For those of you that have long run out of Microsoft Points, Sega feels your pain and has released some free content for the Xbox 360 game Chromehounds. The new items include two new weapons, new armor, and a new color scheme for the game, which you can download via Xbox Live.
Archives for July 2006
Panasonic 103-inch Plasma TV Going On Sale
For a mere $50,000 you too can have a 103 inch plasma TV. Currently the world’s biggest flat panel TV, Panasonic’s 103 incher is set to go on sale in September…but only in Japan.
So, if the Americans or Brits out there want one, they’ll have to import. So add a couple more thousand to that $50,000 price if you’re an early adopter.
Hey, I want one, but that’s not $50,000 dollars worth of want. I guess I’ll have to wait for the 2nd generation (or maybe 3rd). Now, if only I earned, say $50,000 per month…then I just might be a first-gen adopter at 50 grand!
Cloning Clyde Available on Live Arcade
Right on time, comes Cloning Clyde, another Wednesday release in the Xbox Live Arcade. Cloning Clyde is the second Xbox Live Arcade game from the creators of Outpost Kaloki X, Ninja bee.
Cloning Clyde will set you back 800 Microsoft Points.
Cloning Clyde
Have you ever been cloned? Ever wonder what it would be like to be a chicken? A monkey? A frog? Well, wonder no more when you play Cloning Clyde, the zany side-scrolling platformer game on Xbox Live Arcade, new from NinjaBee.
Cloning Clyde is a 3-D side-scrolling adventure, featuring (of course!) multiplayer gameplay. Play split screen on a single console, or mutate online with your friends across the world via Xbox LiveĀ® Arcade.
Can you free yourselves from the myriad sinister traps and mutations that await you? Get Cloning today and find out!
The Benefit of Wii: An Explosion of Innovation
We’re Nintendo fanboys. We admit it. (But damn Nintendo we’ve sure missed the core Final Fantasy series over the last decade). Just ignore our fanboyness for a second and take an objective look at EA’s comments on the upcoming Wii.
Once we started to experiment with Madden on Wii, there was an explosion of innovation. Everyone in the studio is energized by the creative opportunity afforded by both the hardware and controller.
– John Schappert, Senior VP and General Manager, EA.
In an IGN report on the state of 3rd party development for the Nintendo Wii, we see evidence of the positive effects of Nintendo’s upcoming system: a rejuvinated EA development team. In the above quote, Schappert doesn’t mince words:
– explosion of innovation
– energized by the creative opportunity
What we see here is the trickle down effect of console innovation. Nintendo introduces a radically novel way to play games, and the developers who make games get excited to make their games. Now consider what it would be like if we left the game industry to Microsoft and Sony: a bunch of bored EA developers. Same old grind. Same old game mechanics.
With the Nintendo Wii, Nintendo has injected a creative steroid into the gaming industry which should result in an explosion of innovation that doesn’t stop at the hardware level. It’ll trickle down into the games. And because of this we should be thankful to Nintendo for their relentless pursuit of innovation – an innovation that goes much deeper than many of us ever realize.
[tags]nintendo,nintendo wii,video game innovation,EA,Electronic Arts[/tags]
Bomberman Act: Zero Gamerscore Points
Currently there are as many as 42 unknown/secret achievements for Bomberman Act Zero but here are the ones we know:
1,000 Bombs: Set 1,000 bombs.
Block Break 1,000: Destroy 1,000 soft blocks.
Kill 100: Eliminate 100 enemies.
Battle 100: Start 100 battles.
Battle Score 5,000: Get a Battle Score of 5,000 points.
Battle Royal: Kill 10: Defeat 10 people in Battle Royal mode.
Clear Round 10!: Clear up to round 10 in Single Battle mode.
Room Master: Create a room and fight a battle.
Zegapain XOR Demo out in Japan
If you have an Xbox Live account for Japan, jump on and download the new Zegapain XOR demo that is now on their Xbox Live Marketplace.
It is a slim 280MB, no word yet on what is included in the demo, but I am guessing not much. Also no word on when we will see it here in North America.
Table Tennis Demo Coming Soon
If you are like me, you have not yet tried Rockstar Games’ Table Tennis game, and so you will be pleased to know a demo for the Xbox Live Marketplace is coming down the pipe. Major Nelson has confirmed this, and he says: “I happen to be down talking to the folks that work with Rockstar, and they told me it would be ok for me to mention that there is a demo on its way to the Marketplace for Table Tennis. I also found out the demo is single and two-player (but no Live) play.”
I hope very soon means before the end of July.
