GamerFront

Xbox 360 Imports Closer to the Chopping Block

2012-05-23T19:36:49Z

Update to the Motorola/Microsoft import case. As you may or may not know, recent developments between Microsoft’s Xbox department and Motorola may result in potential issues regarding the importing of Xbox 360 consoles. The International Trade Commission has been approached by an administrative law judge, David Shaw. Judge Shaw recommended that the ITC should ban the import of Xbox 360 consoles imported into the United States.

However, this isn’t the first time this issue has been raised. Motorola’s first claim was filed in November of 2010. The company claimed that Xbox consoles used Motorola-made technology that allows set-top boxes to work with both the Motorola Droid2 and DroidX. Microsoft’s rebuttal was that if the ban were enacted upon one third of the console gaming market would disappear in the United States.

Motorola, to no surprise, also was in disagreement over the potential reparations over this issue. The phone maker demanded that the bond would be worth 100 percent of unsold Xbox inventory. Microsoft said this was ridiculous as Motorola was unable to prove that people bought Xboxes over Droid devices due to the technology that Motorola had developed.

Judge Shaw’s recommendation could turn the tide in the ITC’s decision on the subject and should they put it up for serious consideration it will be up to the President to decide the ultimate fate of the Xbox 360.

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Blizzard Nerfs Diablo III Classes, Leaves Many Players Upset

2012-05-23T19:07:35Z

Blizzard has just released the first of some hotfixes that will go out for Diablo III. These ongoing fixes are meant to help balance out each of the character classes. With balance, though, comes nerfing, and that’s exactly what the developer has done. Of course, players are less than thrilled with the outcome.

The first fix has reduced the effectiveness of the Monk’s Boon of Protection rune. It used to offer protection to players being healed by Mantra of Healing. According to Blizzard the rune was “approximately ten times over its budget on the benefits provided, and it was quite simply a mistake on our part to let the rune ship as it was.” Apparently they plan to issue a lasting fix sometime in the future, but for now it’s been nerfed so bad that players aren’t even using it.

As for the Wizard and Demon Hunter, they’ve had their Force Armor and Smoke Screen skills nerfed for less power. Smoke Screen lasts for a lot less time than it used to before. If you’re not coupling it with the rune that extends its duration, the skill is now practically unusable. For players who are attempting Hell and Inferno difficulties, your strategy has been reduced to kiting enemies around to avoid attacks and damage. The enemies are already overpowered, and these changes won’t help at all.

Blizzard’s Diablo III forums are being lit up by aggravated players, most of them who play the Monk class. The developer claims that their issue is with players relying on the same skills, but the argument in return is that these skills, such as the Mantra of Healing and Boon of Protection combo, are the best chance at support the Monk had on higher difficulties. Some are even saying that they can’t pass Act I with the way things are, even before the nerfs went into effect.

Personally if Blizzard is upset about certain skills being overused, I think they should buff the bad skills. Don’t take what works and break it, fix what doesn’t work and move on. The developer commented on their decision saying, “Class balance is an ongoing investigation, and by no means do we believe the game is now perfect, but we’re also seeing evidence that supports the Monk and Barbarian are not as bad off as they seem. The game is young, there were some skills that threw things out of what, and we expect the landscape to settle out a bit more evenly. Or at least change again so we can continue to monitor the impact. Maybe we’re wrong, maybe there’s no current chance for Monk or Barbarian to compete with ranges, but our current suspicion is that’s incorrect and until we know for sure we’re not going to turn any dials.”

This is definitely some defensive attitude that Blizzard is sporting on the issue. I don’t think that nerfing good skills instead of buffing bad ones is the right way to go, but the developer will do what they want. Taking away the single skillset that makes the Monk’s support build stand doesn’t make too much sense. Players seem to agree with this line of thinking as well. Of course balancing characters, skills, and overall gameplay for a title where players will pretty much be spending their every waking moment will always cause some controversy. The thing is, players who are attempting Hell and Inferno are already having their heads explode. Why make that tougher?

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The LEAP Motion Lets You Reach Inside Of Your Computer

2012-05-23T18:59:57Z

If you use a PC, you likely use a mouse to control the arrow on the screen. While that’s all fine and dandy, this particular piece of hardware may not always do what you want it to. You may not have fast enough DPI to your liking, dust can get in the way of the sensor, and it may just be uncomfortable to use.

What if there were a way to control what was on the screen in a whole new way that wouldn’t cramp your hand, and could move as fast as you can? I’m not talking about touchscreen here, as that still requires you to impact something (poking the screen is like clicking a mouse). The LEAP Motion is about the size of a flash drive, but you won’t be placing your hand over top of it and moving it around. It gives you 8 cubic feet of interactive space that will read your hands.

