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Team Fortress 2 - Contribute!

2010-01-14T10:23:00.001-05:00

Calling all creators- apparently TF2 is letting you craft your own items, hats, avatars, and other goodies to "immortaliz[e] you in the Team Fortress 2 pantheon forever while keeping our jobs safe."

Crowdsourced stuff from a major community like TF2 is bound to have some successes, and it shows Valve's still committed to revitalizing a game many have said has left its prime months ago. Hell, half the people I know who play this game are art majors, and they alone have created enough out-of-game related art to fill half a book.

I fear for Valve's servers once they open this floodgate.

Posted via web from Kuri's posterous

Grats GC!

2010-01-14T01:03:00.002-05:00

I don't usually call this stuff out on my blog, but this deserves a shout-out.

Rotface has been a real thorn in our side since last week on both 10 and 25-man, and we finally nailed him in both modes. Now to work on Putricide (with a scant 10 attempts)!

Posted via web from Kuri's posterous

Everquest Gets an Epic Documentary

2009-06-10T22:59:00.009-04:00

I was meaning to post this a while back, but better late than never. Actually, the way it is now, it acts as a slick post-mortem to the EverQuest convention where this documentary was aired! Slick, huh?

So finally, here's a guy covering Everquest who isn't dressed up as an elf or dwarf in chainmail- not that there's anything wrong with those obsessed fans covering these types of things. Come to think of it, they'd probably make the best documentary since they live the MMO life in- and out-of-game... but I digress.

So a one-time developer and present-day TV and videogame producer by the name of Jason Hall put together a series of never-before-seen interviews with the original EverQuest team. You may also know him as the Founder/CEO of Monolith Productions (think F.E.A.R., The Matrix Online... okay, probably best to stop there). He's now tackling reality shows.

Regardless of your feelings about a producer covering a once-titanic MMO or the MMO genre in general, it's great to finally get a true insider look into the MMO companies behind the game. This documentary shows a mixture of things: MMO addict developers giving insight to the passion that formed the game, twists along the way that could've kept this genre from ever taking off, some unexpected "by-products" of EverQuest (WoW players will appreciate the nod), and more. If you have any feelings towards MMO games whatsoever, this should at least frame the industry that's made it as far as it has today.

Sadly, the convention this video aired at just finished yesterday so the full video isn't up yet. Feel free to torrent scan (I will) and catch the full product when it's up. Anything that has confetti, women popping out of cakes, and sparkles has an automatic "win" factor of 10.

Check after the break for the trailer.

Mountain Dew Game Fuel: WoW Edition

2009-06-08T00:59:00.008-04:00

On the heels of last year's summer Halo 3-themed Game Fuel line (and their election-style compeititon between 3 new berry fusion flavors two years ago), Mountain Dew is testing your faction loyalty with 2 types of World of Warcraft drinks. Alliance will have a wild fruit flavor, and Horde will be citrus cherry (think Baja Blast and Livewire/Code Red).

These drinks have been very elusive, but after recently moving to Chicago I found each of these stocked at a local CVS. Nobody else I know has their hands on these yet, so they might be releasing their new flavors in phases in key locations. Makes sense if they're ramping up production over the summer.

They're also doing something akin to their (now-ancient) 'Every 10 Minutes' campaign on their Game Fuel website, and you can win random WoW-related swag, PC peripherals, an Alienware laptop... or even a trip to Blizzcon. Sign up, click things for points, and enter for a chance to win every 5 minutes (if you place points in each item- not recommended). Down the road, no matter how many tokens you do or don't acquire, you'll be awarded a cute robot mini-pet, so make sure you don't get shafted by picking Horde if you'd really like a blue pet.

I won't even try to pick sides to say which one tastes better, or if the Halo variety outdid what's out now. What I will say is you should at least try it, since supporting new flavors will ensure at some point down the road they will have a whole line-up of good flavors.

And now, a picture of my loot.

5 Things in 5 (Well, 8) Minutes - Podcast 001

2009-06-07T15:20:00.005-04:00

You might've wondered where I've been. Well, turns out making a podcast is a little more involved than I previously thought! And even after the podcast was made, there's still the matter of offering the media. Well, good news is... finally, those obstacles are gone.

5 Things in 5 Minutes is the new podcast theme for this blog. Once every few days (podcast update frequency to be announced at a later date), I'll be uploading this as a quick non-text recap of important news of the week. There's much more than 5 things going on at any given time, but these are the 5 most interesting to me. Oh, the power.

Included with the podcast will be "show notes" to provide additional context to the show. If something feels glazed-over in the podcast, check the notes- you'll find plenty of resources to deepen your understanding.

Show Notes for Episode 001:

Left 4 Dead 2 (Soon?)

Parodying the community reaction for L4D2's unexpectedly-early release, we have these two videos. Epic music and ominous tones? Check and check.

Battle.net 2.0 is (Maybe?) Free!

Why go in detail when you can see my update here?

The Big 3 Makes Motion Controllers Now, Not Cars

Wii's Vitality Sensor, XBOX360's Natal, and Sony's 'Yet-Unnamed Eyetoy Motion Controller'

PSP Go is Go!

More specs than you can shake a stick at. Click here for community (well, IGN editors') impressions.

EA Thinks Protesting is Marketing

Viral marketing hits E3. News at 11.

Hope you enjoyed the first episode, and be sure to tune in next time. I might even get a better microphone.

CONFIRMED: Battle.net 2.0 to Be Free

2009-06-06T00:48:00.008-04:00

You wonder why Blizzard didn't release this from the first announcements of Starcraft II and Diablo 3, but late's better than never.

According to Activision-Blizzard's annual conference call, and now a post on the official Battle.net forums, Battle.net 2.0 will be free to those purchasing Starcraft 2. This comes as good news to people frettting they'll have to fork over $50 for the base game and complement it with an XBOX Live subscription.

However, if you look closely at the wording, you'll notice Blue poster Karune only specifically mentions SC2. Yes, it's the SC2 forum on Battle.net. Yes, he's primarily speaking to the SC2-interested audiences. No, I didn't get the opportuniy to sit in on the Activision-Blizzard conference call to hear Mike Morhaime specifically define what the service covers. But there's some important factors to consider... after the break.

World of Warcraft, which will be included in the new Battle.net 2.0 integration, already has a $15/mo subscription fee attached, so including Bnet2.0 should be a no-brainer. SC2 was recently announced as a trilogy, so assuming a $50+ price tag on each game, they're netting $150+ total from each dedicated customer over the lifespan of SC2. Diablo, the only intellectual property still in the air, is only planned (at this stage) to be a single-game iteration, so this game might be up for a Battle.net 2.0 access fee, or worse, a subscription model. However, the Diablo community has come to expect free online play from the previous 2 games... but meeting profit estimates tend to trump histortical trends. This is just the cynic in me talking, though.

If you dig enough, you'll even find tidbits that older games will not be supported (although this isn't cited anywhere specifically). This means they'll be stuck on the old Battle.net iteration until they're taken offline. It makes sense since the new Battle.net is being built around a whole new infrastructure (clan management, event planning, game achievements, etc.), but it's sad to see if you're playing a retro game there's a chance your friends won't see you on.

Overall, it's good to see Blizzard's moving towards a "free" model for Battle.net 2.0. But this all might be dependent on how much revenue they can generate from each IP individually over the long-term to support the service. Keep your ears tuned, especially in August during Blizzcon, to see how this situation evolves. Better yet, come to my blog, since I'll actually be attending (liveblog attempt incoming?!).

E3 Winds Down

2009-06-05T11:55:00.006-04:00

So, the truncated E3 is down from 5 days to 4 since it shrunk in 2007, which means it's officially over and we have all the news updates to skim over and analyze from the previous week. I saw a suprising amount of journalists lamenting over the short period since there were so many games to test, but too long of lines to get to them all.

Rather than try to be one of those blogging androids that covers all of E3 from all sides (Sony, Microsoft, Nintendo, independent hardware developers... and all the games being showcased), I will take the more humanistic approach and cover the highlights of the event. Best thing is, since I'm not liveblogging the content, I can provide insight with the power of hindsight.

Not saying it wouldn't have been fun liveblogging the event, but that's what Twitter's for nowadays. I'd also prefer to be at the presentations. So we'll save those crazy antics for the day I get a press pass.

Now that you know my stance on the subject, keep your eyes peeled in the following weeks for updates on all the E3 announcements and their impact on how you'll be playing your consoles going forward.

Star Wars Galaxies: A Nostalgic Retrospective

2009-06-05T11:05:00.009-04:00

Hey, blog! Long time no see. Been doing well while I've been gone? Aw, you even kept this place how I left it.

Now if you don't mind, I'll be taking over again.

To jump back into this whole blogging thing, I felt an MMO-related story would be appropriate. So what better to kick off with than my old stompin' grounds of 5 years passed, Star Wars Galaxies?

I stumbled across a great compendium to learn about Star Wars Galaxies, where it goes over the game's pre-launch, initial reception, progressive (and regressive) updates, eventual downfall, and present condition. It's really summarized quite well, and is available after the break.

I, personally, left the game right before player housing and vehicles were implemented and the Jedi unlocking system was 4/5ths-released to the public. In short, I was really not playing all that long, although it did consume at least 4 months of my teenage life. I can still remember my old guild (the name of said guild, not so much) and things like entire staked-out fields of windmills to generate resources to build our first guild city, invasions of Republic guild cities, duels with players much more powerful than myself, tromps across vast planets, and constantly not understading what I was doing.

Some things in the videos are spot-on:

There was (and apparently still is) very little direction given in the game.
The New Game Experience patch utterly destroyed the community by releasing Jedi as a readily-available class, when it was a smash-keyboard-and-win kind of class. That and the whole talent/combat revamp. From all accounts it was an unwelcome shellshock.
The 34 classes provided depth but, as the game expanded, was ultimately a barrier for new entrants.
The game's scale is indeed the most ambitious of all games released to date to capture the feel and immersion of the Star Wars world.

But one small quibble- the "new Star Wars MMO that is nothing but rumors" is in fact no longer a rumor- it's confirmed Bioware is working on The Old Republic, as evidenced by their theatrical trailer and accompanying footage.

The mighty may have fallen, but in their place arise great things. This kind of evolution is what keeps me excited about the MMO genre.

World of Warcraft: 3.0.3's Largest Nerf

2008-11-04T17:43:00.008-05:00

You might be wondering- what's the big deal about a broom?

Well, for those of us who have been playing World of Warcraft for the last half a month, there was an event called Hallow's End that integrated candy, tricks, and loot into 15 days of festive fun, traveling, and boss-slaying. One of the unsung champions of this event was none other than the Magic Broom.

What this little guy did was nix the usual 3-second cast time to mount. There were major implications due to this in multiple areas- you saw every PVPer sporting this guy since you could pop on a 100% speed mount immediately upon leaving combat. Advantages are even better for Rogues and the Night Elf class, who sport Vanish and Shadowmeld to immediately leave combat. I presume it's a similar situation for Hunters with Feign Death.

In PVE, suddenly grinding low-level quests and monsters weren't as big of a hassle. Usually monsters are spaced 20-30 yards apart, and the run time wasted during a typical quest could be upwards of 5 minutes. Assuming it takes 15 minutes to do a quest with some traveling, that's 33% of your time spent running monster to monster! This cut that downtime to 1 minute or less, and it was suddenly fun to chain-quest again.

I think Blizzard realizes the benefits this item brought, but its effect in PVP probably made it overpowered. I don't see anything wrong with having no cast time on mounts- it makes for a twitchier game- and I'd gladly take it back. It's a drag that the game feels it needs to waste time just to waste time by re-implementing the cast time to mount. I say be done with it and make every mount casting time-free.

Your customers who like spending their time playing, not casting and standing still, will thank you.

(In other news, I hope Blizzard finally fixed the achievement "A Simple Re-Quest". I'd like to enter a Battleground again without having to worry about it wiping the number!)

Mirror, Mirror on the HDTV

2008-08-25T12:20:00.006-04:00

Mirror's Edge, for those unfamiliar with the game, blasted onto the gaming blogosphere with a bang thanks to its realistically-moving camera. The rest of the game's fairly standard platforming fare- plop on a roof, jump onto a pole, swing, land, beat up bad guys that run to meet you, and repeat. But it's the first first-person shooter/platformer that actually attempts to attach a camera to the character's head, rather than place it on a static X-Y-Z axis. Now, if you kick the back of a guy's head, you'll look down your arm, center on the enemy's head, and the camera will bob as you make his face meet steel grating. It's a nice touch to a genre that's been unexcitingly consistent in presentation.

Some of this action has been shown in a brand spankin' new gameplay video released at Leipzig Games Convention 2008 (after the jump):

One concern from earlier trailers was that it'd be too scripted or oversaturated with gimmicky camera movements. Since nobody's tested the final product it's impossible to verify the truth of that allegation, but assuming there's a gradual progression of skill sets and fights a'la Portal's evolving stages, the gimmick factor should be minimized.

I'm satisfied with the eye-candy shown so far, but I'd love to see more gameplay. Since release is a while off, with many game shows going on before then, expect more to be released in a calculated way. Marketing teams just love doing that.

There's even some back story to the craziness contained in the above videos. Peep extra trailers and related videos below:

Don't Look Now, But...

2007-11-19T23:56:00.000-05:00

IT'S SAMUS ARAN! It's not like I typically inject this blog with cosplay/artistic love, but I think this exhibit warrants a mention. Plus it's about a game, so there, that's my excuse.

The cosplayer in question today is cosplayer Jenni Källberg, who's been making front-page rounds on news circles showcasing her new Samus outfit. It's certainly impressive, and since she's not Asian herself, I presume this is why it's made such a splash in Western circles- no dig at Asian anime folk, it's just they're the ones typically associated with over-the-top cosplay getups.

Check the link, or if you're lazy, click the jump. It'll be worth your time.

Atari Getting Some Help

2007-10-25T12:07:00.001-04:00

Following up last week's Atari article, it seems Infogrames Entertainment (Atari's parent company) is using its BlueBay division to buy Atari's debt and inject it with $10M to carry it through the holiday season.

Yet this $10M isn't going to cut it, Atari says, and they're looking for further financing.

Kotaku's Mike Fahey makes the jab, "I'm patiently waiting for a PayPal donation button to appear on their homepage."

Atari's future is looking pretty foggy, and I'll be checking to see what becomes of the long-standing, yet mis-managed company.

XBOX360 Propels to 1st Place: Halo 3 to Thank?

2007-10-19T00:13:00.001-04:00

Never underestimate the chain reaction of success a blockbuster title can bring. Right on the heels of Halo 3's release (okay, calculate in a month of lag for all those fence-sitters), industry sales jumped 74% this month, largely thanks to Microsoft's hit title.

Nintendo saw Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass (DS) rack in a hefty amount of sales (400K), coupled with the continued success of Wii and its casual-fun games. Between Zelda, Samus, and Wii mini-games, Nintendo saw well over 1 million copies sold for September and early October.

However, that number pales- and I mean pales- in comparison to what Microsoft saw since Halo 3's release. Clocking in at 3.3 million copies sold on release day, that number's since grown to over 5.2 million copies sold worldwide. If history taught us anything about hit exclusives, it's that each release is coupled with massive sales increases with its console.

As NPD Group analyst Anita Frazier says, "Halo 3 had a very big and significant impact on 360 hardware sales. Consumers always tell us that the availability of the games they want to play is the #1 reason why they purchase any given hardware system, and when you have a game of this magnitude, the effect of compelling content on driving hardware acquisition is evident."

