Massively Multiplayer: Gaming In The New Millennium

[Nivek]

Wonder when the TTL retail apocalypse will hit...

Adjustement, in OTL maybe in usa and europe but Japan and LATAM retail is stronger that ever plus that just means a monopoly of Walmart ( or local equivalent)and Amazon...enjoy it

 

[GJohn902]

Wonder when the TTL retail apocalypse will hit...

While I'm sure retail will struggle given the Great Recession and increased competition by online retailers, it's possible that with the right butterflies, the retail apocalypse which has seen whole national chains (and some malls) die may be less severe.

For example, the financial troubles/bankruptcies/failures of some stores like Sears and Toys R Us came from leveraged buyouts by private equity firms. The buyouts saddled those companies with massive amounts of debt, and when revenues fell there were insufficient funds to cover the debt payments.

Another method is to have the various companies involved make smarter business decisions. Some examples:

• Some stores could have better adjusted their offerings in the face of changing audiences and tastes (especially around the Great Recession).
• Some stores could have had a better online presence in the late 1990s/early 2000s, allowing them to establish and maintain their slice of the ever-growing online shopping pie. (One can argue that Sears in particular blew it - they shuttered their famed mail-order catalog in the early 1990s, just a few years before online shopping became viable. Imagine the Sears catalog in a online format . . . it's almost literally a pre-Internet version of Amazon)
  
• Some stores (especially smaller/niche retailers) recklessly overexpanded, greatly increasing expenses and debt while cannibalizing their potential income. (Do you really need two locations of the same retailer in two separate malls just a few miles apart?).
• Mall operators built many new shopping centers during the boom periods of the 1980s and 1990s, and somebody had to fill in all that retail space. (Leading to the previous point.)
• Some chains merged/bought out other chains (Macy's in the 2000s is a notable example). Chains that once competed against each other, sometimes in the same mall, were now co-owned, with the least profitable location usually closed.

 

[RyderWest]

While I'm sure retail will struggle given the Great Recession and increased competition by online retailers, it's possible that with the right butterflies, the retail apocalypse which has seen whole national chains (and some malls) die may be less severe.

Good points.

This also ties into the dead mall phenonmenon IIRC, so a potential stemming of the bleeding from the retail apocalypse may help certain malls to survive ITTL, although the most famous candidates are probably still going to die (Rolling Acres in Akron, OH, Owings Mills in Baltimore, MD)

 

[Spectrum27]

While I'm sure retail will struggle given the Great Recession and increased competition by online retailers, it's possible that with the right butterflies, the retail apocalypse which has seen whole national chains (and some malls) die may be less severe.

For example, the financial troubles/bankruptcies/failures of some stores like Sears and Toys R Us came from leveraged buyouts by private equity firms. The buyouts saddled those companies with massive amounts of debt, and when revenues fell there were insufficient funds to cover the debt payments.

Another method is to have the various companies involved make smarter business decisions. Some examples:

• Some stores could have better adjusted their offerings in the face of changing audiences and tastes (especially around the Great Recession).
• Some stores could have had a better online presence in the late 1990s/early 2000s, allowing them to establish and maintain their slice of the ever-growing online shopping pie. (One can argue that Sears in particular blew it - they shuttered their famed mail-order catalog in the early 1990s, just a few years before online shopping became viable. Imagine the Sears catalog in a online format . . . it's almost literally a pre-Internet version of Amazon)
  
• Some stores (especially smaller/niche retailers) recklessly overexpanded, greatly increasing expenses and debt while cannibalizing their potential income. (Do you really need two locations of the same retailer in two separate malls just a few miles apart?).
• Mall operators built many new shopping centers during the boom periods of the 1980s and 1990s, and somebody had to fill in all that retail space. (Leading to the previous point.)
• Some chains merged/bought out other chains (Macy's in the 2000s is a notable example). Chains that once competed against each other, sometimes in the same mall, were now co-owned, with the least profitable location usually closed.

Yep, Sears actually owned a stake in the proto-online service Prodigy-- maybe ITTL they never sold out and turned it into an ISP to rival AOL?

But the big thing is that Eddie Lampert never gets near either Sears or Kmart-- instead, he gets killed by the people who took him hostage in 2003 (for reals, this actually happened in OTL-- but he sadly escaped). Thus, he never takes over Kmart, merges it with Sears and proceeds to run both into the ground while lining his pockets. It'd be cool if the "green" Kmart prototype from 2002-03 actually took off here, it was very interesting.

 

[Mira Starlight]

Hey, @RySenkari, I was just re-reading the NFL updates and I was curious, which team did Drew Brees join? He was on the Chargers at first IOTL, before moving to New Orleans, but now that Peyton is a Saint, I assume things must be different?

 

[HonestAbe1809]

Here’s hoping that animated films will be less formulaic in TTL. Especially when the Teens come around. While there are good animated films in this decade too many still too closely to the age-old Hero’s Journey plot structure. The fact that animated film got such an unbreakable formula is what helped contribute to The Emoji Movie being made.

 

[AeroTheZealousOne]

Rolling Acres in Akron, OH

Hey, the willpower of Chapel Hill Mall down in Akron to stay open is still very strong!

But the big thing is that Eddie Lampert never gets near either Sears or Kmart-- instead, he gets killed by the people who took him hostage in 2003 (for reals, this actually happened in OTL-- but he sadly escaped). Thus, he never takes over Kmart, merges it with Sears and proceeds to run both into the ground while lining his pockets. It'd be cool if the "green" Kmart prototype from 2002-03 actually took off here, it was very interesting.

Canonical source for his ATL death?

 

[RySenkari]

Shouldn't we start to see Netflix and other streaming options begin to make inroads in the near future? That could be rather interesting.

Netflix and Blockbuster are the "big two" streaming services at this point. Videocean is starting to get into it as well. I imagine that at the start of the 2010s, all three services will begin to surge. Blockbuster's brick and mortar business is doing MUCH better, they bought out Family Video for example. Blockbuster has a slight edge over Netflix, especially in terms of physical internet rental. Apple also wants to get into streaming, Jobs is pouring some of the iTwin's revenue into exploring that avenue and adding a streaming service to iTunes.

I think you ought to put more detail about Joss Whedon's ITTL show.

If episodes have been made, Fox could easily release more information about the show.

We'll cover it in more detail at some point but probably not until 2010.

Wonder when the TTL retail apocalypse will hit...

It's still going to hit, but what it hits might differ in some cases. Walmart will be just fine. Sears and Kmart might actually survive. As mentioned before, Blockbuster is still doing very well. I think we're still going to lose a lot of malls. So...probably about the same in terms of overall volume of sales lost, but with some different winners and losers ITTL.

While I'm sure retail will struggle given the Great Recession and increased competition by online retailers, it's possible that with the right butterflies, the retail apocalypse which has seen whole national chains (and some malls) die may be less severe.

For example, the financial troubles/bankruptcies/failures of some stores like Sears and Toys R Us came from leveraged buyouts by private equity firms. The buyouts saddled those companies with massive amounts of debt, and when revenues fell there were insufficient funds to cover the debt payments.

