timtamever: April 2011

Friday, April 29, 2011

Sony Should Pay For OtherOS Removal, Says Finnish Board

x*yy*x writes "According to Consumer Board in Finland, Sony should pay up 100 euros to a console owner for OtherOS removal. The board said that the removal of OtherOS crippled console features that were present at the time of purchase and agreed that consumers should be compensated. Sony tried to point out that the user agreed to the PS3 EULA, but the consumer board noted that such agreements can't go around consumer laws."

Diablo 3: 'We're on the home stretch', says Blizzard

Will Blizzard's elusive RPG make it out in 2011?.
Speculation's growing that Blizzard's long, long coming Diablo three-quel could make it out in 2011, as the developer reveals it's "in the home stretch" of development.

Click here to read the full article

Source: http://rss.computerandvideogames.com/c/674/f/8604/s/147b24a4/l/0L0Scomputerandvideogames0N0C2996690Cnews0Cdiablo0E30Ewere0Eon0Ethe0Ehome0Estretch0Esays0Eblizzard0C0Dcid0FOTC0ERSS0Gattr0FCVG0EGeneral0ERSS/story01.htm

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CoD: Black Ops Escalation DLC features 'Call of the Dead,' starring Romero, Trejo, Gellar, and more (Call of Duty: Black Ops)

The upcoming Call of Duty: Black Ops 'Escalation' DLC will feature a new mode called (and why hasn't this been used before?) 'Call of the Dead.' That much we knew, but now we have a trailer which reveals that - wait, what? - Danny Trejo? Sarah Michelle Gellar? Robert "Freddy Kreuger" Englund? Michael Rooker (Merle in AMC's The Walking Dead)? George Romero?! How many non-questions can we ask?! How you do this, Treyarch?

Source: http://www.gamesradar.com/pc/call-of-duty-black-ops/news/cod-black-ops-escalation-dlc-features-call-of-the-dead-starring-romero-trejo-gellar-and-more/a-2011042612256354002/g-20100430155446363032

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Thursday, April 28, 2011

Driver: San Francisco Screens

2 new shots posted.

Get the full article at GameSpot

"Driver: San Francisco Screens" was posted on Thu, 28 Apr 2011 12:00:01 -0700

Source: http://www.gamespot.com/pc/driving/driver-san-francisco/images.html?sid=6310571

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Jurassic Park game confirmed for Xbox 360

Simultaneous release happening this autumn.
Following on from its just announced Xbox 360 publishing deal, Telltale Games has confirmed that Jurassic Park: The Game will be coming to Xbox 360 alongside PlayStation 3 in a simultaneous release this autumn.

Click here to read the full article

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South Australia to introduce R18+ for games

UPDATE: South Australian Attorney-General John Rau says state will have adult rating for games regardless of unanimous SCAG decision in July; state to abolish MA15+ category.

South Australian Attorney-General John Rau has taken the R18+ for games issue into his own hands today, declaring that his state will introduce the adult rating regardless of the decision made by other states and territories at the upcoming Standing Committee of Attorneys-General (SCAG) meeting in July.

Currently, the introduction of the R18+ classification requires the unanimous agreement of all federal, state, and territory ministers. However, in March this year, Federal Minister for Home Affairs Brendan O'Connor told GameSpot AU that the federal government would be considering "other options" should the R18+ issue not reach a unanimous "yes" vote come July. O'Connor hinted at the possibility that each state and territory could adopt different arrangements should consensus not be reached.

South Australian Attorney-General John Rau.

This is exactly what South Australia has now done. According to Rau, the South Australian cabinet endorsed his proposal to introduce the R18+ classification for video games in the state, and at the same time, phase out the MA15+ category.

"I've been consulting very broadly on this [issue] for a year now," Rau told GameSpot AU today. "I've been listening to parents and gaming advocates, and I have come to the conclusion that both points of view are legitimate and need to be accommodated. Recent moves by the federal government suggests that there will be an R18+ classification for video games in some form after the July [SCAG] meeting."

Rau believes that the federal government has the capacity to go ahead with introducing R18+ for games without the unanimous agreement of other state and territories, something that he believes will happen, at least at a federal level, if unanimous agreement is not reached in July. If this happens, Rau says it will be up to each state to either adopt or reject an R18+ classification for games.

"Of course, it would be ideal to have a uniform national scheme. That's why we need to wait now to see how the federal arrangements will shake out. If there is a national opportunity to embrace R18+, South Australia will do it with the quid pro quo that MA15+ is eliminated as a classification and all games that are now rated MA15+ will be made R18+. This is what I want to happen in South Australia.

"We do this [different legislation in different states] with film now--the ACT and NT have different legislation when it comes to X-rated films compared to the rest of the country. This already exists and the sky hasn't fallen in. I don't think that it will be a problem if South Australia has a slightly different regime in respect to games than the rest of the nation."

The reason why Rau wants to abolish the MA15+ classification for video games in South Australia is because he believes that there should be a clear gap between content that is for children, and content that is for adults. He says the view that film classification can be applied directly to video games is wrong; firstly because films are not interactive, and secondly because while the idea of parental supervision in relation to film is justifiable, it is "ludicrous" when applied to video games.