Well, people weren't just acquiring consoles... they were snatching them up like all XBOX inventory was going to be incinerated by Christmas. Analysts can't help but chock that up to Halo 3 (and partially to others).

An NPD Group analyst, Anita Frazier, "We should continue to see strong sales for Halo 3 into the holidays and that will definitely help keep the momentum going for the 360. Not only that, but those new owners are going to be looking for some more content to play so it's a cycle that feeds itself."

With Sony's Playstation 3 and Nintendo's Wii offering nothing of world-shaking significance (yet), it's going to be a white-and-green holiday as XBOX360 games piggyback off Halo's penetration.

To sum things up:

Software Sales: +64% (Rose to $550.5 million)
Hardware Sales: +188% (Rose to $418.6 million)
Industry Sales: +74% (Total video game sales rose to $1.36 billion)

EA's BioWare & Pandemic Acquisition Details Emerge

2007-10-13T22:21:00.001-04:00

Recently, EA made headline news for its USD 825M acquisition of Pandemic (Star Wars: Battlefront) and BioWare (Mass Effect / Baldur's Gate) studios, which put questions in the minds of gamers everywhere. Why the sudden purchase? What was the strategic motive?

Well, today, EA released some general, yet logical information regarding their decision. Simply put, "This acquisition fills up a gap in our genre line-up. We are currently underrepresented in key genres: RPG, action, and adventure." He substantiates this with the fact that 36/29 percent of the North American/European markets respectively are made up by these genres that these studios specialize in, and >25% is no small piece of market pie.

Pandemic and BioWare cumulatively have 6 wholly-owned projects in the works, and as if a cherry on the top of a $825M sundae, BioWare is also working on a yet-unannounced MMORPG.

Filling out your portfolio doesn't come without a cost, however. Investors and executives alike are relying on their revenue estimates to make this deal profitable, and while the breakeven point is set for 2009, dud games will cause quite a bit of strain on EA's value.

When asked by Gamasutra if they were worried about being utterly taken over, overshadowed, and tossed around in a corporate dryer of sorts, BioWare replied that EA was actually very in-line with their goals, and being attached to such a powerful entity might provide the necessary resources to see even bigger projects come to fruition.

There's no doubt this story's only going to get deeper, and soon we might see the finer details of EA's desire of Pandemic/BioWare ownership.

No Wii Price Cut - Confirmed

2007-10-13T21:46:00.000-04:00

This should come as no surprise whatsoever, but the Nintendo Wii will not be seeing price cuts this holiday season. With ample demand pushing sales and Nintendo receiving gains from every unit sold, Nintendo has no reason to follow in Sony and Microsoft's price-drop decisions.

Says NOA's George Harrison, "We'll stay at USD 249 for the foreseeable future. We are still selling everything we can make."

GamesIndustry.biz also speculates repeat Wii console shortages again this year as the masses run out for gift-buyin', so don't let your guard down- get your Wii early if you plan on buying one.

Will price drops increase competition between the three vying consoles? November and December, we await your bombardment of gaming-related TV ads.

Change is in the Air... at Atari

2007-10-08T18:36:00.001-04:00

Mismanagement of a brand is never a pretty thing. Neither is seeing a stock chart mimic a ski slope. However, Atari has both problems on their hands and is finally trying to turn things around for the staggered company.

Head board members were removed (an oddly strong word, likely chosen to portray the seriousness of the change) today, with new management to be put in place soon.

Will this change really bring Atari back? The last great Atari game, many have argued, was Pong. Harsh words that, unfortunately, ring pretty true. Neverwinter Nights fans, no offense intended.

Once this change begins to yield financial fixes and make good on Atari's promises, we might see some rebounding. In the meantime, IT'S SKIING TIME!

WoW: Great News for Reroll Virgins

2007-10-08T18:12:00.000-04:00

For as long as I can remember, the most painful experience in World of Warcraft was re-leveling a character. For all but the hardiest of gamers (or those sick of their current character), starting fresh and spending countless hours running through the same content you played through not too long ago is #1 on peoples' "Avoid" lists.

Well, patch 2.3 details came swooping in today to lift that bad "re-roll" taste from peoples' mouths, and it's improvements all around for those who ever wanted to play another class but never had the time (or patience).

Here's a summary of the upcoming changes (from WoW Insider):

Amount of experience needed to level reduced by 15% per level between 20 and 60.
Experience gained from completing quests increased between levels 30 and 60.
Outdoor elite quests will now now be soloable, with the same (or better) rewards.
About 60 new quests and a new goblin town based in Dustwallow Marsh (levels 30 to 40)
Level ranges for old dungeons to be narrowed down a bit (so that if you are high enough to start them, you are high enough to finish them too)
Increased questing experience for dungeon quests.
Buffed up item drops from dungeon bosses.

For twinks and altoholics, these changes might be a bit disheartening, tossing days of work to the wind. But, such is life in constantly-evolving games like MMORPGs.

Stay tuned for further updates regarding this change, because as we're told by Blizzard itself, this is only the tippiest-top of the iceberg to come. Huzzah, my alts might yet again see some play time!

40GB, and NO PS2 GAMES FOR YOU.

2007-10-08T17:28:00.000-04:00

Ah, Playstation 3 marketing- the crux of every marketer's "not to do" list. Recently, there were inklings of Sony making a "Big Bang" announcement regarding its PS3- which were promptly shot down by Sony Computer Entertainment of Europe (SCEE). Lest I remind you, they (SCEA/SCEE) consistently attempt to cover up announcements like this, so don't buy into their response too easily.

Next, people reported new SKU#'s popping up in retail store catalogs described as- you guessed it!- a $399 40GB PS3 models!

And now, presumably feeling that their surprise was out of the bag, Sony is saying the 40GB model will lack backwards compatibility. Wait, WHAT?!

If lacking backwards compatibility sounds trivial to you, consider these figures: There's 1,700+ Playstation 2 games out now with plenty still in development. Sony quotes a 90% backwards compatibility count. Playstation 3, however, offers a meager 65 games, a handful of which people actually consider "good."

Sony's saying: In buying our new 40GB console, you're being locked out of our previous hit games, but trust us... our great games are just around the corner!

But wait- here's the irony. Recalling back to 2006 in a GamePro interview, Sony's Phil Harrison said "Backwards compatibility, as you know from PlayStation One and PlayStation 2, is a core value of what we believe we should offer. And access to the library of content people have created, bought for themselves, and accumulated over the years is necessary to create a format. PlayStation is a format meaning that it transcends many devices -- PSOne, PS2, and now PS3."

Joystiq puts it best: "A little over a year and 'core values' go right out the window."

There has been confirmation that hardware in the Playstation 3 has been removed from the 40GB version to make production cheaper, so a firmware add-in is impossible. Bafflingly, there will still be continued backwards compatibility support for the 60/80GB PS3 models (I thought this was a huge cost?).

So, Big Bang announcement or no, there's an interesting month ahead of Playstation 3. Christmas is coming up, and this is the worst time of year to get bad publicity. Keep your ears open October 12th for that bang- hopefully for Sony, it won't be the sound of Playstation's sales (and/or reputation) crashing.

WoW's Brew-Ha-Ha!

2007-10-07T03:02:00.000-04:00

(Source: WorldofWarcraft.com)

World of Warcraft's newly-released annual festival- Brewfest- was just released this week on October 2nd, and denizens of Azeroth have been quite jolly with the free booze and abundance of intersting outfits and gimmicky items.

Despite some event-shattering hiccups (Dark Iron invasions crashing servers, inability to obtain certain quests, and hundreds of people amassing in front of Ironforge straining peoples' graphics cards), the event's been a smashing success with much praise towards Blizzard with this new casual content.

For just 15-40 minutes a day, you too can work towards a Dwarven beer-carrying ram, Bavarian-esque outfit, or Beer Goggles (my personal favorite- check the linked video) just to name a few. It's a nice break in the quest/PvP/instance grind, and you get a blurry screen and slurred speech to boot.

This was an unexpected treat from Blizzard, and there's rumors that this year's Dwarven-centric event might even get Horde-ification next year due to player demand. Can't wait to ride a beer kodo! Tips and screenshots after the jump!

Screenshots (Click to Enlarge)!

Brewfest Quest Select Tips:
Pink Elekks on Parade - Repeatable: DAILY - This quest requires you go to all major Alliance cities (there's also a Horde version, not described here), head to the entrance, get drunk, and zap some Pink Elekks! I assume you're hearthed to Shattrath and not a mage. Start in Ironforge, fly to Stormwind (zap 3 Elekks outside Stormwind gates), hearth to Shattrath, take portal to Exodar (zap 3 Elekks), take hippogryph/boat to Darnassus (zap 3 Elekks), and you're done!

Bark for the Thunderbrews (or Barleybrews) - Repeatable: EVERY 12 HOURS - Get the name of a brewery out there! You can only pick 1 brewery every 12 hours to bark for, but the premise is simple- you mount your ram, ride to Ironforge, and run between flags at each of the 4 main districts. There's a picture here detailing the most efficient route. After you bark at your last location, you're free to use your real mount to return to the questgiver.

Now This is Ram Racing... Almost - Repeatable: NO - Do this quest first, because it opens up the bulk of Brewfest's quests! There's a semi-fine art to whipping your ram in this quest. Tap the reins you receive in your pack slowly to trot, a little faster (once a second) to canter, and spam-click to gallop. There's finer points to note, which I'll outline next. Just think of your ram as a 4-gear car that needs constant attention.

There and Back Again - Repeatable: EVERY 12 HOURS - This takes the skills you learned in Now This is Ram Racing and adds a few variables to the mix: exhaustion and apple barrels. For this quest (doable 12AM-12PM then 12PM-12AM server time), you ride between Kharanos and the Brewfest grounds delivering giant kegs on a special ram. You'll notice as you go, however, your ram gets more and more exhausted until it caps at 100- then you move at the speed of your grandmother covered in frozen molasses. You can either avoid it by stopping clicking (to let the ram rest), or better yet, utilize the apple barrels along the road to clear your exhaustion altogether. These barrels are located inside the tend behind the questgivert, next to a directional post halfway between the towns, and behind the keg-thrower in Kharanos. I recommend just tapping the apple barrel with your mount as you run past, which should clear your exhaustion points. I average about 24 tickets per 12 hours, so this quest is definitely worth your time. Find these apple barrels before you head out, lest you waste time looking for them!

Since We Last Talked...

2007-10-06T02:02:00.000-04:00

It's been a long, long time indeed! And since KuriNeko's last article, I've been there and back again in terms of gaming, visited Japan for a month and drooled over their game selection, and delivered Jimmy John's (but that's another story for another blog). I'll be more than happy to give you my story thus far- followed by some actual gaming industry goings-on.

Let's get started... after the jump, of course.

You might recall me covering the Wii. Quite a lot. I even sat outside a Toys 'R Us overnight after scouring tipster websites to get my hands on one.

Well, now my Wii has found itself a new home via eBay. Looking back on that little bugger, I realize how entertaining theory doesn't translate into extreme fun. After logging countless hours with Wii Sports, Super Monkey Ball, Wario Ware: Touched, and dabbling a bit into Zelda: Twilight Princess (never really did find the time to play this allegedly-awesome game, but there's always the Gamecube version), and flushing away some Wii Points on Ristar and Super Mario 64, I realized something.

I realized I wasn't playing the Wii. Heck, I realized I was avoiding the Wii.

I grew up on the controller and the couch-sitting that came with it. I also grew up on deep, complex games that entertained for more than 6 hours of fun, and had more depth than 3 repetitive hand motions.

Having to set up a sensor with line-of-sight to my couch? I can't just turn this thing on- I need to learn the art of "laser adjustment"?

Where were the beefy, console-defining Wii games? Mini-game inspired releases? That's what the online store is for. Spare me the ping pong simulators.

Eventual promises of Mario, Samus, and Leon? What about now? What's keeping me with you, Wii, while XBOX 360 and Playstation 3 get these revolutionary titles that not only look beautiful, but contain the whole package?

What about online connectivity? Friend codes- 16-digit codes that need to be traded person-to-person (unless you use some online communities which act as code mediums) are hardly my idea of "playing online with everyone, everywhere, on a revolutionary system"? I was expecting XBOX Live, and I got the equivalent of trading my driver's license information to even interact with others.

I was monumentally let down by my purchase, yet consistently impressed by the next-gen news bits that XBOX 360 and Playstation 3 were generating.

Long story short, I wanted a hardcore and cutting-edge gaming experience, and Wii positioned itself in the casual/low-tech market. It just wasn't meant to be.

A few weeks after Microsoft announced the XBOX 360's price drop, I jumped ship and shelled out $400 for a used XBOX 360 Elite. It's sexy, it's a powerhouse, and it's gaming I'm used to. I cannot recall how long it's been since I got "sweaty palm" while unloading machine gun rounds into clone armies- but man did I miss it.

Now, I have a (relatively tiny) game library that was the same size as my Wii's back last Christmas, and I log at least an hour a day on my sleek, black Box. I won't even guess how much that'll increase once Halo 3 arrives. It's going to be good times.

And, as expected, I've been playing my fair share of World of Warcraft: The Burning Crusade. I've been cutting back lately due to burn-out and real-life reasons, but the game's still a staple in my gaming diet, and I have no intentions of stopping. I probably should, but it's just too dang fun.

And so ends the catch-up. Now let's move on to better, and juicier, goodies. I say we start with... Sony. Big Bang, anyone?

Come One, Come All! Turbine Opens the Floodgates to LOTR: Online

2007-04-07T01:59:00.000-04:00

Just a few pecks shy of "totally expected", Turbine announced today they're letting anyone and everyone play Lord of the Rings: Shadows of Angmar free until April 24th- the game's launch day.

In the monopolized world of MMORPGs, companies are finally figuring out they need more than just a big budget and screenshots to make an impact on the market. Giving players the option to play-test the game for free and determine if the game's worth the monthly subscription (or if you pre-order, the $199 lifetime fee- a bargain, I assure you) will likely be the new theme for upcoming MMOs. For the uninitiated, the past "first hit's free" deal was giving customers a free month of play.

LOTR Online seems to already be forming fan camps, with fantasy/comic fans on the bandwagon and everyone else remaining skeptical. The overall appeal of this game has yet to be seen, but the name alone should guarantee the game at least mediocre sales. What'll set this MMO apart is how it deals with questing, grinding, player professions, and most importantly, maintaining an engaging world and storyline (or, what its main competitors are shaky at). The developers have a huge platter of lore to work with, so let's hope for the best.

While we can't yet determine the success of this game, we can do the next best thing: load the game up and play it ourselves. Check it out before April 24th!

(Psst, I hear the download's pretty snappy (get to the download via the article's first link). People are reporting 1.5MB/s from Turbine's servers.)

Pushing the Boundaries of Advertising, Game-Style

2007-04-05T21:08:00.000-04:00

You've probably played a game where you've seen "143 Awesome Levels" stickered on the game case, pictures of a character posing with an in-game weapon you'd simply love to equip, or a stage that catches your eye... only to load the game to see 12 stages available, no cool weapons, or no awesome-looking level.

It's typical gaming fare. Game developers lure you in with the awesome eye candy expecting you'll work through the drudge to get it. However, an article on Game Stooge brings up a new legal implication of this kind of "shady" advertising: what if it's illegal?

Well, the target du jour is Guitar Hero II, which advertised a whopping 70 songs in its game, only to have 30 available immediately. Much legal conjecture and similes are made by Game Stooge, but the question remains: is it illegal for a game to advertise a feature that requires a high amount of skill/time to unlock?

