The game industry definitely needs lawyers, but it takes a specific kind to really understand the needs of the industry. It looks like law firms are finally picking up on that…and the money that the game industry is generating.

Link

Close combat was the most reliable method of creating engagement, adrenaline, reward, and all the emotions that make shooters so much fun. Certainly, this is nothing new to the genre, but the next-gen games that excelled in this area were exceptionally strong at creating high-paced close combat frequently.

• Expert analyst on Killzone 2 graphics: Undisputed Winner
  

Close combat was the most reliable method of creating engagement, adrenaline, reward, and all the emotions that make shooters so much fun. Certainly, this is nothing new to the genre, but the next-gen games that excelled in this area were exceptionally strong at creating high-paced close combat frequently.

• Expert analyst on Killzone 2 graphics: Undisputed Winner
  

Close combat was the most reliable method of creating engagement, adrenaline, reward, and all the emotions that make shooters so much fun. Certainly, this is nothing new to the genre, but the next-gen games that excelled in this area were exceptionally strong at creating high-paced close combat frequently.

• Expert analyst on Killzone 2 graphics: Undisputed Winner
  

But, you asked, what about the painted naked women? How could they not be returning? I got an answer.

Last year, winners of VGA awards were announced in a novel way. Instead of a piece of paper being produced from an envelope, a nearly naked woman painted to resemble or suggest a specific video game was produced on stage.

I spoke with Spike TV veteran and VGA executive producer Casey Patterson about this today and was told that the painted women won’t be back. But, she reminded me, Spike is a guy’s channel. You know what that means: “For any Spike show we do know that guys want to see beautiful ladies.” So beautiful ladies will be back. And it sounds like they might be wearing wings. One of the aspects of the show will be the creation of a gamer’s heaven with some “heavenly ladies” presenting awards.

Like all of that or not, gamers should note that this year’s show is designed to be more of a gamers’ show. Patterson said that the VGAs were originally pegged to be a gaming awards show with a celebrity focus. Not any more. “It’s less about celebrities [this year,]” Patterson said. “It’s more about world premieres.”

The VGA Awards will air on Spike on December 14.

Related Posts:
Jack Black, ‘Brutal Legend,’ ‘God of War III’ Gameplay Footage Debuting At Spike VGAs
Help Me Fill Out My VGA Ballot

Unfortunately, you’re going to have to, unless  “The Legend of Zelda: The Complete Series” is something you’re dying to see.

We sorted through Netflix’s list of video game (or video game-related) movies currently available to stream, and here’s what we found.

* BloodRayne
* BloodRayne 2
* National Geographic’s …Video Games: Behind The Fun
* Gamers [comedy]
* Super Mario Bros. Super Show: Mario of the Deep
* Pokemon: The First Movie
* Street Fighter Alpha [anime]
* Street Fighter Generations [anime]
* The Legend of Zelda: The Complete Series

It’s admittedly a pretty small list, but streaming — especially high-definition streaming — only recently became part of Netflix’s suite of services. In the coming months, expect Netflix to add more and more value to streaming. Hopefully, that means more video game movies. “Mortal Kombat” was good, you know.

Plus, it’s been too long time since I’ve watched “Double Dragon.”

Related Posts
Netflix Speaks Out On Sony Movies Disappearing From Xbox 360 Service — It’s Not A Glitch
Sony Pictures Says Netflix Streaming Issue ‘Not Specific To Xbox’

The concept of the video game genre is one which is both a blessing and a curse on the medium. Video game genres categorize and describe games, allowing players to easily guess what games they will like and allowing developers to use a successful and proven formula.

That latter aspect, however, is what makes genres a limiting concept. A genre, in this context, is really just a collection of game design elements: a perspective, a mode of interaction, a game structure, and so on. An individual game might benefit from most of the elements in a genre, but be better suited by a different choice of perspective or gameplay style. However, a designer who blindly follows a genre will miss that fact, and shoehorn her game into a genre just for the sake of fitting the template.

Few games utterly ignore genre. There is, however, a long-standing tradition of genre fusion: taking two or more established genres and combining them into a game that is neither one nor the other. ActRaiser, Sacrifice, and System Shock 2 are among the many excellent games that take this approach.

This allows developers to pick and choose from the design elements of multiple genres without abandoning the benefits of easy recognition by players. Marketing can refer to a game as a "FPS/RPG" and appeal to the fans of both genres. Especially well-done instances of genre fusion can spawn genres themselves; The Legend of Zelda was originally an action/RPG hybrid, but it's now regarded as one of the first examples of the action-adventure genre.

Puzzle Quest: Challenge of the Warlords is an excellent example of a game that mixes genres well. Created by Infinite Interactive in 2007, Puzzle Quest combines the color-matching puzzle genre with the RPG genre. As a pure concept, it's appealing: a strategic roleplaying game where battles are fought through a Bejeweled-like puzzle system.

However, what's remarkable about Puzzle Quest is that it actually works. Beyond being a high-concept novelty, Puzzle Quest is a good game. By looking at how it combined genres, one can get a deeper understanding of how to effectively create a genre-bending game.

