Gaming News Feb 9th 2010

Lego Star Wars III – The Clone Wars

Lucas Arts and Travellers Tales today announced the third game in their brilliant and huge selling Lego Star Wars franchise. Whilst more Lego Star Wars is a great proposition, the fact that the third in series is based on the less-than-awesome Clone Wars animated series is a little disappointing. That said if anyone can make the Clone Wars series better it is Travellers Tales who, you can be sure, will add their own unique and humorous slant on proceedings.

Lego Star Wars III: The Clone Wars will include all the characters from both seasons of the television series, as well as some characters from the Star Wars Saga. The game will feature brand new battle modes, giving players unique, head-to-head combat and an upgraded level builder, allowing the creation of customized bases and in-game battlefields. Play either as a Jedi or Separatist with all-new character abilities, such as Squad command, Lightsaber slicing, Lightsaber jumps, long distance Jedi attacks and Grapple Tie-Ups, all within a new, easy-to-navigate hub.

It sounds great and we despite the source material it is more Lego Star Wars.

The game will ship on the Wii, DS, PS3, PSP, Xbox 360 and Windows in Autumn this year.

Phoenix from the Flames

The second game in Capcom’s classic, Phoenix Wright Ace Attorney series called Justice For All, will be available for download on Wii Ware on February 15, 2010 and it’ll cost 1,000 Wii Points. It will also be released for the DS on the 16th

In Phoenix Wright Ace Attorney: Justice For All, Phoenix Wright has had six months of experience and five court victories under his belt. None of that will do him any good against the ruthless new D.A. in town though. Franziska von Karma wants revenge and she’s ready to take Phoenix down at any cost.

The first of the six game Ace Attorney series – Phoenix Wright Ace Attorney is available to download now.

And Finally!!

In what is probably the best press release.. Well, ever! News of a new Zombie game for PS3 minis and PSP has just been announced. You know what I am just going to paste the entire thing so you can read it for yourselves! Enjoy!

We at Halfbrick (The developers.) are very happy to announce Age of Zombies – Rated T for TEEN – for the PSP and PS3 minis. We know what you are thinking – “Great, another %@&$in zombie game!”

We thought about that too. After years of research at the Halfbrick Researchalogical Datafiler Department, our team discovered a unique formula which determined that:

(Proximity of gamers to zombies + stupidness and stuff) x Headblast Ratio 7.4 = Increased ability to spend money.

There’s no denying it. Zombie games make money. No one has anything against a good zombie game really, it’s just that there’s a lot of them. So we needed to try something different. We didn’t want to kill zombies in the usual way. We didn’t want to survive a deadly undead army in the ruins of some scary-ass town. We wanted to travel through time and shoot zombie dinosaurs and mummies and junk. So, we created Age of Zombies!

To conduct field research, the development team actually journeyed back in time to experience what it meant to really blast zombie faces with guns while standing around the Pyramids and Japanese villages and such.

Mr. Morowitz, the game’s lead programmer, found the entire experience fascinating:“I particularly enjoyed the artwork of the Ancient Egyptians and their ability to persevere under extreme environmental circumstances.”

Creative consultant Anthony Hansen on his adventure: “I learned how to make moonshine in the 1930s.”

And lead artist Murry Lancashire: “I liked shooting cavemen.”

Truly an enlightening experience for the entire team! Upon returning to 2010, Halfbrick set about creating Age of Zombies, where the hero Barry Steakfries employs the use of time portals to stop the evil zombie scheme of Professor Brains. Using a huge pile of weapons and explosives, Steakfries is the real deal for blood-splattering needs.

And yay, the game was. Age of Zombies, releasing on PSP and PS3 minis for $4.99 on November 25th. We hope, in the future, you do try it!

Now if that isn’t a reason to spend a fiver I don’t know what is.

February 9, 2010
Categories: News . Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , . Author: drew10 . Comments: Leave a Comment

A quick update

Hi everyone,

Sorry there was no post over the weekend, we have had a couple of technical issues which have now been rectified and we will be back on track tomorrow.

Thanks,

Drew.

