MCV reported yesterday that the UK is “beating Japan” in terms of software sales. According to their report, unit sales for the first five weeks of 2009 were up 37% over 2008. UK GfK-ChartTrack director Dorian Bloch, when asked about this phenomenon, had this to say:

“I haven’t got a crystal ball, but it’s very much a possibility that the UK will overtake Japan in terms of annual software revenue. Japan is certainly in decline at the moment, mainly down to the fact that everyone seems to have already bought a DS or PSP, so hardware sales aren’t driving software sales – although DSi is flying off the shelves. The very sudden decline of PS2 is also a factor. The Japanese market is about twice the size of ours, so there is room for manoeuvre in terms of people who had a DS four years ago and want a new handheld.”

Way to invoke the wrath of an army of giant, transforming robots, Dorian. Besides, call me crazy, but I don’t think that 5 weeks of data really warrants such a brash statement, especially when the country you’re planning on overtaking only has a slowing market because it’s saturated with people that already have the product. Maybe I’d be more inclined to believe that the UK was ready to overtake Japan if they had even half as many widely recognized developers as Japan does.

But hey, I wish them the best of luck. I’ll just be over here in America watching the rest of the world fight for the number two spot.

To celebrate how far behind I am in the news cycle, behold the trailer for Ultimate Alliance 2! If you’re like me, you’ve been waiting for this game since the end of the first one. Anyway, just a little quick post for now. Expect some meatier bits later.

As I’m sure you’ve all noticed, we’ve been going through several bouts of 503 errors. This is both good news and bad news for us: on the plus side, we’re generating enough traffic that we’re going over our bandwith limit. On the negative side, the site goes down and nobody can publish posts or even view the site at all.

To alleviate this problem, we’ll be switching to a new host. As a bonus, we’re going to be sponsored by (kinda former) MEGATONik writer Kel Cecil.

So… horray. Stay tuned.

A Colder War by Charles Stross and The SCP Foundation website can scare us in a nebulous, basal way that would make popular author H.P. Lovecraft proud.

The great priest Cthulhu—ruiner of worlds and devourer of souls, whose black wings silence the sun and whose tentacular maw drives men to madness—is in vogue.

H.P. Lovecraft, writer of horror and science fiction in the early part of the twentieth century, never enjoyed a terrific amount of success during his lifetime.  But in this modern time, when gore-horror and blatant exploitation—like that found in productions such as Saw and The Vampire Chronicles series—is most prevalent, Lovecraft’s bizarre, minimalistic, and subtle way of inspiring dread has begun to gather greater appeal and a wide audience.

Read more

So the demo’s been out for a while now and the Official Playstation Magazine has already published their review. I have to admit: it’s damnably fun. I’m a huge fan of co-op games because I’m both popular and so good at video games that people feel bad when they play against me. (okay, maybe I exaggerate. I have a good-sized group of friends and can play above average. [alright, you got me. I keep my mailman tied to the sofa so I have someone to play with, and he still manages to beat me even though his hands are tied to each other. And I cut off his thumbs.]) Hell, it’s probably even more fun if you’re a member of the Klan. Despite all this, I feel like Capcom is moving even further from what Resident Evil is meant to be.
Read more

Virtually everyone who has access to Xbox Live or a DS has had a chance to lose hours, and in most cases their soul, to Puzzle Quest: Challenge of the Warlords. The gem-shifting puzzle game is returning in the form of Puzzle Quest: Galactrix, albeit taking a turn from fantasy to sci-fi and trading in their old columns-and-rows system for hexagonal gem-based challenges.
Read more

Is the gaming industry slowly shying away from World War II as a setting for their productions? Rumors about the time-tested Medal of Honor franchise, the general success of Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare, and the sparse release horizon would suggest so. Such a move would be a good thing.

I am tired of World War II-based video games.

I realize that in the past, the setting has held quite an appeal for game designers.  It was marked by sprawling, gritty conflicts on land, over seas, and in the air; history has lost the names of many of those who died during the fighting, leaving room for developers to weave their own stories; there was a clear and detestable enemy in the Nazis and their allies.

Read more

After 2008’s E3, a lot of people predicted the downfall of the trade show.  It was not nearly as big and spectacular as previous shows, and there was a dearth of “big” announcements (save maybe Microsoft’s reveal of FFXIII coming to the 360).   Well, it looks like this year’s E3 (scheduled for June 2-4) will return to its previous form, letting in virtually anybody that can whip up somewhat decent credentials (hint-hint Nate!) and returning to the Los Angeles Convention Center.  So, hopefully there will be a whole lot less of Cammy Dunaway’s personal life, and a whole lot more games - and here’s a list of ten games that really need to harness the power of E3 if they want to be successful.
Read more

The beginning of the end has come. Friday night marked the start of the final wave of Battlestar Galactica episodes. By and far one of the most powerful episodes the series has to deliver. I was glued to the screen for every second of those 45 minutes, nervously clutching my teddy bear. It even pulled from me a gut-wrenching gasp that had my roommate thinking I was ill.

THE EPISODE WAS THAT GOOD. Spoilers frolic in a horde below.

Read more

No. Don’t believe this shit. The Blackberry storm is the worst product I have ever had the misfortune to lay my hands on. If you want a better smartphone experience, may I suggest:
Read more