PS2J 323 News – 10 23 2020

Reminder: Get your flu shot, if you can!

Free Games

  • Twitch

    • Stick it to the Man! (free on Epic last month)

      • 2013
      • Indie adventure platformer that puts you in the role of Ray, a hard hat tester that suffered a bizarre accident and woke up with a giant pink spaghetti arm sticking out of his brain. With his awesome new powers he can read minds and change the world with stickers but he’s on the run for a crime he didn’t commit.
  • Epic Games

    • Costume Quest 2

      • 2014
      • Action RPG from Double Fine that has players assuming the identity of one of two twin siblings, Wren or Reynold. Explore spooky time-traversing landscapes, don adorable new costumes that transform into powerful Hallo-warriors, and collect even Creepier Treat Cards to wield in combat against a legion of hygiene obsessed baddies.
    • Layers of Fear 2

      • First person psychological horror game with an emphasis on exploration and story. Players control a Hollywood actor who heeds the call of an enigmatic director to take on the lead role in a film shot aboard an ocean liner.

The US Department of Justice has filed a lawsuit against Google for antitrust violations, after a 16 month investigation into anticompetitive practices in tech

  • With how much control and breadth Google holds over the technology landscape right now, from search to email to cloud storage to mobile to collaboration tools to streaming video to web browsers… it’s a lot
  • The DOJ is alleging that Google uses their position to block competition and prevent rivals from getting a foothold in any of their related businesses, including deals that make its search platform the default on iPhones and Android
    • Android devices can’t even delete the Google Search app
  • The lawsuit also mentions Google’s advertising practices within its search business, controlling over 70% of the search advertising market, 80% of general searches, and 95% of searches from mobile devices
  • Kent Walker, a Google Senior VP, said the lawsuit is “deeply flawed” and “would do nothing to help consumers”, noting that people use Google because they choose to and that users can change their default settings to use alternative services
  • I could see this resulting in, at the very minimum, phones and browsers giving you a selection of search engines at setup instead of always defaulting to Google. Duck Duck Go has been a great alternative, but even I didn’t think to switch my default settings for a long time
  • Depending on how this case goes it could result in a lot of other government actions against tech companies, including Facebook, Amazon, and Apple

Ahead of the next-generation of Xboxes next month, the Xbox app on iOS has been updated with Remote Play

  • Similar to Sony’s PS4 Remote Play feature, this has the games being played on your own Xbox using a Bluetooth controller paired to your phone, with audio and video streamed to your device
  • It’s pretty slick and even supports play outside of your own Wifi network, so you can have a full Xbox experience on the go wherever you are as long as you have a data connection
  • When the connection is first made you have to boot up your console to enable the feature, and it will run through a few tests to make sure things will work smoothly, but then when you use it your Xbox will run silently with no indication it’s being played- no power light or startup chime
  • Unfortunately at the moment it seems like there’s an audio glitch on some devices, where the sound coming through the phone is choppy and distorted, but a fix is in the works and once they release that everything else seems great- visuals are clear, and latency is minimal
  • One neat feature though is that when the console is being played remotely it looks like you can still play it locally as well, so depending on if that’s a bug or a feature we could see couch co-op games played from anywhere with a cell signal

It looks like Xbox All Access is coming to Canada as well, offering a Series X and 2 years of GamePass Ultimate for $40/month, or a Series S for $30/month with no interest

  • All said, assuming you’d have paid for full-price GamePass anyway the plan saves you $40 on the X and $60 on the S
  • One thing to note is that Game Pass Ultimate maxes out at three years, so if you already have more than a year banked you’ll want to wait before redeeming the included 2 year code
  • All Access should be available at launch on November 10th

NBA 2K21 has apparently added unskippable ads to their full-price game, on top of all the microtransactions and gambling they’ve already shovelled in

  • Ads for the Oculus Quest 2 have reportedly appeared during loading screens, regardless of how long the game actually takes to load, with the button to proceed disabled until the ad plays in full
  • This is on top of having paid $70 for the game, and being charged extra if you want to upgrade to the next-gen version coming next month
  • This might sound like familiar ground, with EA having done something similar by adding ads to UFC4 and its replays, but that move drew so much fire that they quickly reversed course and removed them
  • Time will tell how long it takes 2K to do the same

One day after launching their Apple TV app, short-form video service Quibi is shutting down

  • In case you missed it, in the 6 months it existed, the idea behind Quibi was to be like Netflix but for quick 5-10 minute videos for about $5/month
  • It also had a gimmick where you could switch your phone between landscape and portrait while you watched and the video stream would adjust accordingly, showing you video formatted for that orientation
  • Unfortunately it failed to really take off, aiming for people waiting for coffee or on the bus but launching right when the pandemic initially hit hardest, and ended up with less than 1/10th of their projected subscribers
  • It also doesn’t help that they had some pretty unappealing licensing deals and some say their contracts were specifically set up to avoid involvement with the Screenwriters and Screen Actors Guilds to cut costs
  • They attempted to sell to companies like Facebook, Warner Media, and Apple, but there weren’t any takers, so things are just shutting down

Ubisoft is revamping its Uplay and Ubisoft Club platforms into Ubisoft Connect, and the future looks pretty dang bright

  • The new service will include the Uplay reward structure, but more importantly its biggest addition is cross-platform progression
    • You’ll be able to take your save files from Assassin’s Creed Valhalla, Immortals Fenyx Rising, and Riders Republic, as well as future Ubisoft games, from one platform to another seamlessly with crossplay and cross-progression
  • Ubisoft Connect will be launching alongside Watch Dogs: Legon on October 29th

GM has unveiled a new electric Hummer this week, with a 350+ mile range and “crab mode” for diagonal off-road movement

  • If you’re confused by why I’m talking about this I have yet to get to my favourite part- the digital cockpit system was designed in the Unreal Engine with Epic Games
  • It kind of makes sense when you think about it- modern vehicles run on computers, so bringing advancements from gaming regarding performance and interface is a logical next step

This Week In Gaming History

October 17 – 2001 – Devil May Cry – Playstation 2

  • Legend has it that 2000 years ago in the depths of hell, a demon rebelled against the devil, waging a one-man war in support of the human world.
  • In the present, Dante, a private investigator of the supernatural, realizes that the devil is rallying to rise again against mankind.
    • Deep within Dante’s blood lies the power of ancient demons and as his power builds he transforms into a demon state where he can use his power against evil he encounters.
  • Josh’s commentary
    • First horror game I enjoyed and played completely!
    • Was the first game I wasn’t allowed to play, so of course I played it in secret, sorry Mom
    • It appealed to my inner Edge-Lord and the Way Too Cool attitude Sonic reinforced in me.

October 18 – 1994 – Sonic and Knuckles – Genesis

  • Sonic and Knuckles continues the story directly from where Sonic the Hedgehog 3 left off.
  • Sonic 3 and Sonic & Knuckles were originally planned as a single game
    • According to designer Takashi Iizuka, the team “really wanted to hit a home run”, with larger stages that took longer to develop.
    • As ROM cartridges were too small to contain the game and publisher Sega wanted it released in time for a promotional deal with McDonald’s, Sonic 3 was split in two, with Sonic & Knuckles as the second part.
    • Despite the split, the developers wanted the games to feel like a single experience.
    • According to Roger Hector, vice president and general manager of STI, the lock-on technology was conceived two and a half years before the release of Sonic & Knuckles, between the releases of Sonic the Hedgehog and Sonic the Hedgehog 2.
    • The team explained their situation to Sega’s hardware division, which gave them the lock-on adapter.
    • The team knew that players would likely use the adapter to insert games beside Sonic 3, so they implemented the Blue Sphere minigame for most games.
    • They made Knuckles playable in Sonic 2 if that game was inserted because the team found his playstyle suited its levels.
    • However, the team did not implement the same feature for the original Sonic the Hedgehog as it “didn’t really feel right”.
  • I love the logo that is shown on the cartridge and box.
    • This and Sonic 3, are games that I would be able to rent, but buying my own copy always eluded me.

October 19 – 2010 – Fallout: New Vegas – PS3, 360, Windows

  • The followup to Fallout 3, but developed by Obsidian Studios
  • Lots of people think of New Vegas, when it comes to great Fallout titles.
    • The consensus on this game, from what I remember, is that it is a cool new story, with all the popular mods that came out for Fallout 3 built in.
  • Reviews are consistently high
    • With the caveat that it is really fun, but buggy as well.

October 20 – 2020 – Amnesia: Rebirth – PS4, Windows

  • You can’t let out a breath. The creature is only inches away.
    • Its sole purpose – to feed off your terror. And so you crouch in the dark, trying to stop the fear rising, trying to silence what lies within you.
  • “I know you. I know what you’re capable of.”
  • In Amnesia: Rebirth, you are Tasi Trianon, waking up deep in the desert of Algeria.
    • Days have passed.
    • Where have you been? What did you do? Where are the others?
    • Retrace your journey, pull together the fragments of your shattered past; it is your only chance to survive the pitiless horror that threatens to devour you.
  • “Do not allow yourself anger, do not allow yourself to fear.”
  • Time is against you.
    • Step into Tasi’s shoes and guide her through her personal terror and pain.
    • While you struggle to make your way through a desolate landscape, you must also struggle with your own hopes, fears, and bitter regrets.
    • And still you must continue, step by step, knowing that if you fail you will lose everything.
      • First-person narrative horror experience
      • Explore environments and uncover their histories.
      • Overcome puzzles that stand in your way.
      • Carefully manage your limited resources, both physical and mental.
      • Encounter horrific creatures and use your wits and understanding of the world to escape them.

October 21 – 2003 – Star Wars: Rogue Squadron III – Rebel Strike – GameCube

  • Be a part of the epic battle between the Rebel Alliance and the Empire as a member of Rogue Squadron, an elite group of fighters who are the best chance for the Rebel’s to destroy the Empire once and for all.
  • Taking the part of Luke Skywalker, Han Solo and Wedge Antilles, your mission is to re-live the battles of the original Star Wars trilogy, from escaping the first Death Star to riding Tauntauns on Hoth, to the final battle at Endor.
    • For the first time you can fight the good fight in the air and on the ground, swapping between your X-Wing, a speeder bike and many other attack craft.
  • Included in the game is the complete version of Rogue Squadron II, specifically built for two player co-op play.
    • Plus there are multiplayer battle modes and full cutscenes straight from the original trilogy.
  • Critics rated the game quite highly
    • In the 80s and higher
    • Good for a licensed game, but Rogue Squadron stands on its own like the Jedi Knight or Knights of The Old Republic games.

