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Nintendo May Have Made a Big Mistake

2011-06-09T22:40:00.015-06:00

Nintendo is headed for trouble. Recently, the Kiyoto gaming giant has made a series of missteps. First, Nintendo released the DSi in April of 2009. Less than a year later came the DSi XL (released in March of 2010). Almost exactly a year later the 3DS was released. In the period of 2 years, Nintendo released 3 handheld systems. For people who upgraded their DS Lites to a DSi, they couldn't be too thrilled about this. Surely, not many of those people will buy a 3DS anytime soon. Nintendo should have skipped the DSi altogether. It was a pointless system, with Nintendo knowing the 3DS was right around the corner.

Speaking of the 3DS, not only did it come out too soon after the DSi, but it came out at a ridiculously high price. Not many DSi owners will fork over $250 for a new system. And it is hard to believe many families who own a Wii and a DS and in many cases, multiple DS systems, would be willing to pay more money for another system. Nintendo has glutted the market for it's own fan base. Between the home console, the handhelds and all the peripherals people have bought for their Wii, I feel the timing is completely wrong for Nintendo to be asking for more money. I have a feeling the 3DS sales will get weaker and weaker with each passing month.

And now, 3 months after the release of the 3DS, Nintendo has shown the world the Wii U. No price was announced, but after seeing it's 6.2" touch screen controller, it looks like the Wii U will be at least $300. By the time the Wii U is released, it will be the most expensive console on the market. There will of course be fantastic first party games. Nintendo never disappoints there. But what about 3rd party games? I have a feeling that despite being the most powerful system on the market, the Wii U will most likely be getting ports of Xbox 360 and PS3 games with some silly touch screen play tacked on. Why will the Wii U be getting ports? The 360 and PS3 will both be cheaper and have a much bigger installed base than the Wii U. Developers will follow the money and create games for the most popular systems. It appears the Wii U may follow in similar footsteps as the Wii as far as developer support. There are a lot of developers showing support now. But it will be difficult for them to create games strictly for the Wii U with it's initially small installed base compared to the other 2 systems.

And then there is the question of the Wii U's controller. First off the size is ridiculous. It is huge. Good luck playing for an hour or more without your hand cramping or getting tired. And you can forget about small children using it. It also seems likely that you will only be able to use 1 touch screen controller per system. Why would any developer waste any time creating a game that uses more than 1 touch screen controller when no one will be able to afford getting a second controller. So this leaves multiplayer games being 1 person using the touch screen controller while everyone else uses the Wii controllers. Obviously, the person using the Wii U controller will have a much different experience than people using the old Wii controllers. Who wants to play a game where 1 person gets to do cool things with the new controller while everyone else is saddled with the old controllers. But maybe once their hands get tired of holding the gigantic controller, they will be glad to pass it off to someone else.

If Nintendo isn't careful, they will alienate their fan base with too many expensive systems. And considering the economy is in terrible shape with no end in sight, I am not sure what they are thinking.

The Demise of Gaming Journalism

2010-06-14T22:12:00.002-06:00

The 2010 Microsoft E3 press conference exposed gaming journalists. At the end of the press conference, Microsoft handed out free Xbox 360 slim units to all who attended. This included every journalist there. Shockingly, (maybe not) the journalists didn't appear to have a problem with the conflict of interest. Actually, they didn't seem to even NOTICE a conflict of interest. But they did brag about their new gifts on blogs and Twitter. How can anyone take gaming journalism seriously after this? Gaming journalists have been exposed as inexperienced and without character. Would any other group of journalists brag about their new bribes? I don't think any other group would be so stupid as to do that. And to add insult to injury, go read reviews of Microsoft's press conference. Pick any gaming site. It doesn't matter. If the site had reporters there at the conference, they gave it glowing reviews. Well done Microsoft. Mission accomplished. Unfortunately, the gaming industry as a whole has suffered. Once again, the industry looks childish and amateurish. I would love to hear from a journalist who was at the Microsoft press conference and refused the free gift. Something tells me I won't be hearing from many people.

Saturn Bomberman Tournament: May Day Open 2010

2010-05-11T07:52:00.003-06:00

The 9th Saturn Bomberman Tournament took place on May 1st, 2010. Here is an excerpt taken from the official Saturn Bomberman Tournament website:

This marks the first time for the May Day Open tournament. Another first is the 3 round format. There were a total of 13 players; 7 in the first round and 6 in the second. The top 4 in each round advanced to the championship round.

Shaun McGuire won his 6th Saturn Bomberman tournament (5 Thanksgiving Day Invitationals and 1 May Day Open). Brian McGuire was this year’s Mad Bomber. He was also the first Mad Bomber award winner in the Thanksgiving Day Invitational. This year’s tournament took place on May 1st, 2010.

Interesting tournament facts: 3 countries were represented from 3 continents: United States, Germany and Brazil. André Schwarz had 21 kills in the first round. That was the most by anyone in any of the 3 rounds, yet he had no wins. Tara Pilliard made it into the top 4 with 2 wins in round 1, yet she had no kills. Celia McGraw had a 42% (the best of any round) winning percentage in round 2 yet had no wins in the championship round.

Please visit www.saturnbomberman.com for complete results of every round, including video of the entire championship round!

Saturn Bomberman Tournaments

2009-11-30T18:28:00.004-06:00

A new site has gone up documenting a group of people who have been running Saturn Bomberman tournaments since 2002. So far, the tournaments have taken place once a year on Thanksgiving day. But, the site mentions that they hope to expand to 4 tournaments a year eventually. Check it out: www.saturnbomberman.com

The Lost Golem Website!

2009-10-23T13:00:00.002-06:00

The Lost Golem website is up and running. There you will find the most information on the web on Caramelpot's classic Dreamcast puzzle game. It will also be THE place to post questions and comments about the game.

See you there: www.lostgolem.com

Developer Interview: Craig Forrester (Johnny Platform's Biscuit Romp)

2009-02-04T13:30:00.020-06:00

This is the third in a series of interviews I am doing with video game developers. The first interview, with Japanese game developer Shuichi Ishikawa, can be found here. The second interview, with The Game Equation's Brian Meidell Andersen, can be found here.

In this interview, I had the opportunity to talk (through email) with Craig Forrester. Craig is an indie developer from England. In this interview, we focused on his new game, Johnny Platform's Biscuit Romp. It is a fantastic puzzle/platform game for the Xbox 360. We also discussed using Microsoft's XNA to develop Community Games. I hope you enjoy the interview:

Craig, let's start off by having you tell us about yourself. Where from? Where do you go to school? Currently employed working on games?

I'm originally from a town called Leek in England, and am currently in Middlesbrough, at the University of Teesside. I had a year's work placement in the industry last year but don't start properly until later this year, which I'm looking forward to a lot. I'm enjoying university but after four years it'll be nice to see it finished. There are no concrete plans for what I'll do post graduation, but there are a few possibilities.

Your game, Johnny Platform's Biscuit Romp (JPBR), is a terrific puzzle/platform game. Tell us about the making of this game...

It's mostly inspired by the PDA Games minigame that came with Alien Hominid. I wanted to try making a quick DS game and it seemed like the perfect type of game to make, since once the mechanics are finished it's basically about putting together as many levels as possible. I tried to add my own ideas to it of course, but I think the similarities are quite obvious too.

How long did it take you to finish the game (from first idea to final product)?

It was originally supposed to be a five day game but ended up taking about a week or so. That was a fun week, the second year of uni had finished so I almost literally just sat and worked on the game for the entire week.

Was it intended as a DS game from the very beginning?

Yeah, the ideas behind the game only began after I had decided to work on a DS game. I think the screen-wrapping mechanic mainly existed because of the small resolution on the DS. I didn't want to make the graphics smaller so it seemed like the next best way to get more gameplay out of a single-screen level. I didn't really have any ideas for using it at the time but it ended up creating some quite intricate puzzles.

Are there any differences between the DS version and the 360 version?