Rune of Mastery

Part of Puzzle Quest's success is due to the skilled execution of both of its genres. The two game modes are sharply divided, with the exploration, questing, and roleplaying aspects serving as the high-level game mode and the puzzle game restricted to the battle system. There's never a point where the player is engaging in both game modes at once, so the experience is never confusing or unfamiliar. Remarkably, each game mode is a solid example of its respective genre.

The RPG mode presents a competent storyline involving the strange surge of undead in the world of Etheria. It helps that the game is set in the established Warlords fantasy universe. The player gains experience, levels up, gains spells and skills, and recruits companions. There's even a strategic aspect of this mode that allows the player to improve citadels and gain benefits from city upgrades. The quest structure is as compelling as many traditional RPGs, with plenty of side quests and optional objectives to pursue.

With the complexity of the RPG mode, it would have been easy to make the puzzle mode nothing more than a copy of Bejeweled match-3 gameplay. However, while the basic concept remains the same, Puzzle Quest adds an additional layer by assigning significance to the different kinds of game tiles. The basic goal is still to make rows of three or more by swapping adjacent tiles, but each type of tile yields a different benefit when matched. The overarching goal for each puzzle battle is to reduce the opponent's hit points to zero before they do the same to the player character, but the mana meters and special tiles mean that there is a strong element of strategy to which tiles the player should match in a given situation.

It's clear from Puzzle Quest's two well-executed game modes that the developers paid close attention to each genre. Instead of focusing on one game style and letting the other suffer, the developers made sure that each game mode is a solid example of its style of gameplay. This is a trap that is easy to fall into when blending game genres; even the classic Deus Ex has a weak FPS aspect to it. Running and shooting in Deus Ex is nowhere near as compelling as it is in, say, Half-Life 2, but both of Puzzle Quest's modes could hold their own against single-genre games.

A Perfect Match

The true cleverness of Puzzle Quest's design is how well the two game modes interact. The two modes are separate, but the player's actions in one mode affect the other. In the high-level RPG mode, the player collects equipment, skills, and allies which provide benefits and extra options in the low-level puzzle mode. In puzzle mode, the gold and experience tiles provide no immediate benefit, but they allow the player to buy equipment and level up in RPG mode. This interaction between the two modes is what makes the game a truly dual-genre title, instead of just an RPG bolted to a puzzle game.

The two modes interact so well because of the two specific game genres that the designers chose. The RPG genre already has a convention of a separate battle mode. In an archetypical roleplaying game, the player explores and interacts with characters in one mode, and battles in a separate, turn-based battle mode. RPG battles do not usually allow much freedom of motion or nuance of action, in contract to the often open-ended exploration mode. Because of this, it doesn't feel quite so jarring when the player runs into a skeleton and is suddenly dropped into a puzzle game. Experienced players of RPGs are used to being dropped into a simplified, separate mode of gameplay.

On the other side, puzzle games like Bejeweled often offer a segmented experience, where the gameplay is divided into levels loosely connected by a sequential or narrative structure. Super Puzzle Fighter II Turbo orders and structures its Tetris-like puzzle bouts as if the player were progressing through a fighting game, and Magical Drop III has a branching story mode. A version of Puzzle Quest without the RPG mode but with the same story concept is easy to imagine; this method of structuring the puzzle progression suits the puzzle game genre.

The Missive

In creating Puzzle Quest, the developers did not just pick two random genres and drop them into a blender. They chose two genres that would interact well together, with the puzzle mode serving as the battle "minigame" for the RPG mode, and the RPG mode serving as the narrative and dividing structure for the puzzle mode. The two genres were then linked so that achievements and actions in one mode affected the player's strengths and options in the other mode.

When creating genre-spanning games, developers should follow Puzzle Quest's example. They should choose genres that can interact well with each other, and look at places where the tropes of one genre can be exploited, as with Puzzle Quest's use of puzzle gameplay as a battle system.

Additionally, developers should not fall into the trap of believing that the novelty of genre fusion will make players forgive a shoddy implementation of the individual genres. An FPS/RPG hybrid need not be the best FPS or the best RPG, but it should present each genre in a way that it could at least hold its own against single-genre games. Combining shoddy implementations of two genres does not lead to a single good game, but a sort of shambling Frankenstein's monster. Puzzle Quest, on the other hand, is a true hybrid, taking two well-executed genre games and combining them into an even better whole.

[Gregory Weir is a writer, game developer, and software programmer. He maintains Ludus Novus, a podcast and accompanying blog dedicated to the art of interaction. He can be reached at Gregory.Weir@gmail.com.]

Nintendo's hard-on for region locking anything it can has just got a little more ridiculous, if one Australian gamer's troubles are anything to go by. According to an Aussie NeoGAF user, imports from Animal Crossing: Wild World to Animal Crossing: City Folk/Let's Go to the City are region specific, meaning a US DS card won't import to a PAL copy of the game.

Even more stupidly, it seems that DS AC cards bought in Australia won't actually work with the Australian version of the Wii game. A stupid sad cat merely whines at the unlucky Aussie: "Hrm? I don't think you have the right game card."