October 22 – 2007 – Bee Movie Game – PS2, Wii, Windows, XBox 360

  • Once a week I like to find a terrible looking licensed movie game
  • Play as Barry B. Benson and prove that there’s more to being a bee than just making honey.
  • Playing as Barry, you retell your story through a series of flashbacks, while you work odd jobs around New York and Barry’s hive.
    • There are various mini-games that need to be completed to continue the story.
    • Gameplay includes controlling Barry on foot, in the air, and driving around town.
  • Exclusive to the Wii version are 3 Bee speedway tracks, 4 additional maxi-games and 6 new competitive 2-player arcade games.

October 23 – 2017 – Fuzion Frenzy – Xbox One Compatibility Update

  • When Xbox was trying to compete with Playstation 2 and GameCube, they needed a party game
    • And this is the one with no follow up whatsoever
  • Fuzion Frenzy is a party game with six arenas and more than 45 different mini-games for up to four players to partake in.
    • Fuzion Frenzy provides real-time play for all players in both the main game and the mini-games, no waiting for your opponent to take their turn.
  • After typing this I am learning there is a Fusion Frenzy 2
    • Reviews tanked by a glance
    • Going a google image search, looks like a lot of the same or similar games but with a 360 polish

Tidbits

  • There are some reports of the new Apple Watch SE overheating and, in some cases, even burning a visible yellow patch on the top-right of the display
    • Given how consistent the spot’s placement it this is likely a hardware defect, and if you notice anything like that you should absolutely contact Apple Support
  • The UK is set to close a loophole in their distracted driving laws that currently allow drivers to take photos or play games
    • Apparently the law was originally worded to ban devices that “perform an interactive communication” while driving, but many have successfully argued that filming or playing games doesn’t count since there’s no communication happening
  • Addressing issues of users being locked out of their hardware, Facebook’s Head of VR is now telling users to make sure their Facebook accounts are “in good standing” before buying an Oculus Quest 2
    • Considering how arbitrary the lockouts have been lately, and how they can ban you for things like not providing your legal name or your behaviour even in single-player games, it really feels a lot more stifling than any other platform’s account requirements
  • NASA has announced they’re teaming up with Nokia to install a 4G network on the moon, as part of their Artemis program aiming at making the moon habitable by 2028
    • This would greatly improve astronauts’ ability to communicate with the earth via voice or video, as well as transfer important data
    • As an added bonus, NASA also says that the moon network will eventually be upgraded for 5G
  • Early adopters of the Oculus Quest 2 have been having a rough time with the Elite headstrap, with many reports online of the arms cracking or even breaking under normal use
    • Some blame the issue on how people are taking the headset off at the end of a session, but either way it seems very fragile for such a new piece of hardware with some people saying they’ve gotten maybe 2 hours of play before it broke
  • The Halo Master Chief Collection has been confirmed as getting a free upgrade for the Series S & X, amping things up to 120fps in campaign and multiplayer, supporting 4K resolutions on the X, and cross-generation play for those still running an Xbox One
    • The upgrade hits for existing owners or anyone with GamePass on November 17th

 

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PS2J 322 News – Anarchy! Only If I Run It

Free Games

  • Twitch

    • Kona

      • 2017
      • Adventure game set in the 1970 centred around a private investigator who arrives at a snowy town in northern Quebec only to find it deserted, except for some thing that’s lurking
    • Deadlight: Director’s Cut (previously free in October 2019)

      • 2016 rerelease of the 2012 title
      • Side-scrolling cinematic platforming survival horror game that has you attempting to traverse a zombie-infested Seattle to rejoin your family
  • Epic Games

    • Amnesia: A Machine for Pigs

      • 2016
      • Survival horror game originally meant to be a mod of The Dark Descent, it instead became an indirect sequel set in the same universe with a new cast and in a new time. It has you exploring eerie locations and solving puzzles while trying to maintain a grip on your own sanity
      • Amnesia: Rebirth is out on October 20th
    • Kingdom: New Lands (previously free in June 2019)

      • 2016
      • 2D pixel survival game that has you playing as a shipwrecked monarch trying to establish a long-lasting kingdom while being attacked by otherworldly monsters
  • Sega

    • As part of their 60th anniversary they’re giving away NiGHTS into Dreams if you sign up for their newsletter on sega60th.com
      • 1996
      • Action game that has you flying through a fever-dream acid trip to stop the evil ruler Wizeman from destroying the dream world and consequently the real world too
      • The development team conducted research on dreaming and REM sleep, and was influenced by Freud and Jung
      • The HD remaster is playable on Steam, and even includes the original Sega Saturn version

Apple: Hi Speed

  • HomePod Mini
    • Little ball with a flat touch surface on top
    • Lots of fancy tech to support better audio in a smaller package
      • It’ll also automatically keep in sync with other HomePods and play stereo audio if two are in the same room
    • Siri has voice recognition to personalize responses according to who’s asking
    • New Intercom features let you send messages to HomePods in other rooms
    • $99 USD, preorder on November 6 and ships on November 16
  • iPhone
    • 5G is here, for what that’s worth with the infrastructure not fully rolled out
      • We also get Smart Data Mode, so if you don’t need the 5G speed it saves battery by switching back to 4G
      • Unfortunately mmWave 5G, the tech that they were really talking up with Verizon on stage, isn’t available outside of the US so we just get sub-6GHz 5G (a boost over the old 4G LTE and with better range than mmWave, but not as fast)
    • iPhone 12
      • Design is similar to the iPhone 5, or the iPad Pro, with flat edges and curved corners
      • Same screen size as the iPhone 11, but still 15% smaller and 11% thinner
      • Screens are made of a new ceramic shield material to improve toughness (4x better drop performance)
      • Blazing new A14 Bionic processor that enables console-quality games
        • Showed off League of Legends: Wild Rift quickly, which could become the next Fortnite if Epic doesn’t get their situation sorted
      • Better camera lenses, and improved computational photography
      • MagSafe is back (kind of)
        • Similar to the Apple Watch, the iPhone now has a magnet array in its back to automatically line up with supported wireless chargers and cases
      • They’re now no longer including wired headphones or power adaptors with new iPhones, ostensibly to reduce waste and minimize packaging
        • Apparently the changes cut the equivalent of 450,000 cars worth of carbon emissions annually
        • Unfortunately the phones are coming with Lightning to USBC cables, whereas most people probably have a ton of USBA bricks laying around
        • On the plus side, the wall adapters and EarPods both went down by about $10 each
    • iPhone 12 Mini
      • Smaller and lighter than the iPhone 8, but with a bigger screen and all the same features as the full-sized 12
      • Reportedly the smallest, thinnest, lightest 5G phone in the world
      • Mini starts at $699USD $979CAD, 12 starts at $799USD $1129CAD
      • One big asterisk on those prices, in the United States at least, is that those prices are if you buy the phone through AT&T or Verizon. Any other carrier, or an unlocked phone direct from Apple, costs $30 more
    • iPhone 12 Pro
      • Stainless steel edge instead of aluminum
      • 6.1” Pro, 6.7” Pro Max (slightly bigger screen than the 11 Pro Max)
      • Even better cameras than the 12, with an additional telephoto lens
      • They’ve combined RAW photo formats with their special sauce to make Apple ProRAW, which can be edited directly in Photos and other pro tools
      • First phone camera to record in Dolby Vision HDR
      • LiDAR
        • 3D sensing tech we’ve seen in the iPad Pro, which adds a lot of features for computational photography and augmented reality
        • And it improves the focus and light quality in low-light conditions
      • Pro starts at $999USD, $1399CAD with 128GB, Max starts at $1099USD, $1549CAD
    • 12 and Pro preorder on October 16, shipping October 23
    • Mini and Max preorder on November 6, shipping November 13
  • Unfortunately there was no mention at all of putting TouchID in the power button, which would have been a killer feature right now

Epic slApple fight

  • A federal judge in the United States has officially ruled that Apple can continue to block Fortnite from its app store as they fight Epic’s antitrust lawsuit
  • Judge Gonzalez also ruled that Apple must not punish Unreal Engine or Epic’s affiliates though, so the fight remains focused on Fortnite and Epic’s decision to bypass Apple’s App Store payment system
  • The suit is expected to go to trial in May 2021

The United States Department of Justice has officially issued a statement asking tech companies for back door access to encrypted systems

  • Ringing the gong of “exploited children”, multiple governments are now demanding that tech companies “embed the safety of the public in system designs”
    • Translation: add even more surveillance of all your users and give us access
  • In effect, the group is asking for access to encrypted data via some form of backdoor meant just for law enforcement, while still keeping it secure to prevent access by hackers and other online criminals.
  • It boils down to the same fight that’s been happening for years- technology has given people a locked box that the government can’t access and some people have used that box to do bad things, so they want to take that box and drill a hole in the side labelled “Hackers keep out plz”
  • That would be adding a hell of a weak link to the kind of chains people use not just to message their loved ones, but also do their banking and keep their homes secure

Spotify, while they bang the freedom drum and crusade against Apple for allegedly tyrannical practices, has decided to threaten third party services built to transfer playlists between streaming services

  • SongShift is a slick little utility you can use to move your playlists and library between Apple Music, Spotify, Pandora, and more, but Spotify has decided that unless they remove the ability to transfer out of Spotify they’ll be completely blocked from the service
    • Transferring in to Spotify is, shockingly, unaffected

With the release of the Quest 2 VR headset, more reports are coming in of seemingly random Facebook bans bricking devices

  • The worst instance I’ve read about was a reddit user creating a brand new Facebook account after never using the service before
    • They then merged it with their 4 year old Oculus account
    • 10 minutes later, they were banned
    • After sending in their drivers license, which is an absurd requirement for any gaming service, the ban was updated to say “We have already reviewed this decision and it can’t be reversed.”
    • And just like that, all previous Oculus purchases were locked away by Facebook with little to no recourse
  • Another redditor in the comments reported that they had something similar, where they created a Facebook account for the first time to play with their new headset but didn’t add a phone number
    • 10 minutes later their account was disabled and required a phone number to verify
    • Then Facebook demanded a video of the user so they could verify that they’re a real person
  • Facebook’s invasive data requirements have really snuck up on a lot of people, but when you have to send your passport to a social network in order to play games you’ve already paid for it just highlights the absurdity of their data gathering

Sony’s released more specs for the upcoming PS5, and the new solid state drives look amazing

  • Load times in next-gen games will likely be all but eliminated now, with their specs showing double the data loading in about 1/8th the time
  • Footage posted from the PS5 version of Spider-Man: Miles Morales shows what used to be a loading screen between areas now just throwing you in immediately
  • And since they didn’t go the proprietary route like Microsoft, you can use any M2 drive that hits at least 5.5GB/s
    • Granted that’s not a lot at the moment, but as the market catches up they’ll get much more common and Sony will be releasing a list of specifically supported models
    • And a little extra salt for the console wars, the Xbox Series X is quoted as running at 2.4GB/s

This Week in Gaming History

October 10 – 1994 – DOOM II – DOS

  • In this sequel to the original DOOM, the protagonist is still the same hero – the last remaining space marine.
  • DOOM II looks and plays very similarly to its predecessor, utilizing the same 3D graphical engine with 2D sprites for enemies.
    • The gameplay once again consists entirely of navigating the hero from first-person view through 3D environments and shooting at the demons while attempting to find the way out by flipping switches and looking for keys.
    • Unlike in DOOM, which is divided into three episodes, the 30 levels of this game (plus the 2 secret levels) form one long episode.
  • It took 24 years for someone to find the final secret for the first 100% completion, confirmed by series creator John Romero.
    • August 31st, 2018, Romero Tweeted:
    • CONGRATS, Zero Master! Finally, after 24 years! “To win the game you must get 100% on level 15 by John Romero.” Great trick getting to that secret!
    • and a follow up Tweet:
    • Secret explained: A secret teleporter is marked as a discoverable “secret”, but when you touch it, you never enter the sector. So you would never get inside the teleporter sector to trigger the secret. The only way to trigger this secret is to be pushed by an enemy into it!

