The first DLC installment for Borderlands, The Zombie Island of Dr. Ned, will hit Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 on November 24th, exactly two weeks from today. It will cost $10 USD, meaning 800 MS points. Unfortunately, there is no set date for when the DLC will hit the PC.

And before you all cry “OH GOD MORE ZOMBIES C’MOOOOON,” let it be known that I love zombies and I will fight to the death to defend their honor.

What you see above is the new special infected, The Spitter. You are forgiven for looking away, as it’s one of the strangest things I’ve seen come out of Valve’s art studio. the gallery below shows some new features of the game off, including some new weapons, the new types of zombie, and generally just the bleak looking swamp level. I can;t wait to get my hands on this game, if only just to shoot the monstrosity that is The Spitter right in the face with a shotgun.

Kotaku reports that the next DLC for Grand Theft Auto IV, ‘The Ballard of Gay Tony”, will be releasing on October 29 this year. The DLC will be available for download, or it will come in a retail box entitled ‘Episodes from Liberty City’ which contains both sets of DLC. The download will set you back 1600 MS funbux, and the retail disc will cost you $39.99.

Before I go, here’s a silly blurb made up by the PR man: “players will struggle with the competing loyalties of family and friends, and with the uncertainty about who is real and who is fake in a world in which everyone has a price.”

In a recent speech at the NAACP 100th anniversary event, President Obama encouraged parents to “put away the Xbox.” Microsoft took the President’s slight condemnation and spun it into a positive.

The President remarked:

To parents, we can’t tell our kids to do well in school and fail to support them when they get home. For our kids to excel, we must accept our own responsibilities. That means putting away the Xbox and putting our kids to bed at a reasonable hour. It means attending those parent-teacher conferences, reading to our kids, and helping them with their homework…

-to which Microsoft answered:

We agree with President Obama that it’s a time for families to work together so that kids use media in ways that are safe, healthy and balanced. Xbox 360 is the only console gaming system that has a timer feature allowing parents to set time limits for their kids, as well as parent controls to enable parents to set limits on what their kids are playing and watching.

That’s some pretty crafty work from Microsoft there, turning Obama’s remark into an endorsement of sorts. Put away that Xbox, kids!

Game Politics

In an interview with Kombo, PopCap Games’ PR director Garth Chouteau has noted that the highly acclaimed Plants vs. Zombies will follow its cousin Peggle onto other platforms: XBLA, PSN- even the DS and iPhone. Chouteau is quoted by Kombo on the matter:

…Peggle for XBLA is a good example of a game that we took that was popular on the PC and we spent probably twice as long as anyone else would have figuring how to make that game really good for Xbox and Xbox Live Arcade, and I think you will see that with Plants Vs. Zombies–I don’t know the exact order in which that game will make its way onto other platforms, but it’s certainly been successful enough, quickly enough, that we’re looking at other platforms and deciding where we’ll take that game next…

Since PvZ was such a success, both commercially and critically, it can only be good news that it can come to a bigger audience. I only hope that they make a DS version as good as Peggle DS.

In answer to an Q&A question on the Ubisoft forums, a Splinter Cell Conviction developer has noted that the game will not be released on the PlayStation 3. “Splinter Cell conviction is a true Microsoft exclusive title and there are no plans to have Splinter Cell Conviction on other platforms,” he writes. “There are several reasons behind this choice. First of all, Splinter Cell games are historically linked with Microsoft platforms… The second reason behind this choice is purely linked to production. Having a single target platform means that we can optimize the game even further, because we only have one type of – console – hardware to support.”

There you have it, folks. That game that you saw and loved at E3 will be unavailable to you if you do not have an Xbox 360. Therefore, you will be unable to buy the game and give Ubisoft your money.

For a couple of years now, we’ve been hearing rumors of Capcom and Marvel rereleasing Marvel vs. Capcom 2 online, but had never heard anything substantial, due to Capcom keeping a tight leash on any info they had. Well too bad, Capcom- an hour ago, in one fell swoop, Marvel announced Marvel vs. Capcom 2: New Age of Heroes for XBLA and PSN, and even post a trailer to go with it.

