Major Nelson: November 2007 Xbox Backward Compat Update

Microsoft is distributing the latest backwards compatibility update bringing the number of backwards compatible titles to just over 450. Of note there are quite a few of the Sega 2K sports titles new to the list, particularly ESPN NFL 2k5 what some gamers feel to be the best football game ever. Click the read more link for the complete list posted on Major Nelson's blog.

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A Little Conversation - Junkie XL and Making Music for Games

Tom Holkenborg, aka Junkie XL, received a lot of attention as a result of his remix of Elvis' "A Little Less Conversation" a few years ago. He has licensed music and written original scores for multiple videogames, including Forza, SSX Blur, Quantum Redshift, Test Drive 5, Burnout 2, and the Need for Speed series (Underground, Carbon, Pro Street). Read on for this thoughts about making music for games, artists using games as a promotional tool and how his involvement with games provides him with continued success.

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What I am thankful for

These awesome kids and my wonderful wife. Happy Thanksgiving!

Jade Raymond: Caught In The Crossfire

From Angry Pixel:
After a tasteless comic of Jade Raymond surfaced online, it looks like the person who delivered one of this year's best games is caught in a controversy that has most gamers pointing their fingers at perverted gamers and UbiSoft. The Angry Pixel looks at the issue from Jade's perspective and how people can make stuff up just because they can.

My two cents: I'm not going to comment on the comic. Haven't seen it. Don't care to. I am going to comment on the idea that Jade Raymond is where she is because she's pretty not because she has talent. While I am sure that it doesn't hurt to have someone attractive representing your game to the media, Jade has a proven track record in game development. It bothers me because if she were a guy, gender wouldn't be an issue. It bothers me because from my own experience people tend to make assumptions based on appearances and because of that I feel like I have to work harder than anyone else. If I am the best at what I do, then no one can say that I am where I am because I am this that or the other thing. Everyone should say that I earned it.

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Will There Ever Be One Console To Rule Them All?

From Gamasutra:

Recently, there has been talk about the idea of a standardized game console platform -- whether this would be unified hardware specifications or development tools. The article is a discussion of the following questions:

• Do you think it's possible that the video games industry will create a standardized (development or hardware) platform in the future?
  
• How would independent developers not benefit in a market with a single gaming platform?
• Isn't PC gaming already the "one gaming platform" standard? Or is this analogy not quite right?

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The Cal Marching Band's Amazing 16-bit Video Game Halftime Show

They run through a number of classic game songs, all while forming scenes from the games out of the band itself. It's got everything from Pong and Tetris to Zelda and Mario...

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Found: Three handled moss covered family gredunza

My son Tim is an awesome sport. Even when he's sick. Can't wait to show this pic to his prom date!

Study: 43 percent of parents don't play games with kids

Results from a survey by AOL and AP has found that over four in 10 parents simply leave kids to play games alone. Furthermore, 30 percent only play games with their kids for less than an hour a week, suggesting that 73 percent of parents take little or no active interest in their children's hobby.

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Call of Duty 4 - Gamespot Review

Really Red Hot Chili Pepper - ESPN College Gameday

Really Red Hot Chili Pepper

The Closing of EA Chicago: One Employee Speaks Out

Earlier this week, Electronic Arts announced the closing of their EA Chicago studio. EA Games President Frank Gibeau sent a memo to employees stating EA Chicago was unable to meet the company's standard for "staying on a reasonable path to profitability," so the decision came to axe the studio. EA Chicago was best known for developing the Fight Night and Def Jam IPs, which have since moved to other EA studios.
On Tuesday, a former EA Chicago employee who wished to be kept anonymous contacted 1UP about the closing and explain his heartbreak.

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Halo 3 hosts marriage proposal

Gamers have been meeting each other, dating, and popping the question in massively multiplayer online role-playing games for years now. Given how much that genre relies upon regular social interaction with a steady group of friends, it's natural for such bonds to form. Such anecdotes are less common in the world of first-person shooters...

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ABC News: Subway Romeo Meets Mystery Girl

Boy finds girl. Boy tries to muster courage to meet girl. Girl disappears into crowd. Boy posts webpage in hopes of finding her. And he actually finds her! And they go on a date!! You can't make this stuff up.

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Love on the 5 train

For Web designer Patrick Moberg, 21, from Brooklyn, it was love at first sight when he locked eyes with a rosy-cheeked woman while riding in Manhattan on Sunday night. She was writing in her journal.The train was so full that he lost her in the crowd when they both got off, so he set up a website dedicated to finding the mystery woman

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Which Would You Rather Lose, a $60 Videogame Or a Save File?

Clicking the read more link will take you to an interesting editorial on the idea of backing up game save data and the value of said data when compared to the price paid for a videogame.

My take: This seems like a non-issue to me. I don't value game saves as much value as wedding pictures, pictures of my kids and digital video of family get togethers. When my original Xbox hard drive died I was infinitely more upset that I couldn't just replace the drive than I was that I lost my 85% complete NFL2k5 VIP save. If my 360 hard drive fails, I'll get upset for a minute and then go out and get a new drive. The idea of having my game saves stored on a server would be sweet; I wouldn't have the clutter of drives and memory cards. However I wouldn't pay for that privilege. If I had 8GB of game save data, then charging me would make sense. Most game saves I think are less than 1MB, smaller than the videos on YouTube. For something that small, the service should be free.

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Penny Arcade goes live with Child's Play Charity 2007

Penny Arcade has officially kicked off their annual Child's Play charity to support Children's Hospitals all around the globe. Donate and help prove that gamers are only homicidal maniacs 10 months out of the year.

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Q&A: Tetris creator Alexey Pajitnov

The father of one of the most popular games of all time talks about his inspiration, his latest project, and how he feels about the fact that the game was originally property of the Russian state.

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Join the Video Game Voters Network Wall of Protest, Share a Photo

The Wall of Protest represents opposition to the government regulation of video games, and is composed of citizens who are standing up to the government's infringement upon this burgeoning form of interactive entertainment. Visit the site and add your own photo.



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