X Box - GoW gets a quiet update Only a few weeks after

GoW gets a quiet update

Only a few weeks after the last Gears of War patch, another patch was released yesterday and a mysterious one at that. There was no info regarding what the patch does exactly. Epic hasn't made any announcements and we wonder, what does the patch fix? The multiplayer glitches? Mark Rein said that the new patch is "a minor compatibility update. No gameplay or functionality changes at this time."

At least we know that the Epic guys are doing something about the problems. We just don't know which, but at the rate they're going, they'll probably get to fixing our Gears of War woes soon enough.

Halo 3 Dev update: In-game rendering
Details, details, details. Thus is the credo that Bungie's showing for Halo 3, which Frankie over at Bungie's main site reiterates with this week's development update.

This segment deals with Frankie's musings over in-game rendering, as he narrated his recent in-game experience. According to Frankie, his last play-through was beginning to show just how far detailing for even the most minor bits of environment were going. From the way rust lingered on the chain link fences to the random garbage strewn on the streets, Frankie was happy to report that the in-game "grime" was becoming more and more noticeable in their level of detailing.

Now, solid objects are one thing, but rendering convincing water textures are an even bigger challenge for a lot of developers. So how goes Halo 3's water effects? As Frankie further explained:

Hao and co. are still messing with water, and it s getting better every day. They re going to be dropping it into the areas where our (perfectly attractive) placeholder water is right now. You ve actually seen one of those areas in the pre-alpha shots of Valhalla. I can t wait, because I am Earth s most famous video game water geek. On the day it s dropped in, I am locking myself in the playtest lab with a pair of Wellington boots and an umbrella.

From every nook, cranny, and rust covered pipework, it seems the dev team is making sure to add in the layers of detailing to give this game that "right" feel that's a must-have for FPS titles (Like say, Resistance?). Yeah, we know - somebody out there is probably demanding to know how the actual gameplay (and hardware) is turning out - if you haven't signed up for Beta tests yet. Given that it's a Halo title, we're sure it's going to rock either way. With segments like this, the developer's telling us "A good game sweats the details!" Didn't Spielberg say something like that?

Mass Effect boxart and gender issues
Joining the ranks of Master Chief and Marcus Fenix, hero icon Commander Shepard is the main character of Mass Effect. Supposedly, that's him/her on the box art to your right. Although some of you might argue that he/she doesn't have the balls to take on the Halo and GoW icons, what he/she does have under his/her belt is a whole alien race to wipe out.

Ok. Hold up. Him-slash-her? No, we're not talking about transvestites here. It's been known for quite a while now, but for those who still aren't clear about the playable character options, we might as well spill the proverbial beans (again).

You'll be playing as Commander Shepard, true. But you'll be able to customize his/her person entirely. From facial features to job class, from gender to skill sets. It is an RPG after all. Well, FPS-RPG, to be exact, but RPG nonetheless.

Now, we're not sure if Commander Shepard is the guy/chick in the left, right, or center of the box, but regardless, that's one trio with a lot of balls.

Online GTA
If your'e looking for an online GTA and you have the computer games, Multi Theft Auto will suit your needs. It's online GTA 3, Vice City, and San Andreas.
chicken_chunks

Gears of War sells out at some Japanese retailers

Late last week, the globally popular Gears of War went on sale in Japan. If early early indications are to be trusted, then Gears, the very "American" game could, impressively turn out to be a surprise hit in Japan. The Senkablog reports that the title sold out at retailer Sofmap, and that the Gears demo at retailer a-Too drew a crowd.

Some of us here at QJ think that we have to credit those Japanese otakus that dig western stuff (Japanese folks who enjoy western styled games, as opposed to American japanophiles who squirm in glee at the sight of a white-haired, androgynous, svelte, anime male) for the support that Gears has been getting in Japan.

Some folks have noted that it would be amusing if it turns out to be a bigger hit than Blue Dragon. Other folks note that it would be even more amusing if Microsoft starts to think that due to the welcome that Gear's got, the way for them to get to the hearts of Japanese gamers is to make even more shooters!

Some of us here at QJ think that they (those Japanese gamers) don't really care if its a shooter or not. What matters is that the game should deliver a good story (hence the Japanese's love for RPGs), or have gameplay is that is innovative.