For those of you wondering if Resident Evil 5 will be ported to the Wii like Resident Evil 4 was then you may be sadly disappointed. In an interview with Kotaku Resident Evil 5 producer Jun Takeuchi said that that “With the difference between hardware specs for the Wii and the PS3, porting might be hard”. He went on to say that they currently have “no plans” to release a Wii port of the game. However, Takeuchi did express a desire to bring the Resident Evil games to a larger franchise

“I think, while Resident Evil 4 is a great game, its appeal was limited somewhat to maniac players,” Takeuchi said. “With RE5, I wanted to bring the series to a larger audience. I think its important to do the same for the next RE.” - Source

The Wii Resident Evil titles – such as The Darkside Chronicles – are part of this plan, making games that are fit for the Wii’s technical capabilities and not creating a game that is a bad port from a technically superior console. I’ve always thought that porting games to the Wii from Xbox 360 or PS3 is a bad idea, and games like Dead Rising proves my point. It can work though, the recent Ghosbusters game being a good example, but it’s usually better if it doesn’t try to emulate something that the Wii just can’t do.

Capcom is yet to decide on a producer for Resident Evil 6.

A survey emailed to current and past Planetside subscribes has indicated that Sony is planning “to expand the Planetside universe with another game”. It has also been discovered that SOE (Sony Online Entertainment) registered Planetside2.com on September 21st.

“We plan to expand the PlanetSide® universe with another game and we need your help with the design. After all, who knows the game better than you, our customers, the people who actually play it! Don’t worry about the original PlanetSide, it isn’t going anywhere.

We want to hear your opinion and to do so we have put together a short survey. The information you provide will play a critical role into helping guide the development and direction of the next hit Massively Multiplayer Online First Person Shooter.” - Source

Planetside Universe, a Planetside fan site, contacted John Smedley, the CEO of SOE, who had this to say;

“PlanetSide fans will be happy We have big things planned in the next 12 months. We’re working on something new that’s really cool.” - Source

Planetside was never the most popular MMO (at its peak it was estimated to have around 75,000 players) but it had some great ideas, which led to some truly epic moments (some of the player stories that came out of the game are amazing). Now only a few thousand hardcrore fans remain and you’d be lucky to see the massive battles that the game experienced during its prime. If a new game can successfully fix its predecessors problems then I’m all for it, just like the guys over at Rock, Paper Shotgun.

As I somewhat speculated yesterday Sony have confirmed that PSP owners will officially be unable to transfer their UMD games to the digital-only PSPgo system upon its release next week. This means, obviously, that you will be unable to play any of the PSP games you currently own on the new iteration of the PSP, if you decide to upgrade of course.

Sony officially ended any hope for such a program by releasing a statement to Kotaku;

“We were evaluating a UMD conversion program, but due to legal and technical reasons we will not be offering the program at this time,” - Source

Sony originally said that they would try to find a way for people who own UMD games to transfer their purchases to digital form so they could be played o the PSPgo. The statement released yesterday does leave a small window open for the future, but it’s pretty unlikely that we will ever see such a program. There was a rumour that Sony would install kiosks in various shops, which would allow people to turn their existing UMD games into digital form. Sony probably figured that would be too expensive, so we’re left with no options at all (well, no legal ones anyway).

Like I said before, you’re probably better off sticking with your old PSP than splashing out for a new one. Sony is still trying to tempt you in with the reward program, but it’s not worth the asking price of a PSPgo purchase (which, in my opinion, is overpriced anyway). For everyone else the PSPgo is a good purchase if you’re willing to pay the high price (which, in Denmark, is ridiculously priced as high as a PS3). I wouldn’t have said that any PSP was worth it a few years back, but the library of games, downloadable PSOne classics and the upcoming PSP Minis it’s not a bad purchase. To be totally honest though it doesn’t really matter what model you get (although you do get more choice with an older PSP), unless you’re the kind of person who needs to have the latest version of a gadget, even if it seems like a step backwards.

We weren’t really sure what Sony meant when they said they would come up with some way to compensate those who own PSP UMD games but want to upgrade to the download only PSP Go. We now have a slightly better idea of what Sony is going to do, and it may not be exactly what you were hoping for.