While the original Marvel vs. Capcom 2 for the Xbox and Dreamcast are considered rare because of their extremely limited print- even used copies in stores can run you upwards of $80- fans have been waiting for a reprint of the game for five years. As one of the most popular crossover fighting series of all time, people have even been holding their breath for a MvC3 announcement, even though Capcom has promptly shot down those dreams. Well they can’t shoot down this one- Marvel vs. Capcom 2 is back this summer, with the same menus, characters, fighting styles, that so many of us maybe a few of us know and love.

That’s right folks, this weekend you can play on Halo 3’s multiplayer totally free. To celebrate the release of the Mythic Map Pack, Microsoft have allowed all of their loyal customers, even the ones who don’t pay extra money to them, to play Halo 3’s multiplayer. So, if you’re one of the few people who has Halo 3 but no Gold account, dig out that disc!

Report from Famitsu that the sequel to Dynasty Warriors Gundam, cleverly titled Dynasty Warriors Gundam 2 or Gundam Musou 2 in Japan is getting five new scenarios to download on February 12th.  One is even themed!

Four of these new scenarios seem pretty standard, save the world type stuff but therei s one that really stands out.  Apparently the evil forces have stolen chocolate, yeah chocolate.  In a real war time Chocolate is a big deal, and this is a war during Valentines so you know chocolate is important on a whole other level.

Being the big hero you are, you have to go out and get the chocolate back from those bad guys.  According to the screenshot posted above apparently they are carrying most the chocolate inside their own mobile suits.  I know when I steal something as important as chocolate I don’t put it on freight ships to be taken far away from battle.  I keep it right in the fray were it is most needed….

I am not completetly sure but I don’t think this is out stateside yet, but I do hope you guys get these missions if/when it does release because there is no thrill like that of getting chocolate back for that mobile suit loved one.

The content will be available on the PS3 and Xbox360 but not PS2 (sorry guys).

Source:  Famitsu

I’m sure you’re all as sick of these “Gamer assaults family member for stopping games” stories as I am, but this one has a twist. Rather than using an actual weapon or engaging in fisticuffs, Zachary Moir of Orlando, FL chose to assault his mom… with a taco.

Reading through this story forwards and backwards, it seems taco doesn’t stand for anything, isn’t slang for something else, and isn’t a clever euphemism- he threw a fried tortilla with meat and cheese inside at his mom, guys. WOFL-TV of Orlando reports that Zachary Moir is in the Volusia County Jail after a domestic disturbance on Wednesday night. His mom apparently went upstairs trying to lure him downstairs for dinner, when she was forced to turn of his Xbox. In return, he decided to slap her arm and throw a taco in her face.

“He went ahead and hit me with the taco and I got taco all over my shirt and kitchen. I’ve threatened to call police before. But anyway this time, I thought he went too far so I called police and he’s in jail now.” reports Dena Moir, the assailant’s mom. She’s also refused to take his jailhouse calls in order to teach him a lesson.

If it were me, I would’ve done the same thing, but not because he assaulted me with a taco, but because he wasted a perfectly good taco. Punk bitch.

Shacknews reports that Fallout 3’s first downloadable content pack will be available on 27 January. Operation: Anchorage (the name of the pack) will allow players to liberate Anchorage from China, and you can play in the snow it will take about 4-5 hours to complete. The pack costs 800 MS points on 360 and PC, and nothing on the PS3. Seems like a good deal, but when you factor in that Microsoft’s exclusivity arrangement, your $0 will get you nothing. Still no love for PS3 owners, I suppose. The next packs are coming in February and March, if you’re not a snow fan.

[Update] Patch details after the jump, comes with free PC download link.

Bug Fixes

* Friends notification no longer causes the game to pause. (Playstation 3)
* Fixed occasional crashes during loading and waiting.
* Friendly or neutral NPC health bars, when taking damage, no longer flicker repeatedly.
* Fixed issue where certain NPCs would occasionally disappear from the game.
* Fixed issue where dead NPCs would occasionally come back to life.
* Fixed rendering issue with the Gatling Laser gun’s tracers.
* Fixed issue where the haircut menu would occasionally not appear properly.
* Added ability to remap your VATS and pip boy buttons.
* Fixed rare load/save issues that would cause NPCs to behave incorrectly.
* Fixed issue where quest objectives would occasionally not update properly due to talking activators, intercoms and conversations.
* Using Radaway from the Pip-Boy’s Status Menu repeatedly no longer crashes the game.
* Player no longer gets stuck in level up menu if their skills are maxed out.
* Fixed issue where multiple followers would occasionally not load into an interior.
* Fixed rare issue with getting stuck in VATS mode.
* Fixed rare crash with fighting NPCs with corrupted data.
* In game radios will now play properly if player was listening to the radio in the Pip-Boy first. (Playstation 3)
* Fixed rare crashes while loading and saving games.
* Fixed rare issue where player would fall through the floor while in VATS.
* Fixed occasional crash after scoring a critical hit in the head with a Railway Rifle.
* Prevent NPCs from inadvertently dying from falling.
* Fixed occasional issue where the controller would stop working properly.
* Fixed crashes related to repeatedly equipping and dropping clothing and armor into the world.

