For gamers, the new year usually begins after mid-November and this year’s no different; pretty much all major console exclusives have been released.
So, this is the first time that we can actually look back at 2008 and see which console had the best exclusives for the year - the PS3, Xbox 360, or Wii.
To do this, I decided to tally up the Metascore ratings (as of 11/20) for what are arguably the top ten exclusives for each console. Games that are available on PC and only one console are on the list as well (World of Goo and Left 4 Dead are two examples). So let’s dive right in to those potentially forum-rioting numbers:
Nintendo Wii: 1. No More Heroes - 83%
2. Super Smash Bros. Brawl - 94%
3. Mario Kart Wii - 82%
4. Wii Fit - 80%
5. Wario Land: Shake it! - 78%
6. Harvest Moon: Tree of Tranquility - 64%
7. World of Goo - 95%
8. Wii Music - 63%
9. Tales of Symphonia: Dawn of the N... More »
Per Grace Chen (Senior Manager, PlayStation Store) today:
Hey, everyone. It’s time again for the PlayStation Store weekly update.
Add-on Game Content
LittleBigPlanet Sack in the Box Costume (free)
A community costume for SackBoy!
File size: 1.04 MB
LittleBigPlanet LocoRoco Costumes ($2.99)
A costume kit for SackBoy! Contains 5 different costumes.
File size: 1.04 MB
BioShock PS3 Challenge Rooms ($9.99)
Experience the intense, terrifying world of Rapture like never before with the all-new PLAYSTATION 3 exclusive Add-On Game Content featuring three unique Challenge Rooms and some very cool extras. In “A Shocking Turn of Events,” rescue a trapped Little Sister in a disturbing carnival in Rapture. In “The I in Team”, defeat a Big Daddy using only your wits. In “Worlds of Hurt” plow through eight rooms filled with the worst Rapture has to offer.
File size: 402 MB... More »
2K Boston Assistant Producer Keith Shetler shared the following via PS Blog today:
Hey there! What’s that you say? You love challenging gameplay... and failed underwater utopias?
Then prepare to experience the world of Rapture like never before with the BioShock PS3 Challenge Rooms Add-On Content pack available tomorrow, November 20, for $9.99 only on the PlayStation Network.
I’m Keith Shetler, Assistant Producer at 2K Boston, and I’m very excited to introduce two new play modes with this DLC pack: New Game Plus and Challenge Rooms. Both add new twists to the game millions already love!
New Game Plus allows you to start a new supercharged playthrough of BioShock. Ready for this? You begin the game with any weapons, abilities, and inventory that you collected during a previous playthrough. Always wish you could obliterate Dr. Steinman with your uber grenade launcher? Now you can!
There's general agreement that Sony stumbled out of the gate with the PlayStation 3. Months of intense hype were followed by a late launch (fully a year after the Xbox 360) and a staggering $600 price tag for the deluxe model.
Even worse, the PS3 didn't initially have any real must-have exclusive titles, and despite the power of its vaunted Cell processor, multiplatform games from third-party developers didn't look appreciably better than the respective titles on the Xbox 360.
Since then, the company's been modifying the PlayStation product line to better fit the competitive market landscape. As of August 2008, a new "bargain" PS3 is available with a larger, 80GB hard drive, and a "deluxe" model is due in November, doubling the capacity to 160GB.
Both, however, lack backward compatibility with PS2 games and do not come with flash card readers. If those features are a must, it might be best to pick up the 80GB "Metal Gear" bundle version on eBay w... More »
Why EA would promise both PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 owners fresh DLC, when everybody knows that Mirror's Edge PS3 is getting the exclusive?
We asked our friendly neighborhood EA representative.
To quote: “It’s downloadable content for both platforms,” a spokesperson told GameCyte.
While PS3 might well have some token exclusive DLC (just look at how EA is handling Dead Space), DLC in and of itself will apparently not be exclusive.
It seems no matter which Web site you go to, they all shower praise on the latest game by Valve entitled Left 4 Dead. As a zombie—and video game enthusiast—I assumed this would become one of my favorite games. It sounded like a match made in heaven.
Unfortunately, I came away from the demo very underwhelmed. Sub par graphics and average gun play killed my enthusiasm pretty quickly. I did find the gun play enjoyable in Left 4 Dead, but I really wasn't overwhelmed by how good each gun felt. They felt appropriate.
The guns sounded average. Nothing praise worthy, but nothing to whine about, either. I don't want to offend anyone, but if you're going to tell me that this game has amazing texturing, lighting effects, environments, character models, and animations then you are probably one of those people that think Turok is a great looking game.
The environments themselves looked appropriately drab but they weren't very inspired or pleasing to the... More »
Today MCV (linked above) has published a number of quotes from UK industry leaders who all reach the same conclusion - the PS2 is standing on its last legs and is effectively dead.
The MD of MasterSonic noted that the PS2 market has been virtually killed overnight, while a major international publisher noted this will be the last Christmas for the PS2 and the company won't support it next year.
To quote: MD of Mastertonic Andy Payne – whose Blast label has enjoyed impressive sales during the PS2’s twilight years – believes the system is on its last legs, thanks to limited space on the High Street.
He told MCV: “The PS2 market has been virtually killed overnight. There’s been no real run-off like with the PSOne, and that’s because retail just does not have the space.”
Do you still have a PlayStation 2, and if so do you still play it? Feel free to comment below!
Remember when the PS3 came out? It was comfortably the cheapest Blu-ray player on the market. That was a huge selling point for the console, trust us. When the PS2 first launched we conducted a survey that showed that over 30% of the early adopters bought it primarily for its DVD playback.
We haven’t seen figures for the PS3 in relation to how many consumers picked it up as a Blu-ray player, but the release strategies and state of the market are comparative and a similar percentage would’ve been expected. (we’ve contacted Sony for this statistic and will update you when/if we get a response)
In fact at the time of the PS3’s launch, the Blu-ray diode that powered the ROM was the costly and relatively difficult to produce component which stalled the release of the system in territories like Australia, and where Sony was losing much of its money on each console sold.
Earlier this week we reported that the Xbox 360 had received another pric... More »
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