Yep, it's official. The Suzumiya Haruhi Wii game that was announced last year - along with that PS2 game and a PSP game, both released back in winter - will be a dancing game, and it could come out later this year. Shock and awe.

A random Japanese blog posted a couple of Famitsu scans showing images from the game - see them here and here - and based on them, Sankaku Complex has a brief description of what it will play like.

"The latest Haruhi game for the Wii will be a dancing game, involving timing Haruhi and company's dancing with the Wiimote. (...) there will be a story mode advanced by skilful dancing, a free mode in which you can freely choose costumes, music and stage, and the dancing will be accomplished with three characters, so Kyon is unlikely to feature with Haruhi, Nagato and Mikuru on hand. Apparently, there will also be a version packaged with a figure."

Moar Haruhi dancing? In 3D? With booze? Hell yeah!

Five years ago, this title alone would have been enough to make me hop around like crazy in excitement. Now, I couldn't give a rat's ass anymore. Not because the announcement was innevitable, nor because I've become a grumpy gamer. But simply because my rusty computer may never run Doom 4 at a decent frame-rate. If it will be a PC title at all...

Ok, so this is the part where the "real" news begins, normally. Except that there's not much left to say, other than "production has begun on Doom 4", as id bluntly puts it. Sure, they have more filler text in their announcement, but they don't give any estimate release date, no target platforms, no nothing. Just a tiny, subtle hint:

"DOOM is part of the id Software DNA and demands the greatest talent and brightest minds in the industry to bring the next installment of our flagship franchise to Earth", said Todd Hollenshead, CEO, id Software" (ed. - our bolding)

Bring Doom back to Earth, eh? Well, why not. It's not like it matters if we're shooting demons on Earth, Mars, or some other planet, as long as we're locked inside dark buildings most of the time. Damn, I really hope they'll shed more light on Doom 4, literally, and bring back the bloody colorful massacres from the early days of Doom and Doom II.

If all work and no play makes Jack a dull boy, you can imagine how we feel after our overly-extended leave of absence, most of which we so shamelessly spent by playing WoW day in, day out (well, that and doing various other highly-enjoyable and equally-unproductive activities). We're still not entirely prepared to get our asses back to this thing we call "work", but - as cruel as it may be - subscriptions don't pay themselves, neither does the booze, nor the cabs you have to take for drinking too much, nor the tons of milk you have to drink the next morning for similar reasons. Because it's no fun farmin' an' grindin' with a nasty headache. Heed my words!

So, time to start making some money again. I mean, time to follow our unending passion for writing about this rotting rotten industry that we vaguely recall having admired, once upon a time. But it still has its moments, every now and then, so we're not about to give it the finger just yet. Not when id announces Doom 4, giving us the perfect reason for getting back in the pseudo-journalistic game. Right then, let's make this quick: my SSC raid is starting in an hour!

A new press release has come up on the Internetz, giving us some insight in the much anticipated (by desk secretaries) Sims 3. Along with a brand new engine that is bound to rock our stinky socks one way or the other (and which seems to be in development for almost three years), EA’s simulation success brags at everyone with the following things, which we will detail a bit, to give you a much deserved shade of Aran light on the matter:

New Seamless, Open Neighborhood - Explore the Neighborhood Freely.
So, you will be able to leave the house, stalk your neighbours’ daughters any way you see fit. Hopefully, such an open neighborhood means fewer locks on the little girls’ bedrooms, and more instant action for us.

New Create A Sim - Create Any Sim You Can Imagine.
…and I certainly don’t mind being a God, also in the virtual world. Sticking to different Sim personalities, like whores, pimps, serial killers and sisters of Ilidan should be a nice addition to the whole game universe. Size is also included here – you can make them small, big, fat, thin, and most especially, white.

New Unlimited Customization - Everyone Can Customize Everything!
And the blah-blah part about “OMG U CAN CHANGE IT ALL!!!!”. Fascinating. They say I can even modify window shades. Or sofas. Now that is really groundbreaking. I can always feel the urge to play this game, over and over again, while my (presumptive) girlfriend is playing around with that new wireless Nunchuk I bought her, to leave me alone.

Despite the usual trend when it comes to recent games, it seems that Prey 2, along with all those asshole-like doors and… wall grafitti, will not come to all the consoles and their mother, when it will eventually ship. More exactly, the guys at Radar Group stated that the sequel to the 2008’s would-be-shooter will find its way to the PC and Microsoft’s X360. So no PS3, at least for a while, though it is hard to believe that such a title would not take advantage of some sales boost with Sony’s console being so overrated.

Details on Prey 2, Earth No More, Incarnate and other two “unknown” projects can be very well spotted on Radar’s website, along with Casey Linch’s statement on The Game Reviews, according to which the game’s developer is still Human Head.

