This is much later than last time, but who gives a shit, right? Let's have some fun!
Last year I got four out of five predictions right, which I was quite proud of. This time I'm going to make some wild guesses, and I encourage everyone else to do the same. And don't write stuff like "OMG I bet Zelda will be playable!", because we already know that.
-Revolution: Right now I only expect to hear some specs (80% chance), maybe get a glimpse of the controller (20% chance), and possible, hopefully, a little demo reel of some games (60% chance).
-Mario 128: Fuck you, Nintendo, if you don't show off the game. You've been promising it for ages and just a month ago Reggie said that it would be shown at this year's E3. If it's a Revolution game (70% chance), I'm guessing that it will be shown really quick in video form (80% chance), and if it's a GC game (30% chance) it will be... playable, maybe (50% chance).
-New Nintendo handheld: I doubt this rumor. (5% chance)
-Since first-party GBA development has pretty much come to a stop, I'm thinking that Nintendo or other publishers might want to finally localize some of the games that haven't made their way over here, like Mother 1&2 (30% chance), Magical Vacation (5% chance), Goemon ports/remakes (5% chance), or some other stuff (50% chance).
-Awesome new DS games will be shown, like Four Swords DS (online)(70% chance), Final Fantasy III (80% chance), New Mario Bros. (100% chance), and Sonic DS (90% chance).
-Nintendo will show off some DS games that will utilize the system's capabilities in awesome new ways (60% chance).
-More awesome bongo games will be shown, and some like Odama will be given a name chance and a q3/4 release date (70% chance). I'm hoping that Jungle Beat 2 will be shown... PLEASE Nintendo (40% chance?).
-at least one big Nintendo franchise character being developed by another team, ala Star Fox, F-Zero, etc. (80% chance).
Well, the XBox is getting ready to phase out and bring in a new gen system, and of course Rare is there to keep the owners happy until they get the new hardware.
Conker's BFD is about a month or two away from release and it is without a doubt a beautiful remake of the N64 version with a much more detailed multiplayer setup, which is now online as well through the Live service.
The single player game is word for word, shot for shot from the N64 version, and for the first time I am intrigued about the XBox. Taking in to account that Perfect Dark Zero will never see the light of day on XBox; Conker's BFD is probably the only game worth buying on the console. Unless Rare releases a similar remake of Banjo~Kazooie... which I seriously doubt.
I know I love BFD, but the questions is: Do I buy a 'last gen' system for one awesome game? the XBox2 will be backwards compatible, so it would make more sense to buy a 'current gen' console. But what if the XBox2 delivers the same games as the XBox did? To me, the track record is obvious - Hundreds of games that are definitely not worth buying and even questionable as a rental... but the promise of the XBox2 or X-360, whatever you want to call it, is of course Perfect Dark Zero.
Those of you who know me, know how much I love PD. I'm a Perfect 1 and I can still take down a group of Darksims without dying :D
If PDZ is as good as PD... I might have to get an XBox2.
But then again, it could be one game out of hundreds that I would buy.
So what's your opinion? Should you shell out $350+ to get a next gen system for one good game? Be it Conker's BFD or PDZ, which I can only hope will be as good as the original...
Quote:Claim: Thief who tries to rob a gun shop is shot dead by those in the store.
Status: True.
Origins: Often, the various "dumb criminals" stories that come our way prove to be little more than fiction. This tale is an exception, in that it is relatively accurate, although some details of the event have been altered by whoever penned the "Darwin Awards" account chronicling it.
On 3 February 1990, David Zaback attempted to hold up H&J Leather & Firearms Ltd., a gun shop located in Renton Highlands near Seattle, Washington. About 4:40 p.m. that day, he entered the crowded shop and announced his intention to rob it by telling everyone to put their hands on the counter and saying if anybody moved, he'd kill them. He then spotted a uniformed policeman having coffee with Wendall Woodall, the shop's owner. What happened next is less than clear in terms of who shot first, but there was an exchange of gunfire between David Zaback, the would-be robber; Timothy Lally, an 18-year veteran of the King County police force; and Danny Morris, one of the shop's clerks.