Well, the answer... isn't so clear. There's no past cases to look to for precedent, but one can assume that since the content is available on the product (even if it's not available from the point you open it), it's not "illegal" to say the content's there.

Here's 2 examples:

Mario Bros. DS advertises being able to play Mario and Luigi for all its levels. You can only play Mario initially, but after beating the game once through, you can play as Luigi. This is legal.
Mario Bros. DS advertises being able to play Mario and Luigi for all its levels. There is no possible way to obtain Luigi, since he was not coded into the game in a way you could obtain him. This is illegal.

Of course, reasonableness must be taken into account. Advertising explicitly that Mario and Luigi will be playable from "the time you open the box" means you better be able to play them the second the game begins. More loosely, having to work 100 hours to play Luigi (when it's advertised as a main selling point) might also stretch the boundaries of legality.

The resounding message is that games can only advertise on their boxes what is obtainable in them. It doesn't matter if it's immediate, eventual, or after a horrendously long unlocking session; the fact is, it's there.

The Law of the Game also ventures to explain this topic with more legal terminology and reasoning, citing FTC points and comparing the validity of comparing game advertisements to other forms.

This is an interesting topic that'll soon find its way to a courtroom, I presume. Someone out there is going to want to play a song, only to find out it takes 10 hours to get it. Then we'll have a definitive answer.

(This entry was cross-posted to GIW.)

Well Played, PS3. Well Played.

2007-03-08T11:49:00.001-05:00

While this may be ancient history by now, Sony's announcement of Playstation Home at the Game Developer's Conference 2007 will surely throw a wrench in the Sony-hating wheel that's been spinning for... however long it was since they advised people to get 2 jobs to pay for their system.

Before the unveiling of Home, many were skeptical of the online strategy Sony had for the Playstation 3. After being kicked with the browser system, then repeatedly beaten with the content downloader, and finally spit on with some "me-too" announcements for PS3's online features (such as the online avatar [see: Wii's Miis] and trophies [see: Microsoft's Achievement Points]). It seemed that Sony was just riding the coattails of previous successes, not entirely keen on pioneering online features themselves.

Well, flash forward to GDC at the Sony conference, where Sony's Phil Harrison debuted this unexpectedly beautiful and potential-packed software addition every PS3 will be receiving for free. Right from the get-go it was apparent this was no tack-on project, with the impressive graphics and brevity, high levels of customization, and streamlined level layout.

In Home, you'll be maneuvering a character, not menus, to access content. You'll have your own personal living space, a social commons to talk with other online players, and even a trophy/arcade room where past game achievements (with what seemed like small videos of each achievement) could be seen in a bottomless-chasm type of building that waxes reminiscent of the Star Wars senate (you know, where Yoda and the Emperor Palpatine fought- it's also in the video below around the 18 minute mark).

As most gamers know, however, it's best to not laud content before it's released. Voice chat on Halo, which seemed like a godsend at the time, spawned a generation of smack-talkin', insensitive teenage boys that ruined the game for most casual players. Similarly, Nintendo's friend codes slaughtered any hopes of making online play easy, all in the name of security. Home could be the next "great concept gone sour" thanks to rich content but poor implementation/user base.

It's good to see Sony putting more than its foot in the door of online features. They're making their desire to go online apparent, and they're explaining to developers at GDC how Home can be used to increase their games' hype and sales. For this, I applaud you Sony.

It's definitely been a while, but you seem like you're getting your creative juices back and remembering that the future's more than just silicon chips and gigahertz. With any luck, Home will be a smashing success, and online gaming will benefit as a whole.

Boy, and I thought I'd never find a selling point in the Playstation 3...

Sony's GDC 2007 Playstation Home Segment:

Playstation Home Trailer:

Looking Ahead with MMORPGs

2007-03-03T03:19:00.000-05:00

As much as I am immersed in World of Warcraft, I realize there'll be a time I'll have to move on. I'll hop on my horse (or rather, ram) and trot off into the sunset, headed for greener pastures filled with new challenges and feats. In my wake, I leave Azeroth behind.

While this surely isn't happening any time soon, certain games are stacking up to be solid competitors for the attention of the millions-large MMORPG-playing population.

One game that's recently grabbed my attention is Darkfall Online- a dynamic MMORPG offering a new take on the MMO experience. Gone are the limits of "Skill/Weapon/Armor Requirements", "Character Classes", and other developer-instated boundaries. This game's world is a palette, and its players are the painters.

Not to mention, you won't be fighting by conventional MMO methods (most games require button-mashing to do special attacks/combos)- you'll be using first-person aiming and firing. This game boasts, in short, letting the skilled and inventive strive.

On paper, Darkfall Online sounds fantastic. Any game that gives players ultimate control over their environment is destined for success. However, implementing and maintaining this system- not to mention keeping malicious players from exploiting it- should be a development process in itself. Ensuring that such a multi-faceted game remains balanced and fun on all levels will require massive tweaks and quality assurance teams, which may not be feasible for a start-up MMO company.

I've seen this MMO before, albeit in less splendor, a few months back on MMORPG.com. Most people have written off this MMO as vaporware- software that's in perpetual development and destined to postpone itself into nonexistence. However, with this resurgence of media, perhaps there's hope for Darkfall Online yet.

As much as I like World of Warcraft and hope to see it strive, I think it's due time for some serious competition. Vanguard, Warhammer, and others are making WoW work harder for its subscribers, but as of yet, nothing can topple Blizzard's behemoth. Will Darkfall Online be the David to Blizzard's Goliath?

The next hit MMO is inevitable. The only question is... which?

Silent Hill Arcade Game Announced

2007-02-16T16:33:00.001-05:00

AOU 2007 is in full swing over in Chiba, Japan, and Konami's apparently trying to make a good impression with the arcade sector this year.

On top of announcing sequels for each of its prized BEMANI games (which is having its 10th anniversary this year!), we got our first look at a brand-spankin'-new action shooter for a franchise most would have never expected: Silent Hill.

Not many details are known about Silent Hill: The Arcade, but it boasts an interesting cabinet with eerie, tattered flaps encapsulating you in the Silent Hill universe. Expect some standard shooter fare- zombies, railed levels, tons of shooting, bosses, and nigh-impossible coin guzzling sections- with the trademark Silent Hill storyline of mystery, intrigue, and paranoia.

Of course, this game could end up being the next House of the Dead offshoot that woos only the simplest of minds. Plenty of folks have already jumped on this cynical bandwagon.

The most we can do at this point is hope whoever's making this spin-off doesn't abuse the license and produces a truly addictive, scare-inducing shooter to keep us entertained at our local arcades. With hopes high, all we can do now is await further details.

Yeah, You Bought It... Now Give It Back?

2007-02-16T16:28:00.000-05:00

Imagine a company is calling you during dinner, telemarketer-style, soliciting you to return an item you bought a few months ago. This isn't for a defunct or recalled product; you're being called because you bought The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess (Wii), and Gamestop/EB Games wants it back... for trade-in purposes.

If you've bought a game within recent years (I'm talking post-Funcoland- we're in the Gamestop era now), you've no doubt been a victim of a used game trade-in advertisement. Whether you saw signs plastered on game display cases, hung on the store ceiling, or were told the standard script each employee is required to relay, from the moment you walked into the store you knew about trade-ins.

The whole trade-in business, while still shady, is acceptable. There's a fine line between advertising trade-ins and tracking pre-ordering customers down, and Ben from ArsTechnica feels (rightly) disgruntled that Gamestop decided to cross it by merging their pre-order calling lists with their trade-ins.

It goes down like this (after the break): You pre-order Zelda: Twilight Princess from Gamestop. You get a call from Gamestop when the game arrives in the store (this is expected). You go to Gamestop, pay the remainder of your pre-order, and the game's yours to play. A few months later, you get another call. This call isn't about another pre-order- it's about the game you bought a few months ago. Gamestop would like you to give it back, so they can re-sell it.

For shame, Gamestop. Double-dipping rarely works in practice. Portraying to your customers that buying from you will yield invasive calls is not a way to bring in business- but it's a surefire way to drive more people to Internet retailers.

As Joystiq mentions, perhaps they're rushing to meet Spring numbers. Whatever the reason, hopefully it's not a permanent practice by Gamestop, or the retailer can be sure to see pre-orders (and likely, sales) dwindle in response.

Halo 3: Okay, No Talk Now

2007-02-13T11:25:00.000-05:00

As what might be construed as the first piece of innovation since its matchmaking system, Bungie recently announced a new breakthrough feature: The" A-Hole Button".

If you ask me, this was a long time coming.

Essentially, during an online Halo 3 match, you will now be able to press the rarely-utilized "Back" button (see right) on the XBOX360 controller, scroll through a list of players, and smite junior high kids with something even more powerful than a Plasma Sword: the cold shoulder.

While this feature can't protect you against post-game hate messages and sound recordings sent via XBOX Live, at least your message inbox serves as a buffer to ensure you only hear the things you want to hear. With this easy-access muting option now available, playing Halo online should be a much more bearable experience.

(Via Gamestyle, which was via Eurogamer)

Game Making 101: Don't Do This

2007-02-05T18:21:00.000-05:00

Earlier yesterday, Destructoid lured me into one of their entries titled "The Two Greatest Game Endings Ever Produced". What I saw was... horribly unsettling. So unsettling, I feel it deserves to be written about- which means it was emotionally scarring.

Have you ever heard of a thing called "wasted effort"? How about "mismanaged license"? I can't think of better terms to describe these Legend of Zelda games that were released for Philips CD-i by an obviously low-budget, non-Nintendo developer. Suffice to say, this is the perfect example of a catalyst that made companies embrace (or grasp with an iron fist) their intellectual property.

Aside from the mind-bendingly awful cutscene quality (3rd grade animators FTL), you'd think it would be common sense that a game's ultimate finale shouldn't involve a one-hit boss TKO... from a book. Or something that resembles a book, but looks more like a flying medicine ball.

But alas, without gaming's skid marks, could we ever have masterpieces? Of course not! Hopefully this horrendous series served as a wake-up call to the industry- Nintendo especially- that licenses should be held close and dear, and game development should have some kind of base quality level. Without these tough lessons, undeserving coders would not have been shunned from future employment, and Darwinism wouldn't have had its chance to work its magic.

So, thank these games while you cringe in pain from the negative visual stimuli- otherwise, these guys would probably still be in the game-making business.

Videos after the break...

A Challenger Appears! / Burning Crusade Burnt

2007-02-01T11:13:00.000-05:00

Well, it seems I'm getting my hands on even more blogging content for the next few months! From now until April, my time will be a little split between this blog and my new collaborative blog, Game Industry Weekly. However, since it's not a huge time commitment over there, don't expect to see any fewer entries here.

So, I guess this post is more of a plug. If you're more interested in seeing some game-only news- be it business or general nonsense- head over to Game Industry Weekly!

On another note, due to the hard drive wipe and all, most of my pictures for my Burning Crusade entry have been wiped. I've been fervently attempting to re-take all the pictures I can, but since most of my time is spent in the latter areas of the game, there's a large (and crucial) gap between levels 60-66. When I have the time, I'll attempt to re-do the shots.

That's all for this week. Hope you're enjoying KuriNeko's content, and expect more gaming-related entries soon!

HDD, R.I.P. [Update]

2007-01-27T18:33:00.000-05:00

Today marks the end of a legacy for my (short-lived) 1 1/2 year-old hard drive. To be honest, it was doomed from the get-go- what with my 24-hour computer usage- but it makes me sad to part so soon. Aggravated, too- it couldn't have picked a worse time, because it just up and died with all my files on it during a hectic weekend.

For a few weeks, it emitted its pitiful cries for help in the form of high-pitched, data wheel-crying hums. Then the inevitable final moments were upon it, where critical-error BSOD's boxed me into having to manually power down the machine. Today, its motors decided to spin no more, and I was left with this nondescript error message: "A disk read error has occurred. Press Ctrl+Alt+Del to restart." Oh, and if those instructions are followed, you're entered into a never-ending loop of the same error message.

Hard drive of perpetual misery, ye shall be missed- until I get my new hard drive. Then I'll probably be the gladdest person to see you tossed in the scrap metal heap. You were buggy, slow, unreliable, and out of warranty. It was meant to be. I just wish the crew hadn't sunk with the ship, or this ordeal would be easier to deal with.

However, in this experience, I think there is a valuable lesson to be learned about technology in general. Even I, after experiencing many a hardware failure, accidental format, and fried motherboard am caught off-guard most of the time. Ideally, you'll take the early signals and make preparations. Alternatively, you can end up like me.

On to the words of wisdom (brought to you by pain and misery!):

How do you know if the hard drive is "dead"? Well, there's a few hints:

Your computer errors ultimately reference some error with a "disk" (and doesn't mention CDs or floppies).
You no longer feel a vibration where your hard drive is while your computer is booting up (and while confronted with an error screen).
Your hard drive will blue screen on startup, while making certain noises (like the aforementioned shrieking hums).
While booting, you can't enter anything but BIOS. If pressing F8 leads to blackness (or has no result whatsoever), you're probably in need of repair. It would normally give you options to boot to Safe Mode.

How to avoid my situation (which, trust me, you want to do):

Keep an external hard drive nearby and make weekly back-ups while you sleep.
Be proactive with hard drive malfunctions, not reactive. I didn't have the budget to afford a new hard drive, but after figuring in the cost of a drive, repair costs, and lost data, it would've been worth my while to just splurge while the old thing was alive.
Search for your computer's symptoms via online forums and user groups. Google Groups is a great place to start, and from there you can peruse Google's search results (which usually bring up the forums that'll help you).
Make sure to store smaller pieces of data online. $4.95 is a small price to pay to keep your files on a server (I recommend 1&1, or utilize your school/organization's server space). Just download SmartFTP and upload your files. It's a headache saver.
Never think a computer issue can be put off for a few weeks until you're freed up. As denoted in Murphy's Law, things will inevitably go bad when you least expect- or want- it.

What NOT to do:

This applies to seemingly-dead-but-still-alive drives: Don't think formatting is a solution to a screwed-up hard drive. This is one of the options the Windows Recovery/Repair tool recommends (unwisely!). You'll just end up with an empty hard drive that can boot Windows. Those projects and e-mails you needed? Well, if you want those back (and traditional recovery software fails), prepare to shell out some heavy sums to have professionals disassemble your hard drive and manipulate the magnetic waves to restore data. Rates usually start around $600.
Do not think this is a do-it-yourself project. Fixing a hard drive is nothing to mess around with, especially if there's crucial data you want to save. I resorted to Geek Squad (not 100% recommended, but more reliable than your random tech store). Just pick somewhere you trust.
Do not treat your hard drive like a football. Just because it's broken doesn't mean your data went into a black hole, and thus, you should treat it like it's still working. It's easy to want to smack it around to try and "knock it into compliance", but this comes at the risk of destroying your data.

So, my recommendation is to take my bad experiences and use them to your benefit. In the meantime, I'm forced to shop for a replacement drive while my dead one sits in a Geek Squad queue bin. I'm also forced to locate an alternative PC so I can continue playing World of Warcraft (level 70- oh so close!) and doing work. ...Don't mind how I arranged those two, I assure you they don't represent how I prioritize things.

[Update: So, I got my hard drive switched after being told the data was (you guessed it) unrecoverable without some crazy-complicated techniques (rates starting at... $500!). I'm still investigating options as to how I can restore the data, but next weekend will probably be dedicated to fishing through my GMail and servers for recoverable files. My music and iTunes library are lost forever. I'll need to download all my programs again, or attempt to find their CDs. And after all that, Geek Squad ran about $190 (travel included) for the hard drive and labor. This is the last time I'll ever ignore shrieks of pain from any hard drive.]