October 11 – 2004 – Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door – GameCube

  • A thousand years ago there was a city.
    • One day the city was buried.
    • Another city was built on top, and all that remains of the previous city is a door.
    • This is where the title “the thousand-year door” comes from. It’s not known what could be behind this door, but everyone has different theories.
  • Mario can jump, run, hammer, talk to people, etc..
    • Mario finds many partners on his quest.
    • Battles play out on a stage in front of an audience.
    • In battle, Mario must keep his fans happy by executing action commands (hitting buttons at the right time during his attacks).
    • Occasionally, in battle, the crowd will throw things at Mario.
    • The player can attack the crowd at this time.
  • Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door appears in the book 1001 Video Games You Must Play Before You Die by General Editor Tony Mott.
  • It also has rave reviews, from 4.5 to 5 out of 5.
    • From gamer’s I know of, this is the best of all the Paper Mario games.
    • Out of the 6 that have been released.

October 12 – 1999 – Jet Force Gemini – N64

  • Twins Juno and Vela, and their dog Lupus, are Jet Force Gemini, intergalactic police.
    • Their mission? Stop the evil space bug, Mizar, from his goal of galactic conquest with his seemingly-infinite army of Drones.
    • They’ll have to stop along multiple planets along the way, and assisting King Jeff and rescuing his subjects, the Tribals.
  • Jet Force Gemini is a third-person shooter which revels in making gigantic creepy bugs explode into dribbly mucousy bits.
    • The Jet Force team are given progressively more powerful weapons, from the Machine Gun, which rips through both enemies and ammo, the Plasma Shotgun, which you can charge up for some explosive fireworks, and the Tri-Rocket Launcher, which fires three rockets with every shot, sending explosive doom in the direction of your target.
    • There’s also the Fish Food, which, as the name implies, is used to feed fish.
  • Each member of the team has their own special abilities – Juno can walk through lava without any trouble, Vela can swim underwater, and Lupus can hover for short distances and travel through tight spaces.
    • These abilities are required to fully access areas that they previously couldn’t reach.
    • The team also get the help of Floyd the Droid, a hovering robot that can be controlled by player two as a floating gun with infinite ammo when he joins your team.
  • The game also includes three different multiplayer modes: Battle – featuring most options of an average First Person Shooter but with a third-person perspective, Target Shoot – a shooting gallery with a first-person view, and Racing, which includes some kart-like racing as well as old-school top down racing games.
  • I feel like this game gets forgotten a lot.
    • When people make lists of Rare Ware Titles for the N64, it rarely includes this bug stomping adventure.

October 13 – 2009 – Ju-on: The Grudge – Wii

  • When someone dies with a powerful grudge, a curse is born.
    • A series of Ju-On horror movies all by the same director have been popular since 2000 first in Japan and then remade in Hollywood first in 2004 as The Grudge.
    • This is a “haunted house simulator” adventure game where Erika Yamada comes into contact with a curse when looking for her dog in an abandoned warehouse.
    • Then when she returns home, all her family members who she meets also become cursed.
    • You play as each in first-person view encountering their own challenging episode.
  • The locations vary from a rundown factory to an empty hospital, an apartment building, a mannequin factory, and the cursed house from the movie.
    • The game is basically an interactive horror movie which tries to scare you as you explore the locations and attempt to survive against the supernatural forces.
    • The Wii remote controls the player’s flashlight and movement through the game.
    • If the player flinches at scare moments with the remote, their score goes down.
    • A person with a second remote can also trigger scary events for the main player.
    • The player must keep moving while finding keys to open doors and also find batteries to replenish the flashlight or else you will be attacked and die.

October 14 – 2014 – Duck Dynasty – PS3, PS4, Windows, Xbox 360, Xbox One

  • Because
  • Hunt, race and prank to become a Robertson!
  • Take on the role of Willie’s son John Luke as he learns how to become one of the Robertson men!
    • Interact with Willie, Uncle Si, Jase and the rest of the family from the hit TV show Duck Dynasty®. Go duck hunting, varmint shooting, off-roading and play office pranks in the Robertson’s hometown of West Monroe, LA. Will you learn the way of the beards?
  • Call in ducks to your blind using a variety of calls and then fire away.
  • Hunt Louisiana wildlife including squirrels, frogs and fish for Miss Kay to cook her famous dishes.
  • Join Jase in duck call room antics as you sneak around the warehouse to trick Willie.
  • Race against Willie in an airboat as you drive across the Robertson family swampland.
  • Uncover Uncle Si’s bizarre “treasures” with a metal detector.
  • Track down pesky beavers with Phil to stop their damns from ruining the duck ponds.
  • Play through 3 game modes including the main story, duck shooting galleries and airboat racing.

October 15 – 2000 – Pokemon Gold and Silver – Gameboy Color

  • Pokémon Gold takes place several years after Red, Blue and Yellow, and puts the user into a brand new world, Johto.
    • The gameplay is very similar to the previous games, but with several improvements.
    • These include new functions for the player’s PokéGear, a Pokédex that can now be sorted by evolution type, and, of course, new Pokémon.
    • Once again, the objective of the game is to become the champion trainer, and try to complete the Pokédex.
    • To become the champion, the player battles Gym Leaders to obtain various badges.
    • Completing the Pokédex requires a different set of actions, and involves capturing wild Pokémon, battling various trainers to obtain money, and trading Pokémon with NPC’s and other owners of Pokémon games.
  • As many people our age, Pokemon was a big deal.
    • Pokemon Yellow was my first Pokemon game, but I would say Gold is my formative Pokemon game.
    • The IR mystery gift had me meeting with kids I barely knew, and forming new relationships.
    • And it was huge, literally having the new region Johto, to explore, while being able to revisit the previous region of Kanto.
    • This game has set me up for disappointment, as more powerful consoles have had Pokemon games, but never the ability to return to an old region.

October 16 – 1982 – Computer Operator – DOS

  • This BASIC game simulates the experience of running a large, multi-user mainframe system of its day.
    • As the operator, you first configure the system by choosing the memory size, the number of disk and tape drives, the maximum number of concurrent users, and the overall game speed.
    • These factors determine the difficulty of your job – which is to cope with user demands and keep the system running. If too many problems pile up, the system crashes and you lose.
  • After the system is booted, users begin to log in and do their work; you monitor the system’s status in real time, and carry out your maintenance tasks using text commands.
    • User jobs place demands on CPU time, on storage devices, and on the printer; you’ll need to balance the load, repair failed equipment, bring devices offline and online as needed, and meet the users’ storage requirements.
    • You can also force users offline, and even communicate back when they complain at you through the messaging system.

Tidbits

  • If you have an Apple TV+ subscription set to end or renew in November through January, Apple is reportedly extending them for free through February 2021 instead
  • Microsoft is working on a browser-based solution to bring xCloud to iOS early 2021, which could also mean it would run on macOS as well
  • People looking for Google alternatives will be happy to hear that DuckDuckGo, a popular privacy-first search engine, now has walking and driving directions through a partnership with Apple Maps
  • Sony announced that they’re revamping their web and mobile offerings with a brand new PlayStation Store
    • October 21st-28th we’ll no longer be able to use those systems to buy
      • PS3 games
      • PSP games
      • PS Vita games
      • Apps
      • Themes
      • Avatars
      • And the Wishlist feature is going away too
    • You can still access everything you already own, and you can buy new things through the PS Store directly on each device

Homework

  • Microsoft’s new “10 principles for the Microsoft Store on Windows”, with translation provided by the Daring Fireball
    • John Gruber: “Nothing is changing on Windows, which remains every bit as open as it always has been. Nothing is changing on Xbox, which remains every bit as closed as it always has been (which is actually quite a bit more closed than even iOS). But we’re sure hoping government regulators will force Apple to open up iOS and treat it more like a PC platform where third-party developers are free to do what they want, because we know Apple won’t do it of their own volition because we wouldn’t either if we were them.”

