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Minecraft XBLA profitable in first hour
As Mojang handed over the reigns of an XBLA port of Minecraft to developer 4J Studios last year, the game has been hotly anticipated by fans, and fan fare marketed by the big Microsoft, first at the 2011 E3 expo nearly a Year ago, and more recently in the NEXT Arcade promotion, kinda like the summer of arcade but in spring. It’s fair to say that Microsoft wanted this to happen badly, and there is some speculation of just how good a contract notch and team got with this bad boy, as apparently the update model for Minecraft is breaking the norm, a lot of developers are not so lucky with the promises regarding updates.
Anyway, ground work spiel aside, it has been publicly broadcast across the twittersphere that Mincraft was profitable in the first hour of release, thats over a years worth of development by a third party studio payed for, and whatever else goes into an XBLA release, covered in an hour, not just any hour, this is an hour where a large part of the world, is sleeping or working, or in some form of schooling. the hour when people look, its not there, they come back an hour later. but no, it did what it had to do in that first one.
Also causing a smidgin of controversy maybe is how notch knows that they’ve sold over 400,000 Minecraft XBLA titles, later claiming its form the leader board count after the developers of Fex said they were not privy to their stats even a month after release, and some stating that its only when they get the first check 3 months later that they can really see what happened. Apparently Microsoft like to keep stats close to their chest, even when marketing how great their sales are. As other NEXT Arcade line ups have been breaking records for fastest or largest sales in the first 24 hours or whatever, both Fez and the new Trials Evolution HD were publicized as fast movers and shakers.
Quake Live – Let’s Frag ‘em
Quake Live is quake in the browser with a plugin, and it looks wicked, and plays brilliantly, you may have recently seen a game with @notch, @jeb, and i think @kappische of Mojang play some young dude and a couple of guys to do with the minecraft for free website that notch asked to be taken down.
Well now, this week running 30th April to 6th May 2012, quake is allowing premium content free. This is the middle tear, there is the standard free to join and have some access, the premium which allows access to more content, and pro which has all content and allows you to create your own matches. Premuim is £1.59 per month billed anually, and pro is £3.18 per month also billed anually, very reasonable if you ask me.
Now at work we play Unreal Tournement but with the ease of setting up an account and downloading the plugin i’m voting we try this sucka out for a while, it looks fantastic, fluid playing and old school, love it.
Now what you waiting for, go over to quakelive.com, sign up and start fragging, there’s even a practice mode against some bots to ease you in. By the by, i used the Chrome browser, but apparently latest chrome firefox and 32 bit ie 8 and above are supported too. And is apparently running on Windows, mac and Linux. Boo ya.
EA in overpriced DLC hash job shocker!
The officially crowned worst company in America is at it again today, striving to ensure that come this time next year, they hold on to their title. Stage 1 in doing this: their new FIFA Euro 2012 update.
Squirming its way on to XBox Live and PSN, said title is taking a detour from EA’s usual approach of trawling out a full disc release for their Euro offerings and have instead released the title as a DLC (shudder) update that runs using the FIFA 12 disc.
Ok, not too much to get hot and bothered about yet. But this is EA. Whats the real deal?
Well, lets look at this objectively. Yeah, it’s overpriced. Yeah, it’s essentially a reskinned FIFA 12 with zero gameplay enhancements or fixes over previous faults. And yeah, it’s by EA who you definately DON’T want to fund in any way, shape or form. But that’s surely all the hiccups, right?
Well, not ones to rest on their laurels as being incompetent scum, it would seem that a case of maximum reward for minimum effort is again on EA’s cards. For indeed, a gale of unbridled magnitude is harrowing the withered forrest of woe that is EA as fans vent their frustrations on message boards far and wide as they call foul of EA’s actions while they list the numerous shortcomings of this half hearted effort that has their community shouting ‘boycott’.
Complaints seem to be fixating on several things, such as the update being decidedly devoid of features and some reporting issues with the game locking up and crashing. But the main issue knocking the masses bandy is a rather peculiar issue concerning player names. This is a rather foreign occurrence to the FIFA franchise, as outside of PES nipping in and snatching the Champions League rights from under their noses, EA have mostly had every licence going under their belts.
But not so today my Grigglings!
The FIFA trump card has mysteriously slipped out of hand as the Euro update features a paltry 24 licensed nations out of 53 teams included! Therefore, you have the type of comical plays on the official player names that early PES outings had in an abundance (Giggsi anyone?). But even more staggeringly, one of the teams omitted in the officiality pickings is the host nation of the Ukraine! Seriously?!!!