Working in tandem with control software, you can reach into your computer and pull out information much in the same way that you would pull a cookie out of a jar. The sensors are 200x more sensitive than most other touch-free products (so says the website) and it can read a swipe from your hand about as precisely as a pen stroke. You can modify it however you’d like, so this is a pretty sweet looking peripheral for only $70 (pre-order only at the moment). This makes me think of the PS Move or the Kinect, but it doesn’t require you to hold anything. Makes you wonder what playing your normal PC games on it would be like doesn’t it?

The Dream Machine

2012-05-23T18:53:12Z

Do you like horror? How about point and click adventure games? If you’re a fan of both, then the Dream Machine may be a game worth looking into.

This episodic adventure game will likely make you feel as though you stepped into a a Salvador Dali painting as it is oftentimes in a surrealistic dreamland. You’ll be playing the part of Victor Neff, who has just moved into a new apartment with his wife. The perils you will face will be like nothing else you’ve seen before.

I have to give serious props to this game, as they used traditional media to make this game. Instead of computer generated art, they built the game out of clay and cardboard. Both are serious art forms (not saying that one is greater than the other), but I do carry a fondness for games that step out of the traditional role. Episodes 1-3 are already out, but you can buy the whole bundle for about $17 directly from the site, or for $14.99 on Steam.

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World of Warcraft Pandaren Mount Revealed – It’s A Shell Shocker!

2012-05-23T17:42:31Z

The pandaren are a new race being introduced with the upcoming Mists of Pandaria expansion for World of Warcraft. Currently the expansion’s beta is underway, and we’re receiving updated news about the game as the weeks draw on. This week we have gotten word of what the new race’s mount will be, and it’s a bit surprising. The pandaren mount will be a Dragon Turtle.

I know what you’re thinking, “Raine, how in the world will this mount even make sense? Turtles are slow, aren’t they?” You ask the same questions as many others, young grasshopper. There are a lot of players who think this mount simply doesn’t make sense even in the Pandaria setting. Others, however, think the mount just looks cool.

Apparently the pandaren have long been looking for a mount that embodies their core values: patience and strength. The Dragon Turtle has armored hide, stoutness, and a relaxed attitude that welcomes long journeys. This animal is indigenous to Pandaria, thus making treks across the island feel just like another walk in the park. It will be outfitted with maps, cushions, footstools, and even some brew storage for those hardy adventurers.

Now the second question comes into mind: how fast will it be? Though the description on the original post claims that it’s got a “slow, even stride,” I think the mount will work much the same as the Kodo mounts do for the Tauren. It will move to scale with other mounts, but do so with ease. I think the Dragon Turtle is pretty sweet, and I’d love to have one.

Dead Island Has a Game of the Year Edition, Release Date Announced

2012-05-22T20:08:29Z

If you were one of those gamers who held off on running through the sands of Banoi in Dead Island just to see if a better version of the game would release, your non-work has paid off. Deep Silver has announced that a Game of the Year Edition for Dead Island will release this summer, making all of your zombie-infested dreams come true. The game will be available in the US on June 26^th and in Europe on July 6^th.

This edition of the game will include the Bloodbath Arena DLC as well as the Ryder White storyline. You’ll also get The Ripper weapon blueprint so you can saw your way through hordes of undead. With both DLC packs this will be everything you need to drift the summer away.

I really enjoyed Dead Island. To be honest, I’m kind of glad this edition is coming out and I may even pick it up to replace my older copy. Despite its online co-op issues in the beginning, Dead Island managed to stay fun and had a lot of players enthralled. I think it’s a game that is getting us closer to the true zombie apocalypse idea where we need to actually forage for things to survive instead of just having guns with endless ammo to blow away the undead.

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Some EA Games Will Require A 64-Bit OS Starting Next Year

2012-05-23T00:41:01Z

In a move that’s likely going to make some gamers mad, engine maker DICE has revealed that starting in 2013 some games running the Frostbite 2 engine will require a 64-bit operating system. While no games in particular have been announced as requiring a 64-bit OS, it’ll only be a matter of time before it’s discovered what games will need a 64-bit OS. I don’t know about you, but this kind of makes me a bit excited, and at the same time, a bit apprehensive.

64-bit processors have been around in PC’s since 2003, but in the 9 years since their mainstream debut they have yet to take a majority market share. Part of the reason for this trend has to do with the fact that while Windows XP has a 64-bit version, it was not made widely available, and the 32-bit version of XP was available for people’s new pre-built PC’s for many, many years, even after Vista was released. Even if those people later upgraded there systems to Windows 7, it’s likely that they upgraded to the 32-bit version to avoid any other hassles of losing information or other inconsistencies. While the trend is slowly starting to swing into the 64- bit OS’s favor, it’s apparently not going fast enough for DICE and EA.