Another method is to have the various companies involved make smarter business decisions. Some examples:

• Some stores could have better adjusted their offerings in the face of changing audiences and tastes (especially around the Great Recession).
• Some stores could have had a better online presence in the late 1990s/early 2000s, allowing them to establish and maintain their slice of the ever-growing online shopping pie. (One can argue that Sears in particular blew it - they shuttered their famed mail-order catalog in the early 1990s, just a few years before online shopping became viable. Imagine the Sears catalog in a online format . . . it's almost literally a pre-Internet version of Amazon)
  
• Some stores (especially smaller/niche retailers) recklessly overexpanded, greatly increasing expenses and debt while cannibalizing their potential income. (Do you really need two locations of the same retailer in two separate malls just a few miles apart?).
• Mall operators built many new shopping centers during the boom periods of the 1980s and 1990s, and somebody had to fill in all that retail space. (Leading to the previous point.)
• Some chains merged/bought out other chains (Macy's in the 2000s is a notable example). Chains that once competed against each other, sometimes in the same mall, were now co-owned, with the least profitable location usually closed.

Hmm... that Sears online catalog is an interesting idea....

But the big thing is that Eddie Lampert never gets near either Sears or Kmart-- instead, he gets killed by the people who took him hostage in 2003 (for reals, this actually happened in OTL-- but he sadly escaped). Thus, he never takes over Kmart, merges it with Sears and proceeds to run both into the ground while lining his pockets. It'd be cool if the "green" Kmart prototype from 2002-03 actually took off here, it was very interesting.

Eddie Lampert never gets near Sears or Kmart ITTL, BUT he's also never kidnapped. He's still alive, possibly running another company into the ground. Might be interesting if the people who took him IOTL try some other insane stunt to get rich ITTL. Might get covered as filler in a news update.

Hey, @RySenkari, I was just re-reading the NFL updates and I was curious, which team did Drew Brees join? He was on the Chargers at first IOTL, before moving to New Orleans, but now that Peyton is a Saint, I assume things must be different?

Drew Brees has been on the Dolphins for the past nine years and is languishing behind a terrible offensive line and crappy receivers. He had a couple playoff runs but it's been pretty rough for him. He might get traded down the road, but he's nearing the end of his prime.

Here’s hoping that animated films will be less formulaic in TTL. Especially when the Teens come around. While there are good animated films in this decade too many still too closely to the age-old Hero’s Journey plot structure. The fact that animated film got such an unbreakable formula is what helped contribute to The Emoji Movie being made.

It's quite possible. We'll see!

 

[RySenkari]

Killer Instinct 4

Killer Instinct 4 is a fighting game exclusive to the Nintendo Sapphire. The game continues storylines established in the previous titles while bringing Rare's combo heavy flagship fighting game to an HD console for the first time ever. Killer Instinct 4 introduces two new elements to the game in an attempt to distinguish it from previous games while also adding new strategic depth. The first element of the game is the option to utilize a tag team during gameplay. During fighter selection, players can either choose to fight with a single character or team up and fight with two characters. As in previous games with character tagging, it's possible to tag in and out at any time. If selecting a single fighter, that fighter must be knocked out two times for the opponent to claim victory, but if playing with a tag team, each partner must be knocked out only once, and there's no healing when a player is sitting out, unlike some other titles. The other new addition to the game is the concept of "counter comboing", or countering combo attacks with other combo attacks. While a player is being comboed, it's possible to continue entering inputs even if a character isn't able to move at the time. If a combo is activated at the right time, that fighter will automatically counter the current combo with their own partial combo. This partial combo can also be countered, leading to strategic back and forth combo maneuvers. There are also "tag combos" in the game that certain fighters can activate with one another. Not every team is tag combo compatible, so it's up to the player whether they want to utilize two compatible characters to perform one of these combos.

Killer Instinct 4 features a total of 26 characters in the base game, and four will later be made available via DLC. This includes 20 characters from previous games and six brand new additions.

The list of returning characters is:

Orchid
Cinder
Eyedol
Fulgore
Glacius
Jago
Riptor
Sabrewulf
Spinal
Dekado
Sarah
Griffin
Pow-R
Vangon
Kim Wu
Lasurr
Festiva
Organick
Tigran
Bewixtra

Chief Thunder, T.J. Combo, Tusk, and Geldman do not appear in the base game, though (a heavily reworked to remove any offensive traits) Chief Thunder and T.J. Combo would later return via DLC. The six new characters include:

Karkena: The game's primary antagonist, Karkena is a half-human, half-Kraken hybrid woman who uses her long tentacle limbs to strike her opponents from afar. She has the ability to hypnotize her prey, forcing them to do her bidding. She's the result of undersea experimentation by Ultratech causing the spirit of the ancient Kraken beast to fuse with the body of a scientist killed in an experiment gone wrong. She slaughters the Ultratech personnel and seeks to use their technology to conquer the seas, forcing fighters from all over the world to team up and stop her.
Hartman: A man in a decompression suit who once worked for Ultratech but now seeks to atone for his past, he's sort of based on the scientists from the old Sealab cartoon (not the funny one). He's mostly serious but is a bit hammy, and has a history with Organick. Hartman is actually voiced by Phil Hartman, the character's name was originally different but was changed as an homage to Hartman's performance as the character, which is almost universally praised.
Mulger: A mixed-martial arts champion, Mulger sought to win the Killer Instinct tournament, but when it was interrupted by Karkena, he teams up with the other fighters to get revenge and glory. He's a sort of jack of all trades character and the most "noob friendly" of the new fighters.
Silent: A cloaked assassin somewhat similar to Sadira in OTL's 2013 Killer Instinct game. He's hired by Ultratech as a sort of "cleaner" to kill certain fighters who come to investigate the Karkena incident. He's sort of a secondary antagonist but has somewhat of a code of honor.
Joanna Dark: One of two "guest" characters in the game, Joanna is a guest star from the Velvet Dark series and plays no role in the actual story mode, but does have story-relevant dialogue in Arcade Mode when fighting certain characters.
Donkey Kong: The second "guest" character in the game, Donkey Kong makes his way to Killer Instinct and is pretty much just there because, well, he's Donkey Kong. He's usually the last character unlocked by the player (the game starts with 14 characters available and 12 unlockables). He's big and slow but packs a powerful punch and you really don't want him to combo you. Since there's no Punch-Out in the seventh generation for Donkey Kong to show up in, Nintendo decided to allow him to show up in Killer Instinct, sort of in the same way that Rash from Battletoads appears in OTL's 2013 game.

And in addition to Chief Thunder and T.J. Combo returning as DLC, there's also a third guest character, Dynamo from the 2006 game of the same name, and finally a brand new character, Seraphia, a beautiful angel woman who holds a dark secret. Seraphia comes with an additional story mode chapter that not only expands upon the story mode of the base game but also teases events for a possible fifth Killer Instinct game.

