay on Xbox 360
• Halo: Combat Evolved Anniversary – Comic Con Gameplay Trailer

In a conversation with NOW Gamer, the Publisher of Bandai Games Kei Hirono, cofirmed the Xbox 360 and PC versions of Dark Souls will be identical.

“Officially there is no difference between PS3 and 360 versions,” said Hirono, “Dark Souls is 120% harder than Demon’s Souls. you will die thousands of times before the end of the game.”

120% harder?  Wow, now that is a challenge, but if it’s anything like Demon’s Soul it will likely be worth it.

Dark Souls is scheduled for an October 4th release.

Source: NOW Gamer

• New Metro: Last Light Gameplay Trailer Does Not Do The Game Justice
• Jaffe Releases Glorious Stick Figure Concept Art For Twisted Metal
• Behold Bioshock Infinite’s Complete E3 2011 Gameplay Demo!
• id Explains Why RAGE Looks So Damn Good On Consoles
• Behold The First Two Minutes of the BioShock Infinite E3 Gameplay Demo!!
• BioShock Infinite Gets 39 E3 2011 Best of Show Awards

It was only a matter of time.

The Xbox 360 version of The Witcher 2: Assassins of Kings has just been officially announced within an Optimus stock market filing. Optimus is the parent company of CD Projekt.  That about says it all.

They’ve also just made it double official during their summer Pre-E3 presentation!!

They say there will be no quality compromise… we’ll see about that.

Thanks Ausir, you’re my favorite Pollack!

• The Witcher 2 Advanced Graphics Options Are “Uber”
• Behold The Full Patch Notes For The Witcher 2, Version 2.0
• Namco BANDAI Suing CD Projekt RED
• President Obama Given The Witcher 2 Collector’s Edition By Polish Prime Minister
• The Witcher 2 – A Pre-Review To Die For
• Get The Witcher: Enhanced Edition (Director’s Cut) For $4.99!!

It was erroneously reported by a number of news outlets that Rockstar‘s latest work of art, L.A. Noire, was breaking Xbox 360 and Playstation 3 consoles after its launch last week.

Rockstar has released an official statement shutting the widespread rumor down and confirming that the freezing issue was related to a very small number of consoles and the whole ordeal was exaggerated.

The statement released from the company read:

“With the launch of L.A. Noire a very small number of Xbox 360 console owners have reported issues with the game freezing or locking up while playing.  We posted some troubleshooting tips on our support site for these very few people, a common practice for any game publisher. Unfortunately this was erroneously picked up by some news outlets as a ‘story,’ reporting that L.A. Noire was causing issues to Xbox 360 consoles – which is categorically untrue.”

I was also a victim of my Xbox 360 constantly freezing during games and I later discovered it was because the console was on its last legs, so perhaps that’s the case for those encountering similar issues.

• Rockstar Announces L.A Noire Complete Edition for Consoles
• Updates Coming on Rockstar’s LA Noire
• APB For Consoles Still A Possibility
• Total PS3 Sales Close to Xbox 360 But Gap May Widen
• RipTen Review: BurgerTime World Tour (XBLA)
• Afterfall: InSanity Demo Now Available

Nintendo led in the Hardware count with the DS selling 2.5 million while the Wii moved 2.36 million units. While this sounds good, both systems were down from their numbers posted last year.

The Xbox 360 saw incredible growth in December, moving 1.86 million consoles in its best sales month ever recorded by tracking firm NPD – the only console that improved it’s numbers when compared to 2009.

The PS3 came in third out of the major consoles moving only 1.21 million units.  The DS passed the PSP in total U.S. sales.

The NPD recognized Call of Duty: Black Ops, Madden NFL ’11, Halo: Reach, New Super Mario Bros. Wii, and Red Dead Redemption as the top five titles of 2010 in terms of sales volume.

YTD 2010 numbers detailed.
Here are the complete numbers below:

Hardware
Nintendo DS – 2.5 Million
Wii – 2.36 million
Xbox 360 – 1.86 million
PS3 – 1.21 million

December 2010 Top 10 Games (New Physical Retail only; across all platforms incl. PC)
01. Call of Duty: Black Ops** (360, PS3, Wii, NDS, PC) ACTIVISION BLIZZARD
02. Just Dance 2 (Wii) UBISOFT
03. World of Warcraft: Cataclysm** (PC) ACTIVISION BLIZZARD
04. Assassin’s Creed: Brotherhood** (360, PS3) UBISOFT
05. Donkey Kong Country Returns (Wii) NINTENDO
06. Disney Epic Mickey** (Wii) DISNEY INTERACTIVE STUDIOS
07. Madden NFL 11 (360, PS3, Wii, PS2, PSP) ELECTRONIC ARTS
08. Michael Jackson The Experience** (Wii, NDS, PSP) UBISOFT
09. NBA 2K11 (360, PS3, Wii, PSP, PS2, PC) TAKE 2 INTERACTIVE
10. Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit (360, PS3, Wii, PC) ELECTRONIC ARTS