Now don’t get me wrong – I couldn’t care less about FIFA. Last time I played it, it was utter trash and the decline from 09 to 11 was enough to ensure I went nowhere near 12. But the rage against EA is too much to ignore!
DLC has become a bit of a dirty word of late, and what once looked like a great way to expand core game experiences didn’t take long to fall on the wrong side of big company greed. Underhand use such as holding back content that would have once been on disc for later sale is a practice that is all too common right now. But in this case, the sheer lack of effort or willingness to spend to secure licences that would accurately represent the teams at Euro 2012 is an additional low, and once again, EA is leading the charge. Capcom are no doubt taking notes as we speak.
The late nineties were the best for video games
The Grigonians have been gaming since the early Eighties, when video games consoles had the games built in and we used paddles with twisty nobs to make a rectangle move up and down to colide with a square, beautiful.
And although current gen gaming is squeezing all it can out of 7 year old hardware with hi resolution graphics and serious physics, the best era of gaming was definitely the late nineties, gameplay was fun and at time innovative, graphics were grainy by todays standards but had style, there weren’t too many that you didn’t know which ones to get or struggle to find time to play them, they were just right.
All this was before the boom in internet media, sure there was internet, but you had to pay by time rather than subscribe, it wasn’t the information rich environment we know today, its was Alta vista searching for the pink power ranger nude days, where images appear on the screen but a few lines of pixels at a time.
Where am i going with this? well it’s SEGA Saturn Nostalgia time, the greatest console ever (disclaimer, subject to opinion). A console with Daytona, Sega Rally, Panzer Dragoon Saga, NiGHTS into Dreams, street fighter alpha with the best gaming pads (that NO console has come close to since). There is more but those are the crowning glories (if thats even a phrase? see,s weird).
Dedicated SEGA bloggers over at http://thesegasource.wordpress.com today posted a youtube find thats been on there since 2009 but shows off three and a half minutes of the Tokyo Game Show 1996, just seeing all the NiGHTS into Dreams stuff has spurred this post, and to share with you the loyal grig follower, and dibbs when i point him to it at Wednesdays Tesco breakfast. Why did they ruin the game mechanics of NiGHTS on the WII, soo stupid. As always check out the fans site http://www.nightsintodreams.com/
Check it out.
Also check this bad boy out as posted on nightsintodreams.com of some VHS cassette from 1997 with a bunch of Saturn adverts
Ludum Dare 23 is kicking off with Tiny World, oh
Here in the UK the time has just struck 02:00 and the gauntlet is down, Ludum Dare #23 a 10 year aniversary has started with the theme “Tiny World” and now i’m stumped, hmmm what to do?
For those un initiated with Ludum dare, it is a competition for fun where by the participants create a video game in 48 hours from scratch on their own or if they enter the Jam then in a team with a little extra time.
Generally those involved have an account with ludumdare.com and they post their progress to the main blog stream as they go, where there is a whole community of like minded game creator enthusiasts trying to beat the clock and keep their sanity.
At the end, with games submitted including source code, everybody gets to play other participants entries and vote and comment on them. then 30 days later a winner is announced and everybody can see how they did. Fun huh? hehe. I like it.
Sega spies trouble ahead
There is news today that the storm clouds are gathering again over yet another former gaming behemoth. Sega-Sammy are reporting to investors that profits will be down considerably on prior estimates for the close of this financial year, which could be a sign of impending trouble.
Typical. Just as we were in the market for a new favourite company after Capcom had finally ground our Grig for the last time with their evil tomfoolery. Anyway…
The reason Sega is pinning on their crumbling empire is the ol’ ‘challenging economic climate’ chestnut, which has seemingly been waiting at the gates for them after school to give a swift kicking to their consumer business operating costs, resulting in large losses.
‘But what will all this mean?!’ I hear you cry. Well, the results as they stand will see Sega looking to ‘streamline’ the way they run their business, clamping down on operational expenses, restructuring their current employee hierarchy, and other such nonsensical David Brent-like boohockey.
What it really means, is that they’re gonna cancel games, churn out more rubbish, and sack people.
To this end, we’ll see Sega focussing on their big-name franchises that they have ravaged of any last shred of quality but deem to be high earners and so will continue to vomit out – specifically Sonic The Hedgehog, Football Manager, Total War and Aliens.