The main thing I added for the 360 was 5 extra levels. Since the game was going commercial I really felt the need to add at least a bit of new content to justify charging for it. I also tweaked the difficulty curve and added a bit of tutorial stuff, though that could still have been a lot better.

I haven't had an opportunity to play the DS version. But, is the reason the game has such a unique, vertical playing area on the 360 a direct result of having it been on the DS first?

Yeah that's completely dictated by the DS' screens. Graphically the game is pretty much identical to the DS version, simply scaled up to fit HD resolution. It feels a bit strange on a TV, especially a widescreen one, but I didn't have the time to invest in remaking all the levels for a different screen size. At least the Ikaruga-inspired TATE mode means people with rotateable monitors can play it fullscreen.

What are some of your favorite games that may have influenced you while making JPBR?

Hmm this is a tough one. There's the aforementioned PDA Games, but I can't think of any more direct influences. I think there are some hints of Yoshi's Island and Wario Land in some of the graphics. I enjoy lots of platformers in general, especially some indie ones like Stargirl, Cave Story and Mini Falafel Adventure off the top of my head.

What made you decide to publish the game on Xbox 360?

I toyed around with XNA last year and began a shooter project, but then university work got in the way. In December I had a week between the end of the semester and going back home, and when my housemate suggested that I should port JP to the 360, I couldn't really refuse.

What was your experience like using Microsoft XNA to develop a Community Game?

Definitely a good one, turning your console into a devkit is just fun. XNA is nice and easy to set up and work with, and there's plenty of documentation, tutorials and examples to help that. The fact I managed to port a DS game to XNA so quickly shows how easy it is to use, although you have to bear in mind I did steal some code from the XNA project I started previously.

What were the best and worst parts of developing a Community Game?

The best part has to be the end result, getting to see your game on the marketplace is very rewarding. I didn't really have any worst moments as far as I can remember. I had to do a lot of polishing stuff, which extended the port to a week from the originally intended two days, thanks to the 360-specific stuff I hadn't considered like handling storage devices and getting the 'purchase game' option in. It's all pretty straightforward when you get into it though.

Did Microsoft have input into JPBR? If so, what kind?

None at all, the game really is just whatever the developer wants to do. I think the restrictions that do exist are basically on stuff that's actually illegal, like including stolen or copyrighted material in the game.

I'm curious as to who is responsible for making sure that Community Games submitted to Microsoft aren't broken in some manner. Is anyone besides the developers themselves checking for any bugs in a game or even the overall content?

The game goes through peer review before being released, where other developers play the game and pass or fail it based on if it crashes or violates copyright. The game can also be optionally put into testing, which works in a similar way with peers downloading and playing the game. This leaves plenty of oppurtunity for bugs to slip through the net, but it's the only way to keep the publishing step quick and hassle free.

How is the pricing decided for Community Games? I was surprised JPBR was priced at 200 points. It seems to me, it could have easily been a 400 point game.

Prices are set purely by the developer. The options are 200, 400 or 800, but games above 50MB have to be at least 400. I spent a lot of time thinking about whether to charge 200 or 400 points. In the end I went for 200, since the DS version is available for free so I felt it would be cheeky to not charge as little as possible for it. Another factor was that the aim of the project was never to make money, just to get my game out there to a new audience and get my name out there. It also hopefully shows that paying twice as much for a fireplace screensaver is a bit of a rip off.

Apparently, no achievements are allowed in Community Games. But what about downloadable content? Could you add more levels to the game if you wished?

Yeah achievements aren't supported, I imagine to stop them from getting abused. Paid DLC isn't supported either, probably just to keep everything simple. I think in theory you could code the downloading of free levels into the game if you hosted them somewhere, but I don't know a lot about the network capabilities in XNA. Another option would be to do a patch for the game with more levels in it, but unfortunately players who already downloaded the game aren't notified when a new version is released, unlike when professional 360 games get patched. That's something it would be nice to see fixed, although I guess the releasing of continuous patches should be discouraged.

How is it decided which games submitted for Community Games, will eventually get published?

Basically anything that passes the peer review system will get published, there's no one at Microsoft deciding which ones get through. It's a great thing as it means no restrictions on new ideas and game styles that would normally never get published, but on the other hand it does inevitably cause an avalanche of pong clones. Swings and roundabouts really.

Would you recommend the XNA Game Studio to other people who are interested in creating their own games?

I certainly would, it's a great way to get way to get your game out there, as if it's good enough it will potentially get a nice bit of attention from the indie games community. Another nice bonus compared to releasing a game on PC is the great piracy protection. Once we eventually get sales figures at the end of March it will be a much better platform for actual full time indie developers too.

Do you plan on continuing with any more Johnny Platform games?

I might do a sequel in the future, as long as I can give it enough new content. The last thing I want is to appear to be whoring the "franchise" out by making a cheap sequel. I do know if there is a sequel it won't involve biscuits, but the coffee will still be abundant, of course. The evil robots are probably plotting another scheme after their failed attempt to take biscuit land.

Did anyone else work with you on JPBR? If so, who? And what were their roles in the game?

Two of my university housemates helped out on it. James O'Hare actually did the sprites for Johnny and the robots, which is why Johnny is a bit more twisted that the usual kind of sprites I do. I saw a great fanart of him recently, which portrays him as a freaky green thing shaking from caffeine with coffee dribbling from his mouth, which I think is pretty accurate. James also did the robot's Scottish voices, and Johnny's Yorkshireish voice was done by Tom Chambers.

Was developing for the 360 possible only because of the XNA Game Studio? Is developing for PSN or WiiWare out of the question right now?

Yeah, it provides pretty much the only (official) avenue for creating a game on one of the home consoles. Creating an XBLA, PSN or WiiWare game is possible in theory but it needs a hell of a lot of money behind it, and even then Microsoft, Sony or Nintendo might not be interested in publishing it. I think a good amount of success in the Community Games market would certainly help any quest to get a game onto one of the "proper" markets though.

Have you heard from Microsoft how well Johnny Platform's Biscuit Romp is selling?

Nothing yet other than the weekly top ten sales list on Major Nelson's blog, so you get an idea how you're doing relative to the other Community Games but that's about it. As I mentioned previously at the end of March, which is around the time the first paycheques will be going out, a sales figure system is being released which will be really interesting to see.

Are you currently working on any other 360 games?

I have my unfinished vertical shooter that I started a while ago, which I'd like to come back to eventually. I've also been starting to put together a general 2D game engine in XNA which I can hopefully put to good use in the future.

Besides the 360, are there any other projects you are working on that you could talk about?

University work takes up the majority of my time, but part of that involves making a small game demo in a team, which is going to be a music-based RPG called Twilight of the Tieran. I'm also doing a bit of pixelart work towards Erin Robinson's game, Puzzle Bots, which is looking really cool.

Where did the name IshiSoft come from?

The nickname Ishi was borne from a general obsession with Japanese things. Craig comes from crag, which means stone, which is what ishi translates as. I then just stuck 'soft' on the end in classic lazy fashion, but I really like the name now.

What are your plans for the future? What are your goals in the gaming industry?

I graduate from university soon, but I haven't really decided yet what path into the industry I want to take. Joining a larger scale studio making the big titles is a possibility, or alternatively I could go for somewhere doing smaller projects like downloadable games. Of course another option is to just go for full on indie development myself, which I might consider more depending on how well Johnny Platform is doing. Time will tell!

Thanks a lot for the interview.

End Interview.

I hope you enjoyed this interview. I want to thank Craig Forrester for his time. I loaded him up with quite a few questions and he gladly answered them all. I'd like to encourage everyone to at least download the trial version of Johnny Platform's Biscuit Romp. You won't be disappointed. Just a note, this entire interview was done through an email Q&A system. It was printed here in complete form with no editing to preserve the original spirit of both the questions and the answers. Thanks again to Craig, for his participation.

