In a world overrun by corporate greed and rising oil prices, one man chooses to defy the will of a nation. Greed. Power. Hope. Love. And a little bit of ketchup. This is the blog of Seth Golovin.

• 12Oct 08

  Exclusive Game Coverage: Next Fest 08

  NOTE: There will be pictures of many of the things here later. If you want more info on the show, its exhibits, and pictures go to http://www.wirednextfest.com/

  Today, myself and several of my friends headed down to Millennium Park in Chicago to attend Next Fest 08. The festival showcases the latest in design and technology, including several games. The show floor was divided in several booths, each with a certain theme. The first exhibit was one from EA Sports.

  Hoops Interactive happened to be out of service during the show, but even without the ability to play, several great concepts were shown off here. To play Hoops players walk up to a 360 degree screen and shoot virtual baskets with an incredibly lifelike recreation of NBA star Dwayne Wade. The player stands at a certain distance from the screen and pretends to shoot a basketball. If the shot is well done Wade will commend the player, whereas, if the player misses, Wade will deride him. Players can also hold a limited conversation with Wade. While the broken sensors made it impossible to test out the game in action, I can tell you that Wade's digital recreation was startlingly realistic. In fact, it wasn't until reading about the game later that I realized that I wasn't looking at a movie of the NBA star. It was probably the most accurate face recreation I had ever seen and was far beyond anything seen on current gen consoles.

  After walking past some robots, one of which can reassemble itself if destroyed, we made it to what initially seemed to be a hi-def screen on which you could play pong. In reality what we were seeing was iPoint Presenter. Like the name suggests, this computer and screen allows users and players to control onscreen action just by pointing. By standing over a sensor, A friend and I were able to engage in a game of Pong by moving our fingers up or down, depending on which way we wanted the paddle to move. The sensors measured our movements relatively well, although there were a couple times that the paddles went a bit haywire for a second. Overall I don't see an issue with this type of control being used in the follow up to the Wii, for example. After all this is essentially motion control without the need of a remote. Of course the uses of the technology beyond the gaming sector are equally obvious, and I could also see a wall mounted computer being controlled like this in the near future.

  Next we headed over to the back of the convention hall where Toyota had some crazy cars and personal mobility vehicles on display. The first car was one of the smallest I had ever seen. It is called the 1/X and is a lightweight hybrid vehicle. The cooler exhibit was Toyota's line of personal mobility vehicles. The PM looked like a one seat car with some crazy sci-fi trappings. This prototype evolved down to the i-REAL. While I didn't wait in line to test drive it, think of the i-REAL as a sci-fi wheelchair. If you've seen WALL-E, the chairs in that movie were eerily similar to what was on display here, including arm mounted screens for video chat, multiple height settings, fast movement, and simple controls. It was simply one of the coolest things I had ever seen, but at the same time it was a bit scary seeing a vehicle that Toyota claimed could replace the need to walk. Here are some pictures of these vehicles for your enjoyment.

  On the right side of the convention hall were booths for environmental projects, security, and play. The environmental stuff included a couple cool gizmos, like plastic made from orange peels, and an advanced solar panel technology that would make solar energy cheaper to produce than coal. The security booth I pretty much skipped over on my way to the play booth.

  Front and center at this booth was brain ball. This new age sport is a ball game played with your brain. Two players sit on opposite sides of a long table. A ball is in the center of the table. Each player puts on a headband and is then instructed to relax. The more the player relaxes, the more the ball moves towards the other player. Essentially the game is won by the player who can relax the most. The exact mechanics of how the ball moves just by thought was beyond me, but I know that the headbands monitor players' brain waves. How that translates to a moving ball is beyond my comprehension. I didn't try out the game myself, but my friends did. They said it worked very well and was pretty fun.

  Next to brain ball was the longest line in the show, which I didn't stand in. The exhibit was for a virtual reality machine called immersa-dome. The machine engulfs players in a virtual world, complete with touch, taste, and smell. Like I said I didn't try it out, but based on the excitement surrounding it I assume it was pretty cool.