The game features online play, both 1v1 and 2v2, with a competition ladder, tournaments, and casual play, that's even better received than Killer Instinct 3. In addition to the Arcade mode, which consists of a ladder with seven random opponents, one "rival" battle, a battle against Silence, and then a battle against Karkena, there's the Story mode, which this time can be played through with every playable character. Each character has their own unique dialogue (including Karkena, who when used in Story mode is a time traveler fighting to save herself from herself), and there are six chapters to the story, each with a certain number of fights. Though everyone's storyline plays out in almost identical fashion, certain unique events do happen for each character, and through Story mode, players are able to see how certain characters relate to one another and how each character relates to the overall story. The story starts out at the Killer Instinct tournament, which is interrupted by an attack from Karkena and her sea legions. Ultratech helps to fight them off and then the player character is recruited by Ultratech to stop Karkena, leading to a war that spreads out over several chapters. The Story mode can be played with four different difficulties: Easy, Normal, Hard, and Master, and only by defeating the Story mode on Master difficulty (fortunately, you only have to do it with one character), can the true ending be unlocked, in which Karkena's spirit is separated from the scientist it possessed and she begins her road to recovery.

Killer Instinct 4 is released on May 15, 2009, a rare Friday release at the time. The game is highly praised for its graphics, which look stunning on the Nintendo Sapphire, easily the best looking fighting game ever made up to this time. The game pushes the Sapphire quite hard, and in some spots is actually comparable to the OTL Killer Instinct 2013 game on the Xbox One. The online multiplayer is also highly praised and it would become the Sapphire's most popular online multiplayer title for quite some time. The new characters are also highly praised, and the game's initial 26 character roster, while not overwhelmingly huge, is seen as one of the most jam-packed and diverse rosters of any fighting game to date. Review scores for the game are very strong, averaging right around the 9/10 range, but aren't quite as strong as the reviews for Killer Instinct 3. The game doesn't have a huge amount of content beyond its story, arcade, and online modes, and while it does have a rudimentary single player challenge mode, it's not seen as being especially rich or replayable. The real attraction of the game is its combo system, and that, fortunately, remains quite strong. There's a mixed reaction to the game's tag team system also, but overall it's received fairly well, adding a new layer of strategy to the game. Overall first week sales are extremely good, but slightly lower than expected, moving about 500,000 copies in its first week. That's on par with Killer Instinct 3, but represents a much smaller proportion of Sapphire owners than Killer Instinct 3 represented of the Wave userbase at the time of its release. The general opinion of the game is that it's extremely good, but falls a bit short of its predecessor both critically and commercially. Expected to be a Game of the Year contender, it falls somewhat short of that mark as well amongst most critics. Killer Instinct 4 is still a very successful game, and the franchise maintains its position as one of the best fighting game franchises on the market.

-

And though Rare just launched Killer Instinct 4, the company is expected to have a major presence at Nintendo's E3 presentation, where they're expected to, at the very least, show off the new Conker game and reveal more about their new Velvet Dark title, which as of yet has only been shown in the form of a teaser at E3 2008. Rare remains one of Nintendo's most important second parties, despite having taken somewhat of a "wait and see" stance on the Nintendo Sapphire. The company has recently gone into production on what's rumored to be a brand new IP, and Tim and Chris Stamper have recently announced that the company might be cutting certain old franchises off in favor of developing new ones.

In a recent statement about the company's future, Tim Stamper announced that the only three Rare IPs that the company will "absolutely" develop more of in the future are Killer Instinct, Velvet Dark, and Battletoads. As for the rest of the Rare IPs, including their beloved franchise The Dreamers and their hit mascot platformer Conker, Stamper said that it's "unlikely" either one of them will see additional games in the foreseeable future after the release of their Sapphire Conker title. Citing the Sapphire's "incredible potential", Stamper said that Rare's programmers and developers are "overflowing" with new ideas and that they want to make at least three original titles for the Sapphire over the next few years.

Nintendo has already announced that future Donkey Kong games will not be developed by Rare, though Rare's Ken Lobb expressed his desire to adapt other Nintendo IPs on the Sapphire if Nintendo gave them the chance to do so.

So far, what we've seen of the new Conker platformer looks amazing. The game will be a traditional 3-D platformer, unlike Super Mario Flip which was a mix of 2-D and 3-D. The game's lead programmer said that the game will "utilize the Sapphire to its full potential", and could feature a potentially enormous world for Conker to explore, but we'll likely get all the crucial details during Nintendo's E3 keynote.

Known for pushing technology to its limits, Rare made some of the most beautiful and innovative games on the SNES-CD, Ultra Nintendo, and Nintendo Wave, and Killer Instinct 4, though not the most innovative fighting game out there, was definitely one of the prettiest. Though Rare's Conker and Velvet Dark presentations will likely be highlights of E3 2009, if rumors about a new IP reveal from Rare are correct, the reveal could be the biggest "wow" moment of the entire week. We're looking forward to whatever Rare is set to reveal as E3 gets ready to kick off in just a few days.

-from Blargo's "E3 2009 Countdown: Rare" article, posted on June 11, 2009

 

[RySenkari]

Since the next three updates will cover E3 2009, here's a little treat for you guys. It's the official E3 2009 Thrillseekers 2 trailer, which is played at Activision's preshow presser.

For extra effect, here's the song that plays during the trailer:

Enjoy!

-

*The camera pans in on a massive stadium where thousands of fans are cheering. Twenty teams of seven extreme sports athletes, including the Thrillseekers girls, are briefly shown. “People Like Us” by Kelly Clarkson begins to play.*

Announcer: Welcome to the first ever World X Tournament, where the world's best extreme sports champions will compete for the ultimate prize!

We come into this world unknown

But know that we are not alone

*Brief footage of Stacy, Alex, Marina, Vivian, Elissa, and Kirsten enjoying themselves as they perform in their specialty sports are shown, Stacy and Alex are shown skateboarding together.*

They try to knock us down

But change is coming

And it's our turn now

Stacy: Alex, this is awesome!

Alex: Try to keep up!

Hey

Everybody loses it

*Stacy is shown taking a hard fall on her skateboard in the middle of a competition as the crowd gasps.*

Everybody wants to throw it all away sometimes

Stacy: I'm not good enough for this...

Alex: *comforting her* Don't say that, you're the most talented person I've ever met.

Hey

I know what you're going through

Don't let it get the best of you, you'll make it out alive

*The team is shown supporting Stacy, and then a scene of the new character Rachel doing a variety of sports is shown. Scenes highlighting some of the new characters participating in various new sports such as dirtboarding and psicobloc are shown, and then we get a scene of Emma taunting Alex.*

Emma: You're not a competitor. You're not even ranked. Why don't you just go home?

Alex: I'll show you what I can do! *pulls ahead of her in a skiing race*

Oh, people like us we gotta stick together

*The main six girls are shown again, in somewhat more emotional circumstances, comforting each other in a tough time.*

Keep your head up, nothing lasts forever

*Some of the other teams are shown now, also supporting each other, showing off the relationships between some of the new characters.*

Here's to the damned, to the lost and forgotten

Alex: What would you know about being looked down on?

Emma: You have no idea what I've been through!

It's hard to get high when you're living on the bottom

*More scenes of characters wiping out in competition are shown, Marina takes a particularly hard fall.*

Kirsten: Marina!

