Pixel Juice – October 2011

Written by Lee Price Friday, 14 October 2011

Pixel Juice - Lee Price

Hello one and all and welcome to yet another edition of Pixel Juice, the column that aims to provide you with the most succinct round-up of all of the juiciest gaming news. We are steaming towards the festive period right now, which means that many of the big hitters are finally going to come out to play. We had Gears 3 last month and that should just be the start of a great few months of gaming. Outside of that we've also had plenty of news to keep gamers going as we increase our efforts to dodge the outdoors. With all that said, let’s take a swig of Pixel Juice.

The Good – Sony’s New Customers

This very column more than covered the recent trials and tribulations that Sony underwent with the whole PSN debacle a few months ago, so it’s only right that credit is given where it is due. It is certainly due here as Sony have announced that more than 3 million customers have been added since the attacks, which seems to point towards consumer confidence not being as shot as it could have been in the wake of the whole thing.

Much of this can be put down to Sony’s reaction to the issue. Whilst they were quite slow off the blocks to begin with, they did eventually come clean and were prompt in letting people know when their data may have been compromised. They also did themselves no harm by offering free stuff to the people that were affected, which is always a good tactic.

In addition to the new users, Sony CEO Howard Stringer also claimed that the number of sales being made over the PSN have actually increased in the wake of the attack. Guess it just goes to show how quick people are to trust an organisation even after a massive security breach I guess. Still, Stringer claims that the PSN is now "more secure and better than ever.", so let’s hope that the episode is now over.

The Bad – EGM Founder Dies

This is the second month in a row where an influential figure in gaming has died and it is still as depressing as it was last month. It has been reported that “The Game Doctor” Bill Kunkel has died at the age of 61. That right there is still too young an age for anybody to go out in my opinion.

Kunkel is noteworthy for being one of the first ever games journalists. He set up a video game reviews column way back in 1978, before helping to co-found Electronic Games Magazine. The magazine is still going strong in the US and is generally considered one of the better gaming publications in the country.

During his time he also wrote for a number of other gaming publications in addition to writing comics for both Marvel and DC. If that wasn’t enough, the man also designed numerous games himself in addition to covering professional wrestling.

The man was, by all accounts, bloody brilliant and a full list of his many accomplishments can be found here. On behalf of Starburst Magazine I would like to give our condolences to Mr Kunkel’s family.

The Ugly – Resident Evil 6 Confirmed… or not

During the course of the month a trailer surfaced that appeared to be announcing that Resident Evil 6 was on its way. It looked suitably sparse and vague for a debut trailer and plenty of Resi fans got their knickers in a twist over it.

Unfortunately it turned out to be a fake. Capcom have since confirmed that they didn’t create the trailer and Resident Evil 6 isn’t on its way. Not yet anyway. Because let’s face it, the game will be released eventually. Still, hopes were raised and that’s not a good thing.

The Odd – Doom on Sale in Germany

Apparently the ban on Doom and Doom 2 in Germany has finally been lifted if CBS News Germany is to be believed. The titles, which had previously been unavailable to the buying public, have recently been given a USK-16 rating. This essentially makes the title ok for anybody who is 16 or older.

While the game still removes any and all Nazi references, regardless of how small, it appears that the good people who deal with this sort of stuff in Germany have realised that Doom is a touch less gory and violent than many a game that is released today.

The really odd thing is that the game was even still banned over there after almost two decades. Surely this must have been an oversight on somebody’s part because, even taking into account the tight censorship laws in Germany, there has been plenty released over the last ten years that far exceeds any of Doom’s content. Still, at least we can be happy for our German friends as they are finally able to purchase a game that any number of websites distribute for free these days.

The Rest

Sony vs. Microsoft: Part Something or Other

There is a natural born level of competition between Sony and Microsoft, for obvious reasons I might add, however a recent outburst by Sony’s Senior Vice President of Public Relations has managed to become noteworthy all the same.

Rob Dyer had no kind words at all when it comes to Microsoft’s Content Submission and Release Policy, claiming that it hurt publishers and existed solely to protect outdated technology.

He commented "Publishers are getting the living crap kicked out of them by Microsoft.