Quest Fixes

* Fixed several instances where quest item stayed in inventory permanently after completing quests.
* Fixed an issue where the distress message would occasionally not play in Trouble on the Homefront.
* In The Waters of Life quest, the Citadel gate will open properly if the player fast travels away after exiting the Taft Tunnels but before reaching the Citadel gate with Doctor Li.
* For the Home Sweet Home quest, the broken protectrons in Big Town become active at the proper time.
* In The American Dream quest, fixed specific issue which prevented the player from accessing their belongings in the locker by the door if they left the room first.
* Fixed infinite caps exploit in Strictly Business quest.
* Fixed rare instance where Dad would have no valid dialogue during The Waters of Life quest.
* Prevent issue during the Finding the Garden of Eden quest where player would fade to black, instead of traveling to Raven Rock, while in combat with a follower.
* Fixed several XP speech exploits with certain NPCs.
* Fixed XP exploit with a robot in Fort Bannister.
* Fixed issue where player’s controls can become locked permanently during The American Dream.

Download it here or here.

Shacknews reports that Capcom are releasing a demo of Resident Evil 5, the next in their line of acclaimed horror games (more recently: zombie shooters) on December 5. The demo is unfortunately restricted to those with a Xbox Live Gold Account- no signing up for a Silver account for a sneaky go at the demo for you, you cheeky rascal. The demo is reported to feature two stages, playable offline or online with a friend. There’s no word on a US or European release, or even a PS3 version. Still, it’s nice to see a demo this early; the full game doesn’t release until March 5 (JP) and March 13 (US). Those of you who just can’t wait to find out what the game is like, you’ll just have to read our preview.

For our readers in the US, rejoice! The demo for Dead Space, EA’s recent horror shooter, will hit the Playstation Marketplace and the Xbox Live Marketplace service on the 25th of November. For our European readers, rejoice slightly less! The demo for Dead Space is heading to Xbox Live Marketplace on the 25th as well, but the PSN release is set for the 27th. Still, it’s better than nothing, eh? Speaking of which, our readers in Asia may now begin not rejoicing- there is no date set for the demo on either marketplace, at least as far as Shacknews reports. PC gamers should also note that there hasn’t been any word of a demo for said platform.

Dead Space is a game that tends to garner mixed reactions; a demo is the perfect way to have a go at the game before you decide to buy. Roly’s review is another safe bet for those of you who need even more persueding. In any case, how do you feel about the game, or even the demo? Worth full price, or not?

It looks like people have already found an easter egg within the NXE avatar feature. While not a huge find, those of you that would like to give your avatar pink hair would do well to keep reading.

The method is simple. Go into the change my features section of the avatar creator and don’t click anything. After about a minute, the button for selecting a hairstyle will spin. Click it and you’ll gain access to a whole new page of vibrant, unnatural hair colors. Keep in mind that once you leave this screen, you’ll have to do the whole thing over again to access the new colors.

In the end, I stuck with my traditional brown hair, because I’ve not even bold enough to virtually dye my hair.

Platform Nation

I guess it just depends on whether you’re a pessimist or an optimistic pessimist. Speaking with CVG, Microsoft’s Jerry Johnson said “Half the things we wanted to do [in NXE] we cut out of the service.” Although consumers may not have to wait an exorbitant amount of time to see them come to fruition.

“There’s still a lot of stuff we want to do,” Johnson added. He then went on to explain that the new dashboard overhaul is built in such a way that allows for Microsoft to be able to add new functionality available almost instantaneously (the way he words it makes it seem optional, though), instead of the old Spring/Fall schedule. Johnson said ““There’s a Photo Party app that will be part of the platform, the way it will be distributed is all of a sudden you’ll see a slot on the dashboard and if you don’t have it you click on it and it’s going to download from the service onto your application part of the dashboard. Those are the type of things we’re going to start doing.”