**(includes CE, GOTY editions, bundles, etc. but not those bundled with hardware)

Annual 2010 Top 10 Games (New Physical Retail only; across all platforms incl. PC)
01. Call of Duty: Black Ops** (360, PS3, Wii, PC, NDS) ACTIVISION BLIZZARD
02. Madden NFL 11 (360, PS3, Wii, PS2, PSP) ELECTRONIC ARTS
03. Halo: Reach** (360) MICROSOFT
04. New Super Mario Bros. Wii (Wii) NINTENDO
05. Red Dead Redemption (360, PS3) TAKE 2 INTERACTIVE
06. Wii Fit Plus** (Wii) NINTENDO
07. Just Dance 2 (Wii) UBISOFT
08. Call Of Duty: Modern Warfare 2** (360, PS3, PC) ACTIVISION BLIZZARD
09. Assassin’s Creed: Brotherhood** (360, PS3) UBISOFT
10. NBA 2K11 (360, PS3, PS2, PSP, Wii, PC) TAKE 2 INTERACTIVE

• Year to Date and Lifetime to Date NPD Hardware Sales Numbers
• Xbox 360 Slim Outselling Wii and DS
• New Video Game Releases: Feb. 6 – Feb. 12
• New Video Game Releases: Jan. 16 – Jan. 22
• New Video Game Releases: Jan. 9 – Jan.15
• New Video Game Releases: Dec. 12 – Dec. 18

Bungie has not made a PC game since 2001.  However, news coming out of the BMO Digital Entertainment Conference seems to suggest that Bungie is indeed developing a title for all platforms, both PC and console, and that it will be online.

A presentation slide from Activision at said conference has apparently confirmed that Bungie’s first game for the publisher will be an online game for both PC and consoles.

Can't Argue With The Powerpoint

If this is indeed true, the game will be Bungie’s first PC game since Oni (2001) The PC ports of Halo and Halo 2 don’t count. :-)

Source

Image Credit

• GDC11: Bungie’s Next Game Confirmed to be an MMO
• Test Drive Unlimited 2 Delayed to Early 2011
• Activision Reveals Details for True Crime
• Skyrim Update 1.4 is Live on Xbox, PS3 Later Today – Full List of Changes
• Behold, Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning’s Epic Release Trailer
• New Video Game Releases: Jan. 30 – Feb. 6

Blizzard is and always has been a very PC orientated company. From World of Warcraft to Starcraft and everything in between. Well Blizzard is possibly looking to change that, if a recent interview with MCV is to be believed. Blizzard’s Vice President of Entertainment: Michael Ryder, said;

“Our heritage actually goes back to console, in the early years Blizzard made console games. It’s not the heritage, it’s the design decisions and what we think is best for our players.”

I actually remember playing Diablo (Yes more Diablo from Bryce) on the Playstation, and I loved it. Ryder then went on to say;

“In the more recent years it has been PC and online orientated. But we play all kinds of games at Blizzard. We try to learn wherever we can. We play console games and we are up-to-speed on the console platforms. And if we see an opportunity where the game design would work well on the console, then maybe we will go that way. We just haven’t announced anything yet.”

Could Blizzard have an ace up their sleeves? Or is all their effort focused on Diablo III? I’ll shoot myself if that hits consoles. Seriously. Would you like to see a high caliber group like Blizzard produce more console titles? Let us know below.

• Diablo III Cannot Be Played Offline
• Blizzard Hiring for “Console Diablo III”
• BlizzCon to be Broadcast Live on DIRECTV
• Diablo III on Consoles? You Bet Your Ass.
• Blizzard Announces Price Drop for WoW Expansions in Europe
• Did You Know Diablo’s Deckard Cain Is A Kid From South Dakota?

The CEO of web-based gaming site InstantAction, Louis Castle, has told attendees of the 2010 Develop Conference that the problem of game piracy is not restricted to PCs, and that consoles are definitely going to have to deal with the problem as well.

”Piracy is not exclusive to PCs, I assure you it is coming onto consoles,” said InstantAction CEO Louis Castle. ”I used to be a hacker in my very early days, so I know anything that can be made can be hacked.”