And, in the end, it makes sense for EA and DICE to want 64-bit OS’s to become the norm. One of the main problems facing 32-bit OS’s is the fact that they can only support up to 4 GB’s of RAM, and game developers are constantly pushing the envelope of games. So far, it’s reached a plateau, and while games look spectacular right now, imagine how good they would look like if game developers could rely on enough people having 64-bit OS’s that they could up the recommended, or even required specifications for games to include more than 4 GB’s of RAM? There’s an entire gaming world out there unexplored, if only because of the vast number of dinosaurs stuck with an outdated OS. This is one trend that EA is pushing for that I actually support, if only because I already own a 64-bit system.

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Pre-Order Halo 4, Get $25 Off Your Next Purchase At The Microsoft Store

2012-05-23T10:03:37Z

Microsoft seems to be in quite the giving mood lately. Yesterday we reported that the company was once again starting up their initiative to give free Xbox 360′s to college students who buy a new computer. The deal today isn’t quite as good, but it could shave off almost half the price of a new game.

Halo 4 is making its way to stores this fall, and Microsoft wants you to buy it directly from them. They aren’t offering up gimmicky DLC or silly costumes. Rather, they’re going to give you some cold hard….store credit. If you pre-order the game from the Microsoft Store, you’ll get a code for $25 off of your next purchase.

The offer is good until November 5th, though the earlier you do it, the better. Sometimes these deals disappear if you don’t jump on them. The code will be emailed to you within 10 days after the game is released, and you’ll have until December 31st to redeem it. Sounds like a good way to get a cheap Christmas present for someone, if you ask me.

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MechWarrior Online Announces Closed Beta and Early Access Program

2012-05-22T19:44:35Z

Starting this week MechWarrior Online will be entering its first closed beta testing session. Piranha Games has revealed how players can gain guaranteed early access to the game this summer as well, and it’s got fans ready to jump into their pilot seats.

The way to grab guaranteed early access to the game is to take part in OPERATION INCEPTION. This event is an elusive MechWarrior Online Founder’s Program which will go on sale June 19^th. It will offer fans of the franchise benefits such as in-game currency, a custom ELITE BattleMech, a two-month free premium account, a permanent Founder’s Tag and even more. There will be two versions of this promotion available to players:

$60 ELITE Founder’s Package Includes:

Exclusive custom “Founder’s BattleMech.” This Mech includes a lifetime, per-match C-Bill booster.
$80 value of in-game currency* for in-game item purchases.
Two-month premium account to MechWarrior Online at launch: Earn XP & C-Bills faster.Founder’s Tag – sets your status apart from the crowd & get noticed in-game and on the forums.
Early access to the game along with Founder’s assets availability starts July 17th.

$30 VETERAN Founder’s Package Includes:

$40 value of in-game currency* for in-game item purchases.
One-month premium account to MechWarrior Online at launch: Earn XP & C-Bills faster.
Founder’s Tag – sets your status apart from the crowd & get noticed in-game and on the forums.
Early access to the game along with Founder’s assets availability starts July 17th.

Both of these packages will be available starting July 17^th. From what I’ve been able to see MechWarrior Online looks like it will be quite the exciting game. Players can really take the series in a new direction and enjoy tons of multiplayer action. I’ve been a fan of mech titles for a while and this one looks like it will deliver what fans want to see.

38 Studios Laying Off Employees

2012-05-23T17:11:52Z

38 Studios has been through a lot over these past 3 weeks. After failing to make a payment to the state of Rhode Island on May 1st, it was looking like the company might be unable to recover from the mess it was in. You know you’re in trouble when you might end up having to shut down and force an entire state to pay off a $75 million loan. The company managed to scrap up the $1.125 million needed to make the late payment, but that doesn’t mean 38 Studios is out of the storm yet.

When the company failed to make payroll last week, the company went ahead and told their temporary and contract employees that they no longer had jobs at 38 Studios anymore. Now it appears that they are firing more people, according to Rhode Island’s Governor Lincoln Chafee. When you consider that 38 Studios was lured to Rhode Island from Massachusetts in an attempt to create more jobs, you can see that there is a problem here.

At this time, there is no news about how many employees will be let go. It’s a shame that a company has to let go of people in these tough economic times, but sometimes that’s what needs to be done. With that being said, however, I don’t see 38 Studios being around in a year, or even 6 months. While another company could buy out 38 Studios and gain their IPs, with the $75 million loan that the company has hanging over its head I don’t see that likely. Instead, the taxpayers of Rhode Island are going to be stuck with the burden, and I wouldn’t be surprised if this fiasco turns up in the election come November.

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