Yeah, apparently Sega made an Aliens game. Must be that one everyone slated earlier this gen. Oh, and Colonial Marines of course, if thats even real. Duke Nukem Forever is looking nostalgic and waving. Anyway…
Well, at a time where the only video game news seems to be bad news, this is hardly something new. Sega have been on the brink of destruction before, and probably would’ve rolled over and died if it wasn’t for the millions of its deceased former owner pulling them back from oblivion. But who can save them now?
Well Sega, you’ve come to the right place. If its a saving of superhero-like proportions you’re after, you’ll be glad to know I’ve put my Sonic-themed thermal Y-fronts over the outside of my trousers and I’m limbering up for some heroism in the form of some razor-sharp business advice! Listen up!
First things first, we suggest selling a few IP’s. Let someone else have a punt at Shinobi. We’ll have no more destroying of old classics, and even if it was awful, it would still be better than your more recent efforts. And I’d certainly be willing to chip in a few dabloons if Bomber Games were to go after the Streets of Rage rights. Again, lets face it – if they make an actual SoR4, it’ll be better than anything that will come from in-house at Sega. Next, release Shenmue 1+2 on XBLA as have reportedly been finished. What’s up with the wait, huh? We ain’t getting no younger! Well, unless we were to have a dip in the fountain of youth here on the Isle of Grig… but The Grig did a floater in it last time I checked so we tend to give it a miss. Tssk! And lastly, for the sake of my sanity… release Nights on Live and PSN!
Now admittedly, this is just a wish list of what I want more than a realistically solid business plan, but it’s food for thought… SO DINE ON IT!
‘Till next time… pip pip!
Fez gets April 13th XBLA release
Wait a cotton picking minute, the Grig has new posts barely a day apart, what gives? Fez release date thats what, 800 Microsoft points on the unusual release day of a friday, eh? Those crazy indie devs just don’t know how to fall in line, hehe.
Fez is a very 8 bit like retro graphicly game, with gameplay that is primarily a platform side scroller which can turn around the environment in 4 steps until you are back on the view you were at, giving the player a hint to the perspective to which the game character Gomez can jump the platforms which in a 3d space wouldnt be inline but from a side on view is, and that is what counts. if that makes sense. You know what,i pucture paints a thousand words, and if you string 25 of them along per second and give the illusion of movement, then that’s even better. here goes, embeding from vimeo
Grig News – Sainsburys sale, Gootecks, PS4!
Oh woe betide thy once pure shores that lapped the Isle of Grig! For indeed, news of video-gamery has swelled once again to bursting point and it’s time for the Grig to start siphoning out the updates worthy of our readerships attention! There’s no Minecraft stuff mind you, so if that’s why you’re here, you best just move along.
Just me left then? Sigh….
Sainsburys deals ahoy!
Since Street Fighter X Tekken turned out to be a huge let down that was more about Capcom trying to rip off its fanbase than it was about making a good game, we have sauntered on to pastures anew. Now there’s only so much Draw Something a man can take, and even more so shuttling 8-bit style stereotypes up and down my meagre 50 odd floors in Tiny Tower (Yeah, I said ‘new pastures’, not ‘good pastures’. See what Capcom have done to me?!). But apparently, in the past two years of only playing SSFIV, there were actually other games on real consoles that came out. Many of these were able to be attained in the recent Game fire sale for a pittance which stocked me up nicely for avoiding going out through the summer. But what of more recent titles, I hear you cry. Well looks like Sainsburys is looking to get in on the action with a few gleaming stones of their own!
Here’s a rundown of the dealery currently on offer:
- PlayStation 3 console: £164.99
- 3DS console: £124.99
- FIFA 12: £26.99
- Mario and Sonic at the London Olympics Wii: £20.99
- Assassin’s Creed: Revelations: £17.99
- Final Fantasy 13-2: £14.99
- Just Dance 3: £14.99
- Mario Kart 7: £27.99
- Super Mario 3DS Land: £27.99
- Mario and Sonic at the London Olympics 3DS: £27.99
- Black Eyed Peas Experience: £12.99
(by the way, you should note that a lot of these seemed to be for 360, except obviously the Nintendo stuff, at least in the store I went to, though that could’ve been an error)
Interesting. There’s certainly… er… a game in there. Probably. So yeah, it’s kind of a poor batch, but personally as a big Final Fantasy fan, it’s kinda hard to sniff at 15 mooltags for XIII-2. And while many have shunned the series and couldn’t care less, I will remind anyone with even a passing interest that Japan-based Famitsu gave it 40/40, so could be one for like minded anime fans among you!
Gootecks quits Cross Counter
Any Street Fighter dudes among you will probably already be wiping a tear over today’s news that one of the most renowned FGC figureheads has walked away from the very thing he himself had a huge hand in creating.