February 8, 2010
Categories: Messages, News . . Author: drew10 . Comments: Leave a Comment

Review: Dark Void – Capcom (PS3)

De-void of goodness!!

When I first saw the video footage of this game, I was seriously impressed. I watched as the leading character soared through the skies with his trusty jetpack (Much like the Rocketeer movie), picking off  UFOs one-by-one with his guns, and even landing on them as they flew, to disable them. I loved how the character would cling to walls, and scale them whilst shooting away at bad guys, and watch them fall past you, to their deaths. The sense of freedom in the skies appealed to me. It looked awesome. It kind of reminded me of Starfox 64 battles, but sexed up with PS3 goodness. I was looking for that Starfox thrill again, however this game, as I quickly found out, did not fill that.. Void.

I eagerly opened its case and popped the disc in my PS3 (Desperately ignoring Capcom’s other recent attempt with the Bionic Commando revamp, mostly because I paid hard-earned money for this). It starts up, and I can’t wait. The title screen appears and I instantly get this sense of tranquillity. It all seems really moody; almost Metroid-like. No worries yet.

When the game starts you’re instantly thrown into battle (A flight Tutorial, really) against UFOs flying around you. I wasn’t overwhelmed by the graphics, but it all looked nice enough. Unfortunately, you soon notice that, A: Much like Starfox, you’re in a contained area, which your enemies seem to be able to fly in and out of at will, and B: The aiming is awful. It’s hard enough just to try to see the enemies even when using your radar, let alone try to shoot the bastards. As I hovered up there, and they flew around for fun, I began to miss Fox McCloud again. After some perseverance I get lucky and hit one with my stunning new tactic of constantly spraying ammo. This being the first chapter of the game, I ignored the worry creeping into my head.

Chapter 2 starts (I f***ing wish it hadn’t), and a movie sequence finds our hero, Will (and some chick named Ava – In other words, Indiana Jones & Lara Croft) crashing into the Bermuda Triangle in 1938 (there are World War references, but these seem superfluous to the storyline). The poor rendition of Starfox is quickly replaced with an ever poorer, shoddy, weak, basic, buggy, shite and simply second-rate version of Uncharted.
Gameplay now switches from the air, to land-based trekking, something the trailers ‘failed’ to show. You find yourself running through a jungle (of course) taking on robots in monotonously annoying shoot-outs as you attempt to hide behind scenery whilst being shot so much that you begin to think you are immortal. The enemies themselves are a robot race, called ‘Watchers’. They like to watch. You’ll notice this during every damn shoot-out, as they play ‘Peek-A-Boo’ from behind any tree or rock they can find and they certainly do a lot of watching because it takes a lot of fire-power to take them down. Don’t bother with head-shots either, as it makes no difference and to be honest, the aiming is so atrocious that you would be lucky to hit anywhere near their head!
The whole on-foot experience instantly feels very dated and poorly executed. On top of that it goes on for far too long and becomes highly frustrating. Especially when you DO die, as checkpoints will often put you right back in the middle of a gunfight, forcing you to run for cover and look like a scared little bitch. After dying once, I really wanted to switch my PS3 off.  I only really wanted to continue just to get the jetpack again.
Another likeness it shares with Metroid is that it has you starting with all the good stuff it has to offer, but the way this cruel mistress takes it all away from you is evil, and unforgivable. The way Metroid games confiscate your weapons and items, having you earn them back one by one works really well. But in Dark Void it’s akin to torture as you start the game in the sky, in the midst of a dogfight, (relatively) free as a bird, only to have your wings clipped ten minutes later. You are then forced to walk through hell for a long time, to earn them back. Much like having your own fully tuned-up Lexus (this game is NO Ferrari), then having someone steal it from you, and throw an Oyster Card bus-pass with no credit out the window as they drive away begging you to make chase!
The game has a go at teaching you its controls as you play but I recommend that you check them out in the options menu beforehand, as you will find yourself looking for the ‘Jump’ button very early on. And oh – how Will jumps… Very Mario-like. His ridiculous jump alone said a lot about the game for me. To recap: the on-foot sections are a HUGE disappointment.
Eventually, you do get to start flying again. It took all the patience and determination I had to keep playing to get this far, but being the committed gamer I am and wanting to impart the knowledge upon you, dear reader, I struggled on. But I soon realised that, that’s it: You either shoot ‘em whilst in the air, or on the ground. It did try something different with the wall-scaling sections, which were intriguing for a few minutes. They occur during both land and air-based levels, but it’s a very limited affair. For one thing, you can only do it in certain set areas. It’s a bit like hopping up and down levels in the classic Rolling Thunder series, but with far less freedom. The feeling of, ‘you can go here, but not there’ is very annoying and very linear. It’s a case of standing in the right spot, and pressing the Square button.  Also as the character has a jetpack it is hard to see why he would need to do any wall-scaling in the first place. You have the option of opening weapons lockers which are dotted throughout the game, where you can use collected cash (which materialises in orb-style form after killing enemies) to upgrade weapons.