2008 E3 Press Conference Impressions

2008-07-16T18:42:00.002-06:00

Microsoft's E3 Press Conference
After watching Microsoft's E3 Press Conference, I have to say that I was quite impressed. They seem to have covered quite a bit. They had plenty of games for their hardcore audience as well as several things for their casual fans.I thought the Xbox Live announcements were very strong. Sure, avatars are a direct rip-off of Nintendo's Miis, but they seem to have improved upon them. They are cartoonish but have a more realistic style about them. And it appears that Microsoft will actually be adding content to their avatars unlike NIntendo with their Miis.The new dashboard seems very clean and easy to use. Teaming up with Netflix is a stroke of genius. I think that will be a huge coup for Microsoft.Microsoft also scored big with Square Enix. Besides the shocker of the Final Fantasy XIII announcement, three additional RPGs were also revealed. Four Square Enix RPGs for a Microsoft console is quite a change from the past. I almost felt like I was watching a Sony press conference.

Nintendo E3 Press Conference
I have to say that Nintendo's press conference was a bit on the boring side this year. They really focused on the casual gamer while leaving everyone else out in the cold. Satoru Iwata did say that new Mario and Zelda games were being worked on for the Wii, but with no video and no other information, it's is hard to get excited about that announcement. Nintendo's biggest news seemed to be: Wii Music Wii Music looked fun, but it truly looked like something geared towards kids. I can imagine my kids banging out some noise, but I don't see myself playing an imaginary saxophone anytime soon. Wii Sports Resort This actually looks like it might be more fun than the original Wii Sports. The addition of the Wii MotionPlus should be a huge boost to a game like this. Animal Crossing While it looks fun, it also looks like more of the same. Same graphics, same characters, same tasks. The new online portion looks promising, but nothing earth shattering. Wii Speak This microphone for the whole family looks to be the perfect solution for Nintendo. Since everyone in the room can hear what is being said, it makes it a much safer choice for kids. My only question is how well will it work. Can Wii Speak pick up everyone's voice in a big room when it is sitting on top of your TV? Wii MotionPlus This looks to be the most promising item Nintendo showed off. Too bad this wasn't available from day one. I doubt it will work with older games, but for new games it will offer a never before seen experience. True 1:1 motion between the player and his character. I think this will be huge once developers get a chance to incorporate it into their new games. The big news for the DS was Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars. This will certainly be a nice addition to an already great library of games. If only Nintendo had announced a game of that magnitude for the Wii.

Sony's E3 Press Conference
I thought Sony's press conference was a solid effort. They revealed interesting information for both casual gamers and hardcore gamers. Sony's movie and TV download system is interesting. While Microsoft's deal with Netflix might prove to be cheaper for consumers, Sony adds the benefit of taking video on the go by transferring to your PSP. For PSP owners, this is great news. Home still seems a few months away. I tend to be on the optimistic side on this. Everything Sony has shown about Home looks very nice. I think this is too important an area for Sony to fall down on. That's why I'm betting Sony pulls through on Home. LittleBigPlanet was shown again and still looks incredible. This game alone looks like a reason to buy a PS3. God of War III and MAG were also shown. It's safe to assume the GOWIII will be a special game. MAG looks promising, but we will have to wait and see on this one. Overall, I think Sony had a nice show. Definitely better than Nintendo and on par with Microsoft.

Developer Interview: Brian Meidell Andersen

2008-04-02T10:04:00.011-06:00

This is the second in a series of interviews I am doing with video game developers. The first interview, with Japanese game developer Shuichi Ishikawa, can be found here.

In this interview, I had the opportunity to talk (through email) with Brian Meidell Andersen of The Game Equation (Bo Cordes, Brian's partner is mentioned in some of the Q&A but he was not interviewed) about casual gaming and it's impact on the gaming industry. Brian had several interesting things to say regarding casual gaming and I hope you enjoy his interview:

First off, I was hoping to get some background on both of you. What companies have you worked for and what games have you worked on?

I'm a b.sc.e.e. and previous companies most relevant to our current endeavours are IO Interactive, Titoonic (maker of high quality web games) and now-defunct networkleague (multiplayer gaming middleware/service company). The most well known games I've worked on are "Hitman: Blood Money" and "Hitman: Contracts".

Bo is a m.sc.e.e. and before going into the games industry at IO Interactive, he worked with cutting edge virtual reality at Aalborg University in Denmark. He has worked on "Hitman 2", "Hitman: Contracts" and "Hitman: Blood Money".

In a recent article on next-gen.biz, you mentioned you were fed up with large-scale game production. What about large-scale game production did you grow tired of?

There were several things, but I think they all stem from the same problem.

As the game machines capabilities grow, the number of things that are expected from a game grows with it. For example, the first game that introduced ragdoll physics touted that as a special feature. Today, better ragdoll physics are simply expected, together with normal mapping, per pixel lighting, and many other features that were unique selling points when they first appeared. To keep up with the bleeding edge, it requires that you either outsource a lot of work (either directly or by buying middleware like Havok), increase your team sizes or lengthen the production cycles. Any combination of these three methods will increase your production costs, sometimes by a lot. The more money it costs to produce a game, the more power is handed to business people, and their trained response is typically to take less risk by copying proven success. This has a tendency to change game making from a highly creative process into factory work.

In my eyes, making good games is inherently a very creative process, where the best people have a combination of immense technical skill and a great deal of creativity. It used to be that most game developers were people like this, but today I think these key people are usually supported by a number of people who are simply good craftsmen, be it programmers or artists. In most large game teams, I think there are a handful of people that are critical for the game to be an inspired piece of work. These types of people are often innately uninterested in factory work. There are of course cases where some of these creative, talented people actually like the big corporate environment, but I haven't met too many of them.

I grew tired of this situation, and the direct consequences like colleagues quitting, big teams, long crunch periods, unrealistic deadlines and unrealistic sales expectations. I have a strong feeling that it has gotten better since I quit in late 2005, but I wasn't willing to sit around and wait for it to improve.

What about the casual game business attracts you?

There are several things. Most importantly, the games are of a scope that is realistic for a few people to do well in a reasonable amount of time. For example, Deep Blue Sea was made by a team of two people in the span of 4.5 months, except for the sound which was contracted from an external composer. This makes it possible for a company to be competitive and successful without having to endlessly expand the company simply to keep up with the market.

Second, the direct consequence of the modest resource requirements is that developing a title represents a much smaller risk. This makes it more possible to try new things in terms of both gameplay, themes, format, marketing, distribution and so forth. This is not something we have exercised so far, but we are certainly planning to.

Another attractive aspect is the norm of purely electronic distribution methods. This means a much shorter path from developers to consumers and thereby less overhead.

I went to your website and noticed that right now you are strictly PC/MAC. Is releasing a value title ($20-$30 range) out of the question for the 360, PS3 and Wii?

Developing a regular boxed title to sell in that price range is out of the question for most developers. However, the barrier for entry on the consoles seems to have been lowered a lot with the arrival of the new digital marketplaces like XBox Live Arcade, PSN and WiiWare. The console companies seem to be going out of their way to bring the casual market to their consoles, and I think that is a great move for both themselves, the consumers and the developers.

That said, the technical and financial prerequisites for developing for these platforms still makes that market inaccessible to most of the casual games developers currently targeting desktop computers.

Do you have any plans to work on any titles for Xbox Live, PSN or WiiWare?

We're looking into it, but there are no details that I can share at this point.

Casual games seem to have found a home on the Nintendo DS. Any plans there?

We're looking into it, but there are no details that I can share at this point.

Last night I went on to your website and downloaded the demo of Deep Blue Sea (which I enjoyed quite a bit). While at first glance it looks like your typical tile swapping game, there is quite a bit more depth there. There are actual objectives, missions and even a store for upgrades. Do you feel this game is a fair representation of the kind of games you want to create?

I think Deep Blue Sea is a good game, especially for the development resources we put into it, but our long term ambitions are greater. Deep Blue Sea was in many ways an experiment in minimalism - it was made with programmer graphics and the only contracted work was the music. The focus was primarily on gameplay, a solid progression ramp and accessibility. For future titles we are planning to put more resources into production value, and developing our technology.

