"We realised we had the opportunity to create what we call ‘the ultimate first-person game,’” he told Ars. “The illusion provided from successful binaural audio is closer to immersive reality than anything a screen can provide. That is, when it truly works, you’re actually there, getting a closer approximation to the information you’d get from a real space. So some people really find the game incredibly, unplayably, scary."
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Scared of the dark: a look at the audio game Papa Sangre. A first-person game that has no video—you play it solely through audio.
"Time for a Nintendo console reboot with a successor to the Wii? Japan’s Yomiuri Shimbun newspaper asked this very question of Nintendo CEO Satoru Iwata. Replied Iwata: “It’s just four years since release. It’s selling over 7 million units a year in North America, so we don’t think it’s at the limit. We’ll make decisions about a successor system at the time when software developers cannot offer surprises (on the Wii)."
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No Wii Successor Yet, Says Iwata - Wii News at IGN: Strictly from a console hardware perspective, the Wii being so underpowered compared to the 360 and PS3 is what has people wondering when Nintendo will release a successor. But here’s how I think Nintendo sees it: we sold a Balance Board with Wii Fit and made a mint. We sold MotionPlus as an add-on, then as a new controller with it built in, and we’re making a mint off that, too. If third-party developers leverage the success these two peripherals enable technologically, the Wii has plenty gas left to run another couple years. Who knows what other accessories Nintendo has in mind for the Wii. A camera, a la DSi/3DS? Who knows.
The big question is whether, in Iwata’s words, developers can continue to “offer surprises” on the Wii. The trouble is, when they do, will it sell? Take Red Steel 2 for example.
The Wii is still a very different experience from the other consoles, but can it still inspire developers who yearn for more raw horsepower to capture the world’s attention? It’s a hard road for developers to walk, and it seems like a harder and harder sell for Nintendo to position.
"Beginning early May, I will join Apple as global editorial games manager, App Store. In a nutshell, I will be leading the charge for games on the App Store, so whether you browse through iTunes, iPhone, iPod Touch or iPad, the games content you see will be handpicked and organized by me and my team. I couldn’t be happier."
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Bye IGN, Hello Apple « Mouth on Fire - Matt Casamassina, former editor at IGN of their N64, GameCube, Wii, and Wireless/iPhone channels. Hands-down my favorite gaming journalist in the business. Apple couldn’t have picked a better guy for this role.
Thanks to Gamasutra’s Twitter for the news and the story.
"Perhaps that’s not the same as truly driving us toward faith. But perhaps more’s going on in modern, big-name games than I’ve given them credit for. Assassin’s Creed II (despite Ubisoft’s reluctance to talk about it) tackles real issues of religion and faith, even if I may not like the conclusions. Heroic fantasies like Dragon Age: Origins challenge me to be the hero, and perhaps as Wyatt suggests, I can carry that sense of heroism into the little things in my life — being a better parent, a better friend, and yes, a better believer. And maybe that’s enough."
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GameSpy: God’s PR Problem: The Role of Religion in Videogames - I am genuinely surprised, and impressed, by this article’s exploration into the role religion plays in video games. Surprised that it’s asking serious questions (on a level I haven’t seen since Next Generation magazine, the best gaming publication ever), and impressed at the quality of the article and the designers’ responses.
This is good gaming journalism, folks. Good job, GameSpy, and thanks to Julian Murdoch for looking for meaning in today’s games.
![In delivering his company’s Q2 2010 financial results, CEO Reed Hastings stated, “Before our next [earnings] call in October, we expect to be launching a major new version of our Sony PS3 user interface which doesn’t require a disc, and is dynamically updated continuously with the latest Netflix UI improvements.
Great news. Via Joystiq.](http://29.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_l5yn5eVBoG1qzxralo1_500.png)
![Based on the teaser images, it seems likely that all of these titles will also make their way to the Mac. This leads us to believe that Valve has ported their Source game engine over to the Mac, which would allow any future games based on this engine to be easily launched for the Mac. Alternative [sic], Valve could be using Transgaming/Cider for the translation.
The Significance of Steam and Valve’s Games for Mac - Mac Rumors
This is a big deal for gaming on the Mac. If Valve has indeed ported or rewritten their Source game engine for the Mac, it’s an even bigger deal. Not only would Mac users have access to a great game distribution platform, but game developers would also have access to a game engine that could easily target Windows, Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 and OS X. It would make the case for developing Source-based games for the Mac a no-duh proposition.
Plus, I don’t see how Valve could justify this hype if all they’re doing is using Cider to act as a graphics translation layer. That’s nothing new, and anyway, who would want to base an entire business venture on another company’s inelegant graphics translation product? I hope Valve sees it the same way.
Update 3/8/2010: They do.](http://30.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_kyru6lrq1y1qzxralo1_500.jpg)