The way he words it almost makes it sound similar to the  Wii Channels’ set-ups. Which in addition to avatars, are a proven way to bring the casual crowd in, arguably the main focus of this “New Xbox Experience.”

Johnson also confirmed that Xbox Live Primetime, their advent into server-based interactive game shows, will launch sometime in Spring 2009.

NXE itself will be available on Xbox Live November 19th, 2008.

Source: CVG

These stories are getting a bit stale, aren’t they?  Not stale enough, apparently, or maybe it’s just not important for Microsoft to fix their shit.  You see, my latest Xbox 360 is dead.  I purchased a new Arcade version in January after my then current 360 was assassinated.  I’ve been using it since then until it started freezing, at which time I moved it to the other television and used it solely for movie-watching.  Less than eight months later, it does nothing but blink red and laugh at me.

Seriously, Microsoft, what is your fucking problem?  Every few months I read about how all these improvements are being made and that 360’s are becoming more reliable.  Do you just make this stuff up?  Do they break more reliably or something?  My latest 360 demise came earlier than the other two, so if by more reliable you mean less reliable, then congrats — you’re definitely on the right track.

Everything that’s great about the 360 and all of this exclusive content you’re getting doesn’t mean a goddamn thing if I’m unable to enjoy any of it because my shit’s all busted.  The new Xbox Experience can go fuck itself unless my Avatar will sit inside my console all day performing maintenance to keep it running.

Don’t you realize that you are only hurting yourself?  Don’t you realize that the public opinion of the Xbox 360 is that it is an unreliable piece of garbage?  Don’t you realize that you are costing yourself more money by replacing 360’s over and over than you would if you just fixed the problem? What happened between the original Xbox, which I gamed on for 4 years with no problems whatsoever (and it still works to this day), and the 360, which I’ve owned 4 of so far in less than 3 years? And now it appears likely I will be getting a fifth one…

There are plenty of 360 fanboys out there that will claim “I’ve never had a problem”, and that may be true, but I don’t know a single person that has owned a 360 for more than a year that has not had to send it in for repair.  My guess is that the people that haven’t had any problems are most likely not using it multiple hours every day.  The failure rate is clearly 100% — it’s just a matter of when, not if.

My relationship with the 360 has become abusive.  I try to remember only the good times we had and pretend that the times he hit me are long gone.  The 360 keeps telling me that he’s changed, and I believe it because I love the 360.  Then, for no reason, the 360 gets mad and throws me down a flight of stairs, I call the police, and the 360 goes into rehab for 2 weeks.

Then he shows up at my door, gift-wrapped, and we go back to doing all of the fun things that made me love him in the first place.  Every time we get together, though, I’m always fearful that he will slip into his abusive ways.  Sometimes the 360 will freeze during a game, and I reset it hoping that I will see green lights and not red ones.  Sometimes I turn it on and see no lights for a few seconds, and I get scared.  I never know when the 360 is going to hurt me again.

For real, Microsoft, I am not very happy.  There are millions of 360 owners out there that you are also making not very happy.  That is not good.  You need to fix this problem NOW before one of us shoots you in the face.

Source: That blinking-red piece of shit in my living room.

So it comes with great, great relief and welcome that reports from the Leipzig show floor are coming of a new, redesigned 360 controller with an improved d-pad. The rest of the controller seems to be look the same, but the d-pad has been re-engineered to have eight-way input (hello shoryukens), and in general just feels smoother, more responsive, more tactile – better in every way. Hardcore Street Fighter IV players will obviously still want the arcade stick, but at least we know we won’t be completely gimped if we’re ever forced to use the controller.

According to IGN the controller will come out at the same time as Pro Evolution Soccer 2009 – which means autumn for Europe, but leaves us Americans clueless for now.

Source: IGN

This “news” comes straight from the angry father files. A Virginia family was having problems with their three children acting up as they played their Xbox, so the father took things into his own hands. Here is my guess as to how things went down.

The kids were arguing about which child was to blame for their parents forcing them to play games on a seven year old discontinued console. Just as they were about to point to the youngest one in curls, their father (lets go with a classy name like Jethro) walked in on them with beer in hand, belching words of encouragement as he ripped the black and green beauty from its trailer park wall.