New Link! - Wowhead

2007-01-25T14:58:00.000-05:00

World of Warcraft enthusiasts, I'd like to shift your attention to the right side of this blog, right below the Firefox logo. You notice what's different? No?

It's Wowhead, a World of Warcraft database that has, in my opinion, overtaken Thottbot in terms of information available, intelligent and useful commentary, and overall up-time and server performance. It has transformed from a mediocre beta to a powerful database giant in little over a month (no doubt due to the surge of players returning for The Burning Crusade).

Let me explain a bit about these databases, and why this is a monumental achievement, after the break.

In such massive worlds as MMORPGs, there are countless quests, areas, monsters, items, and professions. Of these thousands of things, you're only one person with so much time available to play the game. To not be perpetually stuck and frustrated, you'll need help finding objectives, whatever they may be.

You have a few options:

Ask in General chat for help. This usually results in nothing, or sarcastic remarks... to use a WoW database.
Ask within your Guild. This also usually results in silence, as nobody wants to have to research stuff you can do yourself.
Buy a strategy guide. However, even this lacks in specific quest/item information, and is typically a waste of $20, especially when better information is available online for free.
Use a WoW database. And make sure to pick a good one.

Being a Thottbot user for years, I was always skeptical of new databases that came along (or ones that have been there forever), such as Allakhazam, WoW Guru, Goblin Workshop, and the like. They all had information available, but not in a convenient format. Most of the time, they were no help at all. The method they get this data is by data mining files and player kill statistics (via a program a user can opt to download to collect data). This, as you can expect, is only useful in so many ways.

If you need to kill 20 monsters of type X, then this data mining is perfect. However, if you need to use an item on a hill near Telaar in Nagrand, there's no way the program can tell you where to go. This is where the database's community comes in, and offers hints and directions to complete the quest to fill in the website's data-collecting gaps. In short, with no community, a database is bunk.

Even more importantly, a database is useless if it's constantly down, disorganized, poorly laid-out, or bogged down with traffic. A poor user experience can turn the contributing community away to other databases, and all you're left with is a slow, empty database that doesn't help.

So, now that we know what has to go into a database, how does Wowhead surpass the rest? Simply put, it manages everything perfectly.

It has a very logical, well though-out layout.
The appearance is appealing to the eyes, and doesn't look like a boring website full of data (Web 2.0, so pretty!).
It has a great community (with a comment rating system) that self-manages itself to ensure each quest is accurately described.
The information contained is complete- there's no missing quests or items from what I can tell.
It's fast as an F1 formula car compared to most other databases, especially Thottbot.

All these elements make Wowhead lead the pack in WoW databases.

Give the search box to the right a shot. If you're playing, search for a quest you're lost on. If your experience is anything like mine, you'll be on your way to level 70 in no time.

Wowhead Search Applet:

Blu-Ray Snubs Porn, Porn Goes With HD-DVD

2007-01-23T20:00:00.000-05:00

Do you hear that? It's a bunch of Blu-Ray owners weeping.

In what might seem as a bullet in its own foot, Sony decided recently to bar any porn from being sold on its proprietary Blu-Ray format. In response, pornography (an early adopter of new media formats) chose the only next-gen format available- HD-DVD.

Does this spell Blu-Ray's death before it even leaves the starting gate? Or is this just a minor squabble that will be resolved in time?

One thing's for sure- pornography needs to be sold on some kind of format. If DVD falls out of popularity (a'la VHS) and there's a new format to pick, porn being exclusively on HD-DVD might offer the killing blow to any competing formats- namely, Blu-Ray.

Unfortunately, I don't buy porn, so I can't verify this information directly. There is this story relating supporting porn being released on Blu-Ray, but it's a bit dated. If you happen to see your favorite X-rated movie on Blu-Ray, be sure to toss the information my way so I can update this.

In related news, you can bypass media formats altogether and use your Wii browser for your XXX needs. As reported in this unbiased, well-researched report (*hack*), the Wii is a venerable porn-spawnin', child-insensitizin' machine from every parents' nightmares (but a godsend for all porn lovers). Not only is porn viewable from Wii's Internet browser; certain websites are actually forming their websites to be Wii-Friendly! So, surf n' jerk till your hand loses feeling, and unchain yourself from the worries of picking the wrong format in the most recent format wars.

Burning Crusade Losing Its Flame?

2007-01-22T17:00:00.000-05:00

It was a few days before World of Warcraft: The Burning Crusade's release, and everyone was stoked. People were frantically scouring website after website, calling countless stores, and maybe even setting up some black market deals to ensure they got their hands on a copy.

Then there were those who pre-ordered at a local store ahead of time who avoided this chaos, but they can go take their saved time and sanity and shove it.

The focus of this entry, however, is eBay and The Burning Crusade Collector's Edition. Before the release of WoW's highly-anticipated expansion, prices on eBay were exceeding $250-500- quite crazy, considering the product only retailed for $69.99. Why the mark-up? Well, it's a collector's edition, and there are only X boxes being shipped ever, so people who played wanted to get their hands on a piece of history.

At least, that was the theory.

Not even a day after Burning Crusade's launch, with people already done installing the game and traversing the wondrous new world of Outland, Burning Crusade Collector's Edition saw its price staggeringly drop by more than 50%, and in some cases, decreasing all the way to retail price. And not even a week later, the prices are actually selling for under retail price, with no sign of rebounding any time soon.

What could have caused this plummet in prices? The game was no dud- quite the contrary, it's bringing back players who quit in throes. Furthermore, with small exception, everyone who had a character level 58 or above was practically signed up from the get-go. Otherwise, you'd be left in the dust.

The only reason I can see, and the only one that makes logical sense, is that nobody cared about the Collector's Edition pack-ins. Somehow, a game CD, art book, world map mouse pad, DVD installation disk, pretty box, exclusive in-game pet, and 2 WoW trading card game starter decks just wasn't worth the extra cash. People wanted the CE for bragging rights alone- and on launch day alone. Everything after that wasn't worth the extra cash or hassle.

This is speculation, but from what I can tell, there's nothing that explicitly separates a non-CE owner from a CE owner. Which is how it should be- equity in-game which is irrelevant to real-life affluency. Nevertheless, it strikes me as odd that demand dropped off so steeply, and so soon.

Perhaps there will be a re-surging of demand later in the year (possibly summer when players have time to return to the "world" of Warcraft). Folks will eventually realize that the product is out of circulation and this is the only chance to partake in the club-like exclusiveness that the Collector's Edition affords.

I, for one, feel the price gouging wave is over. Sad for resellers, good for World of Warcraft players. Perhaps this is what Blizzard wanted all along.

Upcoming- World of Warcraft: The Burning Crusade Supa-Introduction!

2007-01-19T02:08:00.000-05:00

As those who know me in real life have noticed, I've been a tired man these past few days. I have slumped back into a hermit-like existence, only coming out to answer nature's call and consume adequate subsistence. And I blame it all on Blizzard (and maybe a little bit on my time management), who decided now would be the best time to release their very first expansion for World of Warcraft.

Yes, the oft-lauded The Burning Crusade expansion is out in Europe and America, and will soon be released worldwide for everyone to lose sleep, friends, and skin color in numbers not seen since the last 400-hour Dungeons & Dragons Fest V.

I've been plugging away at getting my character leveled up on par with my guild, and in case WoW news isn't your thing, there seems to be a man who "ding"'d 70 after a scant 28 hours of playing the game. Now that's scary.

But if you're worried this expansion will be a $40 "added sword and a zone or two" type of expansion, fret not. Why? Well, you'll see when I do a more formal report (with pictures aplenty!) later next week.

In the meantime, you'll have to excuse me- I'm on my way to level 64. I'm also on my way to lowering my grades, but that's a much less news-worthy adventure.

Tech Gadgets: Wireless Powah!

2007-01-19T02:07:00.001-05:00

This is going to be an unconventional tech gadget update. It actually has a background story to go with it. Now that that's out of the way...

Everyone hates cords and wires. We invent ways to get around being tied to a wall just so we can have a slight degree of freedom, even if it means killing overall efficiency. The best example I can think of is laptops: We buy them to be unchained from the boring, same ol' deskspace and inconveniently located power outlets. We then realize the average battery life for the laptop is 1 hour, and that our system performs like a sloth in molasses thanks to the laptop's battery conservation mode.

What if we could be freed not only from the desk, but the cord as well- permanently?

That's exactly what today's article is about. According to BBC News, U.S. researchers are taking the century-old idea of wirelessly powering accessories and reclassifying it as "plausible." Their motive? Since things are so portable these days- from cell phones to laptops, handhelds to PDAs- there is an obvious demand for a power standard such as this.

While other wireless power methods, such as radio towers (which emit unfocused radiation) and laser devices (which require line-of-sight) proved ineffective for practical purposes, this new method will match power source to accessory, and transfer power via electrical wave resonance. Think back to physics with tuning forks, and you have the general concept. Better yet, any energy not transferred is just re-absorbed.

The distance wireless power can be transmitted is scalable, so the MIT researchers insist there will be plenty of uses in homes and factories. You can power something 5 to 6 meters away on average, but should be equally able to power a machine across a plant floor (at a higher cost).

Even more amazingly, charging things wirelessly should be just as fast as using a wall outlet.

(Small history diversion: This idea was experimented on by electrical engineer Nikola Tesla (father of the tesla coil) back in the 1800's, but lack of project funding proved fatal to his vision of wireless power.)

An existing product that utilizes this theory, albeit on a much smaller scale (and smaller effective distance), is the Splashpad. The Splashpad is produced by UK-based Splashpower, who obviously has a similar philosophy as the MIT researchers. While this device has no obvious price tag, there is no doubt more items such as these will be popping up in Brookstone, The Sharper Image, and cutting-edge technology stores across the Internet.

Society seems ready fore wireless power. Now we just need to sit back and hope it delivers.

iPhone: Innovation or Stagnation?

2007-01-19T02:07:00.000-05:00

Oh, how my eyes lit up with childish delight when I saw the iPhone unveiled at Apples' Macworld expo (see the keynote here). The iPhone seemed like a turning point in the behind-the-curve (yet overpriced) American cell phone market. Finally, a phone that was powerful enough to run more than just 50KB applications, and an interface to cream over. The future is finally here.

Or is it?

Call me a nag, but after the initial wave of excitement subsided, reality came swooping back in. How much did this peripheral cost again? What provider is it toting with as its exclusive partner?

There were some painful realizations to be had after the spectacular abilities of the iPhone were displayed. The product itself is revolutionary- one of the first of its kind worldwide. (You can view a full [well, semi-full] list of the features here. I still recommend you watch the keynote to see these features in their full-blown, demonstrated glory.) However, some of the initial decisions Apple made by solely partnering with Cingular and pricing the 4GB version of the phone at $499 (8GB at $599) are probably ill-recommended for launch.

Yes, Cingular customers are loving it. However, I read recently in an article, as well as had acquaintances, that say Cingular is possibly the worst of the worst when it comes to cell phone providers. Not to mention, although Cingular might have the "fewest dropped calls" and "largest user base [in America]", it doesn't change the fact you're severely limiting your market when non-Cingular, tech-savvy folk who would normally adopt this early in its life... can't. However, perhaps this is Apple's way of saying "Thanks" to Cingular for its continued support and funding throughout the iPhone process. On the bright side, they should be servicing other cell providers in time.

Diverging from providers, there's this other little issue- the price. Does this price tag wax reminiscent of any other item? I'll give you a hint! It starts with Play, ends with Station, has a number, and flopped at launch (er, did I just show my loyalties?). Yep, $599 is quite a high price to pay-especially when this price includes a 2-year contract- but Apple is arguing that you're buying a Smartphone, iPod, and full-featured Internet browser. Man, it hurts my wallet just thinking about it.

The battery life is around average for cell phones, and pretty amazing considering the additional features the phone offers. One major downside to the iPhone, however, is the lack of a detachable battery. It's charge or die, folks. Like your iPod, unless you're around a docking station, the phone is toast. This could be a deal breaker for most business users, who might use up the entirety of the iPhone's battery power in just 1-2 calls. With any luck, Apple will figure out a solution to the 5-hour limit they're toting.

There are further gripes, like in ArsTechnica's article, but those are mostly tech-related and/or irrelevant to general consumers like myself. I'm all about drooling over new technology, but when I see great points being raised regarding possibly fatal iPhone weaknesses, I feel it's fair to share them. For Apple praise and feel-good news, please see CNN.

Finally, and to poke a little fun at Apple's attempt to enter the Asian market, most Asian countries seem a little less than enthralled with the iPhone after its initial release. It's flashy to them and all, but they can get phones with equal (if not better) features at a far less price- we're talking $100 or so (with plan). Quite a bit lower than Apple's introductory price of $499/599. Click a phone and take a look, even if it's moon-speak to you.

Despite the negative vibe of this post, I'm still extremely excited for the prospects of this cell phone. It'll finally kick the current manufacturers into gear, forcing them to innovate (haven't seen that in a few years, huh?). Small screens and crappy hardware no longer- Apple's bringing us into the world market full force, and Nokia, Samsung, Motorola (RAZR, your days are numbered!), and others best follow or see their stock prices dip into negative %-land.

If the greatness doesn't come via Apple, it's bound to come by someone else. So, I'll sit on the sidelines until next Christmas and see if this provider/pricing/battery issue has been ironed out (read: fixed in my favor). I recommend the same for you, of course, but you're free to spend your money, and get sucked into as many 2-year contracts, as you like.

Here's some additional photos, for your viewing pleasure:

Image Credit: Engadget.com - Many thanks for posting these. These images are possibly some of the best keynote camera caps available.

Tech Gadgets: Offroading for the Disabled- The Day Has Come

2007-01-14T02:04:00.000-05:00

File this under "even if I don't need it, I want it". Leave it to a company called TankChair to take a customary wheelchair and beef it up to artillery proportions.

These wheelchairs wax reminiscent of battling robot TV shows. My only concern is that this wheelchair, if put in the hands of the immature, could very well be the undoing of society: schoolyard battles- frail child bodies versus tank treads; commutes to work- sedans versus all-terrain mobile vehicles of terror; wars being fought to prove superiority between unmobilized and mobilized humans.

Mom jokes will be undoubtedly be met with *click* *vrrrrm* *BUDDABUDDABUDDA*, then "EAT TREAD, B$^%@", followed by schoolgirl-like crying of the TankChair offender.

I think next year's Christmas Wish List just got a little longer.

But overactive imaginations aside, this wheelchair will let the disabled move around on any type of terrain, in any condition. It's also custom-fitted to each customer's body size.

While this product doesn't have a solid price tag, contacting the company will probably land you a menu of options and prices. I'm no master at pricing things, but last I checked, tank treads weren't going for Big Lots prices (shush, I couldn't find any retailers selling actual tank treads).

[More pictures available via Gizmodo.]

The Search for Burning Crusade

2007-01-10T18:54:00.000-05:00

My luck with pre-ordering high demand items sucks.

No matter which channel I use, I'm always late to the party. Amazon's order page locks down (or, more recently, they push back orders!). Stores remove their product minutes after I set foot on their page. Even when physically visiting stores I get shafted, with employees either lying about stock or claiming ignorance.

As logic would dictate, the same happened for World of Warcraft: The Burning Crusade Collector's Edition, but I won't complain. Unlike the Wii and other items, this game is going to be shipped to stores a-plenty, and if WoW Insider's Eliah Hecht has reliable numbers, that's only 2 million people I need to compete with. Not to mention, a good portion of them are not level 60, so the expansion purchase would be pointless for them. So, with the remaining 1.5 million or so spread across the country, I figure the odds are slightly in my favor for this release.