Marina: I'm fine...! *gets to her feet, groaning*

*Alex is shown taking a massive wipeout on her surfboard as Stacy screams. As the song hits the chorus, a series of action scenes are displayed, showing off the game's incredible animation and large cast of characters.*

Woah-oh-oh-woah-oh-oh

We're all misfits living in a world on fire

Woah-oh-oh-woah-oh-oh

Sing it for the people like us, for the people like us

*As the chorus dies down, the Thrillseekers are shown struggling in competition.*

Vivian: *crosses the finish line, but isn't looking happy* Dammit!

Hey

This is not a funeral

Stacy: *collapses to her knees* I messed up, I ruined everything...

Marina: Maybe she does need to step aside.

Alex: Don't even say it!

Vivian: Marina, Alex is right, Rachel's... really good.

It's a revolution after all your tears have turned to rage

*Stacy watches from the shadows as she sees Rachel practicing, then we see Stacy punching a mirror and breaking it as the word “rage” is sung.*

Just wait

Everything will be okay

*We see a scene of Stacy being comforted by some of her friends, including the new girl Rachel, and a brief tender scene between Emma and one of her teammates.*

Even when you're feeling like it's going down in flames

Alex: YOU'RE DEAD!

*Alex lunges at Emma and throws a punch at her that looks like it connects.*

Emma: How dare you...!

Tournament Official: You'll be disqualified from the tournament!

Alex: You can't do that!

Vivian: No!

Stacy: *running out of a room in tears*

People like us, we gotta stick together

*Marina is shown hugging a sobbing Kirsten.*

Keep your head up, nothing lasts forever

*Heather, a member of Emma's team, is seen stoically watching her train.*

Here's to the damned, to the lost and forgotten

*Stacy is shown walking alone up a snowy mountain.*

It's hard to get high when you're living on the bottom

*A brief montage of several “underdog” teams is shown, including a Jamaican bobsledding team*

Woah-oh-oh-woah-oh-oh

We're all misfits living in a world on fire

Marina: Well, aren't you special. *glaring at a girl with a blonde pixie cut and an Austalian accent*

Annie: Mmmm, that's a nice way of putting it. *smirking as she surfs with Marina in competition*

Shuji: Yatta!!! *doing a team cheer with the Japanese team*

Niall: Everyone, let's go out there and have fun, right? *smiling at his other team members, who are all smiles except for Emma who just has a fierce stare*

Woah-oh-oh-woah-oh-oh

Sing it for the people like us, for the people like us

*Another rapid fire montage of scenes, this time showing the characters having fun in Japan, Rachel comforting Stacy as she sits next to a window sighing, and Alex and Marina looking up at the sky together.*

Woah-oh-oh-woah-oh-oh

You just gotta turn it up loud when the flames get higher

*Stacy and Alex are having an argument at a skate park*

Stacy: I can't believe you'd say that to me!

Alex: I can't believe you'd be so selfish!

Woah-oh-oh-woah-oh-oh

Sing it for the people like us, for the people like us

*A montage of action scenes is shown now, featuring insane tricks and more wipeouts, showing particularly how impressive some of the new characters are and how fierce the Thrillseekers' competition has become.*

They can't do nothing to you

Emma: *skating really close to Alex, threatening to knock her off her board*

They can't do nothing to me

Heather: *standing over Kirsten on the snowboarding slopes, she has about four inches of height on Kirsten and Kirsten looks really intimidated*

This is the life that we choose

*Another montage of extreme sports scenes, culminating in a spectacular wingsuiting maneuver over Mt. Fuji*

This is the life that we bleed

*A quick montage emphasizing teamwork, even showing Emma giving one of her teammates a boost*

So throw your fists in the air

Come out come out if you dare

*More extreme sports scenes, emphasizing a spectacular two-person skateboarding stunt from Alex and Stacy*

Tonight we're gonna change forever

Stacy: *slipping off a cliff* ALEX!

Alex: *screams and dives and catches her by the wrist just in time* Nnnngh!!!

Everybody loses it

Everybody wants to throw it all away sometimes

*The rapid-fire nature of the montages slows down, and we go back to Alex and Stacy, sitting in a hotel room, talking to each other.*

Stacy: I love this. I love all of this.

Alex: Then why are you sad?

Stacy: Because I love all of you more.

Alex: Stacy, if you think that us winning the competition means more than our friendship, and you don't think you can compete, then why haven't you stepped down already?

Stacy: You believe in me.

Alex: …

Stacy: You're the only one who believes in me.

Oh, people like us, we gotta stick together

Keep your head up, nothing lasts forever

*Stacy is shown wingsuiting alongside Elissa, who smiles at her, and then she looks over and sees Marina, who gives her a thumbs up. Emma dirtboards down a hill, and then we see Annie laughing as she jetskis up a massive ramp.*

Here's to the damned, to the lost and forgotten

It's hard to get high when you're living on the bottom

*A 12-year-old Emma is shown laughing as she and her friend drive a stolen car down a road as police chase them, then we see Alex with a determined look, holding her skateboard as she walks down a hallway.*

Woah-oh-oh-woah-oh-oh

We're all misfits living in a world on fire

Announcer: I've never seen tricks like these before!

Marina: *yelling at Niall* I'm gonna put you under the water, pretty boy!

Niall: *laughing* Were you just flirting with me?

Heather: *grits her teeth as she barely manages to grab a rock jutting out of a massive cliff high above the water*

Elissa: *waving to someone as she wingsuits past*

Woah-oh-oh-woah-oh-oh

Sing it for the people like us, for the people like us

*Rachel grimaces in pain as she holds her leg on the beach during a storm*

Stacy: *gasps*

Rachel: *glares at her*

Woah-oh-oh-woah-oh-oh

*Later, Emma is shown confronting Stacy.*

Emma: So now your friend's hurt.

Stacy: I didn't do it!

You just gotta turn it up loud when the flames get higher

*Alex slams her helmet down onto the ground*

Woah-oh-oh-woah-oh-oh

Sing it for the people like us, for the people like us

*Another quick montage of tricks and competition is shown, focusing on Alex, Rachel, and Emma competing in a variety of sports, ending with Emma wiping out after a spectacular skate jump while Alex lands the same trick and pumps her fist triumphantly. The song lyrics stop and the music goes into a few final quiet notes, as the seven girls (Alex, Stacy, Vivian, Marina, Elissa, Kirsten, and Rachel) walk out through a tunnel together, arm in arm.*

Alex: No matter what happens, our friendship is forever.

Stacy: ...promise?

Alex: *just smiles at her*

*The seven are shown in the arena together, taking it in as the crowd cheers. Alex's voiceover can be heard as the song slowly fades.*

Alex: Win or lose... we'll always stick together. Doesn't matter what they throw at us. We'll be right there at the end. Ready for anything.

*The video fades to black.*

THRILLSEEKERS 2

7-21-09

 

[ANARCHY_4_ALL]

On Blockbuster, if they push a rent to own system for games like Gamefly IOTL. Along with the streaming service this could really push them into the future. They could advertise as the safer alternative to purchase games. Rent it, play it, like it, buy it. If you don't, return it and rent another.