  Tucked away at the back of the booth were the two games I came to see, Flower and The Misadventures of P.B. Winterbottom. Flower was running off a normal looking PS3, and didn't exhibit any sign of being a game still in development. Essentially Flower puts you in control of a single flower petal that must go around collecting other petals and curing dead grass. To do this you only need to fly over other flowers and the petals will attach onto yours. If you fly into a patch of flowers in the middle of dead grass the grass will turn green and more flowers will appear. The game seems pretty simple, and controls very well. You use the left analog stick to move forward and tilt the controller to turn. The motion control is very responsive. I always felt completely in control of my petal, and the controls were intuitive enough that I was able to pick up and play the game quickly without any onscreen prompts.

  Probably the highlight of Flower is the presentation. The game is beautiful to say the least, with thousands of blades of grass animating independently and your petals flying around with realistic physics. A couple of the rock textures look like they could be improved before the game's final release, and there didn't seem to be all that much depth to the proceedings. The game's release date wasn't mentioned anywhere in the exhibit and all the staff were busy running Brain Ball and the Immersa-Dome so I didn't get a chance to question them. The game looked and played like a final version though, so I wouldn't be surprised to see the game released before the end of the year.

  If there was one thing I was excited to see going into Next Fest it was The Misadventures of P.B. Winterbottom. Billed to me as the next Braid, it didn't quite live up to those expectations, but for a student made game without any real funding it was incredibly fun and innovative. P.B. loves pies. In fact he loves pies so much he will do most anything to get them, including manipulating time and cloning himself. Before I go into specifics, know that the game was running on a Windows computer but was played with an Xbox 360 controller. All of the in game prompts were for 360 controls. Because of this I wouldn't be too shocked to see this game come out on XBLA sometime in the future. While there were no reps on hand, none of the material presented mentioned a publisher or platform for release so I'm assuming this game still hasn't found a home.

  P.B. looks a bit like Charlie Chaplain, with an umbrella, mustache, and top hat. He can jump and use his umbrella to float long distances. He can also hit enemies and break objects with his umbrella, and will also bow with the press of a button. What the use of the last feature is remains a mystery to me, but I assume it has an application beyond looking cool. P.B.'s coolest power though is his ability to make a clone of himself. Once made, the clone will do exactly what P.B. did directly before making him. A couple applications were displayed for using this ability. While I didn't play the later levels, the one I did play was rather interesting. The pies on this level (kind of like puzzle pieces in Braid) could not be picked up unless a button was pressed. Unfortunately, the button was timed, so while P.B. could get to one pie easily on time, the other pies were left uneaten. If all of the pies haven't been consumed when the clock runs down then the pies all return. The solution, obviously, is to place a clone on top of one pie, press the button and then get the other pie yourself. While the first level only let me create a single clone, later levels involved multiple clones, moving platforms, and several pies spread all across the level.

  Winterbottom has one other thing going for it. The game is played almost exclusively in black and white, with levels that resemble something from an expressionist movie like Metropolis. In between levels title cards are displayed which give you instructions and goals for that level. The animation, on the other hand, was very basic. The actual platforming also didn't feel as solid, especially compared to games like Mario or Braid. But if a publisher signs this game more time and money can be devoted to fixing up those minor issues. I strongly hope The Misadventures of P.B. Winterbottom finds a publisher and is released on the market sometime next year. The game has a great foundation, and with a little more money and time it could become the biggest thing in indie gaming since Braid.

  Well that concludes my coverage of Next Fest 08. Hopefully I'll get a chance to go again next year and bring you more of the latest in technology innovation.

  • Posted Oct 12, 2008 9:09 pm PT
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• 11Oct 08

  Next Fest Coverage, TGS Impressions, Microsoft Shooters and More

  Yesterday I attended Next Fest 08 and got a chance to play some crazy games from the likes of EA and Sony. My full write up will be posted tomorrow, but I want to assure you that what I saw is way cooler than anything shown at TGS this year, and, except for Flower, you probably haven't heard about any of it.

  Speaking of TGS, what a lame show. A lot of people have been saying that industry trade shows are obsolete, that it's now better for companies to hold individual press events. I don't really know how I feel about this. Honestly, TGS was the most boring trade show of the year. Almost no new games were announced, Nintendo wasn't present, Sony didn't have a press conference, and Microsoft's sole new title was Ninety Nine Nights 2. But hey, by having a press conference Microsoft got most of the headlines at the show, which, along with the recent price drop, should continue Microsoft's recent headway against Sony in Japan.

