This weeks episode covers a lot of cool community comments including some new writers. We’re also covering a little flashback on the game Faxanadu and, eventually, learning how to pronounce it. We’ll hit up some gaming history on Jordan Weisman and hit on some cool game news including:
Pearl Jam to release album in stores and on Rock Band- Microsoft Says Next generation is defined by software and services, not hardware
- TellTale Games Developer says iPhone more powerful than Wii
- The Skies may be crimson all over again
- The SIMS 3 gets its first expansion
- Turbine delays Free-to-play update until Sept
This weeks question of the week is easy, is there a genre of game that you believe hasn’t been invented yet? If you don’t know…get creative!
Now here is another interesting video game for the Atari 2600, the game Dragon Fire consisted of two game screens, one which you ran across a bridge while fireballs were shot at you, you had to duck or jump over the fireball. This screen was a side-scroller style screen (although it doesn’t actually scroll), at the other end of the bridge was a castle door which you’d enter to get to the next screen.
When you finished collecting all the treasure an exit would pop up in the corner and you had to run to it without being burned by the fireballs, that dragon would turn from left to right nearly instantly too! Then, you’d jump into the exit and be back on the bridge again, but this time it was harder. You could die up to 7 times before the game was over (just to show you how hard it is, they gave you a bunch of lives).
Great podcast, been listening for about two or three months now, and I just thought I’d say how far beyond other podcasts you guys are in terms of content and entertainment.
To the ‘Question of the Week’; I’ve thought about this before, and I could never quite come up with something entirely new, the only ideas I had were two genres taped together. For example Mirrors Edge/Adventure. I couldn’t quite bring myself to calling Mirrors Edge a FSP, because it just seems something more to me. I’d love to see a mix between the Mirrors Edge mode of transport (aka parkour) and a story driven adventure game because it just sounds fun to me.
Oh, and given your troubles pronouncing words/names I’d thought I’d help you out by saying that ‘eni’ is pronounced in the same way as ‘any’. And you’re right, people in the UK mainly say ‘cheers mate’, although it makes many of us cringe when Americans say it, it just doesn’t sound quite right.
Keep it the great work, cheers and peace;
eni.
Um, Derrick? Name one third party game that’s sold well on the Wii.
@Jonah – Thanks for the layup! EA Sports Active Bundle. Followed then by LEGO Star Wars both top games #4 and #5 respectively.
Hey Ivan here
Hmm nice question, just let me put my thinking cap on…… I would love to replay some of my favorite Characters in Gaming like Link, Mario, Spartan 117, Pac man and the Jellies, Titus ect.. In a Competitive Multiplayer game (maybe LAN or online) But unlike Super Smash Bro’s (epic game), have the games in a First person or 3rd Person view and have them battle it out in a 3d environment. The game could be called something like All Starz and could have many spin offs/levels to capture all aspects of the game, Inc All Starz: colosseum, All Starz: Olympics, All Starz Hop Scotch ect… In each game the Characters would be given traits/stats/abilities which would most reflect them in their games Eg. Master chiefs health regens (shield), Pikachu shoots thunder and Pacman gets BUFF ect…I would like to see developers remaking all these characters in one game. So the Genre/Theme Would be GAMING FLASHBACKS! XD Did that make sense?
p.s Keep Doug away from hammers and say hi to Shauna this time (my GF, [We move in to our own house together tomorrow])
Oh, Derrick – EA Sports Bundle is a game?
Here, Derrick, from the biggest publisher in the world:
http://www.gamesindustry.biz/articles/360-income-beats-ps3-and-wii-for-activision
Xbox 360: $231M
PS3: $152M
Wii: $118M
You just got Owned.
@Jonah, way to play out of context. This link has nothing to do with their top five games.
“Um, Derrick? Name one third party game that’s sold well on the Wii.”
I listed two.
I think it’s cute you think EA Sports Active is a game – I’m going to get out a game, too – Mavis Teaches Typing. And LEGO Star Wars is hardly a third party exclusive.
Your entire point is that publishers make for the Wii because it’ll give them money. It doesn’t, and that monetary figure is even more shocking when you realize the Wii has twice as many units as the 360. So, the Wii has 1/4 the software selling power for Activision that the 360 has.
I think it’s cute that you want to change your initial point 🙂 You needed two titles, I picked two titles.
But, let’s get back to your driving obsession.
Xbox 360: $231M
PS3: $152M
Wii: $118M
These numbers mean nothing to which one “is better” to sell. Without knowing how much it costs to make a game, you’re not really going to be holding a good argument.
Let’s say it costs 50k to make a Wii game but costs 100k to make a 360 game. If the 360 game sells “double” that of the Wii, do you consider it better?
Now, what if the Wii game sells 2/3rds of the 360 game but costs half to develop?
Do you now see why they don’t abandon the platform? They give you their profits but you have no idea the operating expenses and development/design costs for each game thus, you’re working with too little information.
Except you’re wrong. An exclusive third party game for the Wii costs a TON. Just ask Steven Spielberg.
Look at the upcoming Red Steel 2 – they spent a fortune on it, and now it’s delayed, and it’s going to cost more.
How many high quality games have you seen on the Wii, Derrick? The ones that have taken time and money to make have FAILED (see: Deadly Creatures, Mad World, etc.)
No, the only option these devs have are what you’ve mocked on 2old2type: PC, Wii, PS2, DS releases. And when you see a game that has those platforms listed, you know as well as I that it’s going to be shovelware.
“Except you’re wrong. An exclusive third party game for the Wii costs a TON. Just ask Steven Spielberg. ”
Compared to what? Are you stuck on Boom Blox again? Or do you have more sources to not quote numbers from?
“Look at the upcoming Red Steel 2 – they spent a fortune on it, and now it’s delayed, and it’s going to cost more.”
How much? If you don’t have any clue, then you should shut your mouth 🙂
“How many high quality games have you seen on the Wii, Derrick? The ones that have taken time and money to make have FAILED (see: Deadly Creatures, Mad World, etc.)”
I won’t argue “quality” with you, as what you see as “quality” doesn’t always align with my own. Too subjective to even start an argument on that one.
True, there is plenty of shovelware out there, but there is plenty in iTunes store as well yet a few games are making 7k+ a month on their titles.
There is less shovelware on the PS3 and 360, but that doesn’t mean these games are in any way interesting to me, as a consumer, regardless to their non-shovelware categorization. Shovelware or not, I don’t want them, so it does the exact same thing to me: doesn’t get a sale.
Anytime you have a console or product with a mad rush of success in unit sales, you’re going to get a mad rush of shovelware spam. It just happens. In some ways, it shows the success of the brand. There is always someone out there looking to make a quick buck.