I noticed on both of your games, Deep Blue Sea and Constellations, you point out the original music that was created for both. I find that interesting because I think music tends to take a back seat in most casual games. How important is music to you in your games? Do you compose the music yourselves or do you work with a musician for that?

Quite important. Music and sound is immensely important to establish atmosphere in a game, and I think a relaxing atmosphere is a very important aspect of a casual game. We contract a very talented composer named Rasmus Hartvig for the music and the principal sound design.

Is there anything else you are working on right now that you can talk about?

Not at this time - we'll make a public announcement when that changes.

What are your long term plans for The Game Equation?

We're planning to develop and release casual titles as we push our technology along. Eventually, we are hoping to also find a viable market in the space between casual games and big budget games.

Do you feel that many of your peers in the gaming industry feel the same as you about working on big budget games?

Yes. Though most of them definitely still prefer it to creating casual games.

Due to the rising development costs, do you think we will eventually end up with two kinds of developers...those who produce $15 million games and those who produce casual games with few developers in between?

Actually, I think that has been the situation until now, but we're moving away from that, towards a more varied game ecology. The online console markets and sales channels such as Valve's Steam seem to be able to support games that are somewhere between casual and big budget games, since many of their customers are people who are more hardcore gamers than your typical casual gamer. Indie games for non-casual gamers have existed for a long time, but there haven't been a lot of clearly defined sales channels for them - the developers have proudly been cutting their own paths.

It seems that the major game companies are increasingly interested in the casual market, so I don't think the separation you mention will happen. Rather, I think it will move the other way, where the big companies will have teams of varying sizes that produce a much more full spectrum of games, from casual to big budget titles. There'll probably also be a good deal of mergers and acquisitions in this process. In many ways, I think it will be a miniature replay of what has happened to the "big" game industry in the last many years.

I was shocked when Sony announced the original price of the PS3. Most systems start to sell well after a $200 price point has been reached. At $500 and $600, the PS3 was years away from that price point. It seems very difficult for a developer to make a big budget game when the install base is going to be so low. On the other hand, consumers who pay $500 or $600 for a new system want to see something big and exciting that takes advantage of the latest technology. It appeared that Sony put developers and consumers in an awkward spot. Do you think there is a lesson to be learned here? Is it possible in the next round on console wars that we won't see the same leap in cutting edge technology due to high cost? And that maybe hardware companies will take a different approach like Nintendo did this round with the Wii?

I don't think there is an inherent problem in selling a console for $500-600 as long as people are buying it, which they seem to be. Sony and Microsoft might take less chances when designing their future consoles with emerging technologies, but I don't think they will stray radically from their current competitive areas of graphics, sound and processing power in the way Nintendo did. I think the Wii will probably make them consider adding unique interaction features to the console, but not as a replacement for raw power.

The PS3 in particular has taken a lot of abuse in the press, but I honestly believe it is going to do just fine in the long run. I am guessing here, but I think the high price point from Sony was an unfortunate necessity, not something they planned. The price to be paid for the awkward spot you mention mostly lands on them - failure is not an option for the PS3, so whatever it takes to make it an attractive developer target, that's what they'll do.

As a sidenote, I think the fact that the press has declared the PS3 unattractive to develop for is a business opportunity in disguise for smaller companies. According to wikipedia there are at least 5.6 million PS3s out there. There are only a handful of games on PSN right now, and the people who shelled out 500 bucks for their PS3 are likely happy to pay 10 bucks for something that is a bit of fun, and which really shows off some aspect of their consoles abilities. That's 5.5 million content-starved people who can potentially visit PSN and see your game among only a handful of games. Those are a lot better odds of selling copies than what you get in the PC/Mac casual games industry.

Where do you see the gaming industry in 5 years and where do you see yourselves in 5 years?

As mentioned under the "rising development costs" question, I think we'll see more big players moving into the smaller games space, and more sales channels will be established for smaller games that are not typical casual games. Rotating developers into smaller game teams once in a while would also help make life better for the overworked developers at the big companies, and maybe hold on to some of those key people I mentioned earlier.

As for myself, I hope I will be at the helm of a small but successful game company publishing fun games for both the casual and less casual consumers.

Finally, what will it take for developers to turn casual gaming into a big business?

Casual gaming itself is already big business. If you mean what it takes for a new developer to make their casual game into big business, I'd prefer to answer that question a couple of years from now, once we've managed to do just that.

End of interview.

Thanks for reading and I hope you enjoyed it. Just a note, this entire interview was done through an email Q&A system. It was printed here in complete form with no editing to preserve the original spirit of both the questions and the answers. Once again, I'd like to thank Brian Meidell Andersen of The Game Equation for his participation.

Nintendo Releases New System Update for WiiWare

2008-03-20T22:06:00.004-06:00

Tonight, Nintendo released a system update for the Wii. It is for the upcoming WiiWare portion of the Virtual Console. The system is necessary for everyone who wants to download WiiWare games. Nintendo also said that anyone who downloads the update now will not need to download anything further in order to download WiiWare games when they become available May 20th.

Sega Saturn Classic, Burning Rangers, Coming to the Wii?

2008-02-26T21:49:00.002-06:00

According to the current issue of Retro Gamer (www.retrogamer.net), Sega is thinking about a Burning Rangers sequel for the Wii. Sonic Team USA leader Takashi Iizuka dropped a possible clue:

"It's not my title, but I hear there's a lot of demand for a sequel, to bring out Burning Rangers on Wii so...we'll see."

Burning Rangers has developed quite a cult following considering it's rather mixed reviews. One has to wonder how much the sales of another Saturn classic on the Wii, NiGHTS, will effect the decision to make a sequel for Burning Rangers.

Sony Announces New PS3 and PSP Bundles Plus DUALSHOCK 3 Details

2008-02-26T21:08:00.004-06:00

Sony Press Release:

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz., February 26, 2008 – At its annual retail and publisher conference Destination PlayStation, Sony Computer Entertainment America (SCEA) announced details of upcoming PLAYSTATION®3 (PS3™) and PSP®(PlayStation®Portable) (PSP-2000) hardware bundles with two of the most highly anticipated 2008 titles. The company also announced the April 2008 availability of DUALSHOCK®3 wireless controller in North America.

To coincide with the much-anticipated North American launch of Metal Gear Solid®4: Guns of the Patriots in late Q2 2008, SCEA will introduce a PS3 bundle, which will include an 80GB PS3, the upcoming blockbuster Metal Gear Solid®4: Guns of the Patriots and a DUALSHOCK 3 wireless controller for $499 (MSRP).

SCEA also announced the June 2008 availability of the limited-edition God of War® PSP Entertainment Pack for $199.99 (MSRP). The God of War Entertainment Pack will include a “Deep Red” PSP with God of War himself, Kratos, silk-screened on the back of the unit, a copy of the highly anticipated upcoming God of War: Chains of Olympus game for PSP, the hit comedy movie from Columbia Pictures, “Superbad™,” on UMD™ (Universal Media Disc), and a PLAYSTATION®Network voucher to download Syphon Filter®: Combat Ops from PLAYSTATION®Store. The stand-alone version of God of War: Chains of Olympus launches on March 4, 2008.

The odd thing about this press release is the PS3 bundle. It includes, what was previously thought to be discontinued, an 80GB unit. Is this the same 80 GB that Sony has been selling, or it a stripped-down version? As of now, we will have to assume it is the same. But, we shall see.

PS3 Best Blu-ray Player Available?

2008-02-12T09:01:00.000-06:00

According to Mercurynews.com, Sony's Playstation 3 is the best Blu-ray player on the market. Why is that? Read the following quote,

"The numbers refer to Blu-ray "profiles." There are three Blu-ray profiles: 1.0, 1.1 and 2.0.

Profile 1.0 or "grace period" profile Blu-ray players simply play the movie and start around $399. They tend to be kind of slow and there have been some player and software compatibility issues, which are two reasons I don't recommend them, especially when there is a far superior alternative available for the same $399. All of the stand-alone players on the market now (save one) are Profile 1.0.