  Looking back at my list of most anticipated games, things were even worse than I predicted. On the PSP front only a couple games were shown, and most were Japan only. Probably the only game that I was even kind of interested in was Loco Roco 2. Star Ocean 2, being out in Japan wasn't mentioned. Kingdom Hearts Birth By Sleep was shown, but no videos were released. Normally there'd be some crazy Japanese PSP game that would look crazy good, but this year my PSP game of the show has to go to a CGI trailer for Undead Knights. After all, with less than 20 games on display (and at least a fourth of them from Square Enix so not shown to the public) there really wasn't much to see. As far as the biggest announcement on the PSP front, well there wasn't one really. So let's move on.

  My list of DS games happened to include 3 SE games that weren't shown to the public, so that was a bust. There were many more games on display total, but almost none of them looked good. I honestly couldn't even pick a game of the show on this system. I'll continue my search and report back later.

  As far as Wii goes, not a single game seemed in any way appealing, and Madworld wasn't even shown. So that kind of ends in disaster for the Wii. Oh wait, Muramasa: The Demon Blade looked ok, but if it's anywhere near as aggravating and cheap as Odin Sphere I think I'll pass.

  Ok on to 360. There were probably more cool games on display for 360 than any other console, which makes me wonder why this system is doing so bad in Japan. Halo 3: Recon looks awesome and could breathe some much needed life into the Halo franchise. Bayonetta (Also on PS3) was really cool looking and over the top. Star Ocean had some great looking character models, and Ninja Blade looked like an easier, more simplistic version of Ninja Gaiden. My 360 game of the show would have to be Banjo Kazooie mainly because it showed actual gameplay unlike Recon or Bayonetta. I'm actually really looking forward to that game. Also, where was Cry On? The Mistwalker game was announced way back in 2005 at the same party that unveiled Bullet Witch and Heavy Rain for 360. Well those games have now been released, but there hasn't been a sign of Cry On since that very first announcement.

  The PS3 had to be the biggest disappointment of the show. After Sony cancelled its press conference one had to assume that no new games were going to be shown, even after Sony claimed that it had 12 new games to unveil. Neither the new Team Ico game, nor God of War 3 were anywhere to be seen. And the only big announcements from Sony were for a garbage puzzle game, and online play for White Knight Chronicles.

  So I don't know about everyone else buy I'm thoroughly disappointed. Be sure to read what I got to see at Next Fest as the games on display there were way cooler and had never been displayed before.

  Now on to an entirely different (but sort of related) topic.

  Microsoft's Xbox has often been seen by shooter fans as the console of choice. There are many obvious reasons for this, not the least of which is that Microsoft has put out some of the biggest console shooting games since the release of the Xbox in 2001. In fact, it seems that every year Microsoft puts out at least one big shooter around Christmas that drives sales for the system and continues the belief that the Xbox is where the good shooters are. Since I love making lists I think I'll add a little one to this blog. Here are the shooters released by Microsoft every year.

  2001- Halo: Combat evolved

  This one started the trend, and jumpstarted the Xbox, assuring its place in the annals of gaming history.

  2002- Mechassault

  Obviously not as big as Halo, this game helped launch Xbox Live and was a solid mech shooter in its own right.

  2003- Brute Force

  While this game actually came out in the summer, it was still the big shooter for Microsoft that year. It was also the company's first real failure in the market.

  2004- Halo 2

  This game proved that online console shooters could be done as well, or better than, their PC brethren. It was the biggest release on Xbox and for good reason.

  2005- Perfect Dark Zero

  This poorly designed Rare game was another bust, but it received tons of hype and arguably helped the 360 launch, at least to an extent.

  2006- Gears of War

  The Epic developed 3rd person shooter was Microsoft's first huge success of the new generation, and was reason enough for many hardcore players to drop the dough for a shiny new Xbox 360.

  2007- Halo 3

  While not as revolutionary as Halo 1 or Halo 2, this game was definitely solid and provided nice closure for the series.

  2008- Gears of War 2

  Obviously this game has yet to be released, but there's no reason to doubt it will be every bit as good as the first one and then some.

  Now let's project into the future a bit.

  2009- Halo 3: Recon?

  I would be surprised if this was Microsoft's big shooter exclusive of '09, but it's a possibility.

  2009- Perfect Dark 2?

  This project has been rumored for some time. Rare doesn't have any project lined up after BK, so a new PD is always a possibility.

  2010- Halo 4?

  It would keep with the 3 year theme that Microsoft has had going for seven years now. It's rumored to be in the works at Gearbox among other places.

