LUCID FORGE

Again, like the Lucid Comics column, I apologize for the lateness of this Lucid Gaming segment, but it’s been a busy week for me. Of course, July’s not a busy month for gaming, the presumption being that maybe in the summer months players are perhaps enjoying some sunshine out of doors, probably playing their PSPs or DSes. Still, there’s a lot going on as the industry looks to the Fall and the race for Christmas bucks. Oh, and let us not forget that E3 takes place in Los Angeles later this month.



Table of Contents:

In the News
Funland Closing
Excitement building over E3
Same old, same old, when it comes to gamers

Previews
Quantum of Solace
World of Warcraft: Wrath of the Lich King

Reviews:
Space Invaders Extreme - PSP & DS
Alone in the Dark - X-Box 360

New Releases


In the News


Funland Closing

Nearly a year after that other Yonge Street institution, Sam the Record Man, closed its doors for good another landmark is facing a similar fate. By the end of the month, Funland Arcade at 334 Yonge, near Dundas, will pull the plug after 34 years of business in that location. The Toronto Star had an interesting and insightful article about the closing in this past Saturday’s edition. Started in 1962 by entrepreneur Peter Budd, the 5,000 sq. foot facility hosted aisle after aisle of carnival style shooting games and pin ball machines, but later evolved to include the first computer arcade games including mega hits like Pac Man, Donkey Kong and Space Invaders. Peter Budd had a heart attack in 1976 but his son Stan left his law practice to take over the business at a time that coincided with the video game boom of the late 70s and early 80s. “Arcade cabinets brought in a younger, more sophisticated and diverse crowd than we were used to before, including Ryerson students, businessmen and civil servants from City Hall,” recalled Stan Budd to Marc Saltzman, who wrote the article for The Star. Believe it or not, Budd says that the reason his arcade is closing has nothing to do with the rise and prominence of home consoles like Nintendo and Playstation, and more to do with the fact that arcade game manufacturers aren’t making their wares anymore. At its peak, according to The Star, Funland has 225 games, now it only has 81. “We could have stayed in the business because of where our location is, and because we own the building, but there weren't any new games, therefore there's little reason for customers to keep coming.” Funland will close its doors for the last time on July 25th. Its classic arcade and pinball games will be auctioned off at a future date.

Excitement building over E3

There’s a flurry of speculation and expectation as the countdown to E3 begins. The electronics trade show is scheduled to begin July 14th in Los Angeles.



Primary among those rumours is that Microsoft will soon announce a price cut for the X-Box 360 game system, and E3 may be the place to do it. The system currently sells for $349 USD, but insiders say that the company will, "in the coming weeks," slash the price-point by $50 to $299, which will bring the X360 more in line with the cost of Nintendo’s Wii ($250 USD) and cheaper than Sony’s Playstation 3 ($299 USD). The 360 has been outpaced by the Wii in sales since the latter’s release. It’s unknown if Sony is planning a price cut of their own.

The Dallas Morning News had a brief preview of E3 highlights this past weekend. Amongst some of the name games expected to be unveiled include Gears of War 2 and Rock Band 2 for Microsoft and Resistance 2, LittleBigPlanet and Killzone 2 are potentials for Sony. Meanwhile, Nintendo will be demoing the baseball game Super Mario Slugger and rumours persist that a new title in another Nintendo franchise may be announced, something from Metroid or Zelda, perhaps. In gadgets, there’s buzz that Sony will preview the PSP phone, think iPhone with an emphasis on gaming.

Most importantly, it seems that industry watchers are considering this a make or break year for E3, especially after the ramshackle operation last year which saw the convention offerings spread out across the city of Los Angeles. This year, the convention is back under one roof, but there have been rumours that some big-name publishers are dropping their membership in the Entertainment Software Association, the group that organizes E3, with further rumblings that E3 might have outlived its usefulness.


Get news about E3 at their official website: http://www.e3expo.com/
or you can head over to their media partner Game Trailers at: http://www.gametrailers.com/?e3i=1


Same old, same old when it comes to gamers

The San Jose Mercury News last week had an article discussing the fact that despite the 25 million sales in total units of all three major video game consoles, there are actually very few, new gamers buying into the market. This means that the people buying Wii, X-Box 360 and Playstation 3 are all people who have previously owned their predecessor systems.

“We're looking at very slow growth,” said David Klein, executive vice president of Centris, a Los Angeles research firm. Companies like Klein’s have calculated that 40 to 42 per cent of U.S. households are using at least one game console. According to some of this research, that represents little or no growth in recent years even though the industry is looking to top last year's record $18 billion in sales by $3 billion to $5 billion, according to the market research firm NPD.

Centris measures the current percentage of homes with consoles at 40, which is unchanged from this time in 2006, and up by just 1 per cent over 2005. Adams Media Research meanwhile puts the percentage at 40.9, which by their calculations is up from a 2005 figure of 36.3. It’s been believed that the user-friendly Wii and add ons like Playstation 3’s Blue Ray compatibility might bring in a new audience for video games, but this appears to not be the case.