 

[thekingsguard]

What about Borders Books and Music? Always broke my heart that, of the three major book retailers, they're the ones who went bankrupt.

Same with Circuit City - then again, I am biased on them, they were headquartered in my hometown, Richmond, VA.

 

[eldandythedoubter]

Well seeing that E3 is coming up, I can finally share wit you the idea I had for the next sonic game. Its called the Chaos Crusader and it deals with Sonic's world being invaded by an army from one of the dimensions that the Chaos Emeralds warped beyond repair. What he goes onto explain is that that the emeralds are constantly leaking out energy and creating more and the more chaos energy around alters people, flora, and whole universe. Now this crusader and his army is bent on wiping any universe where the emeralds may have affected and the next one on the list is Sonic's homeverse.

So what do you guys think?

 

[RySenkari]

Might be an interesting idea for a later Sonic game, though we're actually going to be showing off another Sonic preview in Apple's keynote, so yours might have to wait for the next one

 

[eldandythedoubter]

Might be an interesting idea for a later Sonic game, though we're actually going to be showing off another Sonic preview in Apple's keynote, so yours might have to wait for the next one

I can wait, because I imagine the leader of the CC as a PG Warhammer 40k inquisitor

 

[Roger Redux]

Well seeing that E3 is coming up, I can finally share wit you the idea I had for the next sonic game. Its called the Chaos Crusader and it deals with Sonic's world being invaded by an army from one of the dimensions that the Chaos Emeralds warped beyond repair. What he goes onto explain is that that the emeralds are constantly leaking out energy and creating more and the more chaos energy around alters people, flora, and whole universe. Now this crusader and his army is bent on wiping any universe where the emeralds may have affected and the next one on the list is Sonic's homeverse.

So what do you guys think?

That sounds really interesting actually....

 

[Spectrum27]

What about Borders Books and Music? Always broke my heart that, of the three major book retailers, they're the ones who went bankrupt.

Same with Circuit City - then again, I am biased on them, they were headquartered in my hometown, Richmond, VA.

Well for the former, they could've not let Amazon handle their web-commerce (they didn't get control of it until it was too late), and for the latter, they didn't stop selling appliances after 2000 (in OTL they did and therefore missed on the appliance market booming what with all the McMansions going up) and kept their focus on quality customer service-- after all, their slogan was "Where Service is State of the Art."

 

[RySenkari]

E3 2009 - Apple Keynote

Apple's keynote speech was the first of E3 2009, and there seemed to be a celebratory atmosphere as Steve Jobs took the stage following an exciting intro highlighting some of the iTwin's most successful recent games, such as Sonic Duo, Panzer Dragoon Zeta, and Commander Keen: Billy's Brave Odyssey. Jobs was quick to tout the iTwin's outstanding sales, stating that it was the best selling console of its generation, and that during the 14 months since the Sapphire's release, the iTwin has outsold Nintendo's console during that period, making it the console with the highest market share in its current generation. He also touted the sales successes of both the iPod Play and the iPhone, and spent a lot of time discussing the iPhone and the future of mobile gaming, which he plans to address later in the presentation. After some discussion of the iPhone, Jobs introduced Reggie Fils-Aime. Reggie returned to discussing the iTwin and reiterated the console's success, along with those of its games. He showed how Sonic Duo has sold twice as many copies as Super Mario Flip worldwide, and that it's sold more than ten million units so far. Then, Reggie segued into another segment.

Reggie Fils-Aime: And so, as you can see, people just can't get enough of Sonic the Hedgehog. He's the most popular video game character of today, and you can only find his games on Apple. Sonic Duo has proven to be one of the most popular games of the decade, and that's why we're about to give you even more of the blue hedgehog and all his friends, in a brand new game coming out later this year for the Apple iTwin. We've already shown you some of this new Sonic game at MacWorld and at the MTV Video Game Awards, but now, here's your biggest look yet at the brand new Sonic adventure coming just two months from now. Here is the final preview for Sonic: Elemental Friends.

Reggie then showed a brief trailer that combined gameplay and story, and along with Steve Jobs, played the game live for the assembled crowd. Sonic: Elemental Friends is a brand new, fully 3-D Sonic adventure in the style of 2002's Sonic Neon. While it doesn't feature 2-D/3-D hybrid gameplay like Sonic Duo, it does allow two people to play at a time, with one controlling Sonic and the other controlling one of up to twelve different companion characters, including Tails, Knuckles, Amy, Corona, Rouge, Vector, Flare, Sting, and even a few brand new friends, each with the ability to use special elemental powers. These powers, such as fire, ice, lightning, wind, and earth, can not only be used by that individual character, but can augment Sonic's own skills as well. This game has more of a combat element to it than previous Sonic titles, with a huge variety of enemies to fight and entire gameplay segments devoted to fighting enemies and bosses. This doesn't mean that Sonic's familiar quick gameplay won't return: we saw plenty of Sonic and friends running across massive landscapes at rocket-fast speed. There are a huge variety of environments as well, from mountains and forests to cities and towns, each focused on a different element. The game's plot centers around Sonic and friends defending their homeland from a gang of evil villains who have summoned an enormous monster to aid them in conquering the various zones and worlds. Eggman is nowhere to be seen (perhaps he really is gone for good after his defeat in Sonic Duo?), though he may show up in a future title. The very end of the preview showed off Sally Acorn as a playable companion, indicating that yes, her revival in The Time Emeralds was for real and that she's back for good, commanding the element of light. Sonic: Elemental Friends looked like one of the most exciting Sonic games in quite some time, and will no doubt be fun to play with a friend utilizing the dual controllers of the iTwin. Sonic: Elemental Friends is coming out VERY soon, just two months from now in August, and we can't wait to play it.