Profile 1.1 or "Bonus View" players play the movie and add a secondary video decoder for picture-in-picture special features. There is only one Profile 1.1 model available, a $499 Panasonic. More will be coming later this year, priced from $349 and up. The Sony PlayStation 3 supports Profile 1.1 now and is available for $399.

Profile 2.0 or "BD-Live" players will play the movie, support Bonus View and add an Internet connection for Web interactive content and firmware updates. The Profile 2.0 standard is not fully developed and is expected to launch sometime in 2008. The PlayStation 3 will support BD-Live via a firmware update when Profile 2.0 is launched.

The obvious message here is: if you want a Blu-ray player, get a PlayStation 3! It is the fastest, most reliable Blu-ray player available, can be updated to Profile 2.0, and is priced the same as an entry-level Profile 1.0 player."

This is certainly great news for Sony. You would think they would be advertising this as much as their games. If Nintendo can capitalize on the casual gamer, why shouldn't Sony do the same with movie enthusiasts? Start advertising the PS3 as a Blu-ray player in as many audio and visual magazines as possible. Once these people get on board, they might even decide to try a game or two.

The Video Game Industry Needs a ‘Roger Ebert’

2008-01-06T21:49:00.000-06:00

Does anyone care what video game reviewers think? A better question might be, does the average consumer know where to turn when seeking advice on what games to buy? Here is a simple question: How many video game reviewers can you name? If you live and breathe video games you can probably name 2 or 3, at the most. The average consumer couldn't name a single one. Compare this to movie reviewers. The average consumer can surely name at least 2. Why is this? I think one reason is that most people over 30 still think of video games as a kid activity that you outgrow. The number of older gamers is definitely growing, but the kiddy perception still lingers. Another reason could be the lack of trusted reviewers. Most people who read video game reviews probably never even notice who is writing them. And why should they? There is no true authority in video game reviewing. There are no ‘Roger Eberts’ in the video game industry. But there needs to be.

This isn’t to say that there are no current video game journalists capable of achieving this. The gaming industry may need to mature a bit before taking this next step. Gamers who remember getting an Odyssey 2 or an Atari VCS when they were first released are just now reaching into their 40’s. And every year that passes, more and more older gamers will be talking about gaming as much as any other industry. The opportunities will be there for them to widen the scope of gaming. Part of that widening is already happening. Several non-gaming websites have active gaming sections: msnbc.com, newsweek.com, usatoday.com and others. And with this, more and more consumers are exposed to video games. The more people that are exposed to gaming, the more the game playing populace will expand. Once critical mass is hit, we could see a change in the way people view video game reviewers.

What I’m talking about here are people who are capable of reaching both hardcore gamers and casual gamers. The ‘Roger Eberts’ of the world are viewed and read by more than just movie fanatics. Even casual movie goers know exactly where to go to find a review when they need one. But casual gamers seem absolutely clueless when they are in need of a review. That is mainly because these gamers don’t know where to go to find good reviews. Or at least, reviews that they trust. Most casual gamers’ information comes from asking a kid working in the video game department. That is rarely a good idea. Have you ever gone to a theater with no clue what to watch and ask the ticket taker his advice?

Once a ‘Roger Ebert’ emerges in the video game industry, video game reviews will be more common place and be more accessible to casual gamers. The more mainstream gaming reviews become, the more the industry will grow. And, the more it is legitimized. And that will be good for all video game fans, hardcore and casual alike.

GBA Twist Coming To Life?

2007-08-08T12:45:00.000-06:00

In my blog on May 16th of this year, I wondered out loud if Nintendo should keep the GBA alive. And by keeping it alive, I meant adding a gyro sensor that is built-in to the system. This would certainly set it apart from the DS.

Recently, IGN.com posted an article here about a patent Nintendo has applied for. It would add motion controls to a handheld system as well as connecting it to a console system.

Everyone seems to be assuming this means a new DS with motion controls. But maybe, just maybe, Nintendo has something else in store for us. It seems early in the DS lifespan for Nintendo to be tossing it aside for a brand new DS that will play games not capable of running on the original DS platform. But it would make sense to re-invent the "third pillar" (GBA) by adding some sort of motion control.

It would give Nintendo two unique handheld systems, each worthy of purchasing alongside the Wii.

WORLD CYBER GAMES US Open Tournament Results Announced

2007-06-05T23:23:00.000-06:00

Press release from World Cyber Games USA:

NEW YORK - June 5, 2007 - Last weekend, 68 of the United States’ top gamers faced off at the World Cyber Games (WCG) US Open video game tournament in New York City to decide the best of the best in American gaming. The two-day competition showcased some of the finest gaming action in the world, awarding top finishing players and teams with more than $20,000 in cash and Circuit City Gift Cards, along with the big prize - an automatic berth in the US National Finals this September. The 2007 WCG US Open champions are:

Half-Life®: Counter-Strike™ 1.6 (PC) - eMazing Gaming
Age of Empires® III: The WarChiefs (PC) - Milo "MrMilo" Phillips-Brown
Dead or Alive® 4 (Xbox 360) - Emmanuel "Master" Rodriguez
Project Gotham Racing® 3 (Xbox 360) - Wesley "Chompr" Cwiklo
Starcraft®: Brood WarTM (PC) - Tyler "Nony" Wasieleski
Command & Conquer 3 Tiberium WarsTM (PC) - Albert "GeNThO" Berriz
Need For Speed™ Carbon (PC) - Kamran "omegaelite" Siddiqui
FIFA Soccer 07 (PC) - Juan "H2k-Juanqui" Alvarado
Gears of War® (Xbox 360) - MoB Turtle Beach

Additionally, Tomas “Sup3rmario” Ornelas was the winner of Tony Hawk’s Project 8 Open Tournament, with a two-minute free skate run of 4.3+ million. Outscoring all competitors by more than 2 million points, the MoB Turtle Beach team member beat out over 60 other contestants, including spectators and local gamers, to take home the $1000 in cash and prizes, and an automatic berth in the National Final.

In addition to the over $20,000 in cash and prizes and automatic berths to the WCG USA National Finals, first place winners were also awarded roundtrip airfare and hotel accommodations to Cancun, Mexico to compete in the WCG Pan-American Championships. The Pan-American Championships, taking place June 22nd - 24th, are composed of professional gamers from 10 countries in North and South America who will compete in eight of the WCG official gaming titles.

With well over one million players from more than 70 countries, the World Cyber Games is the gaming world’s premier tournament. Featuring online and offline events held throughout the world, the year-long series attracted more than 1.3 million competitors world-wide in 2006. The WCG 2006 Grand Final in Monza, Italy broke new ground as more than 24 million people tuned in to watch the competition unfold in real-time, marking the first-ever global, live satellite broadcast for an e-Sports event. This year’s WCG 2007 Grand Final will be held in Seattle, Washington. For more information about the WCG US Open, or to find out how to register to play in the WCG USA tournament, visit: www.worldcybergames.com/usa.

PS3 Outsold by GBA in April, Yikes!

2007-05-22T12:24:00.000-06:00

Here are the numbers for video game console and handheld sales from the NY-based NPD Group for the month of April 2007:

Nintendo DS: 471,000

Wii: 360,000

PlayStation 2: 194,000

PlayStation Portable: 183,000

Xbox 360: 174,000

Game Boy Advance: 84,000

Playstation 3: 82,000

I'm not sure what these numbers are saying more about. Are they saying more about Nintendo dominating in both handled and console sales? Or, are they saying more about the PS3 putting up pitiful numbers for April?

Hmmm, I guess they are saying a little of both. Sony really is caught between a rock and a hard spot. Sales are lagging, partially due to a poor selection of games and partially because of the $600 price tag. My guess is that the sticker shock has more to do with the PS3's sluggish sales than anything. $300 is still the magical price point. The Xbox 360 has sold reasonably well at $400, but it won't really take off until is gets down to $300. I'm sure Microsoft thought they would have a much bigger lead over both the PS3 and the Wii by now.