Well, if you are interested in a FPS that denies you DEATH in any possible way, Prey may be a thing for you. And I bet that Prey 2, too.

Can you say… Cnet? Hell yea, I bet you can. This little company has been responsible lately for all sorts of scandalous decisions regarding (so far) the online gaming press. We all know they have acquired major known websites to do their dirty work, one of which is some’s favorite Gamespot.

Problems started appearing when the likes of Eidos (and other bullshit producers that cannot face the reality that their games SUCK MAJOR ASS) let Cnet know that… well, the site’s review for Kane and Lynch, one of the biggest failures in the gaming universe so far, was rated… too low. This, after Eidos spent tons of money painting the whole fucking Gamespot with Kane and Lynch commercials.

The quick follow-up was awesome – in a very bad way, at least for us gaming journalists – Mr. Gerstmann, the one responsible for the said review, was fired without notice. Because, you see, If Eidos tells you to rate its game high, YOU MUST RATE its games high. Otherwise, go work in the fucking construction department. It was a surprise for all, but not quite that big, considering we all know Cnet is a money-hungry bitch with absolutely no respect for gaming journalism.

After that, people came and went from Gamespot, with other sound and good names leaving the sinking boat because of the same reason – the absolute lack of freedom of speech. And now another Senior Editor, Brad Shoemaker will kiss the crew goodbye and will travel to, we hope, better places, where people can actually say what they think about a game. We wish you good luck, Brad, may your writing days be long and prosper, and Eidos bashing days even more prosper.

What a fucked up industry we have, for Christ’s sake. It is becoming like politics. You can listen to the related Hotspot here.

Taking a cue from the hollywoodian habit of milking games from movies before they even premiere, the Japanese anime and gaming industries are coming together in the production of a Wii game based on the upcoming The Sky Crawlers animation film. The project was revealed in the pages of Famitsu (via Gamersyde), who say that the Wii game is being developed by the Namco Bandai team responsible for the Ace Combat series.

The only reason I give a damn is that the Sky Crawlers anime is directed by Mamoru Oshii, who made a name for himself by directing the Ghost in the Sell animation film and its sequel Innocence (among other anime and live-action stuff). It's based on a novel series which follows a group of young fighter pilots involved in dogfight warfare, during an alternate historical period, and it's animated by Production I.G. The film premieres on August 2 and, by the way, I lied: I don't really give a damn about the game.

Take-Two are continuing to keep themselves busy these days... and so are Electronic Arts' bidding artificers. Clearly incapable of waiting until the agonizing (for them) release of GTA IV at the end of April, EA is making another move in the hopes of taking over Take-Two. Only, this time, they are trying to bypass the company's board and head straight for the shareholders, luring them with an offer of $26 per share in cash. Not that tempting, but who knows... Just to be on the safe side, Take-Two's board urged its shareholders to hold their horses, promising to properly advise them within 10 business days.

So while we wait for the next chapter of this bidding saga, let's get back to Take-Two's games for a bit. My personal most-wanted, Mafia 2 is now planned for release (...)

 Continue reading 'Take-Two About Dates, Max Payne 3, New EA Bid'...

A rather pretentious title, for what really looks more like a Half-Life 2 MOD. Nevertheless, the recently announced third-person shooter Salvation (anti-rhymes with Damnation, but not to be confused with Dark Salvation) is being developed as a full-fledged PC and Xbox 360 game powered by Valve's Source engine, by some novice Ukranian studio Black Wing Foundation, "in cooperation with N-Game Studios" - cause it's so damn hard to make a generic shooter all by yourself these days.

The world of Salvation is described as a near-future cybernetic dystopia, inspired by the likes of "1984", "Brand New World" and "Us", with a dramatic story spanning seven episodes (17 missions), from Tokyo to London, which goes something like this. (...)

 Continue reading 'Salvation, Cybernetic Dystopian Shooter'...

Old news are best served with a bit of catch-up, and so we return to some of the stories we missed a few days ago due to excessive WoW'ing *cough* various reasons. Having successfully tackled the sci-fi and fantasy RPG sub-genres (and post-apocalyptic, if we think about their good ol' days at Black Isle), the dudes from Obsidian Entertainment (KotOR 2, NWN 2) are finally trying their hand at their first original IP. They call it Alpha Protocol, "a thrilling new espionage role-playing game set in the modern world", which CEO Feargus Urquhart also says will blend "Obsidian's knack for intricate stories, engrossing characters, and significant character advancement with fast-paced modern combat". (...)

 Continue reading 'Alpha Protocol Is Obsidian's New Spy RPG'...