 

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Sega released the Master System’s successor, the Mega Drive, in Japan on October 29, 1988, though the launch was overshadowed by Nintendo’s release of Super Mario Bros. 3 a week earlier. Positive coverage from magazines Famitsu and Beep! helped to establish a following, but Sega only managed to ship 400,000 units in the first year. The Mega Drive was unable to overtake the venerable Famicom and remained a distant third in Japan behind Nintendo’s Super Famicomand NEC’s PC Engine throughout the 16-bit era. Sega announced a North American release date for the system on January 9, 1989. At the time, Sega did not possess a North American sales and marketing organization, but ultimately decided to launch the console through its own Sega of America subsidiary, which launched later that year.
For the North American market, where the console was renamed “Sega Genesis”, former Atari executive and new Sega of America CEO Michael Katz instituted a two-part approach to build sales in the region. The first part involved a marketing campaign to challenge Nintendo head-on and emphasize the more arcade-like experience available on the Genesis, summarized by slogans including “Genesis does what Nintendon’t”. Since Nintendo owned the console rights to most arcade games of the time, the second part involved creating a library of instantly recognizable games which used the names and likenesses of celebrities and athletes. Nonetheless, it had a hard time overcoming Nintendo’s ubiquitous presence in consumers’ homes. Tasked by Nakayama to sell one million units within the first year, Katz and Sega of America managed to sell only 500,000 units.
While Sega was seeking a flagship series to compete with Nintendo’s Mario series along with a character to serve as a company mascot, Naoto Ohshima designed “a teal hedgehog with red shoes that he called Mr. Needlemouse.” This character won the contest and was renamed Sonic the Hedgehog, spawning one of the best-selling video game franchises in history. The gameplay of Sonic the Hedgehog originated with a tech demo created by Yuji Naka, who had developed an algorithm that allowed a sprite to move smoothly on a curve by determining its position with a dot matrix. Naka’s original prototype was a platform game that involved a fast-moving character rolling in a ball through a long winding tube, and this concept was subsequently fleshed out with Ohshima’s character design and levels conceived by designer Hirokazu Yasuhara. Sonic’s blue pigmentation was chosen to match Sega’s cobalt blue logo, and his shoes were a concept evolved from a design inspired by Michael Jackson’s boots with the addition of the color red, which was inspired by both Santa Claus and the contrast of those colors on Jackson’s 1987 album Bad; his personality was based on Bill Clinton’s “can do” attitude.
In mid-1990, Nakayama hired Tom Kalinske to replace Katz as CEO of Sega of America. Although Kalinske initially knew little about the video game market, he surrounded himself with industry-savvy advisors. A believer in the razor and blades business model, he developed a four-point plan: cut the price of the console, create a U.S.-based team to develop games targeted at the American market, continue and expand the aggressive advertising campaigns, and replace the bundled game Altered Beast with a new game, Sonic the Hedgehog. The Japanese board of directors initially disapproved of the plan, but all four points were approved by Nakayama, who told Kalinske, “I hired you to make the decisions for Europe and the Americas, so go ahead and do it.” Magazines praised Sonic as one of the greatest games yet made, and Sega’s console finally became successful. In large part due to the popularity of Sonic the Hedgehog, the Sega Genesis outsold its main competitor, Nintendo’s SNES, in the United States nearly two to one during the 1991 holiday season. This success led to Sega having control of 65% of the 16-bit console market in January 1992, making it the first time Nintendo was not the console leader since December 1985.
To compete with Nintendo, Sega was more open to new types of games than its rival, but still tightly controlled the approval process for third-party games and charged high prices for cartridge manufacturing. Technicians from American third-party video game publisher Electronic Arts (EA) reverse engineered the Genesis in 1989, following nearly one year of negotiations with Sega in which EA requested a more liberal licensing agreement than was standard in the industry before releasing its games for the system. As a result, EA signed what founder Trip Hawkins described as “a very unusual and much more enlightened license agreement” with Sega in June 1990: “Among other things, we had the right to make as many titles as we wanted. We could approve our own titles … the royalty rates were a lot more reasonable. We also had more direct control over manufacturing.” The first Genesis version of EA’s John Madden Football arrived before the end of 1990, and became what EA creative officer Bing Gordon called a “killer app” for the system.
Sega was able to outsell Nintendo four Christmas seasons in a row due to the Genesis’ head start, a lower price point, and a larger library of games when compared to the Super Nintendo at its release. Sega’s advertising positioned the Genesis as the cooler console, and as its advertising evolved, the company coined the term “blast processing” to suggest that its processing capabilities were far greater than those of the SNES. According to a 2004 study of NPD sales data, the Sega Genesis was able to maintain its lead over the Super NES in the American 16-bit console market. However, according to a 2014 Wedbush Securities report based on revised NPD sales data, the SNES outsold the Genesis in the U.S. market.
After the release of the Sega Genesis in 1989, video game publisher Accolade began exploring options to release some of their PC games on the console. At the time, Sega had a licensing deal in place for third-party developers that increased the costs to the developer. According to Accolade co-founder Alan Miller, “One pays them between $10 and $15 per cartridge on top of the real hardware manufacturing costs, so it about doubles the cost of goods to the independent publisher.” To get around licensing, Accolade chose to seek an alternative way to bring their games to the Genesis. As a result of piracy in some countries and unlicensed development issues, Sega incorporated a technical protection mechanism into a new edition of the Genesis released in 1990, referred to as the Genesis III. This new variation of the Genesis included a code known as the Trademark Security System. Accolade successfully identified the TMSS file. It later added this file to the games HardBall!, Star Control, Mike Ditka Power Football, and Turrican. In response to the creation of these unlicensed games, Sega filed suit against Accolade in the United States District Court for the Northern District of California, on charges of trademark infringement, unfair competition, and copyright infringement. In response, Accolade filed a counterclaim for falsifying the source of its games by displaying the Sega trademark when the game was powered up. Despite winning an injunction in the initial district court case, as a result of Accolade’s appeal, the Ninth Circuit overturned the district court’s verdict and ruled that Accolade’s decompilation of the Sega software constituted fair use. Ultimately, Sega and Accolade settled the case on April 30, 1993. As a part of this settlement, Accolade became an official licensee of Sega, and later developed and released Barkley Shut Up and Jam! while under license. The terms of the licensing, including whether or not any special arrangements or discounts were made to Accolade, were not released to the public. The financial terms of the settlement were also not disclosed, although both companies agreed to pay their own legal costs.
In 1993, the American media began to focus on the mature content of certain video games. Games such as Night Trap for the Sega CD, an add-on, received unprecedented scrutiny. Issues about Night Trap were brought up in the United Kingdom, with former Sega of Europe development director Mike Brogan noting that “Night Trap got Sega an awful lot of publicity … it was also cited in UK Parliament for being classified as “15” due to its use of real actors.” This came at a time when Sega was capitalizing on its image as an edgy company with attitude, and this only reinforced that image. By far the year’s most controversial game was Midway’s Mortal Kombat, which we did back on PS2J 139,m ported to the Genesis and SNES by Acclaim. In response to public outcry over the game’s graphic violence, Nintendo decided to replace the blood in the game with “sweat” and the arcade’s gruesome “fatalities” with less violent finishing moves. Sega took a different approach, instituting America’s first video game ratings system, the Videogame Rating Council (VRC), for all its current systems. Ratings ranged from the family friendly GA rating to the more mature rating of MA-13, and the adults-only rating of MA-17. With the rating system in place, Sega released its version of Mortal Kombat, appearing to have removed all the blood and sweat effects and toning down the finishing moves even more than in the SNES version. However, all the arcade’s blood and uncensored finishing moves could be enabled by entering a “Blood Code”. This technicality allowed Sega to release the game with a relatively low MA-13 rating. Meanwhile, the tamer SNES version shipped without a rating. The Genesis version of Mortal Kombatwas well-received by gaming press, as well as fans, outselling the SNES version three- or four-to-one, while Nintendo was criticized for censoring the SNES version of the game. Executive vice president of Nintendo of America Howard Lincoln was quick to point out in United States congressional hearings in 1993 that Night Trap had no such rating. In response, Sega of America vice president Bill White showed a videotape of violent video games on the SNES and stressed the importance of rating video games. At the end of the hearing, Senator Joe Lieberman called for another hearing in February 1994 to check on progress toward a rating system for video game violence. Although experiencing increased sales, Sega decided to recall Night Trap and re-release it with revisions in 1994 due to the Congressional hearings. After the close of these hearings, video game manufacturers came together to establish the rating system that Lieberman had called for. Initially, Sega proposed the universal adoption of its system, but after objections by Nintendo and others, Sega took a role in forming a new one. This became the Entertainment Software Rating Board, an independent organization that received praise from Lieberman.
In 1990, Sega launched the Game Gear to compete against Nintendo’s Game Boy. The console had been designed as a portable version of the Master System, and featured more powerful systems than the Game Boy, including a full-color screen, in contrast to the monochromatic screen of its rival. Due to issues with its short battery life, lack of original games, and weak support from Sega, the Game Gear was unable to surpass the Game Boy, selling approximately 11 million units.
By 1991, compact discs had gained in popularity as a data storage device for music and software. PCs and video game companies had started to make use of this technology. NEC had been the first to include CD technology in a game console with the release of the TurboGrafx-CD add-on, and Nintendo was making plans to develop its own CD peripheral as well. Seeing the opportunity to gain an advantage over its rivals, Sega partnered with JVC to develop a CD-ROM add-on for the Genesis. Sega launched the Mega-CD in Japan on December 1, 1991, initially retailing at JP¥49,800. The CD add-on was launched in North America on October 15, 1992, as the Sega CD, with a retail price of US$299; it was released in Europe as the Mega-CD in 1993. In addition to greatly expanding the potential size of its games, this add-on unit upgraded the graphics and sound capabilities by adding a second, more powerful processor, more system memory, and hardware-based scaling and rotation similar to that found in Sega’s arcade games. The Mega-CD sold only 100,000 units during its first year in Japan, falling well below expectations. Although many consumers blamed the add-on’s high launch price, it also suffered from a small software library; only two games were available at launch. This was due in part to the long delay before Sega made its software development kit available to third-party developers. Sales were more successful in North America and Europe, although the novelty of full motion video (FMV) and CD-enhanced games quickly wore off as many of the Sega CD’s later games were met with lukewarm or negative reviews.