Dell Announces 802.11n Cards for Laptops
Dell has really jumped the gun this time by announcing the incusion of Broadcom 802.11n cards in its XPS and Inspiron line of laptops. 802.11 is WiFi, right? And WiFi should be standard on all laptops, you say? Well, this particular WiFi flavor has an extension, which is the letter “n”. And it’s not really good to consider this standard for now, since the governing body that standardizes WiFi technologies, the IEEE, has not yet approved the “N” standard.
Like many consumers, Dell is getting a little sick of waiting around for the IEEE’s Task Group N to pull it together and roll out a final version of the next-gen WiFi standard, so the company has decided to start offering its own draft-802.11n card in all XPS and select Inspiron laptops. As you’re probably already aware, 802.11n will be a wireless networking protocol that uses MIMO technology to offer greater range and speed than traditional 802.11a/b/g networks, but has been famously bogged down by delays and questions of interoperability.
What’s with WiFi N anyway? Why are people getting so excited and skeptical at the same time?
Remember the difference between WiFi B and G? Aside from the marginal range increase of WiFi G over B, there’s the speed increase. G can run on 54 Mbps, while B maxes out at 11 Mbps. Guess how fast WiFi N is supposed to go–it maxes out at 270 Mbps (or even supposedly 300 Mbps), and has a range twice the distance of WiFi B ranges.
That’s surely a big increase and people with networks that have nodes spaced far apart or in between thick walls are sure to benefit from the range increase. However, the issue is that the IEEE has not yet approved the spec, so device manufacturers have to do with the “draft” spec for now. And when the time comes that the spec is already approved, the “draft” devices might not work perfectly in conjunction with those that use the final spec, unless firmware updates are installed.
So is it all right to buy those Dell computers? Probably so, because the company promises backward-compatibility with B and G WiFi networks. However, remember that increased speeds and range would only work in conjunction with N-draft-spec routers that support the Intensi-Fi implementation of WiFi N (notably the Netgear WNR834B). Also, remember that your Internet connection would still be limited by the actual speed of your broadband connection (DSL, cable, etc.). This would definitely be below 270 Mbps, or even below the usual 11 Mbps offered by WiFi B. So any speed increase would only be noticeable when transferring files within the network.
[tags]dell 802.11n,dell draft n,dell laptop mimo,mimo wifi,dell xps mimo[/tags]
Lord of the Rings: Battle for Middle Earth 2 Demo Available
I know we are a bit late on this, but I had to take a trip to my fiance’s family, and so I am sorry, but for those that read only this site for their Xbox 360 news, and don’t go on the Marketplace, you will be happy to know that LotR: Battle for Middle Earth 2 has a demo on the Xbox Live Marketplace now. By waiting a few days to post this, hopefully the download speeds will be amazing for you if you are just finding out, as the demo comes in at 848.84MB of hard drive space.
The demo gives you a lengthy introductory movie, a tutorial, one single player mission, quickmatch multiplayer mode, and is supposedly currently suffering from framedrops, but it is available in all regions.
Nike+iPod Sport Kit
I’m not much of a health buff but there was a time when I went to the gym to work out every morning in my attempt to burn fat and work up a toned body. I can say that listening to music sure is a good way to keep the rhythm when doing aerobic exercises (such as running on the treadmill and climbing the stairmaster. Back then, iPods and other music players weren’t as commonplace as today, and I had to make do with the gym’s sound system blaring out some unknown tune.
Good thing for today’s gym-rats, digital music players are a dime a dozen. What’s even better is that athletic-wear companies are partnering with gadget makers for that perfect match. Take the Freestyle Fusion waterproof MP3 player we earlier wrote about. They’re partnering with Billabong for players that can be embedded onto wetsuits.
Even better, Nike has partnered with Apple to come up with the Nike+iPod (duh!) Sport Kit. And it doesn’t only play music. The iPod Nano can actually keep track of your workout performance. Via iLounge:
Consisting of a small, red and white wireless 802.11 sensor/transmitter and an all-white iPod nano receiver, the Sport Kit tracks a runner’s performance and sends data to the nano for recording and synchronization with iTunes. In order for the kit to work, the sensor must be inserted into a pocket within the shoe – one that could be improvised by a user without Nike+ shoes, but more easily achieved with them.
And you don’t only get to keep track of your workout performance, but you can also see how well you fare against other users. From Engadget:
… besides tracking your workout statistics and long-term progress, you can also compare your performance with runners much better than yourself, providing you with an incentive to either work harder or try your hand at another sport. Also worth noting is the fact that the kit will definitely not work with any iPod other than the nano, and your device must sport the latest firmware in order to recognize the adapter.
The Nike + iPod Sport kit retails for $29 and is available for purchase at the Apple Store. The kit and compatible shoes are also available at shoe retailers.
[tags]ipod nano,nike ipod sports kit,gym rats,waterproof MP3 player[/tags]