And if not, well, call me naive once again. I tend to underestimate product demand and forget that I live in densely populated areas. Oh well. I'll beat down some kids to get my hands on the CE if it comes down to it- don't you doubt that.

Burning... What?
For those of you yet-unitiated to World of Warcraft (or perhaps just haven't tripped across any of the Burning Crusade websites strewn about), check out Blizzard's Burning Crusade mini-site they recently tossed up. It's got lore worth creaming over, and more pretty pictures and music than you can shake a polearm at.

Where to Go
In case you're wondering where you can still get the expansion (specifically, the Collector's Edition) while lacking a pre-order, refer to the following stores:

Wal-Mart
Toys 'R Us
Best Buy
Circuit City
Fry's Electronics (CA Only)

There are other stores that will have the Collector's Edition available, but the above are your best bets in the rush to obtain the game on launch day. Essentially, stores that didn't take pre-orders will likely have both types of the game purchasable.

When to Go
BE ADVISED: Some stores will be doing midnight releases of the game (likely coordinated by Blizzard, since the BC servers are going live at midnight as well), so you'd do well to call ahead before heading out. Nothing's worse than showing up at 8AM and seeing empty shelves (with a tumbleweed drifting by). EB Games/GameStop have confirmed midnight releases. Wal-Mart's 24-hour stores are also having a midnight release (confirmed in above link), and there are rumors circulating major Best Buy stores are doing the same.

Oh, and Blizzard's releasing this behemoth of a game on a Tuesday for reasons I cannot begin to fathom. Part of me is angry for having to sacrifice sleep in order to obtain the game (since life resumes Tuesday, snap). But, I guess the 16th of this month is better than the 16th of June. Color me neutral.

That's all for now. See you in Azeroth, hopefully on the 16th!

Tech Gadgets: ASUS XG Station Lets You Take Your Graphics with You

2007-01-07T16:29:00.000-05:00

Just after seeing this product, the laptop PC gamer in me jumped for joy.

For longer than I care to recall, I'd been wary of laptop gaming systems because they're grossly overpriced even with outdated hardware. Not to mention, many people complain of broken/fried laptops because of too much power (or perhaps bad engineering) shoved into too small a case.

I always wondered why laptop manufacturers tossed toned-down graphic cards into otherwise powerful machines, and slap a $2499+ price tag on them. Anyone who shopped around would notice severe price jumps are directly related to which video card your machine came with.

Customers were demanding a product that would allow them to harness desktop graphics without having to lug around a rig and monitor. This is where ASUS' XG Station comes in. This product was just released at CES, but as of this writing, doesn't have a price tag associated with it. However, if ASUS manages to price the XG Station below $400, this could very well solve the problem that has long since plagued the laptop gaming niche. As demonstrated in this image, you plug in your desktop graphics card to the XG Station, then plug the XG Station into your laptop's ExpressCard slot. From there, you can game with graphics that rival desktops.

However, note that not all laptops come equipped with the necessary ExpressCard slot. Yours might still have a CardBus PC Card slot (comparison visible in the ExpressCard link). It is also not yet confirmed that you can use this without a separate monitor. In the graphic previously linked, you'll notice the user playing games on a separate monitor. This would defeat the "mobile" functionality of this product, so hopefully ASUS clears up whether or not you can play on your laptop's screen.

Nevertheless, this little invention lets you purchase an otherwise dull laptop with so-so specs and transform it into a graphics powerhouse. Make sure it has an adequate CPU and RAM, and you're set. Toss the rest of your budget in the video card, and viola, laptop gaming is attainable.

Back in Business

2007-01-06T22:35:00.000-05:00

It's been a good, long vacation on this side... and I now announce my return! After trudging through exams, blog version transitioning, and holiday chaos, it's good to be back. I reckon it's about time to dust off the ol' cobwebs this blog might have accumulated and open the valve of blog updates. May they flow like water!

While I peruse the Interweb for newsworthy stories and gadgetry, you can kick back and chill. This blog's purpose always has been, and for the determinable life of this blog will be, bringing you information and technology releases in an interesting, reader-friendly fashion. "Information" is a general term, so let me categorize it as "digital culture-related information". This spans from software to websites to gaming- and beyond.

So, here I am again, typing up blog entries in hopes you enjoy (and learn). You learn from my posts, I learn from your wisecracking comments in respective posts, and as a whole... we benefit! Come join, won't you?

Image Credit: jane_britanico's Flickr Photostream. That isn't me at the resort- but I wish it was...

Tech Gadgets: Gizmodo's 2006 Gift Guide

2006-12-20T03:00:00.000-05:00

If you're anything like me, you probably never put together gift lists for any season and simply ask for the universal gift: money. Then family members scold you until you relent and put together some half-assed list of things you found after a few Google clicks and Sunday Free Press ad scans. Well, do so no longer!

While browsing some gadget sites, I came across Gizmodo's 2006 Gift Guide, which has daily updates of the best gifts Internet retailers have to offer. The items range from useful to absurd, as well as insanely cheap to unaffordable to all but Donald Trump. It's a great compiled guide that spans many websites and themes. I'm a sucker for anything with a plug and LED display, so it goes without saying >90% of anything I want during Christmas is tech-related, and this guide fits perfectly with that. It's also sadistically fun to taunt yourself with gifts you know you'll never get.

Since my main nag with lists was being too lazy to visit 37,833brick-and-mortar establishments and even more retailer websites, this guide must be a sign that my hopes of becoming a Christmas gift list-maker is attainable.

Gizmodo does a great job of pointing you towards "teh good lewts". Bookmark away.

Blogger Beta GET!

2006-12-11T23:19:00.000-05:00

Awriiiiiiight, I finally got my hands on the Blogger Beta that I've been dying to try out for quite some time. Fortunately, I joined right around the time they figured out little "tweaks" that made my blog look pretty to begin with, so the cosmetic transition should have been flawless.

Now, just a little more time, and I'll have a real entry update! A little more time...

Tech Gadgets: 'Tis the Season for... iGloves

2006-12-04T21:48:00.000-05:00

I saved this story for the first cold, snowy, all-around miserable-to-walk-in day of the year, and today was it. My hope is this will be a useful item for your campus walking.

Speaking from experience, there's nothing worse than walking to class on a cold winter day and being forced to listen to the same, repetitive CD that's looping on your iPod- all because it's too cold to take off your gloves.

First, you should ponder why you still have that CD on your iPod if you dislike it so much (I know I do). Second, you should consider buying iPod-friendly winter gloves.

Marmot's iGlove Multi doesn't only keep your hands warm- it lets you operate your iPod touchwheel, and has a modern look to boot. You see, the touchwheel only responds to things that facilitate electric current, so typical fuzzy cotton/fleece gloves can't operate the touchwheel. These gloves have material on the tips of the finger that conduct electricity, and thus, your iPod will respond (and you keep your hands warm!).

Clocking in at $35 (before shipping), it's competitively priced compared to other not-as-iPod-friendly gloves out there.

Double Post!: In Search of Wii & eBay Next-Gen Analysis [Update]

2006-11-30T13:41:00.000-05:00

Since my last post about Wii availability, I've been searching high and low, online and offline, for this scarce console. After much disappointment, I decided a little more research was in order, so I spent a good half-day perusing forums and discussion boards, as well as plentiful pages of Google. From all that, I have concluded this: It's not worth even attempting to get a Wii until December 1st. Luckily for me, December 1st is tomorrow.

What gives me this idea? It's not crazy logic, or pulled-out-of-my-butt statistics (well, some of that later on). Just go scan over Amazon.com's Wii discussion board to see compiled list of store availability. Use the plethora of Wii trackers to confirm that, save Wal-Mart, most online retailers have been eerily stingy with their available quantities since release week. Go to your local Meijer and ask when their next shipment is due (I found they're the only folks who actually don't guard shipment dates like classified government documents... if you stop in the store).

Long story short, this weekend's your best chance to snag a Wii before Christmas comes and goes. Gather your camping gear- it's console-huntin' time. More after the jump.

On a slightly related topic, here are some eBay stats of today's performance for the Wii and Playstation 3:

Wii Listed on eBay: 51582
PS3 Listed on eBay (20G&60G): 72850

(Note: These numbers may include re-listed auctions, cancelled auctions, and most definitely include unsold auctions. The actual number of individual consoles listed is probably around 3/4 these numbers.)

Average Profit Margin (%) for Wii: 92.6%
Average Profit Margin (%) for PS3 (20G/60G): 44.3%/52.6%

(*Note: Data taken from the average of 5 auctions (of each type) offering only the console, and the auction must have been successful.)

If you had $1800 to spend, and consoles magically became available at retail price, which should you purchase (if you intended to resell?)

Expected Profit for Wii (You'd be able to buy 7): $1614.2
Expected Profit for PS3 (Able to buy 3 20G/3 60G): $663.6/$945

(Note: The profit here does not include eBay listing fees or final value cuts taken out upon a successful auction. Because there are so many variables when accounting for what type of listing you want, and how much your item sells for, I offer a guesstimate of $5.00 to list the item and .0525x$25+.03x($Closing Value) to account for eBay's cut of the final sale=~$27-34 for PS3s and ~$20 for Wii. This amount is per auction.)

So, if I were to purchase a few consoles this holiday season with a set budget, I'd get the Wii. But hey, the market's a crazy place. PS3 prices may soar soon, for all anyone knows. I just find it highly intriguing that the PS3, for being as scarce as it is, isn't fetching higher prices. You'd figure there's plenty of Wii going around for people to camp out their local stores and snag one, yet they're selling on eBay like hotcakes. PS3s, on the other hand, aren't available at all, and they're selling for less than the Wii (in terms of profit for the seller).

Perhaps this goes to show that $600+ is indeed too high a price for a console, or maybe the whole supply shock of PS3s got to Sony's buyer base. Either way, it's interesting.

A spreadsheet of this data is viewable here, with pretty tables and charts! Feel free to disprove my math- I suck at statistics.

[Update: After going off some tips from the Amazon Wii board, I managed to snag a Wii this weekend. Great times in line, but sadly, I didn't have a camera to capture the moment. Of course, everyone made a mad dash for the extremely-underproduced Wii Nunchucks and SD sticks. My lesson for this launch was learned: screw online retailers during the holidays- just use their message boards to find stock of real retail stores.]

Wii in Stock?

2006-11-26T03:22:00.001-05:00

Being all camped-out for the weekend trying to bag myself a Wii, I've been hitting up countless websites in a feeble attempt to catch a lucky re-stock or quantity error I can exploit (and thus demand a shipment upon restocking). With literally no stores or sites offering any Wii, or estimations regarding further shipment dates, I scoured for a resource to keep on the up-and-up.

That's when I found Yahoo!'s World of Wii website. While the site may be old news by now (it was sure flashy a few weeks ago, but it was all marketing and 11 year olds talking about which Naruto games rock the most, which is unappealing), I never noticed a table on the right side of this page which tracks the stock of Wii for all major online retailers. Score!

The site also tracks live eBay auctions, waaaay overpriced Wii bundles, and stores (although it seems useless). I'm fairly certain the only thing people will use this site for is the stock tracker.

Now, don't think I'm sharing this with you out of charity. I'm posting in hopes I can employ you as drone monkeys, and you'll be courteous enough to comment when a retailer restocks. Right? ...Right?...

Image Credit: xenonflux's Flickr Photostream.

The Next-Gen Consoles: Specs!

2006-11-23T22:20:00.000-05:00

For the second installment of this consumer comparison trilogy, I bring to you: specifications! However, rather than speaking at length about boring tech-babble, I see contrasting each console's have and have-nots much more precious deliberating which console to buy. So, while this may not be an article about the "CLASH OF THE PROCESSOR CHIPS!", you can be sure each console's accessories and abilities will clash. The article, after the jump.

Microsoft XBOX 360 - $299 (Core)/$399 (Platinum):
Otherwise known as the console for the impatient gamer. No, no, I jest! The XBOX 360 has been selling fairly well since its release, due in no small part to it being the most powerful console in the market (compared to the old-gen Playstation 2 and Gamecube).

Let's start with XBOX 360's strongest component- XBOX Live. Microsoft's system boasts this highly-integrated online service every online 360 game runs through. While this doesn't sound like anything special, for those who have seen the headaches a la carte online gaming can give. Playstation 2 is a prime example of how not having an integrated online service can essentially kill online gaming on a console. Therefore, big props to the XBOX team for figuring out what works, and even creating some profitable business models (i.e. XBOX Live Marketplace, Gold Live Accounts, etc.). The only downside to XBOX Live- no web browser.
XBOX 360 also boasts some strong accessory connectivity, which it will round out come the launch of Zune and Windows Vista. You can have an iPod, entertainment center, or whatever- if it has the right outputs, XBOX 360 can link with it. I've enjoyed my iPod playing through big screen TVs on more than one occasion, and I'm happy to say, your music library remains organized like it is on your iPod.
This console also will appeal to media-philes, since all current resolutions are compatible with the XBOX 360. Whether your TV's resolution is 1080i, or you've moved on to 1080p, you're A-OK. If you're still playing games in 480p resolution... now would be a good time to buy a new (cheap) HDTV. Even better news for movie fans: Microsoft will soon release the HD-DVD addition to their console for even higher-definition movie enjoygasming.

Playstation 3 - $499 (Standard)/$599 (Premium):
The Goliath of gaming systems (even out-sizing the original XBOX) had better live up to its price tag. Especially with the battery recalls, PSP, and other crippling financial woes preceding it within Sony. While the PS3 is the most expensive in the upcoming lineup, it also boasts the features to beat for this console generation.

The PS3, like the XBOX, will also be venturing into the online field. ~~While it is not yet~~ It has been confirmed ~~whether all~~ that games will not run through a unified XBOX Live-like service~~, it has been confirmed~~ and that using this service will be free. Even better, there will be a Marketplace for small purchases, a web browser, and a point system for game objective completion (pretty much a free XBOX Live).
PS3's controller, the Sixaxis, will be ditching the rumble feature (boo!) and picking up motion detection (yay?). The Sixaxis, despite the radically different name, is nearly identical to the Playstation 2 controller except for the L2/R2 shoulder buttons, which look a little more trigger-ish. These controllers are wireless with batteries built-in, and will be chargable via a USB cable to your PS3. Recent commentary regarding the Sixaxis is mixed- people think it's solid, but too light; sleek, but flimsy; familiar, but lacking fundamental features (like rumble). Sixaxis preference most definitely lies in the eyes of the player.
Now, if you thought XBOX 360 had media junkies satiated, the PS3 does what XBOX 360 can and quite a bit more. Not only does the PS3 support all TV resolutions (like the XBOX 360), it also packs in HDMI (which has created quite a stir recently over concerns HDMI would limit the quality of DVDs/Blu-Rays if played on non-HDMI TVs), a security device that ensures your media is legit, and is playing on a legit TV. Like a friendlier XBOX 360, it boasts connectivity with most (if not all) electronics. Most important, however, is the following...
One of the most controversial moves Sony made with this console is packaging a Blu-Ray drive in each unit, which Sony states caused the price tag hike this time around. Many worry Sony is trying to push its new media standard, but there is merit in saying Sony is being forward-looking with disk capacity and high-definition mediums. Blu-Ray disks are also infamously more expensive than its DVD/HD-DVD competitors, but boasts up to 24x greater storage. Sony and its game developers state this will create unthought-of opportunities for video games, being able to pack massive amounts of data into one disk.
Finally, Sony boasts its "Cell" processor, which is a multi-core processor powerhouse of miniscule proportions. This technology has been spearheaded by Sony and IBM for the Playstation 3, intending to pack the most powerful punch of all next-gen consoles to ensure games can push their content to the limit.