Well.. There really isn’t much else to say. I had no interest in the story (what there is of one) as it only served to add even more boredom to the game. And believe me – this game is BORING. The aforementioned tranquillity of the title screens and menus was actually a very good indication of what was to come.
I had no interest in the characters, or their goals. The playing time is (perhaps mercifully) short with the only thing that serves to prolong the adventure is dying and being re-spawned at the poorly placed checkpoints. I was expecting loads of cool boss battles like the one I saw in the preview footage, but whilst being Dark Void’s only true high points, they are a rarity. Then there’s the slowdown, which made absolutely no sense to me as I saw no reason for it; it almost seemed completely random. The game seems to be handling a fair amount of goings-on just fine one minute and then choking like a chain-smoker the next. And again – not a great deal ever happens in this adventure.

When I purchased Dark Void, I thought I’d be happy with it in my collection. Half a day later and I’m gutted that a game with so much promise and potential was executed so badly. And, once completed, there is absolutely no real reason to return to it. Multiplayer? Hell no. Online options? HELL no. Capcom could be on to something here, but this dead, lazy, unfinished mess is the worst pile of crap I’ve played in a long time. Dark Void? Avoid more like!

3/10 (For the jetpack).

February 3, 2010
Categories: Games Reviews . Tags: , , , . Author: eddierichards . Comments: Leave a Comment

Gaming News 2nd Feb 2010

GP Motoring onto our screens!

The Motor GP series gets its yearly update on 31st March this year and comes with some nice little titbits to entice you into leathers again, not that us at G4A need any excuse!

The game comes fully stocked with the full roster for the 2009 season and as the 2010 season unfolds the updated data will be available as DLC.

The goodness doesn’t stop there though, no-siree-bob, Capcom are obviously on the happy pills as this DLS will come in two free packs.

The first pack will contain the 800cc bike class with all the bike, rider and team liveries, plus the brand new tracks for the 2010 MotoGP – Silverstone (UK) and Balatonring (Hungary). The second pack will include all the bike, rider and team livery updates for the 600cc and 125cc bike class, giving players everything they need to play the season earlier than ever before. Good on them says me!

You can get your hands on the demo which is out at the end of Feb on XBLA and PSN. The Demo will feature a Championship race or Time Trial. And interestingly an Arcade mode where extra time will be added for pulling off daring manoeuvres.

Time To Jump On Metro!

THQ have announced the launch date for highly anticipated Metro 2033TM, first person shooter for Xbox 360® and PC, is scheduled to reach North American stores on March 16th, and European stores on March 19th 2010.

A Limited Edition will be available for both formats, including the exclusive automatic shotgun and four art cards by the Russian painter Anton Grechko, who has created a range of artwork inspired by the universe of Metro 2033.

Standard and Limited Edition versions of Metro 2033 are available to pre-order now, with selected retailers offering free Metro 2033 themed Xbox LIVE® Avatar items with every pre-order if that is what you are into!

February 2, 2010
Categories: News . Tags: , , , . Author: drew10 . Comments: Leave a Comment

Feature: When Does Next Gen Become Next Gen?

