Month: February 2008

The dust of GDC has settled. From Microsoft, we have release dates and news about Gears 2, Ninja Gaiden 2 and Fable 2. Nintendo saw it fit to see us fit in May (see what I did there?) and told us when we’d be seeing Wii-ware titles. Perhaps the most surprising news at GDC was, ironically, the lack of news from Sony. Having just experienced a great holiday season and riding on momentum from January’s NPD’s, Sony was in prime position to unveil some big news/release dates pertaining to MGS 4, Little Big Planet and of course, Home – the latter two were unveiled at GDC for the first time last year.

So what happened? Were there unexpected problems with the software involved? Are they waiting until their “Gamer’s Day” conference to make any big announcements? Or perhaps Sony simply wished to keep its presence at GDC close to what the main purpose of the whole event was – a convention by developers, for developers, without turning it into the next E3. Or maybe they just didn’t have their stuff together.

A heavy work-week for our regular editor can’t keep a good cast down! Nick, Tom and Tony handle the editing this week, so be sure to note how awesome it is. Don’t worry, we learned so it will never be this delayed again ever…promise…seriously.

Episode 33 of the Rumble Pack starts with a recounting of a hilarious prank on Tony (which occurred literally moments before the show) followed by a rather quick round of trays (only 50 minutes this time, we promise!). After the break comes our very own GDC postmortem and a discussion of the future releases we’re excited for, with a bit of random game-related banter thrown in for good measure.

You asked for it, and here it is (about 6 days later than ever intended): a new episode that’s under 2 hours! Don’t delay, download today!

That’s right everyone.

After months of waiting and stress, the day of arrival seems to have come at last. They say he’ll be delivered on Friday.

It seems funny now that I think about it. Debating whether or not I was ready…

if it was worth it or not…

whether I was ready to make this kind of commitment.

But there’s no looking back now.

Come this weekend, I’ll be a father.

OF A MANBOX 360! (Imagery: Me holding up the 360 in the middle of a stadium full of bald and or bearded men who are cheering wildly, violently high-fiving each other, chugging beers and shooting machine guns straight into the air)

My proudest moment: Unga-bunga.

Ya know what the best part is?

My baby is being delivered by this man:

Oh. my. god.

Full cast, full time job to edit.

All five cast members return to have and be serious at the same time. Justin shares some details of his trip to Tokyo, buying Saturn games and playing in strange things called arcades. Tony delves into Pheonix Wright (making this the hundredth time this series has been mentioned on teh podcast). Tom and Kaz discuss Wipeout Pulse. Nick talks up Final Fantasy Tactics. And Kaz defends his honor concerning Uncharted, and barely gets to talk about his Professor Layton obsession.

Part two of the podcast brings a return to the “Games As” series as we delve into what seems to be the big topic around the gaming horn: stories in games. Everyone brings a unique view on the medium and the conversation goes to show just how complex gaming can be and specifically how we interact with games. Serious discussion is then followed by our GDC wish-list (we recorded Monday night). And an argument over backwards compatibility.

This week’s show includes our proof of concept themes, let us know what you think on the board.

Hey kids, Happy Valentine’s Day!

Since I already celebrated with the lady last weekend, I’m free tonight to finish up my podcast blog! Here we go!

So now that I’ve covered the 1up podcasts I listen to, let’s talk a little bit about the IGN ones. Most of these casts are sorted into platform, which coincides with ign.com and their separate platform channels. What I really like about these podcasts though, is that everyone that appears on them is very non-biased towards other systems, and pretty much tell it like it is, despite what you might think. Greg Miller from the Playstation channel didn’t buy a system till a few weeks ago, because he didn’t think it was worth it. Hillary Goldstein from the 360 channel talked for about 20 minutes two weeks ago about why he thought the 360 was in pretty hot water, from an industry standpoint. And Matt Cassamasina has been on record talking about how he was very interested in joining the 360 channel during the first few days of the Wii. Overall, the podcasts are pretty good and everyone on here has a pretty great sense of humor. Let’s go into a little more depth:

Another saddening Justin-less week transpires. Meanwhile in Cleveland: Nick, Tom, Tony and Kaz form a strike force of hilarity and contemplate the goings on of the gaming industry. In an unprecedented change Kaz goes first in talking about his tray, which crashed the recording studio computer. Luckily, the second recording works and the group makes it past a grueling discourse on PC snobbery about Sins of a Solar Empire. Nick delves into the games he has to catch up on, this week focusing on some handheld love. Tony, Nick and Kaz wax poetic about the ins and outs of Devil May Cry 4. And bringing it all home: Tom talks about his impressions of a copy of the Japanese version of Smash Brothers Brawl.