Nintendo Wii - $249:
Now it's time for the underdog in this e-peen contest of specs. Although it's the cheapest of the 3 (for reasons explained below), that's not a reason to count the Wii out. If we can believe Nintendo's marketers, this is the game system that will attract both the hardcore and casual with genuinely fun games, reinvent the controller with the motion-detecting Wii Remote, and prove once and for all that profit with consoles lies in gaming- not wannabe media centers. Let's see what the Wii has to offer:

As hinted at in the introduction, the Wii is trying to revolutionize controllers with their new Wii Remote. This baby is sleek, lightweight, and claims to be a superbly accurate pointing device/remote control hybrid. While the jury's still out on the accuracy of the motion-detection capability, rest assured this is no fly-by-night gimmick. Games being released for the other next-gen consoles will control nothing like the Wii version. Shooting games will require you to aim your controller like a gun. Racing games have you twisting it left and right like a wheel. Super Monkey Ball will have you spasming in hopes of not falling off the map. You get the idea.
The Wii has a very small, sleek, space-efficient design. An XBOX behemoth this console is not. However, with the saved space comes conservative processing power and graphical capabilities. While this won't make or break the deal with people looking to game, folks looking for a multi-purpose DVD player might have to look elsewhere.
On the topic of DVDs, the Wii version being released this Christmas will only play Gamecube and Wii formats (as well as CDs). This means you'll still have to keep your DVD player around the TV, despite most consoles making DVD playback a standard feature. But fear not! Nintendo has announced they will be releasing a DVD-playing Wii in Japan late 2007, and I'd venture to guess if sales go well, we'll see a similar version in America.
Continuing with lack of media compatibility, the Wii will only have a maximum of 480p resolution. Translated: No HDTV for you! While this may bum out quite a few, especially those who bought a HDTV to partake in the orgasmic next-gen visual experience, the up-side is the Wii will work on any TV (and you won't have illegible quest text on non-HDTV sets).
Diverging from the negative, Nintendo has managed to pick up quite a few big-name developers along the way while developing the Wii: EA, SquareEnix, and many others. There's no doubt in my mind that with Nintendo trying to capture the non-gamer market, and re-capture those who lost faith in the industry, there will no shortage of developers backing up the Wii (if their theory proves true).
Finally, the Wii lacks an ethernet port out of the box. The only way you'll be able to hook the Wii up to the Internet, until a future peripheral is released (cost unknown), is if you have WiFi access. Now is as good a time as ever to buy that wireless router.

While this list is not exhaustive, it's certainly not devoid of useful contrasts. Please feel free to sit and chew on these system abilities, and ponder which is most appealing to you. If you feel this article is biased towards a console, take some comfort in the fact I attempted to write it as factually as possible, even going against personal preferences to relay what the masses are saying (lots of finger-biting occurred when typing things I didn't particularly agree/want to agree with).

If you're interested in reading up on some of the technical specifications and console reports, here are some direct links:
XBOX 360: 1 2 3
Playstation 3: 1 2 3
Wii: 1 2 3

Friday, Black Friday

2006-11-23T20:27:00.000-05:00

Tomorrow's Black Friday, and we gamers know what that means: sitting outside some retail chain freezing our skinny asses off, or sleeping through it all, dreaming about the misery those store campers are having. My plans for tomorrow are yet undecided, but if you're one of those people that missed the initial Wii & PS3 console launch, your second chance [of obtaining one, or both!] is at hand.

It would seem Best Buy, Target, EB Games, GameStop, and any other large retailer with an electronics section will be unpacking shipments of Wii and PS3 they've been sitting on since launch.

While it's yet undetermined if the Black Friday effect will also hit Amazon.com and other online retailers, if you're not keen on leaving the comfort of your home, checking up on your retailer of choice around 6AM could be worth your while.

Google Maps Calls for You

2006-11-17T15:34:00.000-05:00

Google Maps just got a little cooler today, now offering the ability to call businesses for you right from the left-side listings. Here's how it works:

Go to Google Maps
Type your search query (I'll use Michigan Union, so I can inquire about an event)
Click "call"
Input your phone number as ###-###-#### (and check "Remember" if it's your personal PC)
Pick up your phone when it rings!

It's surprisingly simple and convenient. You never need to take your eyes off the screen when searching for which GameStop has your reserved copy of Zelda: Twilight Princess or if Micro Center still accepts those $100 XBOX 360 rebates.

Whatever the web doesn't have, it seems Google's trying to include in the most seamless way possible.

Source: GoogleBlog

MTV's Gold Farming Coverage

2006-11-17T00:38:00.000-05:00

Ah, gold farming... like a parasitic tapeworm, it annoys, persists, and thrives in the most unlikely of places (gold farming location of choice: massively multiplayer online games [MMOGs]). Unlike a tapeworm, it's garnering billions of dollars per year, and has developed into an underground industry of controversial proportions.

I'll only briefly touch on this piece MTV relased for its Gamer's Week 2.0 (apologies for the horrendous web interface) since I plan on releasing a full article regarding gold farming in MMOGs later this month. The content comes from a documentary in the works by Ge Jin, and proves to be quite enlightening on the human side of the situation.

What was once a relatively minute problem- a few people selling virtual items and money for real profit, a.k.a. gold farming- has surged out of control with blockbuster games such as Everquest (way back in the '90s) and the more recent World of Warcraft. As MTV's video shows, the gold farming industry has thrived on these immensely popular games, turning into a $9 billion dollar industry in, essentially, a decade.

MTV's clip documents the process: Poor, lower- to middle-class Chinese workers (largely young males) sit in front of PCs for 12-hour shifts pouring over a game. They kill stuff. They kill some more. When their break comes, they take a nap, then continue killing. Seems like your typical high school teenager in America, huh? Well, almost.

These guys aren't just making a pretty penny. They're taking entire game economies and injecting tons of money, goods, and gear that would be unavailable in such quantities under normal circumstances. This drives up in-game inflation, and with increased prices, players need more gold. Wait a second... We've just found the loophole farmers exploit to profitable ends.

Prices increase, and so does the average gamer's desire for money. It's a wonderful infinite loop, at least for the farmers. But what do we end up with? A botched market, artificial supply increases, and never-ending game inflation.

In the real world, there are many alternative products (substitutes), and money doesn't simply drop off everything you kill (unless you go on a homicidal rampage through the richer parts of the country). America's inflation effectively curbs itself thanks to the infinite amount of variables in day-to-day life (two of which being the facts just listed).

Within games, substituting items is feasible so far as the developers allow- the rest is exploitable by gold farmers. People (and farmers) who obtain a sought-after item can ask for any price they want, without fear something can be easily substituted for it. It creates a devilishly complex situation for the average gamer- the guy who can't commit job-like hours to the game. In-game gold is abundant, dropping off anything and everything (albeit in small amounts).

The reason artificially injected gold is so damaging is simple: like reality, if someone prints dollar bills and tosses them into the streets, you'll end up with relatively worthless currency. Like Germany during its post-war hyperinflation, your once-sufficient 200 gold just turned into present-value 200 copper. You're paying normal amounts one day, and astronomical amounts the next, all because someone wrenched open the fire hydrant of in-game gold.

Yes, this gold requires real money to be disbursed, and the damage grows exponentially from there. Remeber the "tossing money into the streets" analogy? Well, imagine those running to the curb and scooping up money as those who spend their real-life earnings on virtual gold. Imagine people tied to chairs, unable to move being those who don't- or can't- pay. You suddenly have a false economy. Those who are rich are prosperous for reasons detached from their deserving of such money. People who refuse to partake in such activies, or simply can't due to real financial situations, now watch helplessly as the game economy inflates into a blimp.

But inflation and markets aside, who's the winner in this situation?

It's not the refusers or the non-payers. They got screwed from the get-go. They sit at the bottom tiers of the game economy, scraping together pennies when the world progresses in thousand-dollar bills.

It's not the gold buyers. Eventually, there will be people who pay more- and thus receive greater quantities of gold- who end up shutting gold buyers out. Alternatively, once their Earth-tied bank account dries up, gold purchasers end up in the same situation as the non-payers.

It's not the gold farmers. They might be better off than the refusers, non-payers, and payers alike, but only by a bit. See, they're one of the few making money from this trade, even if it's mere pennies on the dollar compared to what their employer is truly earning. They're getting $65 a month on average. And I don't think there's so many individual gold farmers that $9 billion got split into $65 per head.

You probably guessed it- the jackpot winners are the gold farming companies and gold brokers. These guys manage the industry- they oversee the employees, posting of products, profits, and direction of the industry as a whole. The gold farming companies manage the workers (as well as the 'facilities' they work in), and the gold brokers present the services and products in a consumer-friendly fashion. It's evil synergy at its finest.

While the companies are too numerous (and/or hidden) to mention, the brokers are quite easy to find. For instance, here's America-based IGE, also mentioned in MTV's report. Be sure to give them your love in the worst way possible.

Anyway, although this 'brief touch' turned into an article all its own, I hope you enjoyed MTV's (and my own) look into this complex underground market. There's tons more to learn, so I hope you join me for the all-encompassing coverage to come. More links and sources abound, to be sure.

Check out MTV's Gamer's Week 2.0 for further game-exclusive coverage, and whatever you do, don't fall into the gold-farming trap.

Miyamoto: How Wii Got Started

2006-11-16T23:02:00.000-05:00

It's just under 3 days until the Wii is released to the public. (Unrelated: Less than 12 hours for you Sony folk waiting to snag your PS3- and sell it on eBay for $10k.) While the final moments inch closer and anticipation mounts, BusinessWeek.com presents us with this article to satiate our inquisitive minds.

Not only does BW get to sit down with Shigeru Miyamoto himself, they dive into some pointedly deep questions- and submerge with some interesting answers.

No doubt there's been moments you thought to yourself "Why is the Wii incompatible with HDTVs?", "Why $250?", and maybe even "Who is Ken'ichiro Ashida, and why is he in the same interview as- nay, within 20 feet of- game deity Miyamoto?"

Well, those answers (and more) are laid out in the interview linked above. It's a great read, and really explores what Nintendo's been doing up till today with the Wii. It's surprisingly eye-opening and insider-ish for a business publication.

(What's that? The DS paved the way for the Wii? The Wii wouldn't even exist without the DS' success?! Iiiinteresting.)

Magnificent!

2006-11-15T15:02:00.000-05:00

Of all the embedded pages on World of Warcraft's community website, I have never seen one as cumulative, beautiful, and detailed as this.

Kudos to the Blizzard Team for this elegant feature page brimming with information, outlining essentially everything there is to look forward to for The Burning Crusade's release. While it may lack specific talent and theorycraft changes (See: the new post Eyonix put out recently), it makes up for it in sheer content multimedia.

The page starts out with Burning Crusade's teaser trailer embedded to the right, followed by the new races, new capital cities... and it all concludes in a collage tour-de-force. This may be the inner WoW geek speaking, but I'd be sold on the spot if this was the first page I saw regarding the expansion (delays be damned!)

Go check out the page, bask in the aura of marketing at its best, and leave scathing comments regarding my bad website taste if you don't dig it.

Tech Gadgets: Too Warm? Too Cold? No Problem.

2006-11-14T23:35:00.000-05:00

Is your drink too cold? Too warm? Much like the Goldilocks of Budweiser, or whichever drink you prefer at certain temperatures, there's undoubtedly been times when your drink was the wrong temp at the wrong time (but you drank it anyway, you trooper you). This can lead to a rise in frustration ("Grr! Warm pop/cold coffee!"), decline in productivity (you must now search for ice cubes or a microwave), and/or general unhappiness.

Enter two gadgets from Thinkgeek which have you covered whether your drink is either of the two extremes.

The first is the Piet Hein Drink Cooler, which ultilizes a specialized liquid core within a metallic cooling ball to instantly chill whatever drink you put it in. It comes with a special glass, most likely to reduce chances of shattering/frostbite, and only requires no preliminary icetray filling. Best of all, you're left without the much-loathed watered-down taste ice cubes usually leave in their wake. Science prevails.

But wait! What about cold coffee and lukewarm tea?

Not only a greater drink heater, but also a nice PC-side accessory, we present the USB Mug Warmer & Hub. Type up your long-winded blog entries with an ever-warm cup 'o hot chocolate right next to you. You're also able to plug in your flash drive to one of the heater dock's ports, but I would be wary of using it in case of an accidental spill.

These are some wonderfully geeky ways to keep your drinks the temperature you like. I may be picking up the heater this Christmas, pending I get a mug with it. (College life = paper cups, after all.)

ゲット・エ・マック－＞日本で

2006-11-11T15:54:00.000-05:00

All crazy Japanese aside (the title means "Get a Mac -> In Japan", by the way), for those of you who have seen the PC vs. Mac ads here in America, the following link should give you a feeling of deja vu.

Get A Mac: Japan Edition

Yes, the ads have made their way over to the Land of the Rising Sun, and although it's harder to comprehend, the tongue-in-cheek humor from the American ads remain untouched. The overall tone, as expected, is "Boring ol' Mr. PC is trying to impress (or indirectly prove superiority to) cool, suave Mac-San".

A little interesting snippet about the American "Get A Mac" ads, the actor who played as a PC was in fact John Hodgman, once a writer for the New York Times, a mock-anchor on The Daily Show, graduate of Yale University, and has authored of a number of books. The Mac actor, Justin Long, is a B-movie actor with a short list of movies/TV shows under his belt.

If the PC was indeed John Hodgman, and the Mac Justin Long... which would you buy?

Anyone who knows who these Japanese actors are in the Mac ads, message me with some information! I'm curious if they selected the Japanese cast in a similar way.

No PS3 Pre-Order? No Problem! (Ann Arbor)

2006-11-09T02:48:00.000-05:00

Consider yourselves lucky. Since I, for more reasons too numerous than I can list here, will not be getting a Playstation 3, I'm passing some rumor news on to you.

Ann Arbor-ites, snag your lawn chairs and your coat and head down to Best Buy. According to Joystiq's slapped-together list of Best Buy locations that will* have PS3's launch day, Ann Arbor is one of them!

If you missed your chance to sit in the cold, pre-winter weather back when Best Buy was accepting pre-orders, it's now your chance sit outside Best Buy for 8 days in actual winter weather! Boy, and you thought those poor saps who spent an entire night outside Gamestop/EBGames had it bad...

Anyway, just passing on the love. If you do snag a PS3, make sure to send kudos (=cash) thisaway. Even moreso if you just re-sell it on eBay.

*will=may

Keep Your Online Rep Clean

2006-11-07T14:23:00.000-05:00

Everyone has those lapses of common sense- a'la The Star Wars Kid, Numa Numa Guy, Falling Down Open Hole Lady, and poor souls with public MySpace accounts. You post something funny on a private website and the next thing you know, it's viral media, and you're a web sensation (for better or worse).

For genuinely embarassing moments, this isn't anything too destructive. Everyone makes an ass out of themselves at some point. But when the picture of you being naked on a balcony with a dog (don't ask, it was a long night) gets into the hands of a potential employer... that picture could cost you a potential job.

