Gaming Archive

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Lady Gaga announces her social networking site LittleMonsters.com

Just when you thought you hadn’t heard from Gaga in awhile, she decided to launch a social networking site on us: LittleMonsters.com.

The site, created by Backplane, is currently invite-only, but you can request that your name be added to the community and hope to receive an invite code shortly thereafter.

Backplane’s CEO told Mashable the startup is all about “bringing together communities and Gaga’s community just so happens to be the community we’re using… We think we can really change the world, but we’re fearful that we’re going to be pigeon-holed.” Based in Palo Alto, Backplane thrives on being a  “canvas for self-expression.”

From what we can tell of the site, it’s looking a little bit like Pinterest as far as layout goes, but as far as networking specs go, we’re sure the site will be filled with everything Gaga—letting the “Little Monsters” publicize their die-hard Gaga devotion.

More Gaga-like sites are in the works, and Backplane hopes to bring them altogether in a “dashboard on its site this summer that would combine the communities.”

While the social networking site devoted solely to Lady Gaga sounds a bit ridiculous, take into consideration the fact she was the first artist to reach 1 billion views on YouTube, and also beat out the Prez to 10 million Facebook fans.

(via TAXI & Mashable; photo via last.fm)

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Korea’s Kinect-powered theme park

Kinect-powered astronaut scales, Kinect-powered fitting rooms—and lo and behold, the Kinect-powered theme park.

There’s reason for gamers everywhere to envy South Korea’s Live Park 4D: it’s the world’s largest 360 degree stereoscopic theatre, it has the world’s largest interactive projection square, and the park has the world’s most advanced avatar games.

Jealous much? We are – the only thing the US has that’s comparable is, well, um… nothing yet (not to say the Harry Potter theme park isn’t cool). Other parks that come close are the Warcraft/Starcraft-themed amusement park in Changzhou called World Joyland.

The Live Park 4D’s capacity holds up to 3,000 visitors, and there are 65 different attractions to choose from. Visitors are given RFID wristbands that allow them to create avatars of themselves while playing the various games.

Rumors are stirring up that the Live Park concept might reach North America, but for now our South Korean friends and tourists are the only ones in the world to experience the luxury.

(via ubergizmo; photo via Hex19)

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Pandora has a handheld console coming out?

When we think of gaming consoles, we immediately think: Nintendo DS or PlayStation’s PSP. But Pandora? We thought Pandora was the free radio app…

But it turns out there is another Pandora out there, and it’s a mixture between a PC and a gaming console. The brand started up a few years ago, after three entrepreneurs had the idea of creating an OpenSource gaming device.

Pandora will feature a 4.3” resistive touch screen featuring 800 x 480 resolution, Wi-Fi capabilities, a USB port, 2 memory card slots, and Bluetooth hookup. The device is reportedly pocket-sized, but a little bit bigger than the DS, and is powerful enough to emulate Amiga 500 games in full speed and some Linux-developed games like Battle for Wesnoth, FreeCiv, and Numpty Physics are also available to play.

The company’s first batch sold around 2,800 units, and Ubergizmo reports that Pandora plans on shipping 4,000 in total by February. It will be interesting to see the Pandora console thrown into the mix—especially with the Wii U about to hit the shelves later in the year and all of the other tablets on the market.

(via ubergizmo & pocketables; photo via Technabob)

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SoulCalibur for iOS Review

It’s here! We heard the other day SoulCalibur was coming to iOS and we got excited to get our hands on the beloved game. For a limited time it is available for a 20% discounted $11.99 in the Apple App Store; the price is expected to rise in a few days, so if you’re strongly considering, we recommend buying in the next day or two (or waiting a few months until it sells for probably half the price).

Graphics are expectedly outstanding. Some of our favorite characters like Tira are missing, but the 10 characters you have to choose from are Voldo, Ivy, Sophitia, Mitsurugi, Kilik, Xianghua, Maxi, Nightmare, Taki, and Astaroth – each character has two costume options as well, which we thought was a cool bonus for a mobile version.

At first we thought operating the game via touch screen would be difficult, but it turns out developers must have had this down to a science, as the joystick shown in the main photo on the left operates smoothly so you’ll be making moves without delay.

There are quite a few modes, too: standard Arcade ladder, Time Attack, Survival, Extra Survival, and Practice—leaving out the Team Battle and Mission modes from PlayStation and XBOX versions, but still an abundant amount.

If you haven’t yet played SoulCalibur and fancy other classic arcade fighting games like Street Fighter or Mortal Kombat, well, this is a revolutionary version of those games. The only thing is, for now the game is one player, which is a problem if you consider multi-player a determining factor when buying a game like SoulCalibur.

We haven’t heard news about SoulCalibur streaming live, or anything regarding an Android version, but we assume both are likely to come as an update soon.

(photo is a screenshot taken with iPhone)

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SoulCalibur V will be released on iOS devices

SoulCalibur fans, rejoice—on January 19 you can now play SoulCalibur V (watch the trailer here), Bandai Games’ latest version of the beloved game, on iOS devices like the iPad and iPhone.