"It is also important to note that there are some games that are rated MA15+ in Australia which are rated R18+ in other countries. At the moment there is an unbroken continuum from G to PG to M to MA15+ which includes some pretty violent games. What we want to do is make sure there is a clear gap between material for adult and material for children and empower responsible parents by making sure game classifications are helpful. No adult would be any worse off [with the abolition of MA15+ for games]; in fact, adults would be better off because there would be more games available in the R18+ category."

While Rau thinks that it is inevitable that R18+ for games will be brought out in either late this year or early next year on some level in Australia, his focus has now turned inward: the support of his cabinet means that what was once just Rau's opinion is now South Australia's opinion.

"The next step [for me] will depend on what happens in SCAG in July. Certainly, in order to implement R18+ for games here in South Australia there will need to be some regulation or possible statutory amendments made, but I don't think it will be hard to do this. We just have to wait until the federal position becomes clear."

UPDATE: John Rau's office has contacted GameSpot AU to expand on the Minister's comments. A spokesperson now says South Australia will definitely introduce R18+ in the state if the federal government first passes the adult rating at a national level. This will happen regardless of whether other state and territory attorneys-general reach a unanimous decision on the issue at July…s SCAG meeting.

GameSpot AU will be reporting live from the SCAG meeting in July. For more on the issue, visit our previous coverage.

Read and Post Comments | Get the full article at GameSpot

"South Australia to introduce R18+ for games" was posted by Laura Parker on Wed, 27 Apr 2011 22:36:31 -0700

Source: http://www.gamespot.com/news/6310534.html

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Wednesday, April 27, 2011

F.E.A.R. 3 delayed again

Warner confirms US and UK slips.
F.E.A.R. 3 has suffered yet another delay and will now be released in June, publisher Warner Bros. has confirmed.

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PlayStation Network down time cost studio 'thousands'

UK dev predicts ten percent drop in revenue when PSN's back online.
A UK-based PSN developer has predicted a backlash in gamer spending when the PlayStation Network finally comes back online, claiming it's lost "thousands" thanks to the last week's down time.

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Namco countdown appears... but is it Soul Calibur 5?

Let the speculation begin...
A Namco Bandai site featuring a countdown clock has appeared online, sparking speculation that it could be related to the recently talked-up new Soul Calibur instalment.

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We Didn't Know Personal Data Was Stolen Last Week, Sony Claims

PSN logo There has been no shortage of complaints that Sony should have alerted users sooner to the potential theft of their personal information. It was revealed earlier today that, after PSN was shut down last Wednesday, users' personal information -- such as their address, birthdate, and possibly even credit card number -- had been obtained by an intruder. Although the service was suspended last week, Sony contends it only just discovered the extent of the damage yesterday.

"There's a difference in timing between when we identified there was an intrusion and when we learned of consumers' data being compromised," Sony's Patrick Seybold wrote on the PlayStation Blog. "We learned there was an intrusion April 19th and subsequently shut the services down. We then brought in outside experts to help us learn how the intrusion occurred and to conduct an investigation to determine the nature and scope of the incident.

"It was necessary to conduct several days of forensic analysis, and it took our experts until yesterday to understand the scope of the breach. We then shared that information with our consumers and announced it publicly this afternoon."

Source: http://www.1up.com/news/we-didnt-know-personal-data-stolen-week-sony-claims

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Tuesday, April 26, 2011

Battlefield 3 gameplay now with commentary

Those of you looking forward to Battlefield 3 have another reason to look over the recent 12-minute gameplay video, which this time features the game’s executive producer Patrick Bach narrating. Bach’s talk-through highlights the realistic NPC animations as well as Battlefield 3‘s impressive lighting and environment interactivity as we eliminate a sniper, disable a bomb [...]

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/ThatVideogameBlog/~3/Lc6UJXzdnI0/

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UK CHART: Portal 2 sweeps to No.1

Mortal Kombat makes solid start in second place.
Valve's Portal 2 has hopped to the top of the official UK All Formats video games chart in its first week on sale.

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The Last Guardian Has of Course Been Delayed Again

From the Well, This Was Totally Expected Department: The PlayStation 3 game The Last Guardian will not be released this holiday season, Sony said Wednesday.

Source: http://www.wired.com/gamelife/2011/04/the-last-guardian-delay/

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Monday, April 25, 2011

Nintendo Announces Wii Successor for 2012

motang writes "Nintendo has officially announced the successor to the Wii. At its investors meeting, Nintendo said they have decided to launch the successor to the Wii in 2012 after the fiscal year, and will show it off and have a playable version at this year's E3."

F.E.A.R. 3 trailer looks at the back story

Latest moody trailer offers a plotline catch-up to those who missed previous episodes.
If you missed the first two games and the F.E.A.R. series and have no idea what's going on in the third game, the below trailer should help.

Click here to read the full article

Source: http://rss.computerandvideogames.com/c/674/f/8604/s/14668d1a/l/0L0Scomputerandvideogames0N0C2991840Cnews0Cfear0E30Etrailer0Elooks0Eat0Ethe0Eback0Estory0C0Dcid0FOTC0ERSS0Gattr0FCVG0EGeneral0ERSS/story01.htm

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