The X-Ball?

Okay, in December 2010 the Xbox 360 will be five years old in Europe, the PS3 will be four in September with the Wii is also four in December. Given that the lifespan of the original Xbox was four years we ask today when the Next Gen war will start-up again?

It has been somewhat of a bugbear of ours that four years into this generation of consoles some places still refer to them as Next Gen. Obviously the moment the console is released it, by definition becomes current gen and we then can begin to dream about the true Next Gen.

So what do we think the next generation of gaming goodness served up by our favourite chip shops (oh dear, sorry!) will bring?

It is 2010 and we would suggest that by the end of this year the rumour mill will be well and truly turning with talk of Wii-2, PS4 and Xbox (Insert random number here) for these purposes we will go with 720. Yes we reckon that small details and maybe a tech demo or two will begin to leak by the end of 2010 with the PR machines going into overdrive in 2011 and possibly the release of the first console Christmas 2011.

As we saw with Xbox, PS2 and to a lesser extent Gamecube the last gen ended possibly a year too early with Microsoft

A stylish transparent PS4 by designer Tai Chiel

aiming to get the jump on its competitors. It succeeded by almost a year but possibly at a price, with an estimated 30% of all 360’s sold suffering the red

Rings of death. Still, apart from this the 360 was designed so that the machine could be produced cheaply as we have seen with the price reductions now down to just over £100 for the standard machine.

Nine Months later Sony gave birth to the PS3 a huge shiny black unit resembling a cross between an air conditioner and a laminating machine. The PS3 boasted a Blu-Ray player and true 1080p display (Something that would be added to 360 later). The price was over £400 and Sony’s PR shot themselves in the foot claiming that “Everyone will have to work a little bit harder for PS3.” They didn’t and high price and a less than inspiring selection of launch titles meant early sales of Sony’s dream machine were slow.

Barely a few weeks later Nintendo shocked the gaming world by releasing the Wii. Unlike anything we had ever seen before, the big N decided not to follow Sony and Microsoft by making Gamecube 2 but instead reworking the architecture of the original and giving it motion sensing controls. The rest is history and Nintendo are now firmly re-established as the true innovators of the gaming world.

The chances of the next Nintedo machine looking like this are zero!

Blimey that was all a bit long-winded! So back to the Next Gen let’s take a look into the future at what we might see.

Okay the chances are we will see some random number for the next Xbox, both 720 and 1080 have been muted but I suspect we might see a move away from the numbers, possibly something like Xbox Evo? Good ring that, I reckon I may register the website now!

Depending on how well Project Natal works or takes off we could see a motion sensing device in-built into the new machine. Personally whilst I am all for new controls I seriously hope this does not become the norm as I still prefer a joypad for most games.

With new UHD television technology on the horizon giving up 2 10 times higher definition that 1080p I would guess there will be some integration for this in the new system.

Obviously, DVD is no longer a suitable medium for gaming so expect Microsoft swallow the bitter Blu pill and install Sony’s drive in their next machine. Of course at some point we will see a move away from physical media and into digital delivery of all games. In our opinion that will be a very sad day as there is something almost erotic about breaking the seal on a new game (Did I just come across as slightly wrong there?).

The rumoured merger of Prada and Xbox bears fruit!

What is for sure is that the visuals on Microsoft’s next baby will be truly awesome.

We can take as read that Sony’s next machine will bear the Playstation logo. The PS4 could boast features like solid state hard drives which will lower production costs and should increase reliability.  The PS4 should also feature 3D gaming, which is coming to PS3 very soon as well as the motion controller Arc also coming to the PS3. I believe that the next-gen Playstation and Xbox will be more evolution than revolution.

Where we could see a major improvement is with Nintendo’s next games machine. Having already cornered the considerable and previously impregnable casual and female gamers market, Nintendo can now concentrate on improving on everything the Wii does so well. Expect much better visuals and the implementation of a solid state hard drive, the lack of DLC for Wii has been a problem from day one. Constant new routines for Wii fit at a reasonable price would have been great. Wii-2 is most likely to offer the biggest jump in terms of what the previous machine was capable of out of any of the consoles.