  2010- Bungie Shooter?

  Bungie has three projects in the works. With Halo 3: Recon being one, the other two are still unknown. One could very easily be a shooter set in a new universe or a rebirth of the Marathon series.

  2010- Gears of War 3?

  Well there were two years between one and two, so it only makes sense that there will be another two years between two and three.

  This could mark the last year of the 360 lifecycle, but assuming that it isn't let's keep going.

  2011- Could be any of the above games. I would assume that Gears 3 and Halo 4 wont come out in the same year, so I assume whichever one doesn't come out in '10 will be released in '11.

  2012- This year will see the next Xbox hit the market if it hasn't already before then. So expect Microsoft to announce a new franchise to keep things fresh in the new generation. But also expect Gears 4, Halo 5, Perfect Dark 3, and so on.

  My big issue is with the 2009 game. I'm worried that Microsoft's big game of '09 is going to be a Halo 3 expansion. It will sell well for sure, but that doesn't mean Microsoft shouldn't release another new shooter, be it a sequel to Perfect Dark, or something entirely new. I hope I'm wrong about this, but something tells me 2009 is not going to be Microsoft's year.

  • Posted Oct 11, 2008 8:50 pm PT
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• 9Oct 08

  Addicted to GS

  I always laugh when people say they are quitting Gamespot. I know a couple days later the pull starts getting to them. Within a week they find themselves smoking some game reviews and shooting up blogs. People try so hard to escape, but even with professional help it drags you back, kicking at screaming. The more you try to leave the harder it gets. Each minute away feels like an eternity. You find yourself sitting in class or at work and suddenly that spreadsheet starts looking all orange and black. The next thing you know your boss is yelling at you, its three hours later, and you've just read five reviews, a preview, and four features on games you don't even care about. Next you find yourself ignoring your wife/girlfriend when she calls you. The phone is just a arms length away, but you have to keep clicking the refresh button. You can't miss the announcement of Barbie Horse Playhouse, not even for the sake of a lifetime of happiness. Soon you are selling shirts for your membership fees. You stop going to work. You eat only during the wee hours of the morning after you've read every article on the site, and you wake up before dawn to get ready for the next day's worth. Your house slowly falls apart around you, but as long as your eMachine desktop and 56k internet connection still work you don't care. Your friends worry about you but you know that Kevin VanOrd, Ricardo Torres, and the other editors are your true friends. They are the ones who give you the real advice, the stuff that matters. You laugh manically when people talk about the election or spiraling economy. They look at you oddly, but they don't matter. Your question was answered on On the Spot. Your a celebrity, a hero, a God. Of course eventually you run out of money, but can't tear yourself away to sell your grandfather's antique pocket watch or the pictures of you at graduation. You come to the realization that you can't pay your membership fees, but Gamespot loves you. They wont take away your precious, your food, your air, your blood. Then the day comes when your internet is shut off. You cry viciously and role around your empty, moldy floor, cursing your existence. You go to your kitchen to look for a knife but you have sold them all. You try to hang yourself but you have no rope. You stick your finger into a socket but the electricity is off. Finally you tear a piece of wood off the wall and begin desperately scraping it against a piece of metal. In agony you fall to the ground, tears streaming down your tortured face. You have nothing left to live for, but no way to end it. Finally you look towards the window and throw yourself at it with all your might. It shatters and you fall three feet into the grass. How stupid of you to sell your second floor for a Killer ethernet card. That's it! The card is a killer, it will end it for you. You run back into your house and lift your dear lover eMachine up over your balding head and drop it on your skull. You collapse in a wave of dizziness but stay conscious. Damn how could your eMachine, fail you right when you need it! Suddenly, you have an idea. You feverishly grab your wallet and sift through the useless credit cards, driver's license and family snapshots. In disgust you throw them down the drain. Then you find it, gold amongst the dirt, salvation, hope, a light in the dark. You hold it to your chest in elation and stumble joyously along the sidewalk to a building a block down. You cackle and walk through the door of your local library. On the wall a sign reads, "Free internet access." You walk into the computer lab and the librarian asks for your library card. You proudly display it and she asks for your driver's license. With a sickening feeling you think back to that now horrid drain. If only you hadn't been so foolish. The librarian looks at you and you say, "Well, !@#$."

  The end

  • Posted Oct 9, 2008 9:35 pm PT
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