But Sony is really stuck. If the reports that they are losing $200+ on every PS3 sold are to be believed, then dropping their price won't help. Can you imagine cutting the price by $100 and then losing $300 per unit? They may sell a few more PS3s at $500, but they will be so far in the hole, they may never recover this generation.

Sony's best hope is to have enough compelling software that is unique to their system, that people will start to fork over the $600. But like I said earlier, at $600, they are from from the consumer friendly $300 price point.

I'm sure Sony is shocked that not everyone 'got a second job' to pay for their system. But now they are in an unfamiliar position. They are sitting third in a 3 system race. The next year is crucial for them. If sales don't improve, developers could move along to better selling systems. And who could blame them? Even the soon-to-be-dead GBA is selling more systems.

Gameboy Advance Twist?

2007-05-16T08:42:00.000-06:00

Nope. This isn’t a breaking news story. It’s just a question.

From everything Nintendo has said in the past year or so regarding the Gameboy Advance’s future, the system seems doomed. But why? I know the DS is selling gangbusters, but Nintendo could reinvent the Gameboy brand. Gameboy is still a very powerful brand name in the video game industry. It sells well despite it’s obvious demise. So here is the idea...one of the very best games on the GBA was Wario Ware Twisted. The controls in this game were amazing. They were fun, easy and were dead-on every time.

So why not build an entirely new system with a gyro sensor built in, so every game could take advantage of this control scheme in one way or another? This type of built-in control could do for the GBA what the touch screen did for the DS. Think about it for a minute. One reason the GBA seams to be dying is that there is no reason for it anymore. The DS can do the same as the GBA and more. But if a new GBA had a built-in gyro sensor, then it could then produce unique games that could only be found on the new GBA. That type of uniqueness is what helped the DS stand out. The same thing could happen again to the GBA. Every gaming genre could get a boost being on the GBA Twist. Some games could be controlled strictly with the gyro sensor, but the majority could incorporate the control scheme into their game to complement the standard controls. The ways the gyro sensor could be used for new innovative game play is endless, much like the touch screen on the DS.

I know the odds are against the venerable Gameboy brand, but it can still put a new twist on games if Nintendo is up for it.

TurboGrafx Ordyne Preview for Nintendo Wii Virtual Console

2007-05-02T09:38:00.000-06:00

Hudson has announced 4 new games in May for Nintendo's Virtual Console on Wii. With one of them being Ordyne. Ordyne is a personal favorite of mine. This game was loads of fun, so I can't wait to play it again on the Wii.

I have included a pic of the cover and also some copy taken directly from the original manual. Please take a look, as I believe it gives a very good preview of the game for anyone who has never played it. So here it goes...

Page 1 Story

May Day! May Day! Is Anyone Out There?

Listen closely. There isn’t much time. My name is Felix. Felix Mockle. I am the assistant to the famous Dr. Tomari, inventor of “Ordyne”, the colossal Nuclear Reactor. Nobody knows this yet, but Dr. Tomari’s fiancee, Miss Kana, has just been kidnapped by an outer-space gang of bad guys. Led by a creep named “Kubota”, little do they know that hanging around Miss Kana’s neck is the key to Ordyne! If they find this out, believe me, the whole universe could be in big trouble! Dr. Tomari and I are going after Kubota. We intend to rescue Miss Kana and get that key back. Well, what do you say? Are you a man or a smouse (a small space rodent!)? If you’re a man (or a woman!) pick up that TurboPad controller now, jump into your ship, and blast off as myself or Dr. Tomari. Better yet, find a friend and we’ll take on Kubota together. First stop? A little air-to-air combat just to warm up for the really big stuff to follow!

Page 2 Object of the Game

As Dr. Tomari, or his faithful assistant, Felix, blast off in search of Miss Kana. Journey through seven separate stages of the game, using laser beams and bombs to defeat Kubota’s followers and evil Bosses. Pick up “crystals” along the way and turn them in for “power-up items” at the Space Inn. Take your chances in the “Space Lottery” and maybe win other power-up items. Finally, in “Kubota World”, face the evil Kubota himself. Play alone or with a friend. Score as many points as possible. When an enemy or enemy’s bomb touches you, or when you run into an obstacle (building, rock, iceberg, etc.), you lose one ship. The game is over when all of your ships are destroyed, or you manage to destroy Kubota.

Pages 3 and 4 Stages of the Game

Ordyne is divided into 7 separate stages. At the end of each stage you must defeat an enemy “Boss” before you move on to the next. Stages and bosses are as follows:

Stage 1: Air-to-Air Combat
You’ll get just a taste of enemy here.

Boss: Airship
This ship has regular guns as well as a super gun emitted from the exhaust port. Aim for the exhaust port to defeat this bad guy!

Stage 2: Magma Cave
Watch out for hot lava rushing out of the cave. You’ll face a fair number of enemy ruffians during this stage.

Boss: Giant Blue Turtle
This boss attacks in two ways! First, he uses forward missiles and heavy armor to wear you down. Next, he hides inside his shell and increases his laser fire! The Giant Turtle is vulnerable all over his body.

Stage 3: Water Castle
Get ready for underwater warfare! Enemy subs, mines and mechanical fish will attack. You move more slowly in the water, so be careful.

Boss: Hot Top
Watch out for this huge column that rises up and down, launching flaming particles from the top. Avoid these fireballs as they cascade down the screen and concentrate your shots on the spiraling power beads occupying the center of the column.

Stage 4: Overwater
You’re over the water again, but you can still take a dip if you want to. More airships appear in this round.

Boss: Hover Ship
This huge hover base bristles with forward gun turrets on the left side, and moves slowly up and down while an exhaust port fires an even more powerful weapon. Aim for this port to destroy the ship, but first shoot off the guns to keep the air free from alien bullets.

Stage 5: Crystal Caverns
Crystal forests appear everywhere. Shoot through some obstacles to reach valuable treasures. Face jumping robots, armored turtles with guns, bouncing rocks and other small and larger fighters.

Boss: Crystal Palace
A crystal ship waits for you at the end of level five! As it expands and contracts, small pods are released in all directions. Shoot the pods and aim for the crystal ship’s center!

Stage 6: Gallery
You must face some of the Bosses again, only this time they’re more powerful! Go against the Airship, a Blue Turtle, Hot Top (which now launches enemy ships), the Crystal Ship and a new Boss!

Boss: Mr. Roboto
A robot monster with a broken heart appears after the other bosses. Destroy the ring shield that circles the robot, and then concentrate on the machine itself. Watch out because it will change form and fire powerful lasers everywhere!

Stage 7: Kubota Palace
The lair of your arch-nemesis is near! First you must negotiate a path through spinning discs, blocks, and past all types of enemy ships. Can you make it?

Boss: Kubota
The final Boss appears in a specially built Mega-Jumper! As smaller jumpers are released, the machine will jump high into the air to defeat you! Shoot for the head - it’s the only way to win!

Page 12 Playing Tips
At the end of the Playing Tips page, it mentions a secret mode. Here is what it says:

There is a secret mode in Ordyne that lets you play Kana! To initiate the trick, press the “A” Button while holding the “Select” Button during the title screen and the word “Kana” will appear on top of the Ordyne title screen. Press “Run” and you will be treated to a new character as well as a new ending...if you’re good enough!

Is Microsoft Controlling the Pricing on Xbox Live Marketplace?

2007-04-25T13:34:00.000-06:00

According to an article in the April Game Informer, Microsoft is pricing publisher’s content. Content and pricing are submitted to Microsoft for approval. From there, Microsoft makes the final decision on what price to charge based on items of perceived similar value that are already on the Live Marketplace. However, Microsoft said that the publishers themselves are the ones making the final decision on pricing.

According to Game Informer’s sources, not only do the publishers not control the pricing, but Microsoft is refusing to let them release free content. Apparently, Microsoft wants their customers to get used to the idea of paying money for Marketplace content. Microsoft denies refusing to let publishers release content for free.

Who are we to believe? I’m betting on the publishers on this one. There isn’t much incentive to lie about such a matter. Again, check out Game Informer’s full article in the April 2007 issue.