Sega experienced success with arcade games during the years it was supporting the Genesis. At the end of the 1980s, with the arcade game market once again in good shape, Sega was one of the most recognized brands in gaming. In the later part of the decade, it focused on releasing titles to appeal to diverse tastes, including racing games and side-scrollers. Some time after the release of Power Drift, Sega realigned its arcade development divisions into the Amusement Machine Research and Development teams, or AM teams, which were strictly segregated and often had rivalries with each other and with the consumer development divisions. In 1992 and 1993, the new Sega Model 1 arcade system board showcased Sega AM2’s Virtua Racing and Virtua Fighter (the first 3D fighting game), which played a crucial role in popularizing 3D polygonal graphics. In particular, Virtua Fighter garnered praise for its simple three-button control scheme, with strategy coming from the intuitively observed differences between characters that felt and acted differently rather than the more ornate combos of two-dimensional competitors. Despite its crude visuals—with characters composed of fewer than 1,200 polygons—Virtua Fighter’s fluid animation and relatively realistic depiction of distinct fighting styles gave its combatants a lifelike presence considered impossible to replicate with sprites. The Model 1 was an expensive system board, and bringing home releases of its games to the Genesis required more than its hardware could handle. Several alternatives helped to bring Sega’s newest arcade games to the console, such as the Sega Virtua Processor chip used for Virtua Racing, and eventually the Sega 32X add-on.
Development on Sega’s next video game console, the Sega Saturn, started over two years before the system was showcased at the Tokyo Toy Show in June 1994. The name “Saturn” was the system’s codename during development in Japan, but was chosen as the official product name. According to Kalinske, Sega of America “fought against the architecture of Saturn for quite some time”. Seeking an alternative graphics chip for the Saturn, Kalinske attempted to broker a deal with Silicon Graphics, but Sega of Japan rejected the proposal. Silicon Graphics subsequently collaborated with Nintendo on the Nintendo 64. Kalinske, Sony Electronic Publishing’s Olaf Olafsson, and Sony America’s Micky Schulhof had discussed development of a joint “Sega/Sony hardware system”, which never came to fruition due to Sega’s desire to create hardware that could accommodate both 2D and 3D visuals and Sony’s competing notion of focusing on 3D technology. Publicly, Kalinske defended the Saturn’s design: “Our people feel that they need the multiprocessing to be able to bring to the home what we’re doing next year in the arcades.” In 1993, Sega restructured its internal studios in preparation for the Saturn’s launch. To ensure high-quality 3D games would be available early in the Saturn’s life, and to create a more energetic working environment, developers from Sega’s arcade division were asked to create console games. New teams, such as Panzer Dragoon developer Team Andromeda, were formed during this time.
In January 1994, Sega began to develop an add-on for the Genesis, the 32X, which would serve as a less expensive entry into the 32-bit era. The decision to create the add-on was made by Nakayama and widely supported by Sega of America employees. According to former Sega of America producer Scot Bayless, Nakayama was worried that the Saturn would not be available until after 1994 and that the recently released Atari Jaguar would reduce Sega’s hardware sales. As a result, Nakayama ordered his engineers to have the system ready for launch by the end of the year. The 32X would not be compatible with the Saturn, but Sega executive Richard Brudvik-Lindner pointed out that the 32X would play Genesis games, and had the same system architecture as the Saturn. This was justified by Sega’s statement that both platforms would run at the same time, and that the 32X would be aimed at players who could not afford the more expensive Saturn. Because both machines shared many of the same parts and were preparing to launch around the same time, tensions emerged between Sega of America and Sega of Japan when the Saturn was given priority. Sega released the 32X on November 21, 1994 in North America, December 3, 1994 in Japan, and January 1995 in PAL territories, and was sold at less than half of the Saturn’s launch price. After the holiday season, however, interest in the 32X rapidly declined.
Sega released the Saturn in Japan on November 22, 1994, at a price of ¥44,800. Virtua Fighter, a faithful port of the popular arcade game, sold at a nearly one-to-one ratio with the Saturn console at launch and was crucial to the system’s early success in Japan. Fueled by the popularity of Virtua Fighter, Sega’s initial shipment of 200,000 Saturn units sold out on the first day, and was more popular than the PlayStation in Japan. In March 1995, Sega of America CEO Tom Kalinske announced that the Saturn would be released in the U.S. on “Saturnday” (Saturday) September 2, 1995. However, Sega of Japan mandated an early launch to give the Saturn an advantage over the PlayStation. At the first Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3) in Los Angeles on May 11, 1995, Kalinske gave a keynote presentation in which he revealed the release price of US$399 (including a copy of Virtua Fighter), and described the features of the console. Kalinske also revealed that, due to “high consumer demand”, Sega had already shipped 30,000 Saturns to Toys “R” Us, Babbage’s, Electronics Boutique, and Software Etc. for immediate release. The announcement upset retailers who were not informed of the surprise release, including Best Buy and Walmart; KB Toys responded by dropping Sega from its lineup. The Saturn’s release in Europe also came before the previously announced North American date, on July 8, 1995, at a price of ₤399.99. European retailers and press did not have time to promote the system or its games, harming sales. The Saturn’s U.S. launch was accompanied by a reported $50 million advertising campaign that included coverage in publications such as Wired and Playboy. Early advertising for the system was targeted at a more mature, adult audience than the Sega Genesis ads. Because of the early launch, the Saturn had only six games (all published by Sega) available to start as most third-party games were slated to be released around the original launch date. Virtua Fighter’s relative lack of popularity in the West, combined with a release schedule of only two games between the surprise launch and September 1995, prevented Sega from capitalizing on the Saturn’s early timing.
Within two days of its September 9, 1995 launch in North America, the PlayStation sold more units than the Saturn had in the five months following its surprise launch, with almost all of the initial shipment of 100,000 units being sold in advance, and the rest selling out across the U.S. On October 2, 1995 Sega announced a Saturn price reduction to $299. Notwithstanding a subsequent increase in Saturn sales during the 1995 holiday season, new games were not enough to reverse the PlayStation’s decisive lead. By 1996, the PlayStation had a considerably larger library than the Saturn, although Sega hoped to generate interest with upcoming exclusives such as Nights into Dreams. Within its first year, the PlayStation secured over 20% of the entire U.S. video game market. On the first day of the May 1996 E3 show, Sony announced a PlayStation price reduction to $199, a reaction to the release of the Model 2 Saturn in Japan at a price roughly equivalent to $199. On the second day, Sega announced it would match this price, though Saturn hardware was more expensive to manufacture.
In spite of the launch of the PlayStation and the Saturn, sales of 16-bit hardware/software continued to account for 64% of the video game market in 1995. Sega underestimated the continued popularity of the Genesis, and did not have the inventory to meet demand for the product. Sega was able to capture 43% of the dollar share of the U.S. video game market and sell more than 2 million Genesis units in 1995, but Kalinske estimated that “we could have sold another 300,000 Genesis systems in the November/December timeframe.” Nakayama’s decision to focus on the Saturn over the Genesis, based on the systems’ relative performance in Japan, has been cited as the major contributing factor in this miscalculation. According to Sega Technical Institute head Roger Hector, after Sony’s release of the PlayStation, the atmosphere at Sega became political, with “lots of finger-pointing”.
Due to long-standing disagreements with Sega of Japan, Kalinske lost most of his interest in his work as CEO of Sega of America. On July 16, 1996, Sega announced that Shoichiro Irimajiri had been appointed chairman and CEO of Sega of America, while Kalinske would be leaving Sega after September 30 of that year. A former Honda executive, Irimajiri had been actively involved with Sega of America since joining Sega in 1993. Sega also announced that David Rosen and Nakayama had resigned from their positions as chairman and co-chairman of Sega of America, though both men remained with the company. Bernie Stolar, a former executive at Sony Computer Entertainment of America, was named Sega of America’s executive vice president in charge of product development and third-party relations. Stolar, who had arranged a six-month PlayStation exclusivity deal for Mortal Kombat 3 and helped build close relations with Electronic Arts while at Sony, was perceived as a major asset by Sega officials.Finally, Sega of America made plans to expand its PC software business.
Stolar was not supportive of the Saturn due to his belief that the hardware was poorly designed, and publicly announced at E3 1997 that “The Saturn is not our future.” While Stolar had “no interest in lying to people” about the Saturn’s prospects, he continued to emphasize quality games for the system, and subsequently reflected that “we tried to wind it down as cleanly as we could for the consumer.” At Sony, Stolar opposed the localization of certain Japanese PlayStation games that he felt would not represent the system well in North America, and advocated a similar policy for the Saturn during his time at Sega, although he later sought to distance himself from this perception. These changes were accompanied by a softer image that Sega was beginning to portray in its advertising, including removing the “Sega!” scream and holding press events for the education industry.
In January 1997, Sega announced its intentions to merge with Bandai, a Japanese toy maker that was Japan’s largest and the world’s third largest at the time. The merger, planned as a $1 billion stock swap whereby Sega would wholly acquire Bandai, was set to form a planned company known as Sega Bandai, Ltd. Plans for the merger were necessitated by the struggling financial state of both Sega and Bandai, with Bandai announcing their anticipated loss for the fiscal year and Sega announcing a lower than expected profit. Sega Bandai was planned to be an entertainment conglomerate, with an estimated $6 billion in revenue. Some financial analysts expressed doubt about this strategy; according to SBC Warburg Securities analyst Reinier Dobbelmann, “both companies have big ideas, but they don’t carry them out.”
Initially planned to be finalized in October of that year, the merger was called off in May 1997. Opposition to the merger had grown in the ranks of Bandai’s midlevel executives, with reasons cited including cultural differences with Sega’s corporate culture colliding with Bandai’s family-run business. This opposition had become so great that Bandai’s board of directors called a meeting to discuss the situation and decided to cancel the merger, although they did agree to a business alliance with Sega. The following day, Bandai president Makoto Yamashina resigned his position, taking responsibility for the failed merger and apologizing publicly for his inability to get the merger completed. In a separate press conference, Nakayama elaborated on his reason for agreeing to cancel the acquisition of Bandai, stating, “We will not be successful working together if Bandai’s management cannot take hold of people’s hearts.”
As a result of the company’s deteriorating financial situation, Nakayama resigned as president of Sega in January 1998 in favor of Irimajiri. It has been speculated that Nakayama’s resignation was in part due to the failure of the Sega Bandai merger, as well as Sega’s 1997 performance. Stolar would subsequently accede to become CEO and president of Sega of America.