Just to give some scope to where information could be used against you:

Your blog, where you posted those spiteful comments about your previous boss, boasted about how much time at work you wasted surfing the web, or where you showed your true colors about sensitive political topics (a'la racist remarks, attacks on religion, etc.).
Your Facebook/MySpace, with comments and pictures abound from your latest kegger, and maybe some drug experiences with friends.
Your dating website profile, detailing some very personal aspects about yourself (which I'm sure you never planned on having prospective recruiters see). That S&M fetish could, unfortunately, disqualify you from consideration for that executive position.

In your personal quest to clear your name online, you'll no doubt run across websites that grab a hold of what was once a personal thing and lay it out for society's entertainment. Despite begging and pleaing with them them to take it off, they refuse. Maybe your friend posted something, and you're completely unaware of what is getting spread around.

That's where ReputationDefender enters the picture. This is a brand-new service, founded by Harvard Law graduates and toting an impressive staff, that will scour the net looking for potentially image-destroying information, pictures, or movies that would impede applying for jobs, schools, and more. At $10-16 per month (depending on the subscription type), with optional $30 on-demand reports of your online rep, you can now effectively keep track of your online identity.

It's nothing new that human resources have been scanning websites for dirt on potential employees. What is new is you can finally fight back to ensure one screw-up doesn't follow you until the end of time. Rather than being perpetually worried for your professional life, you can let ReputationDefender worry about it for you.

ReputationDefender breaks itself into 3 categories: My Reputation, My Child, and My Privacy.

You'll be able to track down potentially harmful information via My Reputation to fix those moments common sense escaped you. Parents can protect their kid's reputation by using My Child, which scours social networking sites (among others) where young teens could've posted their first experience with booze. Finally, there is My Privacy, which scans what private information data-mining services could have collected, such as your social security number and home address, and attempts to remove it.

How does this service jump through the legal loops, however? The First Amendment says you can post whatever you wish on your website, after all. (Save slander and libel, and other law-protected items such as copyrighted materials, trademarks, etc.)

Well, the strategy this website follows when protecting its clients is submitting a formal legal request of content removal, which usually nudges the website's owner into compliance. ReputationDefender's team knows people will avoid going to court over something easily preventable.

Before you get your Bill of Rights undies in a twist, the website mentions in an interview with Wired Magazine that it will not attempt to block newsworthy pictures or information, and will only attempt to remove blatant attacks on character. If you got arrested and ended up in the Free Press, that might be beyond the legal abilities of ReputationDefender. If the picture of you with a giant penis markered on your face (kudos of friends) is floating around YTMND.com, then this is the website you should consult.

Just in case ReputationDefender can't remove something, you can be comforted in knowing you'll be fully refunded.

The moral of the story here is: Watch what you post, and keep track of where your kids go online. Failing that, you may need some professional "clean-up" assistance. As adults, we're responsible for what we do off- and on-line, and those that forget that will be keeping ReputationDefender in business for many years to come.

(Add'l Note: I'm interested on how the website will defend itself once someone actually contends and challenges them in court, should the day ever come. This is a very interesting business concept, but I feel it skirts the line of First Amendment-breaching far too much, and should this business spawn an actual industry, there may be an intersting legal battle regarding the freedom of posting materials online.)

The Omiai - Et tu, America?

2006-11-05T06:42:00.000-05:00

From Wikipedia: "Omiai (Japanese: お見合い) or miai (the o is honorific) is a Japanese custom whereby unattached individuals are introduced to each other to consider the possibility of marriage."

For the longest time, I've only read about 0miai (pronounced oh me eye) in cultural textbooks of Eastern Asia. China, Japan, India (to name some of the largest practicioners) have this concept imbued into their societies. In fact, these omiai's aren't just some traditional practice- they're an industry.

Yes, there's billion-dollar industries in these countries striving upon shy (and/or socially exhausted) people who desire to date, and perhaps even more. Japan has gotten the tech-side of this tradition down by making omiai "stations", where after selecting specific criteria, one sits in a booth and selects photos of potential dates-to-be. Then, a Blind Date-esque movie plays, and they get a biographical introduction of the selected person. I always got a chuckle out of this- it was perhaps one of the laziest (yet innovative!) ways to hook up with someone yet.

But then, online dating services burst into the American mainstream...

At first, people using this service were few and far between. As the service's convenience proved its worth in busy peoples' lives, however, it was only a matter of 3 to 6 years before Americans made this a cultural phenomenon. 3 to 6 years is all it took to abate the "over-30 bar-going singles", a good portion of AOL/Yahoo! dating chatrooms, and many of real life's spontaneous "lust" moments. People no longer had to be attentive (or active) to have a successful love life. By going online and signing up for a dating website, the work was taken care of for them.

Soon, however, there were scandals abound of falsification of information on e-dating websites. As more websites joined the profitable market, amateurish services required much less stringent joining processes. Some were just "hook-up" websites, meant to solely "match horny male A with horny female B". It wasn't long till the inevitable occured: people lied about their age/marital status/past conviction records. From a story I read earlier this year, one woman was unfortunate enough to go out on a series of three dates with a man she met online, only to Google his name to see his long-standing list of crimes. This is just one of the stories. For nearly the entire time dating websites have been in the mainstream, there have been constant lawsuits against them for not verifying other users' data.

This hasn't been some tangent American dating website history. These all lead up to my point: America... you're adapting the omiai as well?

Yes, straight from Wired.com, this article shows how online dating in America now rounds out the definition of an omiai. Whereas online dating "services" were just the data servers performing algorithms, you now have real, physical people helping you weave through the confusion that is the online dating world. These hired dating professionals are capitalizing on the current fears of online fraudulence, and do so by taking a page out of the "omiai" book.

Let's compare the purposes of an omiai to these new professionals:

Omiai: There is a book (or database) full of potential partners. The omiai professional sifts through this information, selects possible choices, verifies everything is legitimate, and sends you a catalog to peruse through.
(New!) American Online Dating Professionals: There is a dating website (database) full of potential partners. They will take your criteria and pass it through the system, and then do some behind-the-scenes work for you to ensure all information is true. You are then sent the information of verified candidates.

If you can't find a difference, it's because there is none. The only noticable difference between the traditional omiai of Japan versus this American rendition is that the American service will not follow you out on a date.

This strikes me as extremely out of the ordinary. America generally prides itself on breaking away from these "arranged meetings" which the omiai embodies. Now we're embracing it with open arms, without any skepticism, simply because it's veiled by another medium. We look down upon matchmaking/arranged marriages originally because it consituted a lack of effort, or alternatively, relationship apathy. Being apathetic towards finding a relationship, yet wanting one- in the same heartbeat- typically does not mix.

Yet online, we view this differently. We see the Internet's social capabilities, whether we admit it or not, to be nearly tangible. Yet that little ambiguity- that slight aspect that makes us feel online interaction is something "fake"- makes things unmentionable offline entirely acceptable online (essentially, exploiting Internet anonymity). We can drop what society has called wrong and go about things the way that interest us with no worry of social reprocussion. Matchmaking online is now perfectly possible, whereas real-life matchmaking is ominously taboo.

The future of the online dating industry in America is already set out, so it seems. The industry is booming, memberships are growing by the hour, and little by little this form of dating is becoming the acceptable norm. Eventually, we need to stop ourselves and ask: Am I doing too little with my love life? Is letting a service determine who I meet a good thing? Why am I resorting to something that has been scrutinized by Americans for decades?

If we don't ask this, we may forget why we ditched matchmaking in the first place. As history teaches: don't make the same mistake twice.

Tech Gadgets: Keeping Your Winter Warmer

2006-11-05T06:40:00.000-05:00

We here in Michigan know how winter is an ever-looming, fast-approaching type of season. We also know that the cold, frigid months are unforgiving for those who a) don't have winter coats and b) lack a good heater.

"But I live in a dormitory!" you say. Well, this unfortunately isn't geared towards you, unless your dormitory permits the use of flammable objects.

For those of you live in a house with more lenient fire rules (whether that's good or not is subject for another discussion), there have undoubtedly been days you longed for a warmer room. With gas prices on the rise, you may have wished turning on the heater was economically feasible.

What to do?

No worries! PID's Geniol Fireplace has you covered, offering up a sleek, modern fireplace to ensure you don't catch pnemonia. While it clocks in at $626 pre-shipping, it's far cheaper than the alternative.

This is nothing special, however, until you realize this fireplace is portable. If you move, your fireplace moves with you. If you go camping and are too lazy to start your own bonfire, opt for this portable one. This combined makes the product an interesting and useful addition to anyone's frigid winter room.

Christmas is coming up, and if you can't afford the fireplace, maybe your folks can. Get on their case.

Tech Gadgets: 1920x1080i: Wherever, Whenever

2006-11-04T06:41:00.000-05:00

This has to signal the end of worlds, or something. Someone went and made the media pirate's dream entertainment center.

The M-Vision 8600HD, made in Korea, is the first of its kind- not only can you toss (CD/DVD) media in its disk drive, you can download DivX, OGG, WMA, WMV and MP3 files to its internal hard disk and play it back on any TV you choose. Consider this a much cooler external hard drive with media ports on the back.

The M-Vision can play back up to 1080i-quality media on HDTVs, which is just a notch below the best resolution you can get comercially, 1080p. It even supports Dolby 5.1 Surround Sound, which rounds out any multimedia experience. It's a pity it doesn't do Dolby 7.1 too, but most of us have yet to catch up with its (now-obsolete) predecessor.

If you check out the pictures of this unit, you'll notice it even has a LAN input to make PC-to-player transfers even easier.

Although there hasn't been a stateside release date or price determined, you can scope some awesome photos at Gizmodo. It looks like a quality piece of equipment, and you're no longer forced to watch degraded laptop-to-TV quality movies.

Mirai & You

2006-10-24T02:31:00.000-04:00

If you've been following the updates on this blog, you'll notice I've been gearing towards being a more column-like resource. I've also been working with some code (which in my opinion should've been pre-built into Blogger) to reduce post length via "expandable posts", whereby clicking the "Continue Reading" link below each article will bring you to the full shablam. I also inserted a "Recent Comments" section, just in case visitors start to comment, to make viewing new comments easier for both you and me.

Please note, there may be expandable links where there is no further content. If you feel an article is over after reading what's present on the page index, it probably is.

Moving away from tech updates, I've been deliberating day in and day out what to do with this blog. Not to get all artsy with my thinking process, but I've come to a reasonable theme: e-culture. A broad (perhaps too broad) topic which expands past mere technology and gaming, and delves into the online culture that continuously permeates the society we live in.

While you will no doubt see a plethora of game updates & commentaries- it is my self-proclaimed forté after all- you should also see an increase of articles encompassing gadgetry, explanations of e-lifestyles and e-subcultures, question-and-answer themed articles, and much more. I will be doing my best to tie in the work I do here with a college-based publication I work with, so please bear with me if you see duplicates of my stories within anything entitled "SHEI". The majority of my work will be blog-exclusive, of course, but I see nothing wrong with contributing relevant articles to a great, evolving publication.

Galiene also has a World of Warcraft-themed article in the works, primarily aimed at Priests last I've seen, so check back soon to see the completed version!

As always, we strive to make your visit here informative and relatively painless, so let us know if any features we have annoy you, or if we are lacking something elementary.

And the blog moves on...

Above photo from Alen Lin: http://flickr.com/photos/alenlin/

To Recap:

Expandable Posts
Recent Comments Tracker
"I Heart Kurineko" Mission Statement; Future Articles & Ideas
Galiene's Upcoming WoW Priest Coverage

Why Own a PSP? [Update]

2006-10-22T05:19:00.000-04:00

Some days, I just wonder why I have the thing. It has more dust particles on it than "played" minutes. On more than one occasion, I've contemplated putting it up on eBay.

Yes, I'm talking about my Playstation Portable.

What in the world was I thinking back then in Hiroshima, man-en (10,000 Yen) bills in-hand, contemplating an impuse purchase only a tech-minded gaijin would, weighing the options of buying a PSP or eating later in the trip? As was previously revealed, I ended up getting the PSP, and starved the last day or two- but it didn't bother me much at the time.

A few months later, after buying a whopping 2 games for the portable (Ridge Racer [Japanese] and Lumines [American]), I'm having a bit of buyer's remorse. What was once hailed as the future of portable gaming, with first-of-its-kind media features embedded in the hardware, the sleek device seemed like it could do no wrong.

What I learned was: NEVER judge a portable by its shiny black outer casing (or its audacious marketing).

At first glance, Sony's Playstation Portable seemed to have everything Nintendo's Game Boy series did not. It could play full-length movies thanks to its UMD drive. It could store much larger games since it was not cartridge-based. It would look sleek, akin to a slightly wider, keyboardless Blackberry with a disk drive on the back. They even promised to accomodate the homebrew crowd (AKA your basement game creators). Most importantly, Sony's PSP advertised a vast library of addicting, innovative games. I also heard all the bad things back in America during PSP's launch week- "Dead pixels! And Sony won't replace it!", "My Square button isn't working!", "This analog pad thingamajig feels funny...", "The battery life a comparable lifespan to a mosquito in a repellant tiki torch factory, especially when playing movies".

So, going against my better judgement, I took the $300 plunge (well, maybe a little more, since it was 29860円 before a 4980円 game) barely a month after launch at a game shop in Hiroshima, Japan. I tore it open on the bullet train back to Kyoto, but alas- they don't charge PSP batteries when shipping them out of the factory. I played Ridge Racer to death while in Japan and on the flight home, sufficiently getting the Woo!-ness out of me and coming to my normal senses.

Back in America, I patiently awaited the onslaught of new games that I would purchase to round out my first portable. But, where were they?

After about a month, I saw a few movies and a game or three. Nothing notable came out- or at least nothing that justified the price. $25+ for a movie with skimpy extras (at the time), and on a 4.3" screen?! No thanks, I'll buy the (cheaper) DVD. UMD movies had obvious flaws and shortcomings. With the games, however, it was a simple issue of having no "killer app". Because of this, I never bought a game past Lumines. I still read Electronic Gaming Monthly, looking for a game I could get my hands on and thoroughly enjoy, but the only things scoring decent reviews are WarioWare (Nintendo DS) rip-offs. FPS games are a joke, RPGs have all been crud, and the only decent games seem to be racers. The only decent games coming out recently are just ports of a larger console franchise. Ugh.

Oh, not to mention, PSP games aren't region-encoded, but the movies are. So, gullible little me thinking "If the multi-region games are playable, maybe movies are too!" got a nice surprise when I popped in my first U.S. movie- to see a region error (keep in mind my PSP is Japanese). There went half the reason I bought the PSP. And I wasn't in the mood to spend twice as much on imports.

Last, but not least, I was hopeful for the online capabilities of the PSP. It could surf the web via an included software browser, and there were talkings of online games and the like. Nothing online came out at launch, and they're just breaking the surface of the online field now, presumably to hook up with the Playstation 3's online service. Not to say there aren't online games for the portable, but they're few and far between (even fewer if you're looking for good games).

For you homebrew folks, I hate to mention it, but you were slightly shafted as well. To do anything with the PSP that's non-UMD, you need a background in haxxor-ing to get around the occasionally-updated firmware Sony likes to put out. Many people simply don't update the firmware so they can play their great, fan-created games. And I can't blame them. Why Sony makes it a pain to enjoy a hobby is beyond me, but I guess it's in the spirit of making homebrewers "work for what you love".

Perhaps there's some good things on the horizon with the release of the Playstation 3. There's some interconnectivity in the works to allow your PSP work as a controller/mini-screen for your PS3, along with other functions which are sure to take advantage of the media aspects of both consoles, and perhaps the portable nature of the PSP. I forsee the PSP turning into an expensive, pretty, more functional USB stick, storing saved games, movies, and the like.

