Forget the Japanese Invasion of the 1980s, the Japanese Invasion is here ... again in social games. (Seriously, what does every parent call every video game system ever? That damned Nintendo.) Gree, a Japanese company that runs the Gree mobile social games platform, has bought OpenFeint, a company that does exactly the same thing in the US. You've probably seen OpenFeint in hit iPhone games like Angry Birds and Fruit Ninja, meaning this acquisition could result in a little name change. USA Today reports that the purchase was made for a sweet $104 million, and is another step in Gree's plan to create a global social gaming network that expands past its 25 million mobile users. In other words, Zynga better watch its back.
"We are excited that Gree shares our belief in the OpenFeint network and are ecstatic to partner with a renowned global leader to build a multi-billion dollar business," OpenFeint CEO Jason Citron said in a statement. "Together, we will deliver the strongest global ecosystem of gaming networks to our combined 100 million users." And it takes more than one invader to call it an invasion, correct?
This isn't the first time that a Japanese company has bought an American one. DeNa, a rival of Gree's, bought mobile game developer Ngmoco for an insane $403 million just months ago. These companies are throwing down some serious cash for the sake of their mission: global domination--of the social gaming space. Surely Zynga will rise to the challenge, so just grab some fresh popcorn, sit back and watch the fur fly.
Showing posts with label iPhone. Show all posts
Showing posts with label iPhone. Show all posts
Tuesday, December 27, 2011
Saturday, October 22, 2011
Previews Preview: War of the Worlds Looks, Sounds Great
Whenever Halloween comes around I always look forward to the re-broadcast of a significant radio drama. On October 30th, 1938, Orsen Wells directed and narrated an adaptation of the classic H.G. Wells novel, The War of the Worlds. Because the show itself was on a radio station that never ran commercial breaks during their broadcasts, many people thought -- for a short period of time -- that we really were being invaded by aliens from the planet Mars. Soon we'll be able to play through these events with Other Ocean's The War of the Worlds that's set to release on PC later this year (next week for XBLA).
Thursday, October 20, 2011
Crysis 2 single player impressions: PS3
Graphical multiplat wunderkind Crysis 2 has been out barely a week and I've managed to play it a bit since getting hands on my PS3 copy on Sunday. Seeing as it's one of the biggest releases of the year so far, and definitely the biggest multiplatform release in this gamer's humble opinion since Red Dead: Redemption, I thought I'd offer my impressions on the games' campaign mode so far, including it's lauded graphics.
From the outset I'll say about Crysis is I'm really enjoying it so far. Forget about it's graphics- the gameplay definitely offers something I haven't experienced from a shooter since the likes of Far Cry 2; and that's freedom.
Every shooter that comes out these days- in single player modes at least, seems excessively linear. Not so Crysis. I've only done the first few levels however I've already found myself replaying them to approach them from a different angle. The combination of the nanosuit and the open nature of many levels means that there's numerous ways to tackle each one. When I say numerous, it really boils down to either stealth or frontal assault, but the variety comes from level design, such as where to spawn your attack, who you'll need to tactically eliminate first and so on. In short, mission and level design, thus far, are top notch.
Graphically the game is superior to any multiplat release I've ever played- but it's kind of a mixed bag type story. The game indeed has had it's moments but there are a few nagging issues I'm noticing claw back the experience.
Firstly it's buggy as hell. I've noticed some major bugs in pretty much every play session, and enough to become distracting. These seem to revolve around mainly NPC's AI and some collision issues with their environments. It's hard to explain exactly what these bugs are without actually seeing them. For example, in one section where I was stealthily making my way through a warehouse, I had an enemy on patrol warp through a wall then just die for no reason. A few minutes later enemies on a walkway that were supposed to be rappelling from it simply fell through the map. I've had enemies spawn in front of me stuck in the environment who then simply drop dead. Regarding the AI I've had enemies throw grenades at their cover to kill themselves, and others just running into walls and in circles. I've also had enemies spot me through walls and attempt to shoot me only to be firing at a solid wall for minutes on end.
The gameplay is hampered sometimes as well in hectic firefights by the frame rate, which can slow down quite noticeably. Anything with multiple explosions or enemies on screen can be a enough to slow the game down quite noticeably, and it is disappointing. I sometimes found myself wondering what the point of making Crysis 2 so pretty on console was if it didn't actually run smoothly? Finally regarding graphics, not being sure whether its purposeful or as a result of slower frame rate, but the blur effect seems to be overdone. If you stand still for example and turn 360 degrees, take a look at your environment and your gun to see what I mean.
From the outset I'll say about Crysis is I'm really enjoying it so far. Forget about it's graphics- the gameplay definitely offers something I haven't experienced from a shooter since the likes of Far Cry 2; and that's freedom.
Every shooter that comes out these days- in single player modes at least, seems excessively linear. Not so Crysis. I've only done the first few levels however I've already found myself replaying them to approach them from a different angle. The combination of the nanosuit and the open nature of many levels means that there's numerous ways to tackle each one. When I say numerous, it really boils down to either stealth or frontal assault, but the variety comes from level design, such as where to spawn your attack, who you'll need to tactically eliminate first and so on. In short, mission and level design, thus far, are top notch.
Graphically the game is superior to any multiplat release I've ever played- but it's kind of a mixed bag type story. The game indeed has had it's moments but there are a few nagging issues I'm noticing claw back the experience.
Firstly it's buggy as hell. I've noticed some major bugs in pretty much every play session, and enough to become distracting. These seem to revolve around mainly NPC's AI and some collision issues with their environments. It's hard to explain exactly what these bugs are without actually seeing them. For example, in one section where I was stealthily making my way through a warehouse, I had an enemy on patrol warp through a wall then just die for no reason. A few minutes later enemies on a walkway that were supposed to be rappelling from it simply fell through the map. I've had enemies spawn in front of me stuck in the environment who then simply drop dead. Regarding the AI I've had enemies throw grenades at their cover to kill themselves, and others just running into walls and in circles. I've also had enemies spot me through walls and attempt to shoot me only to be firing at a solid wall for minutes on end.
The gameplay is hampered sometimes as well in hectic firefights by the frame rate, which can slow down quite noticeably. Anything with multiple explosions or enemies on screen can be a enough to slow the game down quite noticeably, and it is disappointing. I sometimes found myself wondering what the point of making Crysis 2 so pretty on console was if it didn't actually run smoothly? Finally regarding graphics, not being sure whether its purposeful or as a result of slower frame rate, but the blur effect seems to be overdone. If you stand still for example and turn 360 degrees, take a look at your environment and your gun to see what I mean.
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