Killzone 3 Leaked

Not to be outdone by their PC counterparts, it seems a number of PS3 gamers are following Crysis 2 up with a little round of Killzone 3 piracy. Unable to wait for a little more than a week, Guerrilla's upcoming first-person-shooter has been ripped off and spunked up on torrent sites across the 'net. 

Keep it classy, guys!

People have been upset by this past week's look at PC piracy due to a lack of focus on consoles. Almost as if on cue, a number of console gamers have answered the call to try and prove they're as bad as anybody else. Well, congratulations on that count. Let us not think for a second that console gamers can't be complete shitheads too. Well done!

I guess we're going to see this more and more with the PS3, following the hacking that some dipshits claim was "just for homebrew." Look forward to more annoying Firmware updates. I can't wait for those to roll on down. 

Of course, you can argue this "won't damage its sale" because it is Killzone, but that's the point. Big-name sequels are about the only things that publishers want to put out now, because they can survive crap like this. Welcome to the industry that we all helped create.

Dual Screen Android Phone

Sprint wants you to believe that two screens are better than one. Its new Android-powered smartphone, the Echo, will feature two touchscreen surfaces in a hinged design.

Made by Japanese electronics manufacturer Kyocera, the phone’s dual 3.5-inch WVGA screens can be operated independent of one another or combine in “tablet mode” to add up to a single 4.7-inch integrated display (albeit one with a hinge in the middle).

The Echo’s highlights can be seen in the phone’s obvious multitasking potential. The phone can be operated like most other touchscreen smartphones in its single-screen mode, but in “Simul-task Mode” users can run separate apps on each screen — like, say, open a text on the upper screen while reading an email on the lower one. Tablet mode, says Sprint, works well for viewing videos and lists across a larger surface area. However, early reports from other blogs suggest that there are significant limitations to the Echo’s multitasking capabilities.

The phone will run on Sprint’s 3G network and comes with Wi-Fi hotspot capability, with support for up to five separate devices. Under the hood, the Echo is running on a 1-GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon processor with 1 GB of RAM, and its 5-megapixel camera is capable of 720p HD video capture. It will run on version 2.2 (Froyo) of Google’s Android operating system.

There are some shortcomings. The Echo doesn’t run on the company’s 4G WiMax spectrum, which Sprint been promoting in its 2011 4G smartphone offerings, beginning with HTC’s Evo Shift and the Evo 4G in January. The company recently announced its $10 premium data-plan fee for all new 3G and 4G phones activated after Jan. 30.

It also lacks a dual-core processor. Whether its 1-GHz Snapdragon is beefy enough to handle the dual-screen multitasking of the phone remains to be seen.

Also still unknown is the phone’s battery life, although here’s a hint: Sprint is bundling it with a spare 1,370 mAh battery and a “low-profile” charging cradle that can also act as an external battery pack. In other words, you’re probably going to need that extra juice.

The Echo will cost $200 with a two-year Sprint service agreement (after a $100 mail-in rebate, mind you), and will be released in the spring.

Original Article: http://www.wired.com/gadgetlab/2011/02/kyocera-echo/

Fox News Calls Bulletstorm the Worst Videogame in the World

As a game filled with violence, profanity, and skill shots with names like "Deep Penetration" and "Gag Reflex," Bulletstorm was sure to draw the ire of those who routinely take issue with violent videogames. But it's not every day that a game is bestowed a title like "worst videogame in the world" for said content, yet that's what Fox News is suggesting in a report on Bulletstorm and its contents that earned it a Mature rating from the ESRB.

Beyond that eye-catching headline, the report also quotes various experts, several of which denounce Bulletstorm's violence. Psychologist and author Carol Liberman had an especially harsh comment regarding violent videogames, saying, "The increase in rapes can be attributed in large part to the playing out of [sexual] scenes in videogames." The basis for this claim isn't mentioned in the story, and is simply presented as an accepted fact.

Psychologist Jerry Weichman also offered up a statement: "If a younger kid experiences Bulletstorm's explicit language and violence, the damage could be significant."

The story also focuses on the supposed shortcomings of the ESRB rating system. It's suggested that laws be put in place similar to Califronia's which makes it illegal for a Mature-rated game to be sold to a minor. The penalty is a $1,000 fine.

Electronic Consumers Association president Hal Halpin was quoted in the story as saying, "Between a great ratings system, parental controls on the consoles, and the major retailers inhibiting the sale of Mature-rated games to minors, the matter is really one for parents and adults to consider, individually. I respect the creative rights of game developers to make a game like Bulletstorm in the same way that I appreciate Quentin Tarantino's right to make over-the-top movies like Kill Bill."

Epic Games' Cliff Bleszinski recently spoke to CVG about Bulletstorm's violence. He said he finds the attacks on the industry "very scary," but also sees it as flattering. He added, "There wasn't any sort of process [during the game's creation] where we considered ripping off someone's head and shitting down the neck or something like that. It was all in the name of fun."

There is, of course, the notion that any publicity is good publicity -- this will certainly raise the game's profile beyond what Duty Calls could accomplish. But at a time when the Supreme Court is in the process of deciding a landmark case for the videogame industry, it can't be good for a major news outlet to report on a claim "that sexual situations and acts in video games -- highlighted so well in Bulletstorm -- have led to real-world sexual violence" without citing any actual studies or evidence.