“The problem with any consumer survey of that nature is you can get all kinds of wacky results when you try and extrapolate out to (the) U.S. as a whole,” industry analyst David Cole of DFC Intelligence told the Mercury by e-mail. “You can look at how much the console systems actually sell, but that doesn't account for duplicate households," Cole said. “If you look at most new console purchases today, they are going into households that already own a game system from a previous generation (yes, even Wii buyers).”


Previews


Quantum of Solace

Gamespot has a preview for PS3’s upcoming game Quantum of Solace, which is based on the twenty-second James Bond adventure being released this Fall. The game, which will be the first to feature the Daniel Craig version of Bond, will be a combination of the stories of both Solace and its predecessor Casino Royale. Gamespot reviewer Ricardo Torres got the chance to demo three levels from the game.

“The gameplay appeared to be solid across all three levels that we saw. What stood out to us were the shifts between first- and third-person perspectives, which happened often. The basic logic is that you'll play the game in first person but the perspective will switch to third person at certain points, such as when you take cover or engage in melee combat. It's an interesting wrinkle to the action, but we're not sure how we feel about it, considering that it may make gameplay a bit too disjointed. Nevertheless, we'll reserve judgment until we play it ourselves. The rest of the gameplay was pretty straightforward and seemed fine. The action and stealth sequences look good. The stealth-kill and melee system look satisfying and seem as if they'll be pretty easy to handle. The assorted weapons are what you'd expect and should suit the action fine. It's also worth noting that the action in the game will revolve around Bond on foot and won't include any car sequences.”

For more, go to: http://www.gamespot.com/ps3/action/jamesbondprojectworkingtitle/news.html?sid=6193300&mode=previews


World of Warcraft: Wrath of the Lich King

On the game site IGN.com, they have a number of previews of the forthcoming expansion pack for one of the biggest online gaming phenomenons.

“Want to know what you'll be up to in the next WoW expansion's endgame? Look no further. Blizzard have been demonstrating a few of their upcoming dungeons at this year's Worldwide Invitational in Paris, and non-linearity seems to be the name of the game. First in the limelight was the Occulus, a level 80 affair in the Borean Tundra in Coldarra. Visually, it looks like a stack of Halos, suggesting that the vague sci-fi feel of much of The Burning Crusade hasn't gone away. Its play-style - well, that's the really good news. The Occulus will be the first mounted combat dungeon - you'll be flying around atop winged Drakes, of which there's selection with different abilities. You might want the ultra-damage Drake, or maybe you'll want the healing focused one. Whichever, it's very much fresh territory to WoW, and right now the single most compelling reason to reach level 80 as soon as possible.”

Read more here: http://pc.ign.com/articles/885/885162p1.html


Reviews

Space Invaders Extreme – PSP & DS “Space Invaders offers a nice package, though it would’ve been a blast to take on the more difficult arcade stages with some co-op. But it’s hard to dwell on that when the new enemy attack patterns demand more tactics and the boss battles offer a nice twist on the classic gameplay. At a budget price, the difficulty and high score attempts offer an addictive element great for marathon sessions or quick pocket play.” – GameTrailers.com “At a $20 price point, Space Invaders Extreme is an absolute steal for DS/PSP owners out there. There's a lot of hidden depth to the single player experience, and you'll get a decent amount of use from the multiplayer aspect as well. I highly suggest picking this one up, even if you were never a big Invaders fan to begin with. It's a great game that just about anyone can pick up and play without feeling intimidated in the least bit.” – Gaming Age

Alone in the Dark – X-Box 360 “Here another problem crops up. The cars handle extremely poorly, sometimes comically so. Worse, Alone in the Dark also boasts three forced driving sequences, one of which is a strong contender for the worst driving sequence in the history of "Let's put a driving sequence in our action/adventure game" driving sequences. It's an exciting and ambitious scene, and would be great except that you have to interact with it. This one little part of the game packs more bugs and glitches than you can shake a QA tester at, complete with cinematic camera cutaways that still expect you to be controlling the car while they're playing. Plus, none of the forced driving sequences feature checkpoints; you do them in one go or you do it over. These sections will likely make many players glad the DVD menu system allows skipping.” – G4 X-Play “If only the solutions were as organic as the methods. Most situations have exactly one way out...and with the necessary materials always right where you need them, it's not too hard to guess your way out of most problems. Perhaps the biggest double-edged sword is the complete reliance on fire to truly finish off most enemies in the game -- it makes for some clever puzzles when you don't have it handy, but also artificially extends most battles when you just want the damn monster to die already. And considering how much work went into making sure that fire propagates realistically over flammable surfaces - and it does - next to nothing is done with this potentially neat game mechanic.” – 1up.com

