by Ludwig Kietzmann 
on Sep 18th 2010 9:33AM
As you would expect, Microsoft’s Kudo Tsunoda has expressed an optimistic viewpoint on Kinect’s rarely utilized ability to scan real-world objects and incorporate them into games. At a recent Tokyo Game Show demonstration of Kinect Joy Ride, he revealed a small example of how Microsoft-owned developer BigPark utilizes the motion-sensing camera’s capture capabilities. It’s not quite a scanned skateboard, but it’s enough to spur some color commentary. Kinect Joy Ride features some minor pre-race vehicle customization options, starting with your car’s color. If you’re dissatisfied with the selection of bold colors in the game, Kinect can take a peek at any item positioned in front of the camera (within a small, on-screen reticle) and transfer its color onto your car. You could apply a dark shade of red (apple), an uplifting purple (GameCube) or a disgusting, sickly white (game journalist arm).
It’s worth noting that this technology is hardly new — you might have used it to capture textures in LittleBigPlanet with a PlayStation Eye — and the implementation is far removed from Kinect’s promotional promises. It’s not even a particularly interesting addition in the case of Joy Ride, but right now it’s in Microsoft’s best interests to shift its conversation with consumers, away from, “What can’t it do?” and onto “What can it do?”
on Sep 18th 2010 9:00PM
The balancing overhauls and new features outlined last month for Starcraft 2 will be implemented this coming Tuesday, September 21, when Blizzard updates the successful strategy title to version 1.1. These new features include support for NVIDIA 3D Vision displays, left-handed hotkey options and new map editor functionality. The full list of features and balance changes can be read over on Battle.net. 
on Sep 18th 2010 7:30PM
If we had our druthers, every trailer for every game would be structured like the promo for Atlus’ Catherine, posted below. There’s character introductions, romantic intrigue, and then a metaphorical examination of the nature of OH NO IT’S A DEMON BABY WITH CHAINSAW HANDS.
on Sep 18th 2010 4:30PM
The “Games Software Sales Forecast” included in Capcom’s latest financial report includes launch windows for a handful of the company’s upcoming titles — the most intriguing of which is Marvel vs. Capcom 3: Fate of Two Worlds. According to the report, the game is set to launch sometime during the fourth quarter of the current fiscal year, meaning Capcom’s planning to release it some time between January 1 and March 31, 2011. 
on Sep 17th 2010 5:00AM
Today, Android users can access OpenFeint, a social gaming suite which supports cross-platform communication, leaderboards and achievements for supported games. Aurora Feint, the company behind the tech, is currently working to enable cross-platform voice chat and real-time multiplayer sometime later this year. 
on Sep 17th 2010 2:00AM
Sony faux-spokesman Kevin Butler’s no stranger to talking smack about competitors — though, for the life of us, we never expected him to turn his scornful eye upon infant dogs. Check out the US commercial for EyePet after the jump as we await a rebuttal from the dog people of the world.
on Sep 16th 2010 3:30PM
What will you say when little Sally asks, “Daddy, what did you do during the Siege of Columbia?” Will you tell her that you stood with your Ultranationalist compatriots against the foreign hordes, or that you rejected your floating paradise in favor of the common man? 
on Sep 14th 2010 9:31AM
Capcom and Sony Pictures are subjecting victims to another CG Resident Evil movie: Damnation. The animated feature will be released in Japan in 2012 using that 3D tech the corporations are raving about. 
on Sep 13th 2010 5:55PM
Like the Halo series before it, Bungie is working on its own, brand new game engine for use in its forthcoming Activision project. “Just like we don’t want to develop a game off someone else’s IP, we want to push our own technology in the same way. That’s going to be our position for the forseeable future,” Bungie’s Brian Jarrard told Develop in a recent interview. 
on Sep 14th 2010 8:35AM
We had a peek at the upcoming Xbox 360 dashboard update back when the Kinect beta began, but the video after the break represents one of the most detailed looks we’ve seen so far. Apart from some aesthetic tweaks — dig that swirly new boot sequence — the interface remains unchanged for the most part. There are a few additions, notably the Kinect setup area in the system options with settings for the sensor, microphone, voice recognition and something called “Kinect tuner.” The new dashboard is also rocking some new sound effects and, good news for theme hoarders, it supports current NXE themes. 
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