Original Article: http://www.1up.com/news/fox-news-calls-bulletstorm-worst-videogame-world

Skyrim People Looking A Little More Real

 Luke Plunkett — The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion was famous for two things: wide open spaces and ugly people. Looks like the upcoming sequel has fixed the ugly people part.

Yes, while the limitations of the old Gamebryo engine resulted in Oblivion being full of gnomes with plastic faces, Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim's new engine is capable of creating actual human faces. And as you can see above, rather attractive ones at that.

This screenshot is part of a batch available over on the official Xbox 360 magazine's website. If you've read the last issue of Game Informer magazine you've likely seen them, but if you only read things on the internet, this will be the first time you've seen them as nature intended!

The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim is a massive adventure and RPG game due out in November on PC, Xbox 360 and PS3. Many people are excited about it.

Original Article: http://kotaku.com/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed:+kotaku/full+(Kotaku)#!5754577/the-new-elder-scrolls-can-actually-make-humans-look-attractive

Halo CE HD 1080p Remake

A remake of the original Halo has been rumored for ages. A new report has surfaced today claiming that not only is such a remake definitely in development, but that it will be in both 1080p high definition and 3D.

According to Joystiq, the Halo: Combat Evolved remake is in development at TimeShift developer Saber Interactive. New art assets will be created as opposed to simply bumping up the resolution of the original game. The controls will also be updated to reflect the more recent entries in the series. Audio, on the other hand, is likely to be left alone.

The engine powering the game is allegedly something other than what was seen in the most recent Halo game, Halo Reach (pictured above), although that detail remains unconfirmed. Another thing that isn't clear at this point is online multiplayer; Joystiq says the game will "likely feature online co-op." There was no word on competitive multiplayer. The original Xbox version didn't offer online support of any kind, although the PC port in 2003 added online competitive multiplayer.

Microsoft spoke last year about its desire to increase the rate of Halo releases. This would certainly be a relatively easy way of ensuring that there was a new Halo game in 2011.

The remake is expected out on November 15, 2011, the 10-year anniversary of Combat Evolved's release on Xbox. 

NGP - Why Angry Birds Will Be More Important for Sony Than Uncharted

There were two thoughts on my mind as I watched Sony wheel out the successor to the PSP late last week.

The first was that nobody has learned anything since 2004. That was the year, of course, that Sony unveiled the system that everyone figured would sound the death knell for Nintendo's portable empire; and while we ooh'd and ahh'd at Ridge Racer, the PSP was ultimately buried under a mountain of shoddy ports and other flaws.

That brings me to my next thought though: The NGP has a chance to be more successful than its predecessor precisely because it's not 2004. The market has changed quite a lot in the past few years.

How much has it changed, you ask? Well, enough that Angry Birds can be downloaded 50 million times. And ultimately, I think it'll be those kinds of games that play as much a role in the NGP's success as Uncharted and company.

For one thing, they make a pretty handy stopgap. Anyone who purchased an Xbox 360 in 2005 can attest to how welcome an addition Geometry Wars was to that platform's barren launch lineup, and that was downloadable gaming was in its infancy. On a handheld like the NGP where Uncharted-caliber games figure to be relatively rare, the PlayStation Store will be worth its weight in gold.

And trust me, games like Uncharted will be rare. Back in 2005, developers went to the Nintendo DS in droves because it was cheaper to develop games for the thing (and later, it had a much larger install base too). In this day and age, with games like Angry Birds selling millions, do you think EA will drop a few million dollars on a handheld AAA project?

That pretty much sums up the handheld market as it is today. Quality games like Uncharted will certainly sell their share, but it'll be Lumines and other games like it that form the backbone of the NGP's software lineup. Those are the games that tech junkies will be buying while either waiting for the next big thing, or even while just waiting for a flight to Singapore.

And while the PlayStation Store titles will certainly be more expensive than the average iTunes game, they also figure to be a lot more impressive. The sort of games that NGP owners will want to show their friends.

Interestingly enough, that would seem to give the NGP a marked advantage over its nearest competitor -- the 3DS. Nintendo has so far been slow to warm up to the idea of an online store -- their e-store won't even be available at launch -- and normal 3DS games will reportedly cost as much at $50.

Will customers be willing to pay those prices for games like Devil Survivor: Overclocked, or even Ocarina of Time? I'm not sure, but the 3DS won't be able to fall back on cheaper downloadable games like the NGP.

The fact is that games like Lumines have always been better suited for quick handheld sessions, and there will likely be a flood of such games available on the cheap via the PlayStation Store. It's true that the presence of a downloadable store didn't make a ton of difference for the PSP; but then, the PlayStation Store couldn't even be accessed on the PSP without a PC and a USB cable until 2008, long after the PSP had faded from the public eye.

That's not to say that the NGP will automatically be a big success because of its online store. Given the emergence of mobile gaming, I think both the 3DS and NGP might have trouble gaining traction as anything more than gadgets -- premium systems for people with deep pockets and a love of high-tech toys. Of the two though, I think the NGP is in a better position thanks to its powerful wireless capabilities and the presence of the PlayStation Store.

So while Uncharted is certainly impressive, I doubt it will be enough to sell the NGP to the masses. With a strong downloadable store and a little luck though; well, like I said, it's definitely not 2004 anymore. 

Original Article  :http://www.1up.com/news/angry-birds-critical-ngp-success

Killezone 3

More Killzone 3: (Helghast Edition) Videos