There of course lot’s of other features that the machines could feature. For example, the implementation of ‘cloud computing’. This is a system where all content is stored on-line and the machine in your house serves only as a portal to this content. Obvious benefits to this are that updates for games or bug fixes would be applied without customers ever knowing. Games should come down in price as retail packaging would no longer be required, although with

games downloaded for PSP being by and large more expensive than that of the retail versions this isn’t born out in

What is that giant black thing? It is cool!!

reality. Of course hardware would be cheap to produce and to buy as all the games would be run on monster machines somewhere in cyberspace! The drawbacks to this technology may see it introduced not in the coming generation of consoles but the ones after those. Everybody’s gaming experience would depend on their internet connection, unless you had the very fastest and

most stable connection you could forget about playing the best and most advanced games. Indeed the risk of being immersed in a game only to be dropped by the net at any time is a real one. Until everybody has access to super fast and ultra reliable internet then ‘cloud’ based games consoles just wont work.

Sony will seriously have to rethink their chip-set architecture in the PS4. The Cell processor employed in the PS3 has been notoriously hard for programmers to work with, so expect them to learn from this and move over to a more familiar multi-core processor for PS4. Although you can still expect it to have a stupid name (PS2’s ‘Emotion Engine’ is still my favourite!)

Nintendo bring in David Lynch for Wii-2?

I am sure that both Sony and Microsoft will have been watching when NVIDIA announced their new rendering engines. The most interesting from a gamers perspective is Optix a real-time Ray-trace engine (Yes Ray-Trace! We all remember the first time we saw Ray-traced silver balls on Amiga don’t we?) Well basically Ray-tracing is a why for computers to calculate exactly how light would fall on an object. This new engine could well provide the next-gen consoles with unprecedented levels of realism in their graphics.

I am sure we will see many interesting and bizarre artists impressions of supposed designs for the new consoles in the coming year, remember how Nintendo’s machine was due to look before they went with a cube? Or the infamous boomerang controller for PS3?

Time will tell if any of these ramblings will become reality, the one thing that is certain is that for now we are yet to see the best of the current-gen! And please stop calling it next-gen already!

January 29, 2010
Categories: Features . Tags: , , , , , , , . Author: drew10 . Comments: 2 Comments

Gaming News 28th Jan 2010

The Apple Doesn’t Fall Far From The Tree!

So in one of the tech worlds worst kept secrets Apple finally announced the iPad. In what can only be one of the most underwhelming revelations of all time the 9.7inch (Screen size) and 0.7KG device bares a remarkable resemblance to a novelty sized iPhone.

In fact when you begin to look deeper into what the iPad actually is, it would seem that this is little more than a giant-sized iPod touch. Featuring the use of all the apps in the app store and having an almost identical interface to that of Apples other devices the iPad is heralded as “The best way to experience the web, emails, photos and video.” although it is really hard to see exactly where this device will sit in the market.

If it is designed as a cool and funky way to browse the net etc, then surely the price-tag of £600 (TBC) will put most general consumers off, especially when you can buy a netbook for a little under £200. Also the lack of any kind of keyboard out of the box (the iPad is compatible with the mac keyboard)  also means annoying touch screen typing.

Also, as any iPhone/Touch users will testify apples mobile version of the Safari browser does not feature either Flash or Media Player support meaning great swathes of online video are inaccessible. No news yet on whether the same will apply to the iPad.

Okay so what does this all mean to games? Well the Apples app store already hosts a massive choice of good games so any prospective iPad user instantly has access to huge selection of games, although any that require the virtual thumb pads will be awkward given the size of the machine.

Okay so they are the gripes what does the iPad have to offer? Well honestly the photo handling looks brilliant and the way your albums are displayed in stacks that are accessed by pinching them open and viewed full screen. The screens quality is also worth a mention, the 9.7inch touch screen is stunning, using a beefed up version of the one used on iPhone and video looks truly awesome on it.