Dreamcast Developer Interview: Shuichi Ishikawa from Caramelpot

2007-04-16T12:21:00.000-06:00

In a previous post ( Lost Golem Review) I reviewed the Lost Golem for the Sega Dreamcast. And since then, I had the pleasure to conduct an email interview with the game's creator, Shuichi Ishikawa. Ishikawa san was gracious enough to answer all of my questions despite our language differences. So I would like to thank him again for taking out time from his busy schedule to help me out. The following interview is word-for-word from our emails.

Begin interview:

Q) Can you tell me a little bit about Caramelpot?

A) Caramelpot was established in 1997, when I was college student of Kyushu University, formerly Kyushu Institute of Design. All our staff was student of the college. So we have different specialty each, such as designing, modeling, programming and composing. But we have no experiences of making game.

Please reference http://www.design.kyushu-u.ac.jp/DB/English/index.html

Q) Is Caramelpot still actively making video games?

A) No. We broke up after the release of Golem no Maigo.
Now we are working at different company and refine each skill.

Q) What other games has Caramelpot created? And for what systems?
A) Nothing.

Q) How long have you been in the video game industry?
A) It's my first work. I was just a student.
Now I'm in Neuromagic it's a web company, and work as executive director.

Q) What other games have you worked on?
A) I developed a text-based baseball game for mobile phone. It's running with real score of professional baseball in Japan.

Q) What is your current project?
A) I'm developing a few small games for mobile phone. It's plan to ship for asia.

Q) I noticed your name is listed quite a bit in the credits. Besides Director, what all did you work on for Golem no Maigo?
A) I was scenario writer, programmer, stage designer, publicity writer, sales rep, chef, office cleaner and so on.

Q) Who did the music and sound effects?
A) Most music composed by Yasunori Murakita. He was in master's course, department of acoustic design. He work in KORG now. (http://www.korg.com/)
Some music composed by Masakazu Shin-ya. He was also working as stage designer.
All sound effects by Manabu Kawamura.

See http://golem.dricas.ne.jp/staff/staff.html
[From above; Shuichi Ishikawa : Direction, Game design, Scenario writing, Programming, Stage design, Sales, Chef
Daisuke Nakamura : Main programming
Kyoko Murakami : Character design in chief
Kayo Arita : Character design
Yasunori Murakita : Music
Masakazu Shin-ya : Music, Stage design
Manabu Kawamura : Sound effects
Kentaro Tsutsumi : Design(Web page, face of GD-ROM, Manual, Leaflet)
Mika Kurahashi : Scenario, Script, Subtitle
Ryotaro Itoh : Graphics of picture-story, Stage design
Fukiko Kodaka : Illustration of manual ]

Q) Who is responsible for the art style of the game?
A) Ryotaro Itoh. He have nice sensibility.

Q) Was Golem no Maigo based on any previous game or work or was it a completely new idea?
A) It's completely my new idea.

Q) Could you give us a brief synopsis of the story in Golem no Maigo?
A) Sorry, I can't describe a synopsis in my english ability.
The Golem devotes his life to helping the citizens.

Q) What is the connection of the poem at the end of the manual with the actual game?
A) It's a spirit of Wabi-sabi.(See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wabi-sabi)

Q) Are you satisfied with how Golem no Maigo's turned out?
A) No. We were so crude. It was very amateurish product.

Q) Has there ever been any thought to a Golem no Maigo sequel?
A) I want to make Golem no Maigo again. Etherealized one.

Q) How well did the game sell?
A) Too bad. I had to employ a efficient sales staff.

Q) What are your thoughts on the 3 current consoles and 2 handheld systems?
A) Nintendo Wii)
It's visceral console. It make playing possible with a light heart.

Play Station 3)
I think it's not how the machine provide better performance, but how the idea have original expressions.

Xbox 360)
It's too large for Japanese generic house.

Nintendo DS Lite)
I really like this handheld system. It have easy-to-connect Wi-Fi connection system.
It's groundbreaking because we can make a game with a light heart and estimated cost.
I believe that we can make a better game in restricted envionment, not in newfangled envionment.

PSP)
It's too large and too heavy for japanese.

Q) I noticed on the internet a game called Trip Trap by Caramelpot for Dreamcast. Was it released?
A) No. It was no more than a concept.

Q) Finally, what are your personal favorite game systems and games?
A) Animal Crossing, I'm playing every day with my friends.
ICO, I am really impressed it's ending.
L.O.L., There is no display of level or life. Also there is no script.
Pikmin, It avoid the need to read the manual. It have wonderful introductory part.

Additional Information:
Please try to insert the Disc of Golem no Maigo to your CD-ROM drive of PC.
You can see the secret graphics.

End Interview.

I hope you enjoyed this brief interview. As a Lost Golem fan, it was definitely a thrill to hear from the game's creator. I would like to do more interviews with Japanese developers, especially those that are unknown to most people outside of Japan. If you have any ideas on who I should interview next, please leave a comment and let me know.

Wii Internet Channel Update

2007-04-11T21:20:00.000-06:00

Nintendo updated their Internet Channel for the Wii tonight. Using the subtitle, "Now even more convenient to use!", Nintendo listed several new features:

- Faster start-up time!
- Search button added!
- Text is clear, even when enlarged
- You can now hide the tool bar to see even more of the screen

You will need to perform a system update first, and then go to the Wii Shop Channel and download the update. The system update also added a new splash page for the Shop Channel. When you get to the upload page, it says the Internet Channel is for 1 - 4 players. I wonder what that means?

Also noted was that the Internet Channel will remain free until the end of June 2007.

After some brief usage, the new zoom feature (not even mentioned that it was added) is much improved. Instead of zooming just once, you can now zoom several times. More times than you would most likely ever need. You can even zoom out and make a website even smaller than it originally loads. Not sure when you would need it, but it is there if you do.

With the ability to hide the toolbar, you can now view YouTube videos at full screen on your TV. That alone should be enough for people to want to upgrade.

Other noticeable features include the ability to view 12 of your favorites on 1 screen and the addition of an arrow that appears when scrolling. The arrow points in the direction in which you are trying to scroll. In the settings area, you can choose between Google and Yahoo for your search engines.

All of these features make the Internet channel even more useful than before.

Video Games: Murder Simulators, Racist Cop Outs or Just Plain Fun?

2007-03-06T23:18:00.000-06:00

A recent article in the winter 2007 edition of Contexts magazine, brings up some fascinating points regarding video games. The article, written by Karen Sternheimer is subtitled, "When white, middle-class teens kill, the media and politicians are quick to blame video games. Are they right?".

Some points from the article:

* Do video games cause people to become more violent and even kill? The author notes that since the release of Doom, homicide rates are down 77% among juveniles.

* Since 1997, 199 newspaper articles have been written about video games role in school shootings. Yet, only seven articles used sociologists as experts.

*It's likely that aggressive people seek out violent entertainment.

*A study found that some adults use their disdain for video games as a way to separate themselves and make them feel superior to those who enjoy them.

*The video game excuse makes white children who kill seem influenced by video games, while African-American children are made to look dangerous.

The Contexts magazine article makes some compelling points and is a must read for everyone. The racial aspect is especially interesting and deserves to be looked into more deeply. It's a shame how people jump at a solution with little or no research just because they don't fully understand what is going on.

Click here for the Contexts article.

Everybody Votes Channel

2007-02-15T09:32:00.000-06:00

Yesterday (Feb. 14th), Nintendo released the Everybody Votes Channel. Their description of the channel didn't make it sound very compelling; vote on random topics. Yippee. However, once you get into the channel and see what exactly Nintendo is doing, it becomes more interesting.

Every Monday, Wednesday and Friday, Nintendo sends out regional questions to vote on. Twice a month, global questions are added. The fun part is that up to 6 people can participate. Each person uses their Mii to cast their votes. Once you vote, you are then asked to guess what most people voted for. As time goes by, all your answers are tracked and you can see how your voting compares to others in your region or around the world. There is also a competition between each family member. You get to see who guessed correctly on what most people guessed for each question in your particular region and even worldwide.