"I think what Chris (Lewis) and the other representatives at Microsoft are doing is protecting an inferior technology. I think they want to dumb it down and keep it as pedestrian as possible so that if you want to do anything for Blu-ray or you have extra content above 9 gigs or you want to do anything of that nature, you'd better sure as heck remember that Microsoft can't handle that."

If nothing else it makes a refreshing change from veiled insults about technology when somebody just comes right out and says what they think.

Final Fantasy X to be remade

This was quite unexpected news. Every game in the Final Fantasy series polarises opinion to some degree, however the consensus favourite for getting a HD remake was probably Final Fantasy VII. The guys at Square saw things differently and have announced that the PS3 and Vita will be seeing a remake of Final Fantasy X instead, likely in glorious HD.

Of course there are plenty of practical reasons for this, as the graphics will be easy to update, speech is already recorded etc. However it is likely not the Final Fantasy that most people want remade, especially as the original is still perfectly playable and still looks great.

No details have been released but the game will likely be HD and have a few bells and whistles attached to it.

Suda 51 + Kinect = Win

I do adore Suda 51. The erstwhile creator of Killer7, No More Heroes and Shadows of the Damned is one of the biggest oddballs in gaming. Thus I’m delighted to hear that he is working on another game.

Grasshopper Manufacture have announced that the new game, titled Diabolical Pitch, will see the player take control of a baseball star as he chucks balls and occasionally kicks monsters. You also get to throw fireballs sometimes too.

I love you Suda 51.

Dead Space Developers to Close

This news sucks, as it is never good to hear that a developer has been forced to shut down. The Australian arm of Visceral Games, who were best known for Dead Space, has been shut down as EA, who own the company, look to restructure.

The closure sees the loss of 21 jobs, which is 21 too many but that’s the way the cookie crumbles sometimes. The company not only worked on Dead Space, they also had a hand in Dante’s Inferno and Godfather II. Here’s hoping that the guys and girls all manage to move into new positions soon because they are a talented bunch.

Zynga to Make Mafia Wars 2

I’m generally not much for gaming on social media myself. I spend far too much time indoors as it is without hunting out additional time sinks. There are millions who do spend many an hour on games like Mafia Wars, Farmville and the like. These people will be delighted to hear that Zynga have announced a sequel to their massively popular Mafia Wars.

The company haven’t released any details, simply stating that it will be out soon. More than likely it will be pretty much the same as the last game with slightly nicer graphics and a few extra bits and bobs attached. Expect millions of people to lose millions of hours to it.

Mortal Kombat Movie Reboot on the Way

Technically you could argue that this is movie news rather than games news, but it’s a movie about a game so I’m taking it! New Line Cinema has apparently hired Kevin Tancharoen, the man behind the Mortal Kombat: Rebirth viral, to direct. He will also be collaborating with MK: Rebirth writer Oren Uziel on the project. So far no other details have been announced so this is still a little sketchy.

I myself am admittedly wary because I feel that the first Mortal Kombat film was one of the better games-to-film conversions. It’s nothing special of course, but it has a unique charm to it and includes all of the fan favourite characters from the series engaging in regular Kombat. What more could you ask for? I will be interested to see if this can match up to that, so here’s hoping.

Jade Empire 2? It’s Still a Possibility

Fans of BioWare’s classic martial arts parable Jade Empire will have been encouraged this week to hear BioWare co-founders Ray Muzyka and Greg Zeschuk claim that the game is still in the back of their minds and the possibility for a sequel still exists.

The pair were speaking at the recent Eurogamer Expo 2011 and revealed that they are simply "just looking for the right way to deploy it." They added that fans may see something of the title “in the near future.”

Personally I’m delighted about this as I adored Jade Empire. I love martial arts culture in general and its mish-mash approach, combined with BioWare’s tried and true game mechanics, led to many an hour being spent with the original. Here’s hoping we get something concrete soon.

Coming in October

Things are starting to pick up now and gamers are going to have to get a little bit pickier if they are to spread their cash around successfully. There’s plenty in the round-up to suit all tastes so what’s say we dive right in and check out what delights the month of October is going to hold in store for us? Take note that these release dates are subject to change.