The Saturn failed to take the lead in the market as its predecessor had. After the launch of the Nintendo 64 in 1996, sales of the Saturn and its games were sharply reduced, while the PlayStation outsold the Saturn by three-to-one in the U.S. in 1997. As of August 1997, Sony controlled 47% of the console market, Nintendo 40%, and Sega only 12%. Neither price cuts nor high-profile game releases proved helpful. Following five years of generally declining profits, in the fiscal year ending March 31, 1998 Sega suffered its first parent and consolidated financial losses since its 1988 listing on the Tokyo Stock Exchange. Due to a 54.8% decline in consumer product sales (including a 75.4% decline overseas), the company reported a net loss of ¥43.3 billion (US$327.8 million) and a consolidated net loss of ¥35.6 billion (US$269.8 million). Shortly before announcing its financial losses, Sega announced that it was discontinuing the Saturn in North America to prepare for the launch of its successor. The Saturn would last longer in Japan and Europe. The decision to abandon the Saturn effectively left the Western market without Sega games for over one year. Sega suffered an additional ¥42.881 billion consolidated net loss in the fiscal year ending March 1999, and announced plans to eliminate 1,000 jobs, nearly a quarter of its workforce. With lifetime sales of 9.26 million units, the Saturn is considered a commercial failure, although its install base in Japan surpassed the Nintendo 64’s 5.54 million. Lack of distribution has been cited as a significant factor contributing to the Saturn’s failure, as the system’s surprise launch damaged Sega’s reputation with key retailers. Conversely, Nintendo’s long delay in releasing a 3D console and damage caused to Sega’s reputation by poorly supported add-ons for the Genesis are considered major factors allowing Sony to gain a foothold in the market.
While Sega struggled greatly with its consumer division during the Saturn years, its arcade divisions also faced difficulty in the later 1990s in part due to a market slump from the success of home video game consoles. Entering this period of time, Sega had partnered with GE to develop the Model 2 arcade system board, building onto 3D technology in the arcade industry at the time. This led to several successful arcade titles, including Daytona USA, Virtua Cop, and Virtua Fighter 2. The Model 2 was equipped with better hardware than any home video game consoles at the time. Despite the arcade market difficulties and the company’s struggles with the Saturn in its consumer division, Sega’s arcade division continued strong.
Aside from the Saturn, Sega made forays in the PC market with the 1995 establishment of SegaSoft, which was tasked with creating original Saturn and PC games. The mid-1990s also saw Sega making efforts to expand beyond its image as a strictly kids-oriented, family entertainment company, by publishing a number of games with extreme violence and sexual themes, and introducing the “Deep Water” label to mark games with mature content. In 1996, Sega operated a number of in-door theme parks not only in Japan with Joypolis, but also overseas, with Sega World branded arcades in the UK and Australia. From 1994 to 1999, Sega participated in the pinball market when it took over Data East’s pinball division.
Despite taking massive losses on the Saturn, including a 75 percent drop in half-year profits just before the Japanese launch of the Dreamcast, Sega felt confident about its new system. The Dreamcast attracted significant interest and drew many pre-orders. Sega announced that Sonic Adventure, the next game starring company mascot Sonic the Hedgehog, would arrive in time for the Dreamcast’s launch and promoted the game with a large-scale public demonstration at the Tokyo Kokusai Forum Hall. However, Sega could not achieve its shipping goals for the Dreamcast’s Japanese launch due to a shortage of PowerVR chipsets caused by a high failure rate in the manufacturing process. As more than half of its limited stock had been pre-ordered, Sega stopped pre-orders in Japan. On November 27, 1998, the Dreamcast launched in Japan at a price of JP¥29,000, and the entire stock sold out by the end of the day. However, of the four games available at launch, only one—a port of Virtua Fighter 3, the most successful arcade game Sega ever released in Japan—sold well. Sega estimated that an additional 200,000-300,000 Dreamcast units could have been sold with sufficient supply. Irimajiri hoped to sell over 1 million Dreamcast units in Japan by February 1999, but less than 900,000 were sold, undermining Sega’s attempts to build up a sufficient installed base to ensure the Dreamcast’s survival after the arrival of competition from other manufacturers. Prior to the Western launch, Sega reduced the price of the Dreamcast to JP¥19,900, effectively making the hardware unprofitable but increasing sales.
In America, Sega of America’s senior vice president of marketing Peter Moore, a fan of the attitude previously associated with Sega’s brand, worked with Foote, Cone & Belding and Access Communications to develop the “It’s Thinking” campaign of 15-second television commercials, which emphasized the Dreamcast’s hardware power. According to Moore, “We needed to create something that would really intrigue consumers, somewhat apologize for the past, but invoke all the things we loved about Sega, primarily from the Genesis days.” On August 11, Sega of America confirmed that Stolar had been fired, leaving Moore to direct the launch. Prior to the Dreamcast’s release, Sega was dealt a blow when EA—the largest third-party video game publisher—announced it would not develop games for the system. EA executive Bing Gordon claimed ” couldn’t afford to give us [EA] the same kind of license that EA has had over the last five years”, but Stolar recounted that EA president Larry Probst wanted “exclusive rights to be the only sports brand on Dreamcast”, which Stolar could not accept due to Sega’s recent $10 million purchase of sports game developer Visual Concepts. While the Dreamcast would have none of EA’s popular sports games, “Sega Sports” games developed mainly by Visual Concepts helped to fill that void.
The Dreamcast launched in North America on September 9, 1999 at a price of $199—which Sega’s marketing dubbed “9/9/99 for $199”. Eighteen launch games were available for the Dreamcast in the U.S. Sega set a new sales record by selling more than 225,132 Dreamcast units in 24 hours, earning the company $98.4 million in what Moore called “the biggest 24 hours in entertainment retail history”. Within two weeks, U.S. Dreamcast sales exceeded 500,000. By Christmas, Sega held 31 percent of the North American video game marketshare. On November 4, Sega announced it had sold over one million Dreamcast units. Nevertheless, the launch was marred by a glitch at one of Sega’s manufacturing plants, which produced defective GD-ROMs. Sega released the Dreamcast in Europe on October 14, 1999, at a price of GB₤200. While Sega sold 500,000 units in Europe by Christmas 1999, sales did not continue at this pace, and by October 2000, Sega had sold only about 1 million units in Europe.
Though the Dreamcast launch had been successful, Sony still held 60 percent of the overall video game market share in North America with the PlayStation at the end of 1999. On March 2, 1999, in what one report called a “highly publicized, vaporware-like announcement” Sony revealed the first details of its “next generation PlayStation”, which Ken Kutaragi claimed would allow video games to convey unprecedented emotions. The same year, Nintendo announced that its next generation console would meet or exceed anything on the market, and Microsoft began development of its own console.
In what has been called “a brief moment of remarkable creativity”, in 2000, Sega restructured its arcade and console development teams into nine semi-autonomous studios headed by the company’s top designers. Studios included United Game Artists, Hitmaker, Smilebit, Overworks, Sega AM2, Sonic Team, WOW Entertainment, Amusement Vision, and Sega Rosso. Sega’s design houses were encouraged to experiment and benefited from a relatively lax approval process. This resulted in games such as Rez, The Typing of the Dead, Seaman, and Segagaga. Sega also revived franchises from the Genesis era, such as Ecco the Dolphin. AM2 developed what Sega hoped would be the Dreamcast’s killer app, Shenmue, a “revenge epic in the tradition of Chinese cinema.” Incorporating a simulated day/night cycle with variable weather, non-player characters with regular schedules, and the ability to pick up and examine detailed objects (also introducing the Quick-time event in its modern form), Shenmue went over budget and was rumored to have cost Sega over $50 million. As the first fully 3D platforming game starring Sega’s mascot, Sonic the Hedgehog, Sonic Team’s Sonic Adventure was considered “the centerpiece of the [Dreamcast] launch”. Adventure garnered criticism for technical problems including erratic camera angles and glitches, but was praised for its “luscious” visuals, “vast, twisting environments” and iconic set pieces. It has been described as the Sonic series’ creative apex. However, it failed “to catch on with players in nearly the way that [Nintendo’s] Mario 64 had done”, perhaps due to a perceived lack of gameplay depth. In sports, Visual Concepts’ NFL 2K football series and its NBA 2K basketball series were critically acclaimed. Additionally, with the release of Sega’s NAOMI arcade system board, the focus of the arcade divisions shifted to produce titles that could easily be ported to the Dreamcast.
Sega’s initial momentum proved fleeting as U.S. Dreamcast sales—which exceeded 1.5 million by the end of 1999—began to decline as early as January 2000. Poor Japanese sales contributed to Sega’s ¥42.88 billion ($404 million) consolidated net loss in the fiscal year ending March 2000, which followed a similar loss of ¥42.881 billion the previous year and marked Sega’s third consecutive annual loss. Although Sega’s overall sales for the term increased 27.4%, and Dreamcast sales in North America and Europe greatly exceeded the company’s expectations, this increase in sales coincided with a decrease in profitability due to the investments required to launch the Dreamcast in Western markets and poor software sales in Japan. At the same time, increasingly poor market conditions reduced the profitability of Sega’s Japanese arcade business, prompting the company to close 246 locations. Arcade sales in 2000 dropped 16% in Japan, and 15% overseas, despite downsizing by competitors.
Moore stated that the Dreamcast would need to sell 5 million units in the U.S. by the end of 2000 in order to remain a viable platform, but Sega ultimately fell short of this goal with some 3 million units sold. Moreover, Sega’s attempts to spur increased Dreamcast sales through lower prices and cash rebates caused escalating financial losses. Instead of an expected profit, for the six months ending September 2000, Sega posted a ¥17.98 billion ($163.11 million) loss, with the company projecting a year-end loss of ¥23.6 billion. This estimate was more than doubled to ¥58.3 billion, and in March 2001, Sega posted a consolidated net loss of ¥51.7 billion ($417.5 million). While the PS2’s October 26 U.S. launch was marred by shortages, this did not benefit the Dreamcast as much as expected, as many disappointed consumers continued to wait for a PS2—while the PSone, a remodeled version of the original PlayStation, was the best-selling console in the U.S. at the start of the 2000 holiday season. According to Moore, “the PlayStation 2 effect that we were relying upon did not work for us … people will hang on for as long as possible … What effectively happened is the PlayStation 2 lack of availability froze the marketplace”. Eventually, Sony and Nintendo held 50 and 35 percent of the US video game market, respectively, while Sega held only 15 percent. According to former Sega of America vice president of communications Charles Bellfield, Dreamcast software sold at an 8-to-1 ratio with the hardware, but this ratio “on a small install base didn’t give us the revenue … to keep this platform viable in the medium to long term.”
In 2000, Sega and CSK Corporation chairman Isao Okawa replaced Irimajiri as president of Sega. Irimajiri had been replaced as a result of Sega’s financial losses. Okawa had long advocated that Sega abandon the console business. His sentiments were not unique; Sega co-founder David Rosen had “always felt it was a bit of a folly for them to be limiting their potential to Sega hardware”, and Stolar had previously suggested that Sega should have sold their company to Microsoft. In September 2000, in a meeting with Sega’s Japanese executives and the heads of the company’s major Japanese game development studios, Moore and Bellfield recommended that Sega abandon its console business and focus on software—prompting the studio heads to walk out. On November 1, 2000, Sega changed its company name from Sega Enterprises to Sega Corporation.