Sony is offering Europeans the chance to take part in a rewards program, which involves placing a UMD in your existing PSP then downloading a special PSPgo theme from PSN. After doing this you should be sent an email containing a voucher code which you can exchange in return for three free downloads out of a choice of 17 full games. Some of the games include Killzone: Liberation (I own this, and it’s actually pretty good), SOCOM: US Navy SEALs Fireteam Bravo 3, Everybody’s Golf, WipEout Pure, Echochrome, LocoRoco, Patapon and Buzz!: Master Quiz. The offer is open to anybody who owns an existing PSP model, plus at least one game, who buys and registers a PSPgo from its release on 1st October until 31st March next year.

So, while you may not be able to turn your existing purchases into a free download it’s certainly better than nothing if you’re set on buying a PSPgo. People with a large library of UMD games are going to be disappointed, there’s little doubt about that, but I’m finding it hard to figure out how Sony would be able to turn your existing purchases into downloads anyway. How can you prove that you own a game, especially if it was bought a few years back? There must be some way of doing it, and I doubt Sony will be losing many sales by coming up with a solution as the majority of people are unlikely to buy another copy of something they already own.

Like some Dutch retailers I don’t really care for the PSPgo. A smaller screen and more cramped controls doesn’t really do much for me, especially as memory sticks are getting cheaper all the time. I don’t use my PSP much, but if I do buy a game I can now choose to between a UMD or a download, which is far better than only having one option.

Goldeneye may have a special place in the hearts of millions of gamers, and it may also consistently place high in ‘Top X Games of All Time’ lists, but it’s looking increasingly unlikely that a port to Xbox Live Arcade or Wii’s Virtual Arcade will ever happen. This isn’t the first time we’ve heard such rumours, but Rare – developer of the classic FPS – has seemingly given up on the port ever seeing the light of day.

In response to a readers question in a recent Rare Scribes update the developer all but signed the execution warrant on a port of the game;

“That was some time ago, my friend. Fate was against us that day. Destiny conspired to raise the hurdles even as we attempted to clear them, resulting in unpleasant groinal injury. I suspect we’re long past the stage where an agreement was on the cards, but you never know. Stranger things have happened… somewhere… probably.” - Source

The blame lies at the feet of Microsoft and Nintendo, who are apparently unable to reach an agreement on the financial terms of such a release. It all comes down to licensing laws, with Microsoft now owning Rare but Activision ultimately owning the rights to produce games in the James Bond franchise. However, Activision places the blame in Nintendo’s court, which published the game on its original N64 release. Whatever the case it seems that gamers won’t get a port until the money side of things is sorted out and it doesn’t look like that will be happening anytime soon.

I never actually owned an N64 myself, but a friend use to bring his round to my house and we used to have hours of fun playing four player split-screen. Most of the time we got trounced by my friend, but he pretty much always played as Odd Job so I still, to this day, say he had the advantage. The graphics may not be anywhere near today’s standards, but I’d still relish the opportunity to play the game through my Xbox 360; largely because there are so few split-screen games out there today and nothing can beat having three friends playing in the same room as you.

Fear not though, as Perfect Dark – which in some ways had a more enjoyable multiplayer than Goldeneye – will be coming to Xbox Live Arcade this winter, which is at least some consolation.

It’s Sunday and I’m about to go to bed as I’m up for work early in the morning; but before I head off to the land of nod I’m going to show you a video that will help you sleep peacefully tonight, complete with a satisfied smile.

What’s scarier than hordes of extremely fast zombies running out of the darkness towards you? What’s scarier than a Witch than can incapacitate you with one swipe? What could be more terrifying than hearing a tank bounding around the corner behind you? Well, what? Hearing “La-La!” as you walk around a dark city, that’s what.

L4DMods (the credit goes to Flameknight7) have put together a mod for Left 4 Dead that replaces the infected in the game with characters from the children’s TV series, Teletubbies. Yes, you can finally shoot Tinky Winky in the face before taking a look at just what’s in that handbag of his, and why the hell he has one in the first place anyway.

My mum was a childminder, so Teletubbies was on in the house all the time as I was growing up. Having to sit through years of them saying the same thing over and over again, plus a sun with a baby’s face, I can safely say that I’m going to relish the opportunity to blow Po’s head off. Unfortunately that freaky bear that sticks its tongue out isn’t there, which is disappointing because I’ve always wanted to put a few slugs into it. Noo-Noo also doesn’t make an appearance, which is a big oversight because he could have replaced The Boomer and unleashed custard instead of vomit.

