It has been without a doubt a no contest that the 2K series has gotten the better of it's rival, the Live series. Just browse through forums and gaming review sites and you'll surely find lots of gamers losing interest over the Live series which was once considered by many as a great series during the 90s are now considered as trying hard and will never cope up with the 2K series.
I'm also an avid fan of the Live series since the 90s and even before the Live series - the NBA Jam. NBA Live was enjoying its reign over sports games back then and gamers are simply satisfied with what they have to offer in every year's release. And then came the NBA 2K series. For us gamers, it is a fresh start. A fresh new competition to give EA a run for their money. However, as each year's release goes by, the 2K series gets the better of the Live series in the most important part of the game - the gameplay. While EA has been constantly improving on the cosmetics of the game and the new features which don't even matter unless the actual gameplay has improved, 2K has found its way and earned the respect of the basketball afficionados out there.
Gone are the golden days of the Live series. In almost every site, you'd actually read tons of gamers reassuring you that the 2K series is better than its rival game.
To be continued...
Tuesday, August 19, 2008
Hardcore gamers dictating the trend of present and future gaming
Just after Nintendo's press release of the Wii, everyone was fascinated about Shigeru Miyamoto's latest legendary contribution to the world of gaming. In between Xbox 360's and Playstation 3's release, this console generated the most interest not just among gamers but non-gamers too. This was when Ken Kutaragi stepped down from the Playstation world and the gaming industry bashed Sony for their overpriced next-gen console.
Two years have passed, here we are after the Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots exclusive release on Playstation 3 and what many thought of as the fall of the Playstation proved to reciprocate. With the news about Wii 2 coming up and gamers demanding more of Wii's games, it's conclusive enough to say that hardcore gamers dictate the trend of present and future gaming.
Sure Nintendo has done its part recruiting non-gamers into our world but in reality, these so-called newbie gamers will head towards two different paths.
Case 1: Casual Gaming
Non-gamers who have shown interest in gaming bought Nintendo Wii most likely for non-traditional games. They will buy these games as long as they're non-traditional and will buy an estimated no more than a dozen games. Thus, they'll turn into casual gamers. Word of mouth, commercials, occassional surfing led them to seriously give gaming a try. And that's basically it. They will continue their presence in the gaming industry but will not make a huge splash that will make the game developers turn heads and start concentrating on making tons of games for them.
Case 2: Hardcore Gaming
While other non-gamers turn into games as a relief for stress, others begin to develop an intimate attachment to gaming itself and thus turning themselves into hardcore gamers. Although many dismiss that only a few of the overall population of gamers are of the hardcore type, I prefer not to believe in it and would like to stress that they are really what makes up the gaming industry today and not the casual gamers. These gamers will really spend big money on games, consoles and other gaming-related products. And with the large population as hardcore gamers, their demand is much more likely to be met first rather than that of the casual gamers. Better graphics, more hype, more gore, more sequels for their favorite franchise games. They dictate the tempo on where gaming is currently going and where it is headed in the future.
Better graphics or more sequels to follow... these are definitely some of the things which are constantly being worked on in the gaming industry. However, the gaming industry must also take a look at gaming in the non-gamers perspective and continue to support developing games that are for the masses. Hardcore gamers themselves and gaming review sites should also be wary and be open-minded enough to give casual gaming a chance and not just bash them thru poor ratings and knockdown reviews. After all, everyone started as a newbie gamer in their life as a gamer.
Two years have passed, here we are after the Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots exclusive release on Playstation 3 and what many thought of as the fall of the Playstation proved to reciprocate. With the news about Wii 2 coming up and gamers demanding more of Wii's games, it's conclusive enough to say that hardcore gamers dictate the trend of present and future gaming.
Sure Nintendo has done its part recruiting non-gamers into our world but in reality, these so-called newbie gamers will head towards two different paths.
Case 1: Casual Gaming
Non-gamers who have shown interest in gaming bought Nintendo Wii most likely for non-traditional games. They will buy these games as long as they're non-traditional and will buy an estimated no more than a dozen games. Thus, they'll turn into casual gamers. Word of mouth, commercials, occassional surfing led them to seriously give gaming a try. And that's basically it. They will continue their presence in the gaming industry but will not make a huge splash that will make the game developers turn heads and start concentrating on making tons of games for them.
Case 2: Hardcore Gaming
While other non-gamers turn into games as a relief for stress, others begin to develop an intimate attachment to gaming itself and thus turning themselves into hardcore gamers. Although many dismiss that only a few of the overall population of gamers are of the hardcore type, I prefer not to believe in it and would like to stress that they are really what makes up the gaming industry today and not the casual gamers. These gamers will really spend big money on games, consoles and other gaming-related products. And with the large population as hardcore gamers, their demand is much more likely to be met first rather than that of the casual gamers. Better graphics, more hype, more gore, more sequels for their favorite franchise games. They dictate the tempo on where gaming is currently going and where it is headed in the future.