Another cool app/innovation that comes pre-installed is iBooks, (Am I the only one getting a little pissed off with having to start everything with the letter ‘i’?) iBooks, is a reader and store rolled into one and with the quality of the screen the pages are bright and easy on the eye. Apple have really come up trumps with this app and if they do one thing right that is making stiff look great.

Still, whether there is enough here to part with over 500 quid is open to debate, especially as there we still do not know whether the iPad will suffer the same browser limitations that the iPhone does. You know that Apple’s rich lifestyle fanboys will lap it up but whether it will ever make the mainstream remains to be seen. You can see all the features in this video featuring lots of Apple bods being nauseatingly sycophantic about their new baby http://www.apple.com/ipad/features/

January 28, 2010
Categories: Features, Hardware Reviews, News . Tags: , , , , . Author: drew10 . Comments: 2 Comments

Gaming News 27th Jan 2010

Capcom Springs To Life!

In a recent press release, Japanese gaming giant Capcom have announced their Spring gaming line-up.

Monster Hunter Tri, Lost Planet 2, Final Fight: Double Impact and Super Street Fighter 4 make up an impressive 1st quarter schedule.

Monster Hunter Tri makes its début for Wii™ in Europe and North America this April. Boasting some highly impressive graphics, Monster Hunter Tri puts players in the role of hunter co-existing in a dynamic, living ecosystem where monsters interact not only with players but other monsters as well. The game features some of the most comprehensive online features yet seen in a Wii title, with four player online co-op and two player co-op arena quests.

May 18 th, 2010 us Westerners can get our hands on Lost Planet 2 on Xbox 360 and PS3. On top of the truly stunning visuals Lost Planet 2 should offer a deeper experience than the first game expanding upon the story of world of E.D.N III and the tentative fate of humanity. The 6 interconnected episodes, promise to create a new dimension to the gameplay with different decisions leading to different outcomes. 4-player online co-op sounds like a blast with team based tactics able to be utilised and new weapons and suits will help to fight the ridiculously enormous bosses.

Final Fight: Double Impact is a dual release of two classic arcade side-scrolling beat-em-ups available on PSN and Xbox Live Arcade. First up is Final Fight, where players follow the heart-pounding adventures of Cody, Guy, and Haggar – three heroes fighting their way across crime-ridden Metro City in hopes of saving Haggar’s daughter from the evil clutches of Mad Gear this one is sure to appeal to gamers of our generation looking for a trip down memory lane.  In Magic Sword, users will take on the role of the “The Brave One,” a fierce warrior who bears the daunting responsibility of cleansing evil forces by defeating the dark lord Drokmar. Accompanied by eight allies who will lend their assistance by bringing specific skills and talents to contribute to the fight.

And finally we have  Super Street Fighter 4 an update to the brilliant SF4 for 360 and PS3. Available on April 30th in Europe SSF4 will feature a whole host of new features including new characters, new ultra combos, new online modes, the return of the famed bonus stages (Kicking the crap out of a car was always fun!) and retuned online and offline gameplay. I am hoping for a few extra refinements, like not having to return to the character select screenevery time you lose a match. Next year I am hoping for SSF4 Turbo!!

Trailers for the gorgeous Lost Planet 2 and SSF4 are available on Xbox Live right now!

January 27, 2010
Categories: Game previews, News . Tags: , , , , . Author: drew10 . Comments: 2 Comments

More Gaming News 26th January 2010

Microsoft Are Bringing se’X'y Back.  

Microsoft have today announced ‘X10′ a 4 hour media event where they will be showing all their lovely wares for 2010 to the lucky peeps of the press. This is the first ‘X’ event since Microsoft cancelled the 07 event and although only 4 hours long should follow the same format of earlier events by announcing all of their 2010 line up. The event is due to be held at the Terra event centre San Francisco on February 11th 2010.  

Fable 3 Concept Art

 

One game definitely confirmed for the event is Fable 3 which Lionhead have announced today via their Facebook page. No mention of how Project Natal is to be used by the game as yet but  I am sure we can expect to hear more about this at ’X10′.  