You can download the mod for yourself here, finally accomplishing what most of us have always wanted to do (unfortunately you can’t put Dipsy’s head on a stick and parade it around town manically laughing). Now if only we could gun down The Tweenies…

If you live in the Netherlands then you’ve just lost a possible place to buy a PSPgo when it’s released in October. Eurogamer reports that the Dutch retailer Nedgame – the country’s largest specialist games retailer – are refusing to stock and sell Sony’s new product.

There are a number of reasons why this is happening, one of them being that Nedgame believes that the PSPgo is too expensive priced at €249.99, and they certainly have a point as it’s €80 more than the PSP-3000 that is currently on the market. Apparently the cost isn’t justified, with the smaller screen being one example of why it isn’t worth the asking price. However, this is not the main reason for the ‘boycott’.

The lack of a UMD drive on the PSPgo is putting retailers like Nedgame off selling the product. Retailers make the most profit off software, and not hardware, when it comes to games; so this means that they’re about to lose out on the majority of the profit from a section of the video game market (plus the pre-owned market, which is a huge slice of income for retailers such as the American Gamestop), and with Nedgame being a specialist retailer they’ll be even more worried as the video game market moves ever closer to full digital distribution.

Of course, retailers have tried to gain from digital distribution by selling downloadable games through their website, or selling, for example, Xbox Live points cards in-store. However, the PSPgo is different in that Sony is effectively creating a monopoly on the software for the console by making them only available on the Playstation Store; which, in my mind, is pretty bad from a consumer viewpoint. No competition means that Sony can price however they want, but I suppose you do get the added bonus of all your games being easily accessible from one PSN account.

Eurogamer Holland says that other Dutch retailers are starting to grumble too, and it probably won’t be long before retailers in other countries start to have their say (apparently Spanish retailers are considering following suit). At least you can be sure that your local supermarket will be selling them come launch day, but have we really go to the point where specialist game retailers don’t really matter anymore? I know I haven’t bought a game in one for ages, unless it was off their website, largely because the prices are more expensive than the Internet.

Personally I’m just going to keep my old PSP and use SD cards to store downloadable games, just like I did with Final Fantasy VII a few months back.

It looks like the Left 4 Dead 2 boycott movement I wrote about back in June has been dealt a major blow as two of the founders recently published a post that raised more than just a few eyebrows. In an attempt to show the boycott group that Left 4 Dead 2 maintains the same quality that made the first game such a joy to play Valve flew the two group members out to their offices in Washington, which at least gives them a chance to say they’ve played the game before they continue to ‘boycott’ it.

So, what was their verdict?

“As for L4D2, things seemed balanced and ‘tight’ and did not feel like a rushed job. While we were visiting their offices we personally witnessed what can only be called a small army of artists, coders, mappers hard at work, which explains the rapid transformations in artwork that we’ve all seen.

What we can say with confidence is that the quality of gameplay in Left 4 Dead 2 is not in question; and it will only get better (from what we understand, almost daily testing of game builds by most of the staff at Valve).” - Source

266 comments later (at the time of writing) and they had been predictably labeled as ‘sell-outs’ by the majority of the group, even after the two guys were adamant that Valve isn’t dropping support for the first game. I suppose it’s hard to trust the word of two guys who’d just had an all-expenses paid trip across the US, even if they did help create the group. However, I had already made up my mind long before this new development.

So, what do you think? Sell-outs? Simply appreciating a good game? Don’t care? I think that I regret the comments I made in my previous post on this issue. After reading updated previews and seeing new videos since that post I believe that Left 4 Dead 2 will be worth it if you enjoyed the first game, and I am now genuinely looking forward to it. If Valve continues to support the first game then you’ve got two great games in your hands, and what could really be wrong with that apart from finding the time to play them both? I also need to note that I never agreed with a ‘boycott’ in the first place; I was simply a little annoyed because I thought that Valve would only be releasing a tiny bit of content for the first game, but from seeing more of the sequel I’m not sure that I’m even bothered about playing the first game anymore (to be fair I have enjoyed the content we did get). I probably won’t buy the game full price, but that’s because I have more than enough games to keep me occupied at the moment and it’s always good to pick up a bargain somewhere down the line.

I suppose the most important question here is “What the hell is that on Gabe’s shirt???”.

Related posts:

• Valve Responds to Left 4 Dead 2 Boycott

It’s a pretty good week for lovers of the music rhythm genre, as not only is Guitar Hero 5 begging for you to spend even more money on plastic instruments but The Beatles finally get their own game in The Beatles: Rock Band. Yes, it may just be Rock Band stuffed with 45 of The Beatles best songs but, come on now, it’s The Beatles!