Better graphics or more sequels to follow... these are definitely some of the things which are constantly being worked on in the gaming industry. However, the gaming industry must also take a look at gaming in the non-gamers perspective and continue to support developing games that are for the masses. Hardcore gamers themselves and gaming review sites should also be wary and be open-minded enough to give casual gaming a chance and not just bash them thru poor ratings and knockdown reviews. After all, everyone started as a newbie gamer in their life as a gamer.
Wednesday, August 6, 2008
Nintendo Wii 2 in the works?
With just two or three years under its belt, the Wii is rumored to be having an upgrade of its own with a new version aside from the Wii Music's additional peripheral which was first introduced last E3.
Links of the supposedly "Wii 2" are found on these sites:
http://www.gamespot.com/forums/show_blog_entry.php?topic_id=26524636&page=1
http://www.mcvuk.com/news/31424/Wii-2-in-production-confirms-Nintendo
Also, with the current success of the Wii, it is also rumored that Shigeru Miyamoto has ran out of ideas in terms of the new design for the Wii. While it is quite obvious that it is not at par with the level of the hardware specs of the Xbox 360 and Playstation 3, Nintendo targeted on encouraging non-gamers to play and enjoy using their newest console. However, as gamers progress and graduate with what we call "casual gaming", the obvious demand would be better graphics for the future games they will want to play.
Roadblock
Perhaps Wii has the most number of innovations that a game console has to offer and has taken a huge leap forward in terms of gaming and game development itself. And with this advantage of having everything in hand, it may also act as a double-edged sword in terms of the future of the Wii.
With the cost of the raw materials for creating a new console rising, it is a known fact that it is difficult to sell their console to the gamers with the real console not nearly what they had in mind to be.
But I believe Shigeru, just like Will Wright, the creator of the Sims and soon to be Hall-of-Famer game Spore, will definitely not give up and will continue to innovate their console and up the ante again. Sure enough, the Playstation 3 and Xbox 360 have a lot of room to grow. Aside from their absolute advantage on the hardware side against the Wii, they may also start to think of adding the motion sensor to their next-gen consoles. But I sure do hope that Wii will not only continue to cater to the non-gamers and casual gamers but also consider the hardcore gamers by upgrading their hardware.
Who knows, Wii 2 may not even require a Wiimote to play the game. But I think with the console currently having rumors for another upgrade, maybe the DS as well will be having one on its own first. After all, the idea of releasing and gambling for the Wii came from the huge success of the DS and DS Lite.
Links of the supposedly "Wii 2" are found on these sites:
http://www.gamespot.com/forums/show_blog_entry.php?topic_id=26524636&page=1
http://www.mcvuk.com/news/31424/Wii-2-in-production-confirms-Nintendo
Also, with the current success of the Wii, it is also rumored that Shigeru Miyamoto has ran out of ideas in terms of the new design for the Wii. While it is quite obvious that it is not at par with the level of the hardware specs of the Xbox 360 and Playstation 3, Nintendo targeted on encouraging non-gamers to play and enjoy using their newest console. However, as gamers progress and graduate with what we call "casual gaming", the obvious demand would be better graphics for the future games they will want to play.
Roadblock
Perhaps Wii has the most number of innovations that a game console has to offer and has taken a huge leap forward in terms of gaming and game development itself. And with this advantage of having everything in hand, it may also act as a double-edged sword in terms of the future of the Wii.
With the cost of the raw materials for creating a new console rising, it is a known fact that it is difficult to sell their console to the gamers with the real console not nearly what they had in mind to be.
But I believe Shigeru, just like Will Wright, the creator of the Sims and soon to be Hall-of-Famer game Spore, will definitely not give up and will continue to innovate their console and up the ante again. Sure enough, the Playstation 3 and Xbox 360 have a lot of room to grow. Aside from their absolute advantage on the hardware side against the Wii, they may also start to think of adding the motion sensor to their next-gen consoles. But I sure do hope that Wii will not only continue to cater to the non-gamers and casual gamers but also consider the hardcore gamers by upgrading their hardware.
Who knows, Wii 2 may not even require a Wiimote to play the game. But I think with the console currently having rumors for another upgrade, maybe the DS as well will be having one on its own first. After all, the idea of releasing and gambling for the Wii came from the huge success of the DS and DS Lite.
Monday, August 4, 2008
Playing Final Fantasy thru Emulators
Are you an avid fan of the Final Fantasy series of Square Enix? Or are you a burgeoning fan of the series?
If you are the latter, chances are either you've missed some of the early games of the series or you're missing them and you want to rekindle that good old-fashioned RPG.
Well, here is a list of what I thought of the methods wherein you can play any of the Final Fantasy series.
Emulators
If you have a PC, almost all of the Final Fantasy series are playable thru the help of emulators.