There's also some great games that just got released, and are being released. This is Sony's first attempt at a portable, and perhaps this is just the necessary learning curve they're experiencing. I still can't help but feel they greatly underestimated the differences of console versus portable gaming, but maybe these will be ironed out with the Playstation Portable 2, if they ever create such a thing.

I may sound a bit sour about the PSP, and I am. It made me lose a lot of faith in Sony as a company, after an already shaky track record of busted TVs and MD players. I gave them my $300 (and ability to purchase food) in trust they would snag good games (and game developers), enhance their media content, and put forth a device that would compete with the Nintendo DS. Sadly, it turns out the PSP was a flop, evident in Sony's losses with the product. Although Sony would be reluctant to admit this, which is why I was suckered into buying one to begin with (yes, feel free to blame my lack of research).

So, why own a PSP? Maybe you're optimistic for the future. Maybe you need to own every gaming peripheral Sony puts out. Maybe you're excited to try out the PSP+PS3 connectivity. Soon, I will not have to ask this question- just give me a chance to post it up on eBay a little after the PS3 launch, and hopefully I'll get some of my precious pennies back.

[Update]:Check out the following Kotaku link for further explanation (well, sort of) regarding PSP+PS3 integration. Just in case you were looking to buy a PS3. Or a PSP. http://www.kotaku.com/gaming/gd06/psp-to-ps3-abilities-explained-209303.php

Abandon All Hope, All Ye Who Enter... Ha Ha! Just Kidding. No, Don't Run Away...

2006-10-20T23:10:00.000-04:00

Let me be the first to welcome our newest contributor, and my real-life object of affection, Galiene!

She'll be assisting me in updating, editing, and maintaining this blog. Since she brings a casual, newbie flare to MMORPGs, my hope is she can cover things from a perspective I cannot. Being around MMORPGs ~~all~~ most of my life, I may get a jaded (or entirely wrong) opinion about things. She's also helping me spearhead a Second Life business venture we're both working on initiating, so if you stick around, you're bound to see more of her.

Galiene also brings more of an artistic flare with her. Where I am one for technicalities and simplicity, she has an overwhelmingly better taste for visual content as a whole.

So without further adeiu, Galiene, make your presence known!
(Gal, by the by, reports on Second Life economic trends due by Friday)

WoW:TBC Rearing Its Ugly Head for Guilds, Old 40-Mans

2006-10-20T21:36:00.000-04:00

The newest World of Warcraft expansion, The Burning Crusade, is splendorously beautiful in its artistic aspects. It merges vast, expansive lands of differing terrain into a floating-space-mass type of otherworldly plateau, and tosses you in the center of it, entirely for you to experience and explore. Seconds after leaving the Dark Portal on the Outlands side, many are taken aback by its beauty, and this definitely sets the tone for the expansion as a whole.

But in terms of guild diplomacy and current 40-man raid instances, The Burning Crusade is arguably the ugliest thing to come along since the worldwide LFG channel. Just tonight, I witnessed some of the not-so-great aspects surrounding the release of the expansion, and it struck a deep chord. It's like these problems never existed (or rather never seemed pertinent) before now. All of a sudden, a giant rush of worries and anxiety overcame me as I saw some of the changes that are afoot, and I can only imagine other guilds are gearing up like my own.

To summarize:

Many members now feel current raid instances (save Naxxramas) are pointless wastes of time. Their feelings are justified, since just looking at some of the loot tables from The Burning Crusade, you begin to notice the first 5-man will have equal, if not better, gearing and weapons than you can get in Blackwing Lair, a 40-man epic raid dungeon that a good portion of the guilds in WoW have yet to conquer. Don't even get my guild started on Ahn'Qiraj... that's a nightmare in and of itself.
This obsoletion of gear and weapons we've worked months (if not longer) to obtain are being tossed out the window, to be replaced by blues... and even greens- but no matter. This isn't a complaint regarding items becoming obsolete, since with new content you'll inevitably need newer and better gear which will surpass the old. This is a concern that current raiders will not show up to raids, knowing any work they put into progression now will just be lost time (and gold) come the expansion, where barely two hours in you're already getting items that make your T1 look deliciously shardable. What are we to do with raiding until TBC? And the raiders?
Kind of a follow-up to the previous point, my guild just tonight decided to recruit new players to fill the temporary (or perhaps to them, chronic) lack of raiders during progression nights. While I can see their desire to progress in the game, I can't agree with a position of recruitment, especially right before an expansion where there will be a mass re-visiting of WoW by old guildmates. What is a plug in the boat to keep it afloat will be an enormous iron weight that will sink it. As has been historically demonstrated, the only possible solution of guild overpopulation is the inevitable /gquit's, and sadly it takes both veteran (valuable) and rookie (possibly good, but who can tell during the 2 weeks they're in-guild?) members. How does a guild ensure progress is maintained while not setting itself up for a fallout right before the expansion?
What will happen to the old 40-mans? Will they go (as my most favorite WoW blog, WoWInsider.com, put it) the way of Dire Maul, one of the most prettiest but unvisited instances of World of Warcraft? Will guilds who never stepped foot in AQ40, Naxx, or even BWL just skip over content for Outlands raids, knowing better gear awaits? All signs unfortunately point to yes. So, if your guild hasn't downed Ouro or C'Thun, or even Nefarion, it's arguable your days are numbered before the game (and your guild) moves on. Since we know Blizzard has no intention of updating the instances anytime soon, add one more nail to that coffin.

Of course, there's much more to be discussed, but these are the topics of current interest. What will happen to guilds that want to progress, but have members who are uninterested in losing gold and time on wipes that will mean nothing in ?2? months? What will happen if recruitment (or even worse, guild splits) results from the lack of attendance, just to be met with the lower raid caps of TBC? What will become of those old 40-man instances, housing encounters you may never see, simply because of a lack of interested people?

I'm interested (but wary) to see where the expansion will take us. I hope for the best, but as is usually best, prepare for the worst.

Additionally, before you call me a waah-waah muffin, please realize I'm also looking forward to much content in TBC. These topics are only isolated for discussion and, to a degree, consulting. I'll no doubt be on WoW's forums in the upcoming weeks seeing what guilds are doing in preparation for the expansion changes.

Will We Be Seeing You Before Christmas?

2006-10-19T15:11:00.000-04:00

It's not the first time I've pondered the release date of World of Warcraft's most recent expansion, The Burning Crusade. It's also not the first time I've gotten frustrated at the general lack of information provided on the game as a whole (despite the NDA [non-disclosure agreement] being lifted at the beta's conception). Blizzard is doing a fine job keeping us on our toes with this one, but one must ask: what's with the lack of information? Does this impact the release date, or is it just some crafty marketing scheme?

These past few weeks, besides the Looking For Group upheaval announcement and some new screenshots, very little has been released about the game. Okay, we have some definitive system specs. Oh, racial traits and a few talent upgrades too. Toss in a few more screenshots, and everything's peachy, right?

From my perspective as a customer, everything does not seem so controlled. This whole lack-of-a-release-date stuff is, for lack of a better term, stalling. Blizzard keeps to its guns about "we can't give a release date until the product is ready", but I feel it's more of a lack of confidence in their final product. Why stall? Well, go wander over to the beta forums, where those testing The Burning Crusade are praising and complaining up pages of threads. The bugs forum looks plenty packed with genuine bugs (quest- and world-related), not subjective ones (such as "Waah, X class sucks with the new change!"). There's still much to be improved with the classes we'll be playing on the way to level 70. All this, and it's about a month from "projected" release.

There's more reasons surrounding release date concerns than the ones stated above, but by now it should be somewhat obvious why I worry. Blizzard is like any other company- they have deadlines they do and don't meet, imperfect products, a horrid customer service department in-game and out- so to a degree, this is expected. At the same time, this has to be the first game I've come across in a while that is packing in a full-fledged addition to a game without a release date... 30 days or so from the predicted release.

So, Blizzard, will you have your expansion pack under my Christmas tree come December 25th? This is effectively the only thing I care about with the upcoming expansion (Rogue talents and spells be damned!), so I await your answer. So do the other millions of players.

Makeover & Purpose

2006-10-11T14:52:00.000-04:00

It's rainy outside, I'm in a public computer lab, and I keep looking at gaming blogs. You know what that means right? Right?!

Yes, a slight blog overhaul.

You'll notice some mini-ads from Google AdSense at the top (feel free to click) below the header, ~~a new footer with my e-mail and contact information~~ (in case commenting just won't suffice), and some revamped links.

I'm still mulling over a specific purpose/focus for this blog, which is the most difficult aspect of blogging I've come across so far. I have no real niche in anything at this point, but every day I'm scouring the Internet looking for that elusive "focal point" of my thoughts which I can pull from for writing inspiration. I'd like to say I'm leaning towards gaming, and this may very well be the case.

So, whether you look here often or not, if you'll put up with my random commentary for just a little bit longer, maybe someday soon you will see a direct focus of this "news" outlet. If not, I guess you can expect to read my blog with a spice of randomocity.

Enjoy the changes. I will be thinking of a blog focus.

"Open" Minds, Closed Policies

2006-09-26T15:08:00.000-04:00

So, thanks to David for pointing out this Japan Times article. I normally don't check up on Japan Times, but maybe it's time to start again.

Today's article of commentary is: http://search.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/nn20060923a1.html

So, the article looks cosmetically nice. Japan is admitting their labor force is going down in numbers, and they're looking for non-domestic folks to pick up jobs that would otherwise be going empty. Things look even brighter in this quote: "The debate on whether to allow foreigners to enter the country and work here is over. The question now is how we should receive them." Japan's finally deciding to stop putting off the workforce problems that have been predicted to arise for a good few years now.

Then, if you scroll a few lines further, you'll note some rather interesting job qualification requirements. Note these jobs are not specifically white-collar positions, but all available jobs. According to the article "...foreigners who want to work in Japan, including those of Japanese descent, must have a certain degree of proficiency in the Japanese language."

Why so picky, Japan? You state there is a problem with dwindling numbers in your labor force, yet you are still picky to have fluent workers? First, this is an unfair bar. Foreign-born Japanese arguably have a better chance to grasp the language, thanks to Japanese-speaking relatives living in either the U.S. or Japan. Non-Japanese foreigners are immediately given a hurdle compared to foreign-born Japanese (and domestic Japanese, if their numbers rise later) since they're probably fresh off the plane in Japan, with little to no Japanese language experience. Language-wise, it's a fact most high schools (and some colleges) lack a Japanese program. Even more importantly, non-Japanese foreigners are instantly branded as gaijin ("outside people"), and are still subconsciously treated as such.

Second, why should proficiency be considered when hiring factory workers and the like? Yes, they need to understand orders for both efficiency and liability reasons, but with all that Engrish around the country and your now-open-arms approach to foreign workers, perhaps it's time to adapt businesses to the workers (like we do with Spanish speakers)?

Lastly, there's a 3% maximum percentage of foreigners allowable in the workplace. That's possibly the ultimate embodiment of job discrimination. So some qualified person comes looking for a job, but since he'd make up 3.00000000000001%, you turn him away for- you guessed it- a domestic Japanese person!

This all sounds like a facade in light of some of the discriminatory events going on in Japan since foreigners became a national issue. It sounds less like loosening of job restrictions and more of looking worldly and accepting. Key word: "looking". ~~Everyone knows you want a spot on the UN's Human Rights Council, but putting convenient "caps" does not mean you're the human rights freedom fighters quite yet.~~

Fair up the job market a bit- equal opportunities for domestic and foreign folks alike, no language requirement for basic physical labor jobs, and no percentage cap for foreign workers would be a start.

Then, let's deal with the other discrimination problems.

[Update: Turns out on May 9, 2006 the United Nations allowed Japan on a new Human Rights Council crafted after the old committee was abolished. My bad.]

This Can't End Well

2006-09-20T23:35:00.000-04:00

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/topic/story.cfm?c_id=325&objectid=10400645

One comment in response to this article:
"Any project where one of the steps is to calculate the odds of destroying the planet has my full support." -Amber

This is truly an interesting article, not necessarily on the side of science findings which will occur if all goes right, but that this is actually being funded.

How does one measure the projected chance of failure when "For the first time in many decades we have built a machine that exceeds our powers of prediction."

Even worse, what if we open a portal and demons start popping out? Then what? HUH?!

These scientists want to find something out, and that's perfectly okay. Science must be furthered. But when said scientists admit they don't know what they will encounter, and insert a (possibly arbitrary) probability of worldly destruction, one must start to worry for his/her own safety.

A related link is: http://qntm.org/destroy , where Method #3 briefly illustrates a similar method to annihilating the world.

Anyway, if you need me, I'll be down in the cellar with my booze, rations, and shotgun.

The Facebook Conundrum

2006-09-07T15:43:00.000-04:00

As of right now, I can't tell if this recent Facebook News Feed fiasco is some clever hype-raising strategy or a chorus of vocal immaturity of the majority of Facebook's users.

Folks, you all complain that Facebook is now Stalkerbook, and this News Feed will be the end of your "personal" life. This News Feed will, according to some, invade into their personal lives and create a network of stalkers following them and their activities.

Not only do I think this is outrageous, I think it's self-conceited to afford yourself such expectations of attention. People probably wish they were being stalked, more than they're worried about it.

Facebook has, and has always had, privacy settings. If you don't want someone to see something, you've been able to block them from viewing. The same is true for this News Feed service. Posting your profile on Facebook unsecured is like posting that same profile on a Times Square billboard. If someone's looking, they will see it, and you put it there. So let's all soak in this learning experience and not point the finger- not setting a personal profile to private will result in public viewing. Common sense.

Let's do a more example-like approach- let's look at this from the top, down. This is Joe User, and he's accepting invitations to events, joining Facebook groups, writing on friends' walls, and doing his private Facebook things (like messaging). He also made his profile private by clicking the radio buttons of "only friends can view my profile".

Can anyone, at this point, see his News Feeds or personal information? No.

Now, Joe adds a few friends here and there as he walks around campus and socializes. He adds these people as friends. Can they now see this feed? Yes.

Alright, we've come across a security failure! Not on the part of Facebook, however- on the part of Joe. While Facebook put all the juicy information in the forefront, saving someone the time and effort required to learn such things about a person manually, Joe gave them the clearance to do so.

So what this boils down to is thus: Joe must stop being a social whore and decide who he really wishes to befriend, lest the privacy functions of Facebook have no purpose. If you want to frolic in the social fields, that's what MySpace is for.

While there could be some improvement to the implementation of these News Feeds, the spirit and execution of such features does not go against the privacy Facebook ensured you upon joining. It just centralizes what would take an hour of research into one little feed.

This whole outbreak is purely reactionary. Give it some time to sink in, and I think you'll find the feed more enthralling and entertaining than a source of worry. You don't have a stalker now, you won't tomorrow, and I'll bargain you won't get one for... ever?

It's about Blog Time

2006-08-27T21:54:00.000-04:00

Yeah, I might as well put this baby to some use, seeing as how I have it and have been dying to put content in.

This blog... will be about nothing in particular. I won't be a photographer or artist uploading my best artistic creations; I won't be a poet or writer posting new chapters of my upcoming collection; I won't be a music creator (yet) sampling out my sound clips.

I will be your every-man updater of things I find sparking with interest, from every facet of life. My personal concentration- gaming and technology. However, I'm all up for Asian culture, business, and an occasional brush with politics.

Heck, maybe you'll see some of my photographer/Photoshopper side come out in the upcoming months.

Point is, I hope this blog entertains as much as it'll serve for me to see my writing progress, myself mature, and the world evolve. Here's to new beginnings.