After the Sonic segment, Steve Jobs left the stage, while Reggie segued into the next segment. After re-iterating that Sonic was a hero you can only play on Apple, he then said that another legendary game hero was also exclusive to Apple: the Blue Bomber, Mega Man. We got to see a final preview for Mega Man Next 3. The game is nearly out, and while we've seen lots of preview footage already, Capcom saved some impressive stuff for the game's final showing at E3. Mega Man Next 3 sees Mega Man taking to the skies, allowing levels to be even more vertical with his new flight ability. The preview also showed off more of the new melee combat moves for Mega Man, adding some beat 'em up elements to this game. We saw more of the game's villain, the evil CEO of the company Ultimo, which designs robot weapons based on designs stolen from Dr. Light. Mega Man will find himself up against a powerful army of Ultimo robots as he fights to prevent the corporation from eradicating the peaceful and free robots of his world. While some longtime players might worry that Mega Man's new flight abilities might ruin classic platforming, that doesn't seem to be the case: these flight abilities have limits, and there are some areas where Mega Man will be weighted to the ground, forcing him to jump normally and bringing traditional platforming back into play. No matter what form this adventure takes, the Mega Man Next games have been quite good, and this third game looks like a winner for the iTwin when it's released in just two weeks. We next got a brief Commander Keen-centered segment, in which Reggie announced some Reynard-centric DLC for Billy's Brave Odyssey that would be released in the fall. The DLC will give the player six extra levels, four of which star the rogueish Reynard in some fun heist missions, one of which features Keen as the antagonist. Then, Reggie briefly teased a Reynard spinoff that would be released on the iPod Play and iPhone next year, followed by an announcement of a new Reynard iTwin game also targeting a 2010 release date. The Reynard announcements got the crowd really excited, along with the announcement of a Commander Keen: Billy's Brave Odyssey: Game Of The Year Edition that would include all of the Reynard DLC and would be both sold on its own and packaged with an upcoming Reynard-themed iTwin. We then got a big preview for Bayonetta, set to be released by the end of the year. Hideki Kamiya's hack and slash, featuring an Umbra Witch with a killer body and even more killer moves, looked incredible in the preview, which mostly focused on the gameplay. Bayonetta can attack with her fists, her feet, and a variety of weapons including swords, guns, scythes, axes, and even a lance. She can also wield a limited amount of magic to use on enemies, and can even conjure up torture devices to punish her foes after racking up enough damage. Bayonetta's enemies mostly consist of angelic foes, sent down from heaven to slaughter Bayonetta and her allies (this and Final Fantasy XII seem to be sharing a theme, though Bayonetta is much, MUCH less serious about her crusade than Lilith is). Despite her brutal nature, Bayonetta seems to be quite a fun-loving person, enjoying fighting angels and always having a sassy one-liner to direct at her friends or her foes. What's notable about the game is its sheer speed: it plays much faster than Devil May Cry does, and the player is rewarded for dodging enemy attacks with a temporary slowing of time that Bayonetta can take advantage of to attack prone foes. Bayonetta's foes range from monstrous, mostly brainless angelic mooks all the way up to assassins sent from heaven to take Bayonetta out with fierce magical attacks of their own. This game looks incredibly fun and VERY over-the-top, and though it'll no doubt be controversial, it could also be one of the best games of the year. The line to play Bayonetta at Apple's booth was even longer than the line for the new Sonic game, showing just how enthusiastic people are about this title. A release window for Bayonetta has been announced as fall of this year. Following the Bayonetta preview, Reggie briefly discussed the handheld Apple devices. He promised that Apple will continue to support the iPod Play, and showed off games such as the upcoming Sega vs. Capcom fighting game crossover, along with the new FPS The Raid 4 and even a couple of RPGs: Elpharia 2 and a new one from Atlus, Shin Megami Tensei: Psychic Angels, which features a group of angels disguised as humans fighting to save Japan from a demonic incursion. The most intriguing game announced for the Apple handheld ecosystem, however, was Vectorman 3, a new Vectorman game in the classic platformer style of the first two games. While it looks like a modern 3-D game, its gameplay is extremely reminiscent of the original two. It's a welcome retro throwback, and looks awesome on both the iPod Play and the iPhone. Speaking of the iPhone, Reggie announced that more games, including Panzer Dragoon Zeta and Dasho: A Young Man's Story, would become playable using the iPhone's streaming functionality. Reggie also announced some exclusive iPhone titles, and gave us the release date for Shining Force VI on the iPhone: September 8.

Following the iPod Play/iPhone segment, we got a brief sizzle reel for some other games headed to the iTwin, including third party multiplatform games. We got to see some footage of the new Call Of Duty game, Call Of Duty: Hostiles, running on the iTwin, and also got glimpses of first-party games like Ecco's New World. Some new Dead Rising 3 footage appeared in this reel, and there was a big focus on a new rhythm game called Just Dance, which features the Apple Dance Ball accessory. This accessory, which lights up like a disco ball and works in tandem with the motion controls to turn the player's living room into a dance hall, looked really neat on the video, and Apple was showing it off on the convention floor with a special "nightclub" set up where players could try out the accessory. The sizzle reel mostly emphasized the diversity of the Apple iTwin lineup, revealing that most of the year's big multiplats would be showing up on the system, and that the iTwin, while not as physically impressive as its competition, still boasts a diverse and fun lineup of games. Right after the sizzle reel, a special preview for an exclusive RPG was shown. The game, which takes place in the near future, centers around a special agent caught up in a conspiracy, and unlike other games in the genre, which are basic third-person shooters, this game allows much more decision making on the part of the player, and has a highly intuitive combat system as well, much like that of an action RPG rather than a shooter. The game seems reminiscent of the Deus Ex series, but with a modern pastiche and style reminiscent of the Bourne films. After an action packed two minute trailer showing off both gameplay and storyline, the game's title, Alpha Protocol, was revealed, and the release window was given as 2010. Reggie Fils-Aime then came back on stage and discussed the iTwin's RPG lineup, touting the recent success of Phantasy Star VIII before discussing another beloved series, Panzer Dragoon. He discussed the positive sales and reviews for the iPod Play's Panzer Dragoon Metamoria, before introducing a new title in the series. This isn't an RPG or a rail-shooter, it's a battling game where players raise a dragon and then enter into arena combat, either against the computer in a series of stages or against human opponents either locally or online. The dragon vs. dragon combat looks quite fun and the game seemed to stay true to the series' style of combat. The game's title was shown as Panzer Dragoon Arena, and it too will be released in 2010. We then saw a preview for another RPG, stated as being made by "the creator of the Tale series". This RPG, helmed by Yoshiharu Gotanda, takes place in a world completely covered by one giant city. Rather than being a paradise, this world is somewhat in disrepair, and inhabited by mercenaries who must scrounge out a living in the hopes of being able to move to the rich districts. Players must navigate the streets of this worldwide city, engaging in spectacular gun battles with robots and soldiers. The one thing that stands out from this preview are those gun battles: characters dive every which way, racking up damage and knocking parts off robots or shooting guns out of enemies' hands. It looks visually impressive and quite a bit of fun. The game's title is Ecumenopolis, and it's another thing to look forward to on the iTwin in 2010. After the Ecumenopolis preview, Reggie welcomed Steve Jobs back to the stage, and also a pair of people from Apple's online service, to discuss what to look forward to on the iTwin's online ecosystem over the next year. We also got some new Pixelworld reveals, including new Commander Keen-related skins as well as some official licensed skins from Marvel Comics and Capcom, allowing plays to stage their own Marvel vs. Capcom battles in their worlds. iTunes was touted as being the number one retro digital gaming store, and a slew of new games were announced to be added to the service, with most of the reveals coming from the Genesis and Saturn back catalogues, but also a few coming from the Katana. Jobs also announced that for the first time, non-Sega games would be added to the iTunes service, including games from the TurboGrafx-16, Neo Geo, and Atari family of systems such as the Atari 2600 and the Lynx. Jobs announced a movie and TV streaming service for the iTwin and iPhone, which would launch early next year.