Final Fantasy I
Original: NES, GBA, WonderSwan
Where it can be played: Playstation X (Remake), Mobile
Final Fantasy II
Original: NES, GBA, WonderSwan
Where it can be played: Playstation X (Remake), Mobile
Final Fantasy III
Original: NES, WonderSwan
Where it can be played: DS Lite (Remake)
Final Fantasy IV
Original: NES, SNES, WonderSwan
Where it can be played: DS Lite (Remake), Playstation X (Remake), Moble
Final Fantasy V
Original: SNES
Where it can be played: GBA (Remake), DS Lite (Remake), Playstation X (Remake)
Final Fantasy VI
Original: SNES
Where it can be played: GBA (Remake), Playstation X (Remake)
Final Fantasy VII
Original: PC, Playstation X
Final Fantasy VIII
Original: PC, Playstation X
Final Fantasy IX
Original: PC, Playstation X
Final Fantasy XI
Original: PC (Online)
Final Fantasy XI
Original: Playstation 2
Final Fantasy XII
Original: Playstation 2
Final Fantasy XIII
Original: Xbox 360 (US version), PS3 (Japanese version)
Some things to note:
Playstation X can be played thru emulators either on PC or Sony PSP or thru Playstation 2. I think Playstation 3 is also backward compatible upto Playstation X though I'm not so sure about it.
Playstation 2 can be played thru emulators on PC. As of this writing, only a few PS2 games are working on the PS2 emulators for the PC that I know of though I haven't really tried it yet.
DS can be played thru emulators via PC.
WonderSwan, GBA, NES and SNES can be played thru emulators either on PC, Sony PSP or anything that has the Java application on it. I've tried running it via my Sony k750i mobile phone and it worked (NES I should say).
Sunday, August 3, 2008
How to download streaming files via BitComet on your browser
Oftentimes, you'd like to download streaming videos which are a great help for you though you end up bookmarking the actual site to revisit it again. However, it still requires you to go online and stream the video again.
Even if the code for downloading the video is not seen unlike YouTube, you'll still be able to download it with the help of BitComet. Just enable the feature in which BitComet is an option to consider when you perform the right click functions on your browser during installation.
To download, just right click on any portion of the webpage except inside the streaming video. Then choose Download Media Files and then choose the title of the video you'd like to download. Afterwards, a pop-up dialog box will then ask you on where you'd like to save the file.
And that's it. You can view the file which is quite often a flash video in VLC player or any other players allowing the option to view files with FLV as an extension name.
Even if the code for downloading the video is not seen unlike YouTube, you'll still be able to download it with the help of BitComet. Just enable the feature in which BitComet is an option to consider when you perform the right click functions on your browser during installation.
To download, just right click on any portion of the webpage except inside the streaming video. Then choose Download Media Files and then choose the title of the video you'd like to download. Afterwards, a pop-up dialog box will then ask you on where you'd like to save the file.
And that's it. You can view the file which is quite often a flash video in VLC player or any other players allowing the option to view files with FLV as an extension name.
Saturday, August 2, 2008
Phidias in DS Lite Download
I would like to share the Phidias application I've downloaded a few months ago which is a heck of an application in DS Lite. I hope the developer continues to pursue this because it is a lot of fun to use and it is very much the alternate of a Wacom tablet.
If you want to, just leave your email in the comments and then I will send you the NDS rom of the homebrew app Phidias.
Have fun drawing! Here's a sample of how to draw via Phidias on YouTube:
If you want to, just leave your email in the comments and then I will send you the NDS rom of the homebrew app Phidias.
Have fun drawing! Here's a sample of how to draw via Phidias on YouTube:
Fun with Canon's Color Accent
I recently got addicted to the Color Accent feature of the Semi-automated Scenes Setup of my Canon S3IS Powershot.
What it does is it lets you choose a color you want to capture in the photo besides the black and white. To briefly explain it all, just watch the effects made in the movie "300". The movie is black and white with red being the dominant color.
How to use the Color Accent feature:
1) Go to the SCN feature of the knob of your Canon camera.
2) Press the left or right arrows to navigate until you have activated the Color Accent option. Other options aside from Color Accent include Color Swap and Fireworks.
3) Press the SET button, this will allow you to choose the color you want to be dominating in your photo. Press the left arrow to choose in the color set with the small square at the center of your screen as your guide with picking the color you want. Press the SET button again to accept the changes.
Notice that in the LCD screen, you will be automatically see the difference. Here are a few photos I've captured using Color Accent. Have fun with it!
What it does is it lets you choose a color you want to capture in the photo besides the black and white. To briefly explain it all, just watch the effects made in the movie "300". The movie is black and white with red being the dominant color.
How to use the Color Accent feature:
1) Go to the SCN feature of the knob of your Canon camera.
2) Press the left or right arrows to navigate until you have activated the Color Accent option. Other options aside from Color Accent include Color Swap and Fireworks.
3) Press the SET button, this will allow you to choose the color you want to be dominating in your photo. Press the left arrow to choose in the color set with the small square at the center of your screen as your guide with picking the color you want. Press the SET button again to accept the changes.
Notice that in the LCD screen, you will be automatically see the difference. Here are a few photos I've captured using Color Accent. Have fun with it!
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