Enraged that he would now have to put his beer down, the father grabbed a hammer, coughed up a few nails, and proceeded to smash Microsoft’s first attempt at console greatness into an unsuspecting and undeserving tree.

Finally the loving mother came home from her job (as a high paid corporate executive I’m sure), heard the news and rushed to keyboard to share it with the internet masses. The following is her post straight from ireport.com.

My husband had repeatedly warned our 3 boys about their behavior while playing the XBOX. Tuesday, after I arrived home from work, our oldest son told me to look in the backyard at “Dad’s artwork”. Well, I wasn’t surprised to see the XBOX proudly displayed on the nearest tree… way to go Honey!!!!!

Way to go Honey? I received my share of spankings growing up, don’t get me wrong, but my parents never ran to the local paper and asked to have my bare red ass cheeks posted on the front page.

I wonder if she will share the same level of satisfaction when he starts nailing the children and eventually her to massive slabs of bark in their backyard. Only time and Budwieser will tell.

[Thanks Phil]

Source: ireport.com (via: blogs.ign.com)

With just a few short weeks until E3 ’08, it looks like Microsoft has another trick up its sleeve.  Spurred from a few snapped photos of a K-Mart add for July 6th, it would appear that Microsoft is planning on dropping the Xbox 360 Pro Bundle from $349.99 to $299.99.

If this and the Xbox Avatars rumor turn out to be factual, it would seem that Microsoft is serious about grabbing some of the casual market from Nintendo.

Although this price cut could simply be a sales promo for K-Mart’s July 4th weekend sale, it is more likely to think we might see other retailers following suit in the near future. Here’s hoping.

Source: Shacknews, High-Def Digest Forums

While the Playstation was once home to all the greatest Japanese RPGs, the Xbox 360 has recently been stealing some of that star power.

Microsoft held an RPG conference in Japan today where Square-Enix announced Star Ocean 4 for the Xbox 360.

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Subtitled “The Last Hope”, the game is a prequel, taking place hundreds of years before the first Star Ocean. The game will also contain more science fiction elements this time around, feature a brand new battle system, and the ability to travel across different planets.

Star Ocean: The Last Hope is scheduled to arrive in 2009 for the Xbox 360. A PS3 version has yet to be confirmed, but is expected to be announced for the console.

Sources: StarOceanLastHope.com, Gamersyde

If you need something to tide you over before the June 29 release of Guitar Hero: Aerosmith, this might be the ticket. Activision has announced that five song packs will be released throughout this month. Starting on yesterday, two of the five packs are from Motörhead and three headline acts from the 2007 Isle of Wight festival.

The Motörhead pack contains “We Are the Road Crew,” “Stay Clean” and the self-titled “Motörhead.” The Isle of Wight pack features master recordings of Kasabian’s “Shoot the Runner”, Kaiser Chief’s “I Predict a Riot”, and The Sex Pistols’ live rendition of “Problems”.

Both track packs are now available on Xbox LIVE Marketplace and the PlayStation Store.

EA just announced that undefeated EliteXC mixed martial arts fighter and American Gladiator Gina Carano will be playing Natasha, a deadly Soviet commando, in Command and Conquer: Red Alert 3, which comes out for the PC and Xbox 360 this holiday season.

Not only will Carano appear in the live-action movie cutscenes, but her character will be a playable unit in the game.  Carano made these comments about her new role:

The last year has been such a whirlwind for me, from everything that’s happening with EliteXC this weekend to American Gladiators and now with EA and Red Alert 3.

Natasha is such a cool, powerful character; her actions definitely speak louder than her words which is something I definitely identify with. I can’t wait to see how everything turns out and I hope all of the gamers out there have a great time wreaking havoc as me.

Now is it just me, or is Command & Conquer turning into Dancing with the Stars? What’s up with using B celebrities in this franchise? Let’s see: so far we have James Earl Jones (Star Wars), Josh Holloway (Lost), Billy Dee Williams (Star Wars), Michael Biehn (The Terminator, Aliens), Natasha Henstridge (Species), Tricia Helfer (Battlestar Galactica), Jennifer Morrison (House), and Michael Ironside (Top Gun).

Who’s next on their list? Michael Madsen? Lance Henriksen?

EA has confirmed that the follow-up to SKATE is currently in development for the Playstation 3 and Xbox 360. No release date has been set at this time.