Rage (360, PS3, PC) – It has been a long time coming but finally Rage is all set to hit store shelves in October. I have to admit to being very interested in this one. The team at id Software were responsible for some of the greatest FPS games of all time and really helped popularise the genre with wave after wave of innovation. Of course other players have since taken that mantle, but I’m quietly hoping that Rage proves to be as good a title as it promises to be. I guess we will see if the guys at id have had it or if Rage will spell their doom (I’m so, so sorry).

Release Date – October 7th

Forza Motorsport 4 (360) – The Gran Turismo series tends to steal the headlines, however the Forza games have been quietly building themselves up in recent years to become some of the best racing simulations that money can buy. Some would even contend that the series has surpassed GT, though that is very much coloured by personal opinion in addition to which side of the console divide you fall on. Regardless, look for the game to contain the same high level of quality that it has built up in recent years. This should be something for 360 owners to shout about.

Release Date – October 14th

Pro Evolution Soccer 2012 (360, PS3, PC) – Well FIFA has already seen its release and now the Pro Evo side of the footballing camp will see their title of choice make its return. The series has stagnated in recent years, though last year’s effort was the best one in a while. It will be interesting to see whether the game can live up to the reputation afforded it by its predecessors or if it will be bogged down with pointless new features.

Release Date – October 14th

Dead Rising 2: Off the Record (360, PS3, PC) – I’m still struggling to quite see the point of this release beyond Capcom playing off the popularity of the Frank West character. Surely he doesn’t have enough selling power to justify essentially re-releasing Dead Rising 2 with a couple of new features bolted onto it? Regardless, it will be interesting to see how this one does and I guess it will be of interest to those who didn’t buy Dead Rising 2 the first time round due to some inexplicable connection with everyone’s favourite zombie-smashing journalist.

Release Date – October 14th

Spider-Man: Edge of Time (360, PS3, Wii, DS, 3DS) – This particular entry into the Spider-Man series of games has quite the interesting conceit as it looks to meld the storylines of The Amazing Spider-Man and Spider-Man 2099 chronologies into a cohesive whole. The Spider-Man games in general tend to feature solid gameplay without really excelling, though there is a lot to be said for web-slinging across sprawling cities.

Release Date – October 14th

Batman: Arkham City (360, PS3) – Spider-Man may have his fans, but there can be no doubt which title comic book fans will be anticipating in October. Arkham Asylum is probably the best superhero game ever released, so there are high hopes surrounding Arkham City. The big question is, will the game live up to the hype that has been generated around it? There certainly seems to be plenty of fan service, as characters from the entire Batman canon make an appearance. Here’s hoping it isn’t all a big let down.

Release Date – October 21st

Battlefield 3 (360, PS3, PC) – Is this game going to be the Call of Duty killer that some gamers would have you believe? I personally doubt it. I see both titles selling into the millions; with the only real question being which of the pair is going to come out on top. Expect frenetic action, a top quality multiplayer experience and gorgeous graphics. I will use this exact same sentence again next month as well.

Release Date – October 28th

What you should be playing

It may be cliché, but there is really only one choice here:

Gears 3 delivered. Everybody knew it would but it still has to be said. The game is better looking and just as brutal as the previous games and should apparently mark the end of the series. Somehow I doubt this, but what I don’t doubt is that you should be getting your hands on this game. It’s one of the few truly great exclusives that the 360 has.

Retro Game of the Month

With the unfortunate passing of Bill Kunkel this month, I think it’s only fitting to revisit a game that provided me with plenty of hours of fun during my childhood.

 
Bart’s Nightmare isn’t one of the greatest games around. There are some that would argue that it is outright bad. However for a young Simpson’s fan back in the 1990’s this game was a godsend. The game essentially involved wandering around Springfield to find scraps of Bart’s essay. However this all happens in a dream world, thus when you find a piece of paper you are transported into a new level that you must beat to acquire the scrap. The game was actually a lot of fun and was outright weird so you may as well give it a go.

That’s all for this week kids. Hopefully everybody has a great October. Remember to close the door on your way out and I will see you back here next month. I hope.