After the break the business side of the pack kicks in. The crew discusses the state of Nintendo and the market of the Wii. Including the implications of an expanding casual demographic and what it means for gamers. Will the Wii ever stop being successful? Tune in to find out. Then tell us what you think at our message board.

Special Note: The mid-show break contains the hard work of 3 whole minutes of audio stitchcraft. It’s a little treat/joke for those waiting for us to get around to making a theme song. It’s in no way permanent, you know, unless everyone likes it…

Hey kids! It’s Thursday night again, and you know what that means…

No no no, not that. Pull your pants back up.

That’s right, it’s blog time! This week’s topic: My Other favorite podcasts

So a lot more goes into the Rumble Pack than it seems sometimes. Ask anyone on the cast and they’ll recount to you many a story of crappy audio equipment, recording scheduling conflicts, website troubles, editing woes, etc.

And oooooh man, the time commitment. Between recording every Monday, all of us here update our blogs every week, constant check and post on the boards and write reviews, try to come up with new content (we need a intro theme desperately) and somehow find time to play games, be social, work full-time jobs and catch up with as much industry news as we possibly can. It’s a busy schedule!

For me, one of the most important things about the show is having an intelligent conversation about some aspect of the industry, and usually that involves some kind of news piece or issue that’s happened throughout the week. So to keep up with the news on my end and get some fresh perspectives about what’s been going on, I listen to a loooooot of gaming podcasts.

Welcome to another episode of the child men anonymous club! At this week’s meeting Tony, Nick, Kaz and Tom report on what keeps them from becoming true men. Including: No More Heroes, Advance Wars: Days of Ruin, Uncharted: Drake’s Fortune, The Club, Zack and Wiki, Metal Gear Solid: Portable Ops, Mass Effect, Rez HD and Pixeljunk Monsters.

Part two begins a series of epic debates, starting with the state of Smash Bros Brawl. Tony and Kaz air some concerns they have about how the game is shaping up. Nick vehemently defends the honor of the stalwart game we put too much time into.

Then the crew slaps on their money hats and gets their fanboy on in a discussion of the state of gaming, the console wars and where 2008 will lead us. Things get tense at times, but rest assured, even though we use the “f” word at each other (fanboy), we still love each other. And cooler heads prevail, unlike on message boards.

Suit up, strap in, pick your side and prepare to enter the console wars? Oh yeah, it’s a long one.

It’s been a while since I’ve had a lot of fun with a hack and slash. It’s also been a while since I’ve had fun with Devil May Cry (let’s face it, 3 was just ok, not good, ok). Now, DMC is back, but with a new protagonist. That’s right, Old Man Dante has taken a step aside to let in a new generation of Devil Hunter; one that looks almost exactly like him. However, while Nero may be a visual twin, the difference between handling these two is the difference between handling an SUV and a Lamborghini.

Yes, you heard me right, you get to play as both characters, but unlike driving an SUV (and kinda like handling a Lambo) experiencing both characters is a blast. Dante is as familiar as ever…and apparently following DMC and before DMC2 (remember: DMC3 = prequel) he has become a GOD. When you first handle him, it will be like a reunion with an old friend. But, as with all things, Dante has changed with time. Seriously, this man is beefed up and ready to destroy anything or anyone in his path. Yes, you can switch weapons on the fly still. But they added something even better; now you can switch fighting styles on the fly as well. While that may not seem like a big deal, as you begin to get accustomed to how it works, switching styles and weapons end up becoming incredibly fun. You also get some Devil Arms as Dante, the two coolest being Pandora and Lucifer. Pandora is a box with 666 different forms; in game you use about 7 of them, all of them being ridiculously powerful. Lucifer is a melee weapon that sticks exploding spikes into your opponent; it also provides Dante with the opportunity to make jokes about his male member. Either way, playing with Dante has become even better and more badass. However, the star of this show is Nero; and let me tell you, this star shines bright.