New Releases


Legend:
Title (Genre/Studio) – Platform

July 2nd

Supreme Ruler 2020 (Strategy/Paradox Interactive) - PC
Elements (Puzzle/MumboJumbo) - PC
Soulcalibur (Action/Namco Bandai Games) - X360
Dungeon Runners PC Role-Playing NCsoft
Hail to the Chimp (Action/Gamecock Media Group) – X360
Trauma Center: Under the Knife 2 (Adventure/8.5 Atlus Co.) - DS

July 3rd

The Immortals of Terra: A Perry Rhodan Adventure (Adventure/Viva Media) - PC
Fading Shadows (Puzzle/Agetec Inc.) - PSP
AMF Bowling Pinbusters! (Sports/Bethesda Game Studios) - DS
1 vs. 100 (Puzzle/DSI Games) - DS
Baseball Mogul 2009 (Sports/Strategy First) - PC
Ducati Racing (Driving/Bethesda Game Studios) - DS

July 7th

Unreal Tournament 3 (Action/Midway) - X360
Nancy Drew: The Phantom of Venice (Adventure/Her Interactive) - PC

July 8th

Sid Meier's Civilization Revolution (Strategy/2K Games) – PS3
Ghost Online (Role-Playing/Game Flier) - PC
Wonder World Amusement Park (Action/Majesco Games) - Wii
Carnival Games (Action/Global Star Software) - DS
Devil May Cry 4 (Action/Capcom) - PC
Final Fantasy Fables: Chocobo's Dungeon (Role-Playing/Square Enix) - Wii
Sid Meier's Civilization Revolution (Strategy/2K Games) – X360, DS
Beijing 2008 - The Official Video Game of the Olympics (Sports/Sega) – X360, PS3

July 11th

Purr Pals (Puzzle/Crave) - Wii
Sports Party (Sports/Ubisoft) – Wii

July 14th

Yamaha Supercross (Driving/DSI Games) – PC, Wii, DS, PS2
Code Lyoko: Quest for Infinity (Action/Game Factory) - PSP
1701 A.D. Gold Edition (Strategy/Ubisoft) - PC

July 15th

Space Chimps (Action/Brash Entertainment) – Wii, DS, PS2, X360
Deadliest Catch: Alaskan Storm (Sports/Navarre Corp) - PC
Rock Band Track Pack Vol 1 (Puzzle/Electronic Arts) – PS2, Wii
Puchi Puchi Virus DS (Action/NIS America) - DS
The Golden Horde (Strategy/JoWood Productions) - PC
NCAA Football 09 (Sports/Electronic Arts) – PS2, PS3, PSP, X360, Wii
Nancy Drew: The Mystery of the Clue Bender Society (Adventure/Majesco Games) - DS
Mister Slime (Action/SouthPeak Interactive) - DS
B-Boy (Action/SouthPeak Interactive) – PSP, PS2
Hunting Unlimited 2009 (Sports/ValuSoft) - PC
City Life 2008 Edition (Strategy/5.0 Paradox Interactive) - PC
We Love Golf! (Sports/Capcom) - Wii


July 22nd

Order Up! (Action/Green Screen) - Wii
New International Track & Field (Sports/Konami) - DS
Kidz Sports: Crazy Golf (Sports/Destineer) - Wii
Izuna 2: The Unemployed Ninja Returns (Role-Playing/Atlus Co.) - DS
The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor (Action/Sierra Ent.) – PS2, Wii, DS
Final Fantasy IV (Role-Playing/Square Enix) - DS

July 28th

MLB Power Pros 2008 (Sports/2K Sports) – PS2, Wii

July 29th

Soulcalibur IV (Action/Namco Bandai Games) – PS3, X360
Summer Athletics (Sports/DTP Entertainment) - Wii
Puzzler Collection (Puzzle/Destination Software) - DS
Romance of the Three Kingdoms XI (Strategy/Koei) - PC
Everlight (Adventure/Atari) - PC
Beijing 2008 - The Official Video Game of the Olympic Games (Sports/Sega) - PC
Spectral Force 3 (Role-Playing/Atlus Co.) – X360
Ford Racing: Off Road (Driving/Strategy First) - PC

July 30th

Double D Dodgeball (Action/Yuke's Company of America) - X360
Air Traffic Chaos (Simulation/Majesco Games) - DS

July 31st

American McGee's Grimm (Adventure/GameTap) - PC
Build in Time (Strategy/Reflexive Entertainment) - PC

Also in July

LaTale (Role-Playing/OGPlanet) - PC
Age of Empires III: The Asian Dynasties (Strategy/MacSoft) - MAC
Mage Dice* (Puzzle/Microsoft) - X360
Enigma 7 (Puzzle/Gameinvest) - PC
Concerto Gate (Role-Playing/OnNet) - PC
Strong Bad's Cool Game for Attractive People (Adventure/Telltale Games) – Wii, PC
Touch Darts (Sports/Agetec Inc.) - DS
Schizoid (Action/Torpex Games LLC) – X360

*working title