While this new channel isn't going to wow many people, Nintendo's purpose is clear. They are trying to get the entire family together while using the Wii. And I think they have succeeded with this channel.

Terrific BBC Tetris Documentary

2007-01-11T10:15:00.000-06:00

In 2004, BBC Four released a documentary about the grand-daddy of all puzzle games, Tetris. It is an hour long show directed by Magnus Temple. The show focuses on how Tetris was licensed. Without a doubt, it is one of the most fascinating stories in video game history. All the major players are included in this special. The following list is taken directly from BBC Four's website:

Alexey Pajitnov
Invents Tetris in 1985 while working at the Moscow Academy of Science's Computer Centre. Alexey moved to the USA to work for Microsoft after the success of Tetris.
Evgeni Nikolaevich Belikov
Head of Elorg, the Russian ministry for import and export of software and hardware. Belikov is the man with whom all negotiations about Tetris had to be done.
Robert Stein
President of British software house Andromeda. Sells Tetris rights to Robert Maxwell’s Mirrorsoft UK and US affiliate Spectrum Holobyte before he’s negotiated anything concrete with the Russians.
Kevin Maxwell
Son of Robert Maxwell and head of Mirrorsoft UK. Buys all Tetris rights (except arcade and hand-held) from Stein not knowing that Stein has no formal contract with the Russians.
Henk Rogers
American entrepreneur and video games enthusiast. Nintendo employs Rogers to get the hand-held Tetris rights to support the launch of Game Boy.

The candor of eveyone interviewed is what makes this film so special. No video game fan should miss it.

BBC Tetris Video

2007 Dreamcast Lineup

2007-01-09T08:48:00.000-06:00

While it has been almost 6 years since Sega pulled the plug on the Dreamcast, games are STILL being released for it. So far in 2007, at least 3 games have been announced: Karous, Trigger Heart Exelica and Last Hope.

To no one's surprise, all 3 are top-down shooters. Last Hope is out now, Trigger Heart Exelica comes out in February and Karous is due in March. Here's hoping the Dreamcast can survive yet another year!

Dreamcast's Best and Rarest Puzzler

2007-01-02T17:54:00.000-06:00

The Lost Golem
(released Feb. 2000)

Looking for another Tetris clone? Well, look elsewhere. This game is anything but a clone of the granddaddy of all puzzlers. The Lost Golem (Golem No Maigo) is an obscure (the last count I saw was under 500 sold) Japanese-only game for the Dreamcast.

There are 2 main characters in this game: A Golem (a huge stone creature) and a King. The object of the game, like all good puzzle games, is very simple. Playing as the Golem, you must guide the king to safety.

The game is broken down into dozens of stages. In each stage, you are in the room of a castle. The object is to get the king to walk out of the door in each room. Sounds simple doesn’t it?

But the king isn’t the brightest torch in the castle. He can only walk in a straight path. When he hits a wall he turns left. If he can’t go left he will turn right. If both left and right paths are blocked, he will turn around and go back in the direction he just came.

As the Golem, your only way to guide the king to safety is to move walls in front of the King to change his path. Walls are connected to 1 of 2 different types of pillars. The type of pillar determines how the walls will turn/move when it is pushed. When you push a wall on a turning pillar, the wall will swivel 90 degrees. If the pillar is an ordinary pillar, the wall will just move forward in the direction it was pushed.

Besides getting the king out the door, there is one other requirement per stage. On each stage you must connect the required number of walls before the king can go out the door. This adds an extra element of fun to each puzzle. Not only do you have to figure out the correct path for the king, but at the same time you are trying to move and connect as many walls as needed.

Besides the 1-player mode, there is an exciting 2-player mode. The game play is the same as the 1-player mode except now it’s a race to see who can rescue the king first.

The last mode of play is the design-a-stage mode. It has an extensive list of commands. Everything you could possibly want to do is here.

The Lost Golem is a highly-recommended puzzler.

And even though it is an extremely rare game, this gem can be had on ebay for under $30. So, there is no reason not to pick this baby up.

Nintendo Ice Hockey

2006-12-20T14:01:00.000-06:00

Medium guy, skinny guy, fat guy. That's usually how I describe Ice Hockey from Nintendo when I try to talk to someone about this classic 8-bit game. That's all it takes to jog people's memories. While the game is light on graphics and strategy, it is downright heavy with action and some of the finest twitch-gaming around.

And now, even more people can enjoy this game since it has been released on the Wii's Virtual Console. This game is definitely best played by 2 people. The 1-player mode is lacking depth, but still fun. The 2-player mode is actually more like an evolved version of Pong rather than ice hockey. The speed (at its fastest level) is slippery fast. Pass and shoot. That is all you have time to think about. Add in having to control the goalie when you switch to defense and you have a recipe for mayhem.

It's fast, fun and best of all, anyone can pick it up and play. One button passes, the other shoots. Nothing complicated. Ice Hockey is simple non-stop fun.

The only thing that could be better than Ice Hockey on the Wii would be online Ice Hockey on the Wii. Nintendo has already stated that previously released Virtual Console games can be updated, so how about it Nintendo? How about updating this classic game to include online play? So far, the only game that has been updated has been Military Madness. And that was to fix a bug in the emulation. Let's hope we start to get some real game updates soon.

Check out gogamego Games for some cool Ice Hockey stuff!

Mii Channel: A Surprise Hit!

2006-12-14T14:06:00.000-06:00

During Thanksgiving, we had the Wii going the entire day. Everyone was playing: gamers and non-gamers. People loved bowling and tennis. And had a lot of fun with boxing. But what captured people's imagination as much as anything was the Mii Channel. When the rest of the family saw the Miis we had already created, they were eager to do their own. Boxing is cool, but when you are pummeling a cartoon version of a family member, it becomes so much more fun!

Nintendo definitely has a hit on it's hands with the Mii Channel. Let's hope Nintendo is already preparing an update to the Mii Channel that will provide much more variation. To date, my wife has logged in more Mii time than Wii time. And I'm guessing a lot other have as well.

Where is Our Saturn Bomberman 2?

2006-10-31T10:58:00.000-06:00

Yeah yeah. I know the Saturn is long gone, but why can't Hudson release a sequel to this masterpiece? Bomberman on the Dreamcast and Gamecube were ok, but they just weren't as good as the Saturn version. Why can't we get a new Bomberman game with the Hudson characters (instead of nothing but different colored Bombermen), the dinosaurs (Tyras), 8-player mode (10 for widescreen), and all the original Saturn level plus additional ones?

If Hudson did all of this and included online play, for 8 players, not the standard 4 they have been doing, this would be a killer game.

Think about this...the PS3 has 7 wireless connections. Perfect for Saturn Bomberman. The Wii has 4 Wii remotes and 4 Gamecube ports. Also perfect for Bomberman.

Add all of this together with online leagues and tournaments and you have one of the best games out there. Let's hope someone is already thinking about this.

New Wii Revelation Coming Soon?

2006-10-31T10:23:00.000-06:00

According to GoNintendo.com, Reggie Fils-Aime (President of Nintendo America) has said there is yet another secret to be revealed around launch time. Now what in the world could this be?

New hardware specs? Doubtful at this late date.

Additional pack-in? Possible, since this wouldn't effect anyone to this point.

Lower price? Possible, since Nintendo did the exact same thing with the N64.

Only 19 more days until we know for sure.

No Wii Price in Toys R Us Big Toy Book?

2006-10-27T19:28:00.000-06:00

Anyone else find it odd that every console and handheld system in the TRU Big Toy Book had a price next to it, except for the Wii? Even the PS3 had prices for both of it's versions listed. My first thought was back to the N64 launch. Nintendo originally stated it would sell for $250 but then at the last minute swithed the price to $199 even though they had pre-sales for several thousand already in the books.

It might be wishful thinking, but I would love to see Nintendo pull the same switch-a-roo.