Following this segment, Jobs once again left the stage, and we got another quick, Alpha Protocol-esque preview for a new third person shooter called Guardian. In this game, you take the role of a special agent tasked with protecting a series of civilians, each of whom plays an important role in keeping peace in the world. Guardian is a game that seems like it will focus on escort missions, but takes steps to eliminate the frustration that they cause, making the task of protecting someone fun and giving each person you're protecting a major role in the story. The preview also showed off the motion controls, which look to change the game's feel and gameplay quite significantly, from being a traditional shooter to something a lot more immersive. Guardian looks to be one of the iTwin's most important tentpole games of next year, and another game intended for the system's more mature fanbase, which Apple has done an increasingly good job of cultivating as of late. Speaking of mature games, Reggie next took the opportunity to invite a special person onto the stage... and when Hideo Kojima walked out to join Reggie, the crowd went nuts. Kojima was there to announce Metal Gear Solid: Outer Heaven, the first game in the Solid series that won't be exclusive to a Nintendo console. It takes place a few years before the events of the original Metal Gear Solid, and chronicles one of Snake's first attempts to take down Big Boss before he threatens the world. The game looks to play much like Metal Gear Peace, but with a more simplistic, stealthy feel, and looks quite impressive on the iTwin. Kojima even exhibited the game's motion controls, which the player can use to simulate choking out an enemy. The announcement of a Metal Gear game coming to the iTwin is a major get for the system, and though Konami did clarify quietly later on in the show that the game would also be coming to the Sapphire, it's still a sign that more developers are starting to come around to the console. It would be hard for Apple to follow up the Metal Gear Solid teaser, but they did so with arguably their best game of the show: Duality, coming to the iTwin later in the year. Reggie brought up some of the game's developers to spend about six minutes showing off the game. It's a third person shooter, but rather than being a serious game like Guardian, it's more of a light-hearted, fun title featuring a pair of young heroes battling an evil empire. The gameplay is quite reminiscent of the Squad Four games, but with a more arcade-like feel, almost giving the game a pick up and play sort of look. The game is built around two people playing at once, but allows one person to control both heroes with the two controllers, Sonic Duo style, and also features a method of play with one human and one CPU player. The gameplay also revolves heavily around the two players coordinating their attacks to combine their spread fire on enemies. It's a really fast moving, almost airy kind of game. Enemies made exaggerated grunts as they're shot and knocked over, the two heroes frequently exchange witty quips with one another (and before anybody starts shipping them, they're brother and sister and both already have their own separate love interests). While the gameplay trailer did a great job of showing off a really fun game, the presentation didn't completely do it justice: it takes playing Duality to realize how fully addictive and fun it is. While the line for Duality didn't start off quite as long as the Bayonetta line, it soon became longer as word of mouth spread that this could be one of the best game's of the show. Apple is pushing Duality quite hard to be one of its big hits of the year, and the preview, which concluded with a minute long trailer detailing some of the game's plot, was a great way for Apple to close out its show.

Except... that wasn't how Apple closed out its show. After the end of the Duality presentation, Reggie started to leave, only to stop and dim the lights. He had one last thing to show us, and this took the form of a 2 1/2 minute preview that combined a gameplay trailer with a storyline trailer. It featured a group of five teenagers huddled around some kind of glowing crater, and seemed to take place in the late 40s or early 50s. After the crater began to glow, the teenagers seemed to acquire a variety of superpowers that they couldn't entirely control. Then, they were set upon by government agents, and the gameplay segments were shown. The game looks to be an action/adventure title, where superpowers play heavily into it. The teenagers used their new superpowers to fight off the government agents, but something happened, there was a flash, and the teenagers disappeared. They reappeared and looked out into the distance, where they could see a modern looking city. One of the boys said "where the hell are we?" and then one of the girls, looking more distressed, asked "WHEN the hell are we?" The game's logo and title were then shown: Land Of Enchantment. Though we didn't get much, the teaser said quite a lot: Roswell, teenagers, superpowers, time travel... the brief snippets of gameplay looked incredibly impressive, like Mystic meets Psychonauts, and this was definitely one of the more intriguing games we've seen at an E3, with the crowd applauding quite vigorously afterward. That concluded the Apple keynote, and it proved to be one of the more impressive E3 shows Apple's yet given. While a couple of the big rumors (Final Fantasy to the iTwin and the iPod Play successor reveal) didn't happen, a lot of exciting stuff did, and Apple showed off a lot of high quality games and also showed why the Apple ecosystem might just be the strongest in all of entertainment. Not only is the iTwin currently the most successful console on the market, but the iPhone is looking more and more like a worthwhile gaming device, and the iPod Play still has some good games coming out over the next year. Apple had what most considered a successful E3, and definitely something to build on going forward as the company looks to stay ahead of Nintendo in the console wars.

-

Chloe Maritzen: And now it's time for more G4 coverage from the floor of E3 2009, and right now we're here at the Enix booth, checking out some of the new games that'll be coming soon from these RPG masters. And this is Full Metal Alchemist 2, coming next month to Japan and coming here to the States later this year. 2005 saw the release of Full Metal Alchemist, one of the best action RPGs of all time. I'm here with Stephanie Crowell of Enix's North American division to tell me some things about this brand new game, coming soon to the Sapphire and the iTwin.

Stephanie Crowell: Full Metal Alchemist 2 will tell a brand new story, but set in a world much like that of the original game, a sort of steampunk, early 1900s type of feel. This one's actually set in a world a bit more advanced that that of the last game, more World War II than World War I.

*Chloe is now controlling the game's primary protagonist, a young man in a trenchcoat who is running through one of the streets of a large city.*

Stephanie: So right now you're controlling Vane, he's the hero of this game, and he's working as a detective, a detective who specializes in murders committed using alchemy.

Chloe: That sounds pretty dark, of course I remember the original game being quite dark! Remember when the little girl got combined with her dog and you had to put them down?

Stephanie: There's some pretty messed up stuff happening in this game too. You'll see right there, if you turn the corner...

*Vane enters an alleyway and sees a man with a red blade stabbing another man. The blade seems to be conjured out of thin air.*

Vane: That's him... that's the killer...

*Vane gives pursuit, but as the murderer enters a bad part of town, Vane is ambushed and attacked and must fight back with a combination of melee blows and alchemy.*

Stephanie: Alchemy is a lot like it is in the last game, you'll use the resources you have on hand to conjure up formulas to be unleashed on your foes.

Chloe: It moves a lot faster, I'm having trouble keeping up! I'm taking a beating! *tries to use an alchemy formula but gets killed by the onslaught of enemies* Oh no!

Stephanie: It's pretty tricky at first!

Chloe: I'm rusty.

(...)

Chloe: So this is Dragon Quest IX, and this already came out in Japan! It's coming out next month for the Sapphire and the iTwin, and this game... this game is really pretty. These graphics look beautiful on the Sapphire.

Stephanie: That's right, Akira Toriyama is back and he did all the character designs for this game as well, so it definitely looks much like the anime shows you'd see on TV.

Chloe: And I thought Dragon Quest VIII looked really nice on the Wave, but it really pops on the Sapphire!

*Chloe plays for a bit, getting herself into a fight. It's typical Dragon Quest fare, turn based and featuring much of the same motifs and quirks of previous titles in the series.*

Chloe: This moves along a lot slower than Full Metal Alchemist, but it's definitely easier too. I'm not getting my butt kicked so badly.

Stephanie: You'd be surprised, it gets harder later on!