On January 23, 2001, a story ran in Nihon Keizai Shimbun claiming that Sega would cease production of the Dreamcast and develop software for other platforms. After initial denial, Sega of Japan put out a press release confirming they were considering producing software for the PlayStation 2 and Game Boy Advance as part of their “new management policy”. On January 31, 2001, Sega announced the discontinuation of the Dreamcast after March 31 and the restructuring of the company as a “platform-agnostic” third-party developer. The decision was Moore’s. Sega also announced a Dreamcast price reduction to $99 to eliminate its unsold inventory, which was estimated at 930,000 units as of April 2001. After a further reduction to $79, the Dreamcast was cleared out of stores at $49.95. The final Dreamcast unit manufactured was autographed by the heads of all nine of Sega’s internal game development studios as well as the heads of Visual Concepts and Wave Master and given away with 55 first-party Dreamcast games through a competition organized by GamePro magazine. Okawa, who had previously loaned Sega $500 million in the summer of 1999, died on March 16, 2001; shortly before his death, he forgave Sega’s debts to him and returned his $695 million worth of Sega and CSK stock, helping the company survive the third-party transition. He also talked to Microsoft about a sale or merger with their Xbox division, but those talks failed. As part of this restructuring, nearly one-third of Sega’s Tokyo workforce was laid off in 2001. By March 31, 2002, Sega had five consecutive fiscal years of net losses.
After Okawa’s death, Hideki Sato became president of Sega. Sato, a 30-year veteran of Sega, had previously developed Sega’s video game consoles. Because of poor sales in 2002, Sega was forced to cut its profit forecast by 90% for 2003. As a result, Sega began to look at opportunities for a merger to fix its financial situation. In 2003, Sega began talks with Sammy Corporation and Namco. Sato stated that he would select the partner that fit the business best. Sega made an announcement on February 13, 2003, of its decision to merge with Sammy. However, as late as April 17 of the same year, Sega was still in talks with Namco, which was attempting to overturn the merger and went public with its offer to be acquired. Sega’s consideration of Namco’s offer upset executives of Sammy. However, the day after Sega announced it was no longer planning to merge with Sammy, Namco withdrew its offer. Though Namco expressed that it would be willing to work with Sega on a future deal, Sega expressed it was not interested. Due to the failure to complete a merger, Sato was forced to step down. In 2003, he and COO Tetsu Kamaya announced they were stepping down from their roles, with Sato being replaced by Hisao Oguchi, the head of Hitmaker. As part of Oguchi’s restructuring plan, he announced his intention to consolidate Sega’s studios into “four or five core operations.” Sega’s studios were consolidated and reintegrated into Sega as its R&D division, no longer existing as independent companies.
Although talks of a merger had soured earlier, Sega and Sammy were able to resume discussions. In August 2003, Sammy bought the outstanding 22% of shares that CSK had, becoming Sega’s largest shareholder in the process. In the same year, Hajime Satomi, primary owner and president and CEO of Sammy, stated that Sega’s activity will focus on their profitable arcade business as opposed to their loss-incurring home software development sector. Satomi was determined to push this strategy, stating, “if [Sammy’s] vision does not agree with that of Sega then we might have to consider taking more shares.”
After the decline of the global arcade industry around the 21st century, Sega introduced several novel concepts tailored to the Japanese market. Derby Owners Club was an arcade machine with memory cards for data storage, designed to take over half an hour to complete and costing JP¥500 to play. Testing of Derby Owners Club in an arcade in Chicago showed that it became the most popular machine in the arcade, with a 92% replay rate. While the eight-player Japanese version of the game was released in 1999, due to size issues, the game was reduced to a smaller four player version and released in North America in 2003. Trading card game machines were introduced, with games such as World Club Champion Football for general audiences and Mushiking: King of the Beetles for young children. Sega also introduced internet functionality in arcades with Virtua Fighter 4 in 2001, and further enhanced it with ALL.Net, introduced in 2004.
During mid-2004, Sammy bought a controlling share in Sega Corporation at a cost of $1.1 billion, creating the new company Sega Sammy Holdings, an entertainment conglomerate. Since then, Sega and Sammy became subsidiaries of the aforementioned holding company, with both companies operating independently, while the executive departments merged. According to Satomi, Sega had been operating at a loss for nearly 10 years and lacked a clear financial base. Sammy feared stagnation and overreliance of its highly profitable pachislot and pachinko machine business, and wanted to divesify its business in new fields using Sega’s broader range of involvement in different entertainment fields. Sega Sammy Holdings was structured into four parts, three of which were Sega: Consumer Business (video games), Amusement Machine Business (arcade games), Amusement Center Business (Sega’s theme parks and arcades) and Pachislot and Pachinko Business (Sammy’s pachinko and pachislot business). Satomi did state that not all Sega executives were in favor of the takeover. While it is unclear for his reasons, head of Wow Entertainment (previously Sega AM1) Rikiya Nakagawa resigned a week after the merger. Sega would also restructure the development studios again, consolidating the divisions further into the Global Entertainment, Amusement Software, and New Entertainment R&D divisions.
In 2005, Sega sold Visual Concepts to Take-Two Interactive, and purchased UK-based developer Creative Assembly, known for its Total War series. In the same year, Sega Racing Studio was also formed by former Codemasters employees. In 2006, Sega Europe purchased Sports Interactive, known for its Football Manager series. Sega of America purchased Secret Level in 2006, which was renamed to Sega Studios San Francisco in 2008. In early 2008, Sega announced that they would re-establish an Australian presence, as a subsidiary of Sega of Europe, with a development studio branded as Sega Studios Australia. In the same year, Sega launched a subscription based flash website called “PlaySEGA” which played emulated versions of Sega Genesis as well original web-based flash games. It was subsequently shut down due to low subscription numbers. In 2013, following THQ’s bankruptcy, Sega bought Relic Entertainment, known for its Company of Heroes series. In 2008, Sega announced the closure of Sega Racing Studio, although the studio was later acquired by Codemasters. Closures of Sega Studios San Francisco and Sega Studios Australia followed in 2010 and 2013, respectively.
In 2007, Sega and Nintendo collaborated using Sega’s acquired Olympic Games license to create the Mario and Sonic at the Olympic Games series, which has sold over 20 million in total. In the console and handheld business, Sega found success in Japan with the Yakuzaand Hatsune Miku: Project DIVA series of games, amongst others primarily aimed at the Japanese market. In Japan, Sega distributes games from smaller Japanese game developers and localizations of Western games. In 2013, Index Corporation was purchased by Sega Sammy after going bankrupt. After the buyout, Sega implemented a corporate spin-off with Index, and re-branded the video game assets of the company as Atlus, a wholly owned subsidiary of Sega.
For amusement arcades, Sega’s most successful games continued to be based on network and card systems. Games of this type include Sangokushi Taisen and Border Break. Arcade machine sales incurred higher profits than their console, portable, and PC games on a year-to-year basis until 2010s. In 2004, the GameWorks chain of arcades became owned by Sega, until the chain was sold off in 2011. In 2009, Sega Republic, an indoor theme park in Dubai, opened to the public. In 2010, Sega began providing the 3D imaging for Hatsune Miku’s holographic concerts. In 2013, in co-operation with BBC Earth, Sega opened the first interactive nature simulation museum, Orbi Yokohama in Yokohama, Japan.
Due to the decline of packaged game sales both domestically and outside Japan in the 2010s, Sega began layoffs and reduction of their Western businesses, such as Sega shutting down five offices based in Europe and Australia on July 1, 2012. This was done in order to focus on the digital game market, such as PC and mobile devices. The amount of SKU gradually shrunk from 84 in 2005 to 32 in 2014. Because of the shrinking arcade business in Japan, development personnel would also be relocated to the digital game area. Sega gradually reduced its arcade centers from 450 facilities in 2005, to around 200 in 2015. In the mobile market, Sega released its first app on the iTunes Store with a version of Super Monkey Ball in 2008. Since then, the strategies for Asian and Western markets have become independent. The Western line-up consisted of emulations of games and pay-to-play apps, which were eventually overshadowed by more social and free-to-play games, eventually leading to 19 of the older mobile games being pulled due to quality concerns in May 2015. Beginning in 2012, Sega also began acquiring studios for mobile development, with studios such as Hardlight, Three Rings Design, and Demiurge Studios becoming fully owned subsidiaries.
In the 2010s, Sega established operational firms for each of their businesses, in order to streamline operations. In 2012, Sega established Sega Networks for its mobile games; and although separate at first, it merged with Sega Corporation in 2015. Sega Games was structured as a “Consumer Online Company”, while Sega Networks focused on developing games for mobile devices. In 2012, Sega Entertainment was established for Sega’s amusement facility business, and in 2015, Sega Interactive was established for the arcade game business. In January 2015, Sega of America announced their relocation from San Francisco to Atlus USA’s headquarters in Irvine, California, which was completed later that year.
Over the course of the existence of Sega Sammy Holdings to 2015, Sega’s operating income generally saw improvements compared to Sega’s past financial difficulties, but was not profitable every year of operation.
In April 2015, Sega Corporation was reorganized into Sega Group, one of three groups of Sega Sammy Holdings. Sega Holdings Co., Ltd. was established, with four business sectors under its organization. Haruki Satomi, son of Hajime Satomi, took office as president and CEO of the company in April 2015.
Sega announced at the Tokyo Game Show in September 2016 that they acquired the intellectual property and development rights to the games developed and published by Technosoft. Factors that influenced the acquisition included the former Technosoft president stating that they did not want the Technosoft brand to desist, and so handing over the intellectual properties to Sega was the only other option. Sega and Technosoft also had an established collaboration during the Genesis/Mega Drive era and so this pre-established relationship was also a factor when acquiring the brand rights to Technosoft games.
In April 2017, Sega Sammy Holdings announced a relocation of head office functions of the Sega Sammy Group and its major domestic subsidiaries located in the Tokyo metropolitan area to Shinagawa-ku by January 2018. Their stated reasoning was to promote cooperation among companies and creation of more active interaction of personnel, while pursuing efficient group management by consolidating scattered head office functions of the group, including Sega Sammy Holdings, Sammy Corporation, Sega Holdings, Sega Games, Atlus, Sammy Network, and Dartslive. In October 2017, Sega of America announced its own online store, known as the Sega Shop. Ian Curran, a former executive at THQ and Acclaim Entertainment, replaced John Cheng as president and COO of Sega of America in August 2018.
Following a 70% fall in profits for the 2018 fiscal year in comparison to the previous year, despite a 35% increase in the sale of console games and success in its PC game business, Sega announced that it would focus on releases for its existing intellectual property instead of new ones. Sega blamed the loss on miscalculations of the market and having too many games being developed. Projects in development at Sega include a new game in the Yakuza series, Persona 5 Scramble: The Phantom Strikers, Project Sakura Wars, the Sonic the Hedgehogfilm, and the Sega Genesis Mini. In 2019, Sega acquired Two Point Studios, known for its positively reviewed Two Point Hospital.