Zaback, who had fired three times, was shot three times in the chest and once in the arm. He died in the hospital about four hours after the shooting. No one else was injured during the incident, and no charges were subsequently laid against Lally or Morris.
The e-mailed narrative holds up as a news item for the most part, but some of its elements have been altered to make for better storytelling.
Upon seeing the officer, the would-be robber announced a hold-up, and fired a few wild shots from a .22 target pistol. The officer and a clerk promptly returned fire, the police officer with a 9mm Glock 17, the clerk with a .50 Desert Eagle, assisted by several customers who also drew their guns, several of whom also fired.
Although the Darwinized account presents the encounter in the humorous light of a hapless robber waving a pop gun being felled in a hail of bullets by a mass of heavily-armed gun shop patrons, that wasn't precisely the way of it. Zaback's weapon was a .38-caliber semiautomatic pistol, not the .22 target pistol of the e-mailed account. The clerk, Morris, fired a 10mm semiautomatic pistol, not a .50 Desert Eagle, and the policeman, Lally, fired a 9mm semiautomatic pistol. As for the participation of others, according to Renton police Capt. Don Persson, although several other customers had guns and pulled them, they did not shoot — the only ones involved in the exchange of lead were Zaback, Lally, and Morris.
The robber was pronounced dead at the scene by Paramedics. Crime scene investigators located 47 expended cartridge cases in the shop. The subsequent autopsy revealed 23 gunshot wounds. Ballistics identified rounds from 7 different weapons.
It's unclear how many shots were fired, in part because some of the suspect's shots struck ammunition on a counter, causing the ammunition to explode. "There were slugs all over that place," Persson said. As for Zaback, he died with four wounds in him, one in the arm and three in the chest, not the 23 wounds claimed in the colorized account.
Yet one item of the Darwinized version one would otherwise suspect to have been the product of overwriting does indeed hold up: Renton police Capt. Don Persson said, "The surprising thing is that the man had to walk right past a marked police car to get in the front door."
edit: I don't mean that personally to any Red Sox fans who may or may not frequent this site (ABF), just that I (and apparently others) am getting sick of hearing about the Sox from every form of media known to mankind.
Quote:ATLANTA, Ga., (April 11, 2005) – The Collegiate Licensing Company (CLC) today announced an exclusive licensing relationship with Electronic Arts (NASDAQ: ERTS) to develop, publish and distribute interactive college football games. The six-year agreement gives EA the exclusive rights to the teams, stadiums and schools for use in its best-selling college football videogames. The agreement is for all videogame consoles including console online features and handheld devices. The first title under the new contract, NCAA Football 2006, is scheduled for release this summer. Financial terms of the agreement were not disclosed.
"When we began our analysis of the videogame landscape, it became apparent that EA SPORTS was best positioned from a marketing and development perspective to maximize the sales opportunities for college football," said Pat Battle, CEO of The Collegiate Licensing Company.
"Electronic Arts has been a tremendous partner, and we are thrilled that the EA SPORTS team has renewed its commitment to the college market. We look forward to seeing how EA will continue to grow its NCAA Football franchise through innovative game play, unique marketing programs and its dedicated sales force."
“EA SPORTS is currently our top non-apparel licensee,” said Mike Low, Director of Licensing at the University of Notre Dame. “Fans love the effort they put into making the stadium, the traditions, mascots and the whole game environment so realistic.”
“Our NCAA football franchise is a key element in our EA SPORTS brand lineup and we are pleased to have secured the NCAA license,” said Jeff Karp, Group Vice President of Marketing for Electronic Arts. “There is an unrivaled loyalty our fans have for the game, and this agreement with CLC allows EA to continue to deliver to fans the best, most innovative college football experience now and for years to come.”
EA’s NCAA Football 2005 was the only college football title released in 2004. Its NCAA Football franchise, published under the EA SPORTS™ brand, has sold more than a million units in each of its three most recent iterations and was the #7 console title in terms of retail revenue in North America in 2004. NCAA Football 2005, currently is available for the PlayStation®2 computer entertainment system, Xbox® videogame system from Microsoft, and Nintendo GameCube™. The game was developed by EA Tiburon based in Orlando, FL and rated “E” (Everyone) by the ESRB.
