Man this stuff is hilarious. Who else is watching?

I don't think there's a single GC game nominated for any of the big categories. The only good choice they made was giving Katamari Damashii a nom for best soundtrack.

Man, this show is awful. Hilariously awful.

According to a GAF member who's reading the book Game Over:

Quote:Yamauchi dropped the word karuta from the company name, which now became NCL - Nintendo Company, Ltd.- as the young president planned to branch out into new businesses.

The first product launched by the new company was a line of individuall portioned rice. Add water and - Presto! It was a dismal failure. Yamauchi then opened a "love hotel," with rooms rented by the hour. The business was, for Yamauchi, a personal passion; it was said that he was one of his own best customers (his infidelities were well known-- even by his own wife, who ignored them.)

I bet the PS2 version does poorly as well tho.

OB1, do you really think that consistently acting like an idiot is REALLY a good thing? Or funny or something? Because it's not...

I mean, joking sometimes is fine, but must you make "funny" comments EVERYWHERE? It's just dumb.

From the GA forums:

Quote:The Legend of Zelda: The Reins of Sorrow

KA Monthly recently had the chance to sit down with Nintendo producer/director Eiji Aonuma, who discussed with us some interesting details concerning the forthcoming Zelda title for the Gamecube.

The game, a sequel to 2003's smash hit The Wind Waker, will feature a new Link, one "whose personality thrives on his emotions." The game is also said to be more character-driven, with "Link having a deeper and introspective personality," one that reflects "the sheer magnitude of his determination and sense of solitude."

Gameplay elements were also discussed: "The game will feature an even larger world than the previous titles, so exploration will be the key." To traverse this vast land, Link will now have to set up camp and rely on a magical item: the reins of sorrow. "Link's new friend is a horse named Poseidon, whom he saves from drowning in a flood caused by a terrible storm. On Poseidon's back are the magical bridles, the reins of sorrow, which allow the horse to transform into various beings." Some 'beings' mentioned were an eagle and a wolf.


More details on The Reins of Sorrow will be reported as soon as they come in. Expect a summer 2005 release for the Gamecube.

http://www.snopes.com/message/ultimatebb...02219.html

Check out this discussion, and the links therein.

First off, some lady claims the Matrix creators stole her work. Then, it went to court, then it seems it was thrown out BUT she can amend the claim later. Now, it seems she's a loon or a liar... (she's saying she has evolved beyond normal humans to the point of not needing such trivial concepts as "evidence").

Anyway, until she proves otherwise, I'm calling her a liar.

Because EA just bought exclusive rights to make videogames using the NFL teams. Oh, and to the players and stadiums. And stats. For the next five years.

http://sports.ign.com/articles/572/572886p1.html

Quote:Only Game in Town
EA secures exclusive rights to NFL video games.
December 13, 2004 - Just when you thought ESPN Videogames was catching up, in one move, they've never been farther behind. Electronic Arts announced today an exclusive licensing agreement with the National Football League and Players Inc. to develop, publish, and distribute interactive football games. These agreements give EA the exclusive rights to the NFL teams, stadiums, and players for use in its football video games for the next five years.

You read that right…exclusive rights to the NFL teams, stadiums, and players.

Meaning no ESPN NFL 2K6, no more NFL GameDay, and bye-bye NFL Blitz. All football fans will be left with are Madden, NFL Street, and a new unannounced football management game that is in the works from, you guessed it, EA Sports.

"All of our data shows that there is a huge market for manager-style games," said Jeff Brown, Director of Corporate Communications for Electronic Arts, "and you could see a new type of football game from EA."

The agreement also provides the opportunity for new games and for EA to access both NFL Films and the NFL Network for use in the games.

"We are pleased to expand our agreement with Electronic Arts, the leading video game manufacturer and a valued NFL partner," said NFL Commissioner Paul Tagliabue. "We look forward to working with EA to continue to enhance the quality of NFL video games that our fans have enjoyed for many years."

"For more than a decade, EA has produced the most authentic football product for fans of the game" said Players Inc. Chairman Gene Upshaw. "This exclusive relationship will maximize the value of NFL players through EA's continued commitment to bring fans closer to the game."

"We are excited about the opportunity to further enhance our relationship with the NFL and Players Inc." said Larry Probst, Chairman and CEO of Electronic Arts. "The five-year agreements will usher NFL fans through the console technology transition with new ideas and innovative game play experiences."

The agreement covers consoles, PC, and handheld systems, as well as console online features. The agreement does not include other games available on the Internet or wireless devices, including cellular phones.

"We (EA) have proposed exclusivity several times in the past, but this year, in the spring the NFL had an off-site meeting, and they decided to consider bids for exclusivity," Brown told IGN in an exclusive interview. "Several bids were submitted but they accepted EA's. I cannot tell you how much this cost, but exclusivity is expensive, we are paying a premium. It wasn't cheap. I can tell you this, though, all parties all happy with this agreement, and Wall Street seems happy with it too."

Brown continued: "Look at what else EA has done, look at FIFA, PGA Golf Tour and NASCAR, we have exclusivity rights for all those licenses as well."