The iOS version will feature 19 fighters, varying game modes, museum modes, time attack, and arcade, but unfortunately there’s no sign of a multi-player feature like team battle mode (we’re hoping this goes live for iOS and for an Android release down the road).

Don’t expect to get much accomplished after this release, as SoulCalibur is a rather addicting game, similar to classic old school favorites like Mortal Kombat and Tekken – except this time will take place 17 years post SoulCalibur IV, and “will continue the epic story of warriors in search of the legendary SOUL Swords in 17thcentury Europe. The heroic battles transpire in a beautiful and fluid world with eye-popping graphics.”

Major changes have been made to the now 6th version of SoulCalibur, including the removing of “Critical Finishes” of SoulCalibur IV, along with This version will also provide an armor destruction indicator, so there’s no way to tell when protection will break.

Pre-order your copy of the game today, available for XBOX or PlayStation; it hits the stores on January 31. Or if you’re lucky enough to have an iPhone or iPad, head to the app store on January 19 for a sneak peak of what’s to come.

(via Geeky Gadgets; photo via Pocket Lint)

 

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Gary Oldman does the voice for a Call of Duty character Victor Reznov

Playing Call of Duty one would not necessarily think of Gary Oldman voicing the character Victor Reznov, for he has a Russian accent and is a former squad leader of the Red Army—not your typical Oldman (well, when he’s not busy fighting crime in Gotham filming The Dark Knight Rises and getting down in Memphis as Elvis in his upcoming Guns, Girls, and Gambling).

But to our surprise, Oldman does in fact do the voiceovers/screamovers for Reznov, an endeavor he likes to call, “battle chatter.” He describes the voiceover process as an interesting one, and here is some incredibly hilarious footage of him reenacting what a typical recording session might sound like—aka screaming various phrases” “Over there!”, “On the reach!”, “Shoot!”, “Tank!”, “Incoming!”

We love Oldman and his various roles throughout film history make him one of the most accredited actors out there, but him battle chattering has to be one of the more unexpected Oldman performances.

(story via The Verge; photo via deviantART)

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Vox media’s The Verge hires a gaming staff of brilliance

We love the Verge, and we love their dedication to bringing us the most current news, tech reviews, and community-based forums ranging anywhere from sharing your favorite video game art to the latest DIY hacks, not to mention their reachable stylish web design—they’re quickly accelerating and becoming the best news site out there.

And to add to the already awesome Verge team, they have recently hired a whole new sector of awesome, all focusing on gaming specifically. The team consists of Chris Grant, the editor-in-chief of Joystiq and accredited top world-blogger; Justin McElroy, co-host of My Brother and Associated Press of Ohio award winner for business writing; Brian Crecente, who was named “one of the most influential people in the video game industry over the past 20 years in 2009”; Russ Pitts, former editor-in-chief of The Escapist, named one of TIME’s “50 Best Websites of 2011,” Chris Plante, a video game journalist who has appeared in The Daily and Popular Mechanics; Russ Frushtick, former MTV game and tech coverage manager; Arthur Gies, current co-host of Rebel FM, a popular video-game podcast, and writer Griffin McElroy, who’s been writing about video games for 7 years, including his time spent at Joystiq as a contributing editor.

Grant told Business Insider that, “In terms of hiring these editors, I thought it would be harder than it was – I thought the idea of putting a  lot of chefs in the kitchen would be unpalatable to a lot of people. But I found the opposite to be true[.] Everyone was excited about it, and everyone had also sort of felt the same way, that there was this bigger opportunity to take advantage of [the environment] that hadn’t really opened up yet.”

We’re stoked to see what’s to come from Verge Games and the supposed soon-to-be-launched Verge Sports coverage…

(via Business Insider; photo via Moby Games)

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Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 includes yet another scene bound to be highly controversial

Much like the Grand Theft Auto video game series, the Call of Duty franchise has acquired its reputation through two significant attributes: setting new sales records and containing controversial, violent content. According to GamePro, the latest entry in Activision’s flagship series, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3, contains another cut scene expected to court significant attention.

The news source reports that the scene depicts a bombing in a fictional, war-torn London, England. Through the lens of a video camera, the player sees an explosion kill a family of three – including a small child. It is not known if the scene involves characters with an active role in the story.

This is far from the first time titles in the Call of Duty series have included such content. An entire level in Modern Warfare 2 involves an undercover CIA operative who witnesses a mass shooting of civilians at an airport, with the option to take part and no chance to stop it or risk breaking his cover. Black Ops also earned some criticism for its graphic depictions of gun violence and torture.

CNN reports that Modern Warfare 3 is due for release on November 8, along with the cross-platform Call of Duty Elite social network for its players.

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Nintendo announces new Zelda game as final Wii system title

According to CNET, Nintendo has announced it will close the book on its Wii gaming era with the release of the next installment in the Legend of Zelda series, entitled Skyward Sword.
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Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 designer promises dedicated servers for multiplayer PC gamers

Activision, distributor of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3, has promised that PC gamers hoping for an enjoyable multiplayer experience will have nothing to worry about when they get a chance to play the game. According to IGN, this is in response to previous complaints regarding the PC multiplayer capabilities of the last installment in the Modern Warfare series.
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