So what else can we expect to see there, Halo Reach, Splinter Cell Conviction, Alan Wake, Crackdown 2, Lost Planet 2 and Project Natal have all got to be certainties. Whether any new games announcements will be made for the first time is unknown. But I think we might just get the first details on Gears Of War 3 especially as Cliffy ”Bellend” Blazinsky last night Tweeted that he had something Badass to announce in February. Fingers crossed then and as soon as we know more we will of course let you know.

January 26, 2010
Categories: News . Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , . Author: moonhead . Comments: Leave a Comment

Gaming News 26th Jan 2010

The House Of Lords Relieves Itself All Over The Games Industry!

In a landmark announcement for both the British film and games industries, TIGA, the trade association representing the UK games industry, said today that the House of Lords Communications Committee had effectively backed TIGA’s campaign for Games Tax Relief.

Basically what this means for games production in this country is that more of the budget will go on games production and less to the tax man. Likewise for film production it will hopefully see less major films being produced in Australia to avoid the tax restrictions that are in-place in the UK.

Some old bloke in the House Of Lords said “We recognise the claims of the videogames industry for support in the face of foreign government-subsidised competition, and recommend that the Government consider providing tax incentives for videogames production.” He then went on to say “By the way does anybody actually know what a videogame is?” probably.

TIGA’s CEO, Richard Wilson, who apparently isn’t the bloke off of 5th Gear, beamed “It is very encouraging that the cross-party, highly respected House of Lords Communications Committee has recommended that the Government should consider providing tax incentives for videogames production.

“We know that the Department of Culture, Media and Sport’s priority is to introduce Games Tax Relief. Additionally, Ed Vaizey MP, Conservative Shadow Arts Minister, said at a Westminster eForum event on January 21, 2010 that while he could not make a firm promise, he would want to introduce a tax measure supportive of the video games sector within two to three years of a Conservative administration, if the Party was to be elected to Government in the general election this year. TIGA’s Games Tax Relief campaign is gaining significant supporters. We will continue to advance the case to HM Treasury.” Still I would rather pay extra for video games than have a Tory Government again, oops little bit of politics!

So at the moment the Government still haven’t made any formal decision on this matter but it is definitely a step in the right direction and should ensure more independent development houses can survive without being swallowed up by EA, Sony or Microsoft. Shame it has come too late for many of the most creative teams around.

January 26, 2010
Categories: Features, News . Tags: , . Author: drew10 . Comments: Leave a Comment

Gaming News 25th January 2010

Are Apple Going To Finally Take Their Gaming Medicine?

We are a little late on the scene with this one but we could not let this take place without writing a little something down. Apple earlier this month announced they would be holding a press event in a big old conference centre in San Francisco on the 27th of January and would be unveiling a new creation.

The new creation is being touted as the oft talked about and much rumoured Apple Tablet. The rumoured device is a kind of halfway house between a full-blown iMac and a iPhone. It is thought to have a full touch-screen display about 9.5″ – 11.5″ in diameter and have full access to all of Apple’s software and App services. Also it would seem Apple are ready to loosen their draconian DRM  for this new device, how far this will go is anybody’s guess but it is still a step in the right direction. The admittedly only rumoured price  is looking steep but  Apple’s tech always is, although a $1000 does seem to push it out of the hands of the mass consumer but let’s wait and see.

Some of you may question why this is of relevance to us Gamers as Apple has given the games market a big swerve since the failure of the Pippin many years ago. Well for the first time in a long while it would seem Apple is taking the gaming market seriously.  What with the iPhone actually performing well as a gaming device giving people an genuine third option to the other two handhelds. Also for the first time the worlds gaming press have been invited to the press event on the 27th. Also news has reached us that EA have already said they would be backing Apple’s new creation, whatever it is.

The other rumour about the event is that it could actually end up being just the unveiling of Apple’s 4th version of the iPhone. I’m keeping my fingers crossed that it’s both. As soon as we know more and how relevant it all is to us gamers, G4A will let you know.

January 25, 2010
Categories: Features, News . Tags: , , , , , , , , , , . Author: moonhead . Comments: Leave a Comment

Previous page Next Page »