*Chloe quickly dispatches the enemies and soon makes it to a town.*

Chloe: So can you tell me about this game's story at all?

Stephanie: The full title of the game is Dragon Quest IX: Inheritors Of The Forgotten Legend. This game features a group of four heroes, each of whom is descended from a hero of legend and must each accomplish that hero's legacy in their own way. It's about living up to the heroes and legends of the past, and it'll really focus heavily on each of these characters as they undergo their individual journeys and fight against an overwhelming evil.

Chloe: That sounds like it could be a really emotional game, focusing on characters is something this series isn't known for! I can't wait to play the full version when it comes out here next month.

Stephanie: I think you're going to love it.

-

Adam Sessler: So now me and Ted are checking out some of the hottest mobile games of the show, the games you'll be able to play on your phone when you're out and about.

Ted Crosley: And here we've got one of the biggest new mobile games of the show, coming to iPhone and Android, this is Metal Gear Mobile.

*Footage from the game is shown, it looks much like the original Metal Gear Solid both graphically and gameplay wise, featuring similar stealth action. Solid Snake is shown sneaking through a facility, even whipping out his box to take cover under.*

Ted: This is really incredible, it actually does play just like Metal Gear Solid, but with controls optimized for phones.

Adam: But it's also got a traditional control scheme, so if you want to use a controller attachment, you can. There's over 50 missions, divided amongst five "episodes" which each tell part of Solid Snake's early story, but one of these episodes is actually set fairly recently in the series, right before the events of Metal Gear Peace.

Ted: These episodes are all going to be sold separately at five bucks a pop but you can also buy the whole shebang at once for 20 and save a few dollars. These missions are a lot like the ones on Metal Gear Vaporized, maybe a bit longer.... this one's actually taken us a few minutes to get through.

Adam: It's also got full voice acting, with David Hayter, the awesome voice of Solid Snake, returning to reprise his role. So yeah, this is an authentic Metal Gear Solid experience and you can play it right on your phone.

(...)

Ted: This is the Motorola Elite XG, and we reviewed it last year, and it's still, in my opinion, the best mobile phone for gaming on the market. It's an Android phone, so it plays all the games that you can play on Android, including the new Metal Gear Mobile game coming up.

*Ted is shown holding the phone and its built in controller as he plays the FPS title Energy Core.*

Ted: As you can see, my fingers feel really comfortable on this thing. You remember the original Elite, where the finger positioning was pretty awkward, well this thing feels great in my hands, and when you're done playing, it folds up real easily and fits in your pocket like a normal phone.

*Ted is shown continuing to play the game on the device, getting quite into it for a bit but also showing off just how good the phone is for gaming.*

Ted: We're seeing a lot more of these gaming phones cropping up lately. None of them have been as good as the Elite XG, but there's more and more of them and some of them are starting to come out quite a bit cheaper than you'd expect. So far, my opinion has been you get what you pay for, but who knows, maybe we'll see a really cheap gaming phone in the future that can play some of these really good new mobile games that are coming out. There's also a rumor that Sony is going to develop its own gaming phone, which, of course begs the question, what kind of games are going to be on it? Might there be Nintendo games? Is it going to be a Nintendo phone or just a Sony phone? Bottom line is, these gaming phones are here to stay, and some of them, like the Elite XG, are just as good for gaming as your Supernovas and your iPod Plays. So, if you're in the market for a smartphone and you're a gamer, you might want to seriously consider getting a phone specifically designed around gaming. As long as it can make phone calls, it's a phone, it might as well be able to play some good video games too, right?

-

Morgan Webb: The THQ booth is one of the hottest booths here at E3 2009, and over the last few years this company has surged in the kinds of games it's been putting out. Most importantly, we have Rise A Knight! And not only is there some new DLC for Rise A Knight III, but we also just got the word that there's a brand new game in development coming out next year. So Rise A Knight fans, you guys have a lot to look forward to, but first things first, let's check out this DLC.

*Morgan is shown guiding Justis through a Viking-esque camp*

Morgan: This DLC takes King Justis to Frolandir, where he has been tasked with recruiting some really fearsome warriors to his kingdom. This is kind of cool, Justis is in a spot he's never really found himself in before, these guys aren't afraid of me at all and I have a feeling they'll kick my butt if I spend too much time messing around here so I'd better be careful!

*She continues to explore this Viking camp a bit, eventually challenging a potential new companion to a dual.*

Morgan: I've also got a couple of new moves to try out, including a kind of slide where I can target the enemy's legs and topple him really easily, but if I don't time it right I can get stabbed right in the neck! *she goes for the move and hits it, staggering her huge foe* All right!

*A bit later, Morgan is trying out another THQ game, one of their more anticipated upcoming games, a fighting game for the iTwin and Sapphire.*

Morgan: This is DC Ultimate Rivals, and as the name implies, it's a fighting game where we're controlling some classic DC characters like Batman and Superman, but there's also a few new heroes and villains showing up for the first time! And one of the most requested villains is showing up in this game for the first time, and that's the genocidal alien warlord Lobo. So I'm about to take Lobo for a spin, and who better to battle against than the man, the myth, the legend himself, Mr. Mark Hamill!

Mark Hamill: *using his Joker voice* Hello there Morgan... *Joker laugh*

Morgan: Oh my god that is awesome! So Mark, are you here to promote the game?

Mark: Actually I'm here to promote another game I'm doing a voice in, but I did decide to drop by the DC Ultimate Rivals booth since I'm voicing the Joker for this game.

Morgan: Awesome, so cool that we'll get to hear you performing as the Joker! So, are you ready to fight?

Mark: I'm ready to probably lose, but let's go!

*Morgan selects Lobo and Mark, of course, selects The Joker. The two begin fighting and Morgan is winning by quite a bit early on, but Mark gets a couple of blows in.*

Mark: How am I doing? I'm getting creamed, aren't I?

Morgan: *laughing as Lobo is about to knock the Joker out*

Mark: *Joker voice* Harley, help!

Morgan: *laughing again as Lobo finishes Joker off* You know, in the comics Lobo is a lot more powerful than the Joker.

Mark: That explains quite a lot. One more round, huh?

Morgan: Yep, best two out of three here.

*The round starts and this time Morgan is totally dominating, she's just too good for Mark, though he tries his best to fight back. Eventually though, Morgan wins.*

Mark: *Joker voice* That's not funny!

Morgan: Well, that was pretty fun, and thanks again for playing with me!

Mark: Always, any time, it was a pleasure. *hugs Morgan*

Morgan: You're enjoying E3, right?

Mark: Oh, absolutely, and I have a lot of fans here so it's nice to get to meet so many of them.

Morgan: I don't doubt that!

-

-from G4's live coverage of E3 2009, airing on June 17, 2009

 

[RyderWest]

Has Jeff Gerstmann had his Kane & Lynch moment yet ITTL? The one that lead him to create Giant Bomb ITTL as well as IOTL?

 

[TehIrishSoap]

Here's hoping Alpha Protocol gets a better reception ITTL than OTL... I love that game to bits but I've always wondered what could have been if they had ironed out the bugs and gameplay just a bit more.