"The reason that you're noticing a certain vagueness to the language in the press release is because the license deals do not include smaller games such as Atari's Backyard Football; it's not subject to this agreement due to their numbers. And any wireless game or cell phone game is not part of the deal either."

Also not part of the deal are, obviously, non-licensed football games. The first company to come forward to IGN with such a game is Midway, makers of classic sports titles like NFL Blitz and NBA Jam.

Midway has hired the writer of the show "Playmakers" to develop a new title, Blitz: Playmakers. The game will feature everything the NFL hated about the TV show, including drug use, and off-the-field habits the NFL likes to pretend never happens.

According to an interview earlier this year with Street & Smith's Sports Business Journal, an NFL spokesperson confirmed that they were through working with Midway: "Midway has been quietly dropped in a 'mutual decision' as an NFL video game licensee after years of controversy over the level of violence in its NFL Blitz game."

When IGN contacted Midway about the rumored Blitz: Playmakers, a spokesperson confirmed the game's existence and told us: "Enough of the 'No Fun League'…it's now time to talk about and prepare for the game the NFL wouldn't let anyone make…Blitz the way it should be played."


The first image of Blitz: Playmakers. (below)

Whether or not ESPN, 989, and Microsoft follow Midway's lead and develop football games without the license remains to be seen.

On a scarier note for these same publishers, rumors are already circulating that EA is attempting to negotiate similar deals with the NBA and Major League Baseball. When IGN contacted Trudy Muller, spokesperson for Electronic Arts about these rumors, she told us: "We cannot speculate at this time about any further plans these other leagues may have."

An ominous sign for sports game publishers everywhere to say the least.

Check back to IGN Sports for the latest on this genre-shattering deal.

Is it?? Or is it just another Colosseum-type game with a watered-down "RPG" mode?

Probably the latter...


And if DJ comes in talking about how Colosseum was "TOTALLY a full RPG!"-- someone smack her for me please.

Quote:PlayStation Portable's tough birth
Published: December 10, 2004, 9:59 AM PST
By David Becker
Staff Writer, CNET News.com
TrackBack Print E-mail TalkBack

Sony's PlayStation Portable may ultimately live up to company promises of a "Walkman for the 21st century" that revolutionizes entertainment, but that's not going to happen next week.

The electronics giant is set to begin selling the handheld game machine in Japan on Sunday. But the PSP will arrive with a meager selection of games, none of the planned multimedia functions, a history of delays and questions about technical issues such as battery life.

Issues such as those add to Sony's challenges as it not only enters the handheld gaming market long dominated by Nintendo, but tries to define a new class of portable entertainment gadget.

"This is a really ambitious thing they're doing, talking about a combination device that's going to have competition from a number of directions," said Brian O'Rourke, an analyst for research company In-Stat/MDR. "It's going to be a real challenge for Sony to educate the market about what this can do."

Sony revealed plans for the PSP last year, positioning it as potential breakthrough machine that would do for digital media what the Walkman did for analog music.

But the PSP has been a difficult pregnancy, with Sony dogged by development and production issues that look likely to push back the device's North American introduction to late March and limit the Japan launch to 200,000 units.

Game publishers have also pushed back PSP titles, and the console will launch in Japan with only five available games. A Sony Computer Entertainment America spokesman said there are dozens more titles in development, however, and the company "is dedicated to continuing the PlayStation tradition of providing our consumers with the vast library of first- and third-party titles they have grown accustomed to."

A slim opening lineup of games shouldn't be a problem, O'Rourke said, as early adopters will snap up whatever PSP units are available the first few months.
Tackling the tech challenges
"The publicity of having a new product will carry them for a while," he said. "Then they really have to deliver the software."

While the PSP game roster is sure to grow--with dozens of titles in the works by Sony and third-party publishers--promised music and video support is less clear. As of yet, no music or movie studios, including the major ones owned by Sony, have announced plans to release content on the new Universal Media Disc (UMD) optical media format the PSP will use.

The Sony representative said "entertainment software of an entirely new category mixing game, music and video on a single UMD" disc, will be available next spring.

Schelley Olhava, an analyst for research company IDC, said that as long as the PSP has a solid game roster within a reasonable time, Sony can take its time exploiting multimedia capabilities.

"It's going to be like the PlayStation 2: People will buy it because it has games they want to play," Olhava said. "If other stuff happens, they've got time to phase it in."

The PSP will also have to solve some technical challenges, most notably concerns about battery life. Sony estimates that a fully charged PSP battery will be good for four to six hours of game playing.

But Sony Computer Entertainment President Ken Kutaragi acknowledged in a Japanese press interview last month that those estimates were for playing a simple puzzle or card game with the screen dimmed, speakers turned off and wireless connectivity disabled. Turn on all the bells and whistles and load up a graphically complex racing game, and the battery will drain faster. Nintendo's market-leading Game Boy Advance SP, by contrast, runs for more than 10 hours between charges.

The Sony representative said the company was confident the PSP's battery would be sufficient for most owners, but spare battery packs will be available.

EA concepts. From Magicbox.

NFS

Madden