In addition to being praised for its environments and soundtrack, SKATE featured an innovative control scheme; using the thumbsticks the player could not only move around, but could launch grabs, perform manuals, accomplish flip tricks, and every other move possible. Hopefully the sequel will bring even more new features to the table.

Nintendo will also be seeing a version of SKATE on their platform in the form of SKATE It, which will utilise Wii Fit’s balance board.

Source: MCV.UK

EA DICE has issued a press release announcing that enlistment for Bad Company will commence on June 5th for the Xbox 360 & PlayStation 3.

The demo will give new recruits the chance to meet their fellow mismatch comrades in the single player component, in addition to fighting for the precious bounty in Gold Rush on the Oasis multiplayer map.

For all of you thinking about enlisting in North America and Europe, you can join the fight early on May 29th by pre-ordering the game.

Gold Fever Hits an All Time High With the Upcoming Battlefield: Bad Company Single-Player and Multi-Player Demo

REDWOOD CITY, Calif.—(BUSINESS WIRE)—You’ve been drafted to ‘B’ Company! DICE, a studio of Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ:ERTS) today announced that a demo for its highly anticipated summer release, Battlefield: Bad Company™ will be available on Xbox LIVE™ Marketplace and PLAYSTATION® Store on June 5. Players will land on the battlefield as part of the ‘B’ or Bad Company, a wayward band of soldiers more interested in the pursuit of gold and personal financial gain than following the rules. Gamers will get a sneak peek at how tactical destruction changes the way shooters are played, both offline and online in the single player and multiplayer demo.

Players can also gain early access to the demo by pre-ordering the game through participating retailers in North America and Europe. More details on this special pre-order campaign can be found at http://www.battlefield.com/badcompany.

Players who missed their opportunity to participate in the closed beta get a second chance to experience the intense multiplayer Gold Rush mode on the Oasis map while the single player portion starts gamers at the beginning of their ‘B’ company career. The single player portion of the demo sets the stage for players as they’re introduced to the humorous and sometimes irreverent set of characters that make up the ‘B’ company. As gamers embark on their quest for gold, they’ll experience the same classic Battlefield gameplay including access to numerous vehicles, weapons and open maps as well as the new tactical destruction that only Battlefield: Bad Company can deliver.

Source: Kotaku

In a recent showing of their popular PC and Xbox 360 zombie shooter, Left 4 Dead, Valve’s Marketing VP Doug Lombardi let the world know that they weren’t developing a PS3 version of the game. However, he did leave hope that the game could be ported to the PS3. 

When asked if EA would be porting the game over to the PS3, much like they did with The Orange Box, Lombardi replied,

Left 4 Dead doesn’t have that guaranteed appeal yet – it’s a new IP. If you mention a new Half-Life, people want to make as many versions of it as possible. If Left 4 Dead is big, then we may see a PS3 version later, or if and when we do a sequel, people may be more interested in that.

Lombardi went on to say,

We’re only 150 people, so there’s only so many things we can do. But it’s one of those things with partners, wanting to take on that investment and risk. I think until L4D is proven, you’ll probably just see what we make in that franchise.

It seems as though much of the concern with developing a PS3 version is the financial risk and Valve doesn’t want to have any part of it. Hopefully, Left 4 Dead does well on the PC and Xbox 360 to allow the possibility for a PS3 port.

Sources: CVG.com and PS3fanboy.com

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 1152×640p (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:

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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.

It almost sounds too good to be true. Almost? It is too good to be true. Could Cry Engine 2 on consoles really look any where near as good as Crysis on the PC? Crytek’s Engine Business Manager, Harald Seeley, states that they expect the console versions to “look like they’re running at high settings, or nearly high settings, on a PC.” *Shock.*

When asked what differences there would be between the PC and console versions of the Cry Engine 2, and whether the engine will be tailored to each platform, Seeley replies:

Yes, we definitely tailor the engine specifically to each platform. More than just the difference in CPU and video hardware capabilities of PCs and consoles is at play here. So are the much smaller memory budgets we must work with, the lack of a hard disk on some models, and the acceptance requirements of the hardware vendors themselves. All have an effect on how we approach each version of the engine.

The surprising thing has been how well the consoles can perform visually, once this tailoring is in place. We expect the final outcome will result in games that look like they’re running at high settings, or nearly high settings, on a PC. Actually, we found it as much or more challenging to address the memory limitations of the consoles when converting our current AI system, as we did while converting our rendering engine or physics system, which was not something you might have expected at the start.