For those of you who dont know, Gootecks and his compadre Mike Ross were the stars of many an online show. From taking SSFIV and MvC3 online in hilarious manner in Excellent/Marvellous adventures, to interviewing top players on Cross Counter Live, to hosting great community events such as Bar Fights. The chemistry between the two was always great, always a great laugh, and the shows brought a lot of people in to a scene that they didn’t even know existed. It’s certainly worth going through the old shows if you’re new to what they do!
Capcom sure have a lot to be thankful to these guys for as their efforts certainly grew the community and earned the aforementioned company a pretty penny, even if everything Capcom have done since has been a disgrace.
So, whatever the reasons are, and there are plenty of conspirators already rooting through every detail trying to get to the bottom of it, all we will do here at Grig is doff our hats and say, ‘Thank you sir. Jolly good show. You did indeed, keep it classy.’
That would’ve worked better if he mained Dudley. ‘Soul Spiral’? Nothing you can do with it….
PS4
Rounding off today’s proceedings is a little item about a release that’s likely to slip under the gaming radar called the PS4. Or is it? For indeed, sources today have been relaying info left right and centre declaring in unison that said machine is trying to sneak into bars and get served with ID stating the name ‘Orbis’.
Now whatever this mother will be called, and let’s face it, it’s going to likely be PS4, the info today gave a bit more food for thought than just its title. Obviously the specs doing the rounds show beastly horse power and insane resolutions, but there was also something extra. Namely, as revealed on Kotaku, the machine ‘won’t offer backwards compatibility, will feature anti-used games measures’.
Now this is not the first time we’ve heard mutterings of such nature. A few weeks ago similar stories were doing the rounds about the new Xbox, even though such a thing was deemed unlikely in reality. But could Sony just be bold enough? Certainly the preowned online pass shenanigans already rearing its ugly head this gen would likely come in to play more than a complete lockout, but who knows? Blu-Ray and digital versions have been touted, and given the current direction, this seems a likely outcome, but talk of games being essentially secured to one account is an interesting one to chew over. Still, the days of being able to take a game to your mates is practically gone now anyway with all the DLC schemery going on. Ho hum!
If there’s one thing the dwindling days of the current crop has taught me, it’s to expect the worst, coz if it’s bad for our wallets and minutely better for a games company, it’s probably true. I’ve already resigned myself to not being part of whatever the industry is cooking up for the next leap based off of what’s already going on today, but never say never. But for the sake of our fans (fan? Anyone?), we wait. Just without much hope.
Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m off to see if the Vegan food shops been restocked in Tiny Tower. Yeah, video games 2012 FTW.
XBLA has a NEXT thing, and it has Minecraft in it
So Microsoft like to do these little XBLA release schedule promotion things for decent profile games, and call it a name like “Summer of Arcade” or in the case of this spring, “Arcade NEXT”. Starting April 18th with the Trials Evolution, certain XBLA titles will be released every wednesday and sporting the new 400 gamerscore point limit. The Arcade NEXT promotion runs through to May 9th when dun da da daaaa Minecraft XBOX 360 Edition is finally released giving us the perfect opertunity to mine that diamond without cheating on a server and then copying files into the single player loaded up with diamond pickaxe and armour. Locking down the experience is exactly what i wanted, and 400 XBOX Achievmos thrown in to the mix is a bargain, though the 1600 MS points is perhaps not, but we all know that won’t stop us.
The rest of the line up is Bloodforge April 25 for 1200 MS points, Fable Heroes May 2nd for 800 MS points, and the Trials Evolution that kicks it all of is 1200 MS points.
Who’s that standing in the Reign?
In more positive news today, Famitsu are reporting Segas Platinum Games are crowbarring a familiar face into the roster of their rather spiffing looking futuristic action brawler, Anarchy Reigns. A rather popular character sporting guns on her feet and hair for clothes. You got it yet? For indeed, uber popular witchy chick Bayonetta is due to join the cast… as a Japanese preorder DLC character. Uh oh.
Now let’s not get ahead of ourselves here. We’ll obviously get her over here in the West at some point, but with Sega due to comment on the game later this week, we’ll save judgement until we’ve got more to be going on.
But just do you know Sega, we have pitchforks, and we’re not afraid to use them. You’ve been warned.
This is without question a cool addition to the game, but after Capcoms recent DLC behaviour, colour us a little cautious at this point in time. Still, we can’t deny the games looking good, and with ol’ Platters at the helm, we trust things are in good hands. Don’t let us down!