Colin McRae: DiRT 2 is there for all you Rally lovers, and Championship Manager 2010 comes along just as we’re getting over our addiction from the last one. Section 8 is the odd one of the bunch, but it does look pretty damn good if the videos are anything to go by.

Guitar Hero 5 (PS2, PS3, Wii, X360) 11/9 (PS2 is 8/9)

Kurt Cobain wouldn’t exactly be thrilled at being included in a game with mass market appeal, but Activision knows how to push a few buttons. Cobain or not, Guitar Hero 5 is still going to sell by the bucketload and the updated graphics, 85 songs (with more for download) and the Guitar Hero Studio (which allows anyone to import their songs, providing they own the copyright) will do a lot to bolster that appeal.

The Beatles: Rock Band (PS3, X360) 9/9 (X360) 11/9 (PS3)

The Beatles, on the other hand, were no strangers to milking their success. I suppose being the biggest band in the world gives you a bit of an excuse though. As stated above there will be 45 The Beatles songs, with more available for download, and various dreamscapes that will make you believe there was more in that can of coke than you were lead to believe. Don’t worry though, you can calm yourself down with your free copy of Guitar Hero: World Tour.

Colin McRae: DiRT 2 (DS, PS3, PSP, Wii, X360) 11/9

Colin McRae may be gone, but Codemasters makes sure his name lives on in the videogame world. Thankfully the game is a good homage to the legend, with a new engine and whole roster of events and tracks to keep you occupied. Just make sure you don’t get stuck in the mud!

Section 8 (PC, X360) 11/9

At first glance you may think it’s just another futuristic shooter, with that word that describes a ring of light around someone’s head coming to mind. Then you see the unique ‘burn-in’ feature that allows you to drop onto the battlefield from 15,000 feet above the surface. This is supposed to eliminate fixed spawn points, but it remains to be seen if the game on the ground will be able to successfully follow an awesome start to each level.

Other releases:

• Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D’s Wheelie Breakers (Wii) *Out now*
• Taisen!! Ka to Chan no Kororonpe! (DS) 9/9
• Windy x Windam (DS) 10/9
• Mean Girls (DS) 11/9
• SingStar Motown (PS2, PS3) 11/9
• Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs (DS, PS3, PSP, Wii, X360) 11/9
• Diva Girls: Princess on Ice 2 (DS) 11/9
• Mary King’s Riding School 2 (Wii) 11/9
• Love is… in Bloom (Wii) 11/9
• My Beauty Salon (DS) 11/9
• My World My Way (DS) 11/9
• Championship Manager 2010 (PC) 11/9
• Mini Ninjas (DS, PC, PS3, Wii, X360) 11/9
• Time of Shadows (PC)  11/9

(All images sourced from Gamespot)

Just when we thought two Star Wars MMO’s were enough for any fan rumours rise out of the murky depths of Dagobah that Sony Online Entertainment is working on a new one. SOE have already tried this once with Star Wars Galaxies - which had a brief spurt of popularity but lost many fans when it was decided to introduce a ‘combat upgrade’ - and Bioware are currently working on Star Wars: The Old Republic, which looks very tasty indeed. An “insider source” is now saying that a third game may be on the drawing board, which is apparently going to be casual-centric and will most likely be based on the animated Clone Wars series.

Ten Ton Hammer says their anonymous source confirmed the rumour at PAX, where it was said that SOE will probably use the same engine as their immensely popular browser-based MMO Free Realms. So, if we’re talking that casual – combined with its roots in the animated series – then it’s probably not going to be something to get overly excited about unless you’re pretty young or a casual player who happens to like Star Wars. Going for the casual crowd means that SOE isn’t trying to be a direct competitor to Bioware’s attempt, and by doing this SOE may pick up the players who don’t want to sink a lot of time into a fully fledged MMO but still want to play a Star Wars game.

Given the source material the game will most likely take on the look of the animated series, which may or may not be a good thing depending on whether or not you liked the look of Clone Wars (I didn’t). Even so, if this rumour is true and SOE can successfully replicate the appeal of Free Realms to the casual crowd then they may have a winner on their hands to make up for the disappointment that was Star Wars Galaxies. Either that or they’ll fail miserably again.

(Image source)

Related Posts:

• Bioware Announces New Star Wars MMO