Basically, the "Australian" version of Animal Crossing: Wild World is the United States version. While perfectly acceptable on the DS, where cards are region-free, Nintendo's utterly needless region-locking of this import feature has basically ruined a part of Let's Go to the City for Australian gamers. According to a European gamer, this isn't a problem elsewhere in the PAL territories, but we'll see how widespread it gets.

Incredibly stupid and needless region locking like this is pathetic. I wish Nintendo would realize that it doesn't need to be this anal about making sure only certain people can play certain games. Many Western developers get along fine without forcing territory locks, a company as big and influential as Nintendo should grow up about it.

All Xbox 360 titles have a rather addictive feature called achievements which are unlocked through completion of game-specific challenges. Gamerscores reflect the total number of achievement points that have been acquired by each individual Xbox 360 user. Hidden within many of the achievement names are sometimes obvious but sometimes subtle sexual innuendos. Enjoy the first batch of suggestive Xbox 360 achievements I have uncovered from retail games starting with the letters A-F. And in case you haven’t figured it out yet, the subject matter contained in this article is adult-oriented. Proceed at your own risk.

Pound it out
There’s more than just in and out you know. There’s side to side too.
(All-Pro Football 2K8)

Punch it in there
Sometimes it won’t slide right in. Times like that require you to be a bit more forceful.
(All-Pro Football 2K8)

The first one is the hardest
It really is. Everybody knows it gets progressively more flaccid with each subsequent experience.
(All-Pro Football 2K8)

Cockpit Addict
Raise your hand if you’re not addicted to moist and accommodating cockpits. That’s what I thought.
(Alone in the Dark)

Faster
Almost there … almost … pound it out! … mmmmmm …
(Alarm for Cobra 11: Crash Time)

Preload Used
I know the preload doesn’t amount to much, but it’s still a shame to waste it.
(BAJA: Edge of Control)

Roll Over
You can totally hit different spots in different positions. Switch it up already.
(BAJA: Edge of Control)

Fuzz Off!
Keep that shit shaved. It’s easier that way.
(Banjo-Kazooie: Nuts & Bolts)

What’s That Smell?
Tuna. Learn to love it.
(Banjo-Kazooie: Nuts & Bolts)

Finishing Blow
Sometimes you don’t even get past the oral. And that’s ok.
(Battle Fantasia)

Don’t Eat Me!
Scratch that. Please do.
(Battle Fantasia)

Meowmeowmeow!
She’s calling you. I encourage you to answer.
(Battle Fantasia)

Super Drill!
And here I was thinking a regular drilling was good!
(Battle Fantasia)

Early Release
Oops. Try thinking of Bea Arthur next time.
(Blitz The League II)

IT’S ALL IN THE WRISTS
Everybody takes care of themselves regularly. It’s worth it to learn the proper technique.
(Bully: Scholarship Edition)

Super Long Shot
I would say anything over five feet would qualify for this.
(Cabela’s African Safari)

Check Out That Rack!
I’d like to do more than check it out, if you know what I mean.
(Cabela’s Trophy Bucks)

Down Boy Down
I got us up to a 68. Now it’s your turn.
(Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare)

Deep and Hard
“Just the tip” is a shitty game. Do it right or don’t do it at all.
(Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare)

Three of a Kind
Triplets. Enough said.
(Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare)

Sticky Fingers
A side effect of playing by yourself. FYI, doing it in the shower makes clean up a lot easier.
(Crash of the Titans)

Soaking In It
Somebody’s gotta sleep in the wet spot. If you’re soaking in it, chances are it was at least worth it.
(Crash of the Titans)

Going Down
Learn it. Live it. Love it.
(Def Jam: Icon)

Swinger
Sometimes you’re just popular. What are ya gonna do?
(Don King Presents: Prizefighter)

Cutting off the head
Lorena Bobbit’s got this one down. Hopefully your other half does not.
(F.E.A.R. Files)

The Bigger They Are…
Size matters. Anyone who tells you differently is lying or freakishly small.
(Fallout 3)

Beat yourself
Masturbation, God’s great gift to all of us.
(FIFA 08)

Screamer!
The neighbors hate you but at least you know you’re getting the job done.
(FIFA 09)

The Poon Sang
If you can get it to sing, I’m pretty sure it’s safe to say you are a god. Feel free to contact me if you need someone to confirm that.
(FIFA 09)

Welcome to the Suck
No, you’re not dreaming. Oh wait, yes you are.
(Fracture)

To be continued …

Thursday 4th December, 2008/… Games industry trade body ELSPA (the Entertainment Leisure & Software Publishers Association) today urged parents looking to purchase video and computer games for Christmas to always check the game’s packaging for the PEGI (Pan European Game Information) age ratings and content descriptors. PEGI age ratings appear on game packaging and are intended to protect children and help the public make informed choices when buying games for children. ELSPA believes PEGI empowers parents to make the right gaming choices for their children.

Games sold in the UK clearly display PEGI ratings - a pan-European gaming-specific rating system instigated and used by all the major games publishers across Europe. PEGI age ratings provide a reliable indication of the suitability of the game content for the protection of minors.

(more…)