Castle is an industry veteran, and is on the GDC  advisory board- so it’s worth noting his words. It’s interesting to note that current-gen consoles have actually done well to prevent piracy, especially the PS3. I agree with him, however, that everything can be broken into by hackers. They just re-route the mainframe to the fizmobob, creating a fi-os tunnel to the encryption zone. It seems so simple when put like that, but if you’ve watched any hacking movie you’ll know how hard it can be to manage it in time.

• Trine 2 Finally Gets a Release Date
• Bungie’s Next Game Coming To All Consoles and PC Online?
• APB For Consoles Still A Possibility
• The Old Republic on Consoles Hasn’t Even Been Considered
• EA Sports Games Axed for PC, And It’s All Your Fault
• Gaming Trends Part 2: The State of PC Gaming

When APB was announced, it was announced as an MMO for the Xbox 360 and the PC. Later, they delayed and eventually dropped development of the 360 title to focus their efforts on the PC version. Now Realtime Worlds’s David Jones is saying that a console version could still happen- with some caveats.

If they are able to find a few things, then a console version of APB is absolutely possible. For one, a publishing partner is needed, as they would have trouble publishing a console game themselves, unlike the PC version. They’d also have to figure out pricing, as an MMO on the console hasn’t been done to the extent that figuring out pricing is no longer an issue. And most importantly, they’d have to figure out how to run dedicated servers for consoles. With the PS3, I imagine it would be much easier to run servers, as Microsoft has been notoriously controlling of Xbox Live.

Jones goes on to say that they’re going to keep building on the PC version of APB, and that a console version would require a redesign. Holding your breath for a non-PC version of APB isn’t such a good idea, I’d think. Reviews continue to say that the game suffers from repetition, so I can’t see them being successful with a console version of a paid-subscription game. [Joystiq]

• RipTen Review: BurgerTime World Tour (XBLA)
• Afterfall: InSanity Demo Now Available
• Bethesda Announces Skyrim Has Uber Successful Launch, Ships Way Over 9000 Copies
• RipTen Review: Sonic Generations (Xbox 360)
• Call of Duty Elite May Not Come to PC
• More Fallout: New Vegas DLC Incoming in July

Stars Wars fans pondering the possibility of The Old Republic coming to home consoles are all alone, because BioWare hasn’t even talked about it.

According to Star Wars: The Old Republic lead designer and writer Daniel Erickson, there has been zero talk amongst the developers of even trying to port their much-anticipated MMO to consoles.

“I have no idea if it’s possible. I’d have to ask our tech director. I can tell you that it’s not anything that we’ve even discussed. There is no-body anywhere in Bioware laying the groundwork for that because we have a very large complicated game to ship first.”

I’m not normally an MMO guy, but I am very much a fan of BioWare and Star Wars, so I’ll excited for Old Republic, and I’m even more excited to see the developers not worrying about anything at this point other than making an awesome game. I’m also not a huge PC gamer, but I completely understand why it’s the ideal platform for a game of this nature.

“There was not a question when we started Old Republic – or any of our games, for that matter – [what the lead format would be]. There’s a reason the lead SKU for Dragon Age was PC as well. When we’re developing an RPG, it’s a natural place to be.”

If it ain’t broke, don’t port it to consoles. Or something.

(Source: Quickjump)

• BioWare Acclimatizing New Players to SWTOR With Tutorial Video Series
• BioWare Announces Star Wars: The Old Republic Guild Summit
• BioWare Explains how Bugs and Exploits are Handled in SWTOR
• State of SWTOR: January Edition
• SWTOR Ability Delay Issue Resolved in Latest Patch
• BioWare Posts Updates on SWTOR Ability Delay and Ilum PvP Situation

Remember when there was that rumour that the console version of The Witcher had been cancelled? It turns out it was partially true. WideScreen, the game’s developer, has confirmed that the game has been pushed back, thanks to CD Projekt (the owner of the IP) not having enough money.

Widescreen boss Olivier Masclef said that “I will try to find any solution for the fans. The Witcher on console is an extremely promising title that’s awaited by a lot of people. We have it running here, and I can tell you that if it hits the shelves one day it’s going to be great…” Oh, and don’t worry- no staff have been laid off.

• The Witcher 2 – 125 “Ultra” Quality Screens To Die For
• The Witcher: Rise of the Wolf Combat Gameplay is Cinematic
• ‘The Witcher’ Creators Named Entrepreneurs of the Year; Witcher Console Release Semi-Announced
• The Witcher: Rise of the White Wolf set for PS3 and Xbox 360
• Makers of The Witcher Say Thank You for Helping Them Help You Be Totally Badass
• PC Review: The Witcher – Enhanced Edition

Street Fighter 4, from what I understand, is not getting a legal arcade release in America (correct me if I’m wrong), but never fear!  The US is getting the console version on both PS3 and Xbox 360, and a character that you may or may not have known was coming was Ryu and Ken’s teacher, referred to as Gouken.