As to the differences between Playstation 3 and Xbox 360 development, and the possibility of a Wii engine, Seeley states:

Well there is no doubt that porting our engine to the PlayStation 3 is the more challenging of our two ongoing conversion projects, but that works to our advantage in the end. We feel certain we have the ability to get the most that is possible out of that platform, and therefore PS3 games which run on our engine in the future will definitely stand significantly apart from other games that don’t.

We haven’t seen a great deal of demand for third party engines for the Wii, the limited complexity of games which can be developed for that console also limits the need for the kind of sophisticated tools and middleware which we are known for. So I doubt we will be providing any engine technology for that console in the near term.

Poor Wii, but bring out the parade for the Xbox 360 and Playstation 3! For the rest of the interview, please visit IGN.

The phallic puzzler Mr. Driller is coming to Xbox Live Arcade this Wednesday, April 2nd with some nifty features. Hit the jump for details. Mr. Driller Online, as it will be called, will feature two single player modes and two multiplayer modes.

The singe player modes will include Standard Driller and something called Quest Driller, while the multiplayer modes will allow up to four people to go head-to-head for the higher score or two people to team up and complete the game cooperatively.

Mr. Driller Online will be available Wednesday for 800 MS Points.

One of the most wanted features missing from the Playstation 3 is the ability to use a custom soundtrack during gameplay. Movement has been made in this area with some games beginning to offer support, notably Super Stardust HD and High Velocity Bowling, but it’s yet to be offered for all games.

Though many expect the inclusion to come when Sony supports an in-game version of Playstation 3’s cross media bar, the implementation of this feature might just stay with the developers, since Microsoft owns a patent for this very functionality.

Microsoft implemented the ability to play your own music during gameplay in their first gaming system, the Xbox. The functionality naturally moved over to the Xbox 360, where Microsoft was patiently waiting for a patent to go through.

The custom soundtrack patent was submitted well before the release of the 360, presumably with the intention to lock down the feature for the next generation. It wasn’t issued until mid-2006, luckily just before the US/Japan release of the Playstation 3.

The US patent named “Method and Apparatus for Creating and Playing Soundtracks in a Gaming System” appears to cover any application that allows users to create soundtracks using their own audio tracks, such that they can be played during the execution of the game instead of the game’s default soundtrack.

Comprising of a thorough list of points and diagrams, the patents stand out claim is outlined thus:

1. A method comprising:

- receiving a request to launch a game in a gaming system;
determining whether the game has a user-associated soundtrack;
- if the game has a user-associated soundtrack:
launching the game; and
playing the user-associated soundtrack;

- if the game does not have a user-associated soundtrack:
allowing a user of the gaming system to select a soundtrack to play while the game is executed; and
playing a default soundtrack if the user of the gaming system does not select a soundtrack.

What does this mean for Microsoft’s competitors? Will this patent stop Sony from implementing the console-wide custom soundtrack functionality? This is possible, and could be the reason why it has been missing from the Playstaiton 3 for so long.

Sony may have already found a loophole in the patent to allow them to provide custom soundtracks for particular games, as long as the functionality is not system-wide. In this way they could avoid the patent. Microsoft could charge Sony for the privilege, but it would be a lot of wasted effort to patent this particular feature and then allow competitors to implement it.

Therefore, when Sony’s in-game XMB eventually comes around, custom soundtracks might be left on the cutting room floor. It will all depend on how constricting the patent actually is, and how kind Microsoft are feeling. Reasons for the in-game XMB delay may be found here – Sony are trying their best to get custom soundtracks installed legally.

Source: US Patent Office

News coming straight in from Play.com Live in Wembley stadium is final confirmation that Haze will eternally be a Playstation 3 exclusive.

The full game is playable at the event – that’s right, the full game and Kev Lochun will be giving a preview this weekend. It’s looking clean and sharp, and overdosing on Nectar is a pleasing yet disorientating experience.

While playing through the game we got speaking to two independent Ubisoft reps. When asking both on whether the game will ever come out for the Xbox 360, they said in a resolute fashion that the game is not just a PS3 timed exclusive, but will never make its way onto any other platform.

This result is apparently a recent decision, but final. Sony must have paid Ubisoft/Free Radical a nice little packet to bag this one.