In the arcades here in Japan, he is not a playable character but does show up from time to time if you’re playing right.  I haven’t seen him or Akuma (Gouki) at all in the arcade game because I don’t play it all that much.  He will, however, be playable on the home consoles, and his moves seem to be somewhat of a mix between Ryu, Ken, Akuma (Gouki), and a dash of something all his own.

From what I was told by buddies in school during the heyday of Street Fighter, Gouken had been killed by Akuma over some dispute between them — apparently that was false and he was just in hiding.  Now he is back and ready to take out the other Street Fighters in the new incarnation.

I also remember back in high school, there was an April Fool’s joke where if you beat Street Fighter a certain way you got to fight this guy.  Yeah, my friends and I worked on that a whole weekend once only to later realize it was a hoax.  Those evil, evil men…  Anyhow, this time it’s real and here are some screen shots to prove it.

If he is worth playing or not is yet to be seen.  He is a very imposing man to say the least.  I wouldn’t wanna fight him.

The console version releases around February 12th in Japan, followed shortly thereafter by the U.S. and UK releases on the 17th and 20th, respectively.

Source:  Famitsu

• Super Street Fighter IV (3DS) Impressions
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• Super Street Fighter IV Coming to Arcades
• RipTen Review: Street Fighter IV (PC)

It’s fun to compare consoles, especially when the comparison involves one of the biggest games of this generation. Grand Theft Auto IV has been littered with websites giving their opinions on which version looks best. Surprisingly, most had no inkling of each version’s native resolution.

Eurogamer are the first to speculate that GTA IV on the PS3 runs at 630p. When in fact, it doesn’t… It runs at 640p.

Yes, GTA IV on the PS3 is sub-HD. And if it couldn’t be any more ironic (the traditionally Playstation series runs at a lower resolution) it has the same resolution as Halo 3 on the Xbox 360 – perhaps the first game to receive the sub-HD back-lash.

The man who spilt the news? The now infamous Quaz51 of Beyond3d technical forums. PS3 GTA IV runs at 640p with 0xAA, in comparison to the Xbox 360 version at 720p with 2xAA.

Eurogamer, who base almost all their multi-platform comparisons on Quaz51′s findings, were using opinions from B3D’s technical wizard before he had received a reliable PS3 screenshot. In receipt of a high-res shot, Quaz51 had this to say:

Good news [...] it’s 1152x640p (and no AA) exactly like Halo 3, Perfect Dark [Zero] or Dark Sector PS3.

The resolution itself is unsurprising, but the side by side comparisons carried out by numerous websites tell a more complex story. For example, in IGN’s head to head, the PS3′s Anti-Aliasing is cited as being the better of the two versions, even though the Xbox 360 has 2xAA. This could be due to the upscaling and post-processing effects smoothing the edges on the PS3.

In their review, IGN continues to state that due to the PS3′s mandatory install there is less loading and less pop-in than on the Xbox 360:

For those wanting to know which version looks better, the edge goes to the PS3. The textures and framerate are comparable, but the PS3 has far less pop-in. The 360 has richer colors, but the PS3 has better anti-aliasing making it look a little cleaner. Because GTA IV can preload onto the PS3 hard drive, the in-game loads are faster. Don’t worry Xbox owners, the load times are rarely more than 30 seconds and don’t occur very often.

In another nod to differences between the two versions, EGM mentions that the “PS3 version looks slightly more vibrant and sharp.” You’d think the Xbox 360′s higher resolution would facilitate the sharper look.

Native resolution, thus, appears to have less of an impact than we might have first thought. At least, you are more likely to notice indirect differences, than the lower resolution itself. For example, upscaling on the PS3 appears to have some positive graphical results, which may explain why some websites say it looks better. Eurogamer’s Rich Leadbetter hypothesises:

It’s worth noting that due to the post-processing effects the game employs (there’s a serious amount of stuff being done to the raw frame), the PS3′s lower resolution serves to mask a lot of the nasty after effects.

For example, look at the dithering on the signs in the background on those shots. A bit ugly on Xbox 360, but smoothed and blurred away on PS3, presenting a generally nicer look.

In the end, what really matters is that both versions run extremely well and at an almost locked framerate. There are certainly differences on paper, but many will find it difficult to notice them in the game:

[gamevideo http://www.gamevideos.com/video/id/18625]

Which version of GTA IV should you buy? Due to the game’s impressive multiplayer – buy the version where your friends reside, because you could potentially spend hundreds of hours duking it out online.

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