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A huge thanks to Zane, for believing in us for so long.
And thanks to all our ‘fanily’ that support us.
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Free games!

  • Sony

    • Pro Evolution Soccer 2019

      • 2018
      • Simulation soccer game and the only real competitor to EA Sport’s FIFA licensed franchise
    • Horizon Chase Turbo

      • 2018
      • Modern take on 90’s arcade racers like Out Run and Top Gear with stylized graphics and four-player local co-op
  • Epic Games

    • Rebel Galaxy

      • 2015
      • A space western-style trading and capital ship combat sim that has you battling pirates, exploring anomalies, befriending aliens, scavenging battle wreckage, mining asteroids, and discovering artifacts. Choose your path as a roguish do-gooder, crafty space-trader or power-hungry privateer
  • Twitch

    • Aegis Defenders

      • 2018
      • 2D platforming and tower defense game that was Kickstarted back in 2014, that has up to four players exploring and puzzle-solving to prepare for each level’s tower defense phase
    • Stikbold! A Dodgeball Adventure

      • 2016
      • A local multiplayer game that has you going head-to-head in fast-paced, hard-hitting, and sometimes (allegedly) hilariously unfair action, or going through the co-op story mode to unlock the full roster of characters
    • 10 Second Ninja X

      • 2016
      • Side-scrolling puzzle platformer where you must destroy robots through each level within 10 seconds
    • The Metronomicon

      • 2016
      • Action RPG that has you battling to the beat of the soundtrack while switching between your team of four heroes to heal, do damage, and work with status effects
 
 

Security warning for Discord users, courtesy of @splitsplatted on Twitter

  • There’s a phishing scheme going where people are receiving fake Discord server invites that will steal your account credentials
    • The fake links seem to be using very similar URL’s to the real thing- instead of discord.gg, you’ll see discordgg.ga
  • The link will take you to a forged Discord login page that will take your credentials and lock you out by changing your email and password
  • Then it’ll go through your friends, DMs, servers, and groupchats, sending the same message to more people and gaining control over more accounts
  • The best way to fight this is to spread the word, be careful what you click, and use 2FA on your account- that’ll stop it dead in its tracks
 
 

Apple has announced the launch of a voluntary recall and replacement program for the Mid-2015 15″ Retina MacBook Pros this week due to battery failure and overheating issues

  • This might be related to a reddit post earlier this year that showed a MacBook Pro that overheated and caught on fire, damaging the owner’s home
  • You can check which model you’re using by clicking on the Apple logo in the top-left corner of your screen and then clicking on About this Mac
  • If you have one of these laptops, Apple is asking you to stop using it until it can be serviced at a Genius Bar or authorized repair centre
    • The batteries will be replaced free of charge, but you could be without a laptop for 1-2 weeks
  • It’s kind of interesting that this took so long to happen though, considering that just over a year ago I was having battery and overheating issues with the same model of MacBook that led to them completely replacing the computer in question
 

Dr Disrespect, a popular Twitch streamer, got suspended from Twitch and his E3 badge revoked after streaming from inside a bathroom at the convention

  • For some reason he and his cameraperson decided to walk into a public bathroom with the camera still rolling, invading the privacy of everyone inside and breaking California laws prohibiting the use of cameras in bathrooms
  • He then walked through it and shouted “Bodyguard!” while random people, including one that appeared to be a child, used the urinals in the background
    • Other clips taken later show him re-entering the bathroom two more times and using a urinal
  • The consequences of breaking not only Twitch terms and conditions but also the law live on-stream? Apparently a two week ban, because he’s already back online
    • Even while the ban was active he didn’t seem to take it seriously, leaving it as a side note in his E3 video titled “Mishaps lead to Recaps”
  • Twitch apparently declined to comment on the situation, but it’s pretty ridiculous that they’re letting this happen with just a slap on the wrist. Clearly the money Dr Disrespect brings in for the company is more important than basic human decency
 
 
Samsung accidentally made the best argument to not buy one of their smart TV’s last week on Twitter
  • A now-deleted tweet has them telling users to “Prevent malicious software attacks on your TV by scanning for viruses on your TV every few weeks”, with a video attached detailing the apparently laborious process
  • Now, this could be automated and probably should since, as The Verge points out, most people don’t even know how to change settings like motion smoothing on their TV’s, but it seems that the onus is on users to figure out to to protect themselves
  • There haven’t been any recent vulnerabilities reported, so it’s unclear why Samsung posted and then deleted the tweet, but keep in mind that back in 2017 WikiLeaks revealed a piece of CIA software called “Weeping Angel” that could turn Samsung TV’s into listening devices
  • It’s never a bad idea to scan your tech for malicious software and viruses, but the need to do so is a reminder on why you might not want a smart TV in the first place
 

CNET’s testing shows why we’re just not ready for 5G cell phones, and it might not be why you think

  • Australia is currently offering 5G connectivity to some parts of Sydney, and during a series of tests it really was lightning fast- a 2GB game download took 54 seconds, and a full movie download from Netflix took about a minute and a half
  • That said, the range is still pretty limited- coverage drops in and out within the space of a block, with speeds varying significantly, and it will take a lot of antennas to service a full city
  • The biggest problem though? Data usage. Less than half an hour in to testing they were notified that they’d reached 50% of their 20GB monthly data plan
 
 

Sega Genesis is still a Brazilian best seller!

 
Based on sales figures from 2012, there are 5 million Sega Master System consoles on the Brazilian market.
Compare that to when Sega was its most popular in the US, where it sold 3 million copies in its lifetime.
 
This is because during the Sega and Nintendo rivalry, Nintendo ignored the Brazilian market, as it was about two-thirds the size of the US market. But Sega made a licensing agreement with Tectoy, a large toy manufacture. Because of this, Nintendo piracy was high by the time Nintendo wanted in their market.
 
Tectoy was able to manufacture Master System and Mega Drives in Brazil, and continued to make updates and even new games for the console, as the gaming market had nostalgia for Sega, and not the absent Nintendo.
 
Import taxes are also keeping the console alive. For example, the launch of the PS4 in 2013, it was being sold in the US for $399, but to buy one in Brazil, the USD equivalent was $1899. And if people wanted to play games, they could pick up a Master System, with 132 built-in games for about $50.
 
Another crazy thing the Brazilian gaming market, is their version of the PlayStation 2, was produced in 2009, and the only version of the console to receive it own version of Netflix. The last generation of consoles being the PS3 and Xbox 360 are gaining ground, but current generation is hardly represented.
 
 
 
 

Nintendo is considering opening up their massive library

 
From JapanesseNintendo.com:
When asked at the 79th Annual General Meeting of Shareholders earlier today, when we can expect content from more recent past consoles such as Nintendo 64 and GameCube, Nintendo say they are looking at extending the Nintendo Switch Online service
“At this place we cannot tell new information about future classic hardware among others, but we are thinking about providing an extension of the online service which is currently providing Famicom [NES] software, as well as other methods of providing them. We also recognise that there are opinions wanting to play past titles.”
 
 
Tidbits
  • Dr Mario World, Nintendo’s latest foray into mobile freemium gaming, is coming to iOS and Android on July 10th
    • It looks like the usual Dr Mario gameplay but with stamina, a premium currency, and purchasing items all slapped on top
  • Facebook’s lawyers, in court and in a rereshing display of honesty, are saying that any legal charges of privacy invasion are invalid because the simple act of using Facebook negates any user’s expectation of privacy
  • Huawei has confirmed they’re delaying the launch of the $2600 folding tablet we talked about back in episode 239, citing concerns and a wish to be cautious after Samsung’s folding smartphone hit reviewers with a flop and a shatter
  • With no prior warning EVE Online players were shocked this week when large, powerful fleets of non-player character ships attacked and killed players throughout the game all at once, destroying many home bases permanently
    • It’ll be interesting to see what kind of expansion or in-game event this was a prelude to, and serves as a great example of the risk/reward appeal of EVE and its full economic sandbox
 
 

Alan recommends The Fisher King

  • Comedy/drama starring Robin Williams and Jeff Bridges
  • Tells the story of a radio shock jock who tries to find redemption by helping a man whose life he inadvertently shattered
  • Fantastic acting and a ton of heart
 

Literally Misleading

Movie – Road trip! A man and his son go on a cross country journey and traveling light, they plan to get to the beach, and hope to meet more people like them.
 
If you have a Literally Misleading Description, message Josh directly on our Discord, or Twitter @fushigiyami
 

For more content, Patreon supports get access to upcoming ideas and more!

A huge thanks to Karen, for believing in us for so long.
And thanks to all our ‘fanily’ that support us.
And if you want to support us too, its as easy as clicking this link!
 
We are a proud member of the Alberta Podcast Network powered by ATB
 
And talk to us in the comments!
 
 
Twitter and Instagram @ps2jshow
 
A Facebook Page exists as well. 

Mike’s Links

Instagram Facebook Twitch  

Electronic Arts and EA Sports

Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order (PC, Xbox One, PS4)
Battlefield 5: Chapter 4 (PC, Xbox One, PS4)
The Sims 4 Island Living (PC)
FIFA 20 (PS4, Xbox One, and PC)
FIFA 20 Legacy Edition (Nintendo Switch)
Madden 20 (PS4, Xbox One, and PC)

Take-Two Interactive/2K Games

Borderlands 3 – Hole in one for looter shooters. The art style is the same, but more refined. Way higher quality, but still has the cartoon look.
The Outer Worlds – Interesting looking new IP

CD Projekt Red

Cyberpunk 2077 – Keanu real was really cool. This game looks baller.
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt – Complete Edition – On Switch? Looks like its on a computer from 1998.

Konami

Contra Rogue Corps (Xbox One PS4, PC and Switch)
Contra Anniversary Collection

Bethesda

Deathloop (Platforms unknown) (Trailer)
Doom Eternal (Xbox One PlayStation 4, PC and Nintendo Switch)
The Elder Scrolls: Blades (debuting on Nintendo Switch; iOS, Android updates)
Fallout 76: Nuclear Winter (Xbox One, PlayStation 4 and PC sneak peek)
Ghostwire: Tokyo (Platforms unknown)
Wolfenstein: Youngblood (PS4, Xbox One and PC)
Wolfenstein: Cyberpilot (VR)
Commander Keen (iOS and Android)

Square Enix

Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles (PS4, Nintendo Switch and mobile)
Final Fantasy 14: Shadowbringers (PC)
Circuit Superstars (Square Enix Collective, developer Original Fire)
War of the Visions: Final Fantasy Brave Exvius
Romancing Saga 3
Scarlett Grace
Dragon Quest Builders 2
The Last Remnant Remastered (coming to Nintendo Switch)
Trials of Mana: Collection of Mana (coming to Switch)

Ubisoft

Ghost Recon Breakpoint (Xbox One, PlayStation 4 and PC)
The Division 2 (Xbox One, PlayStation 4 and PC)
For Honor (Xbox One, PlayStation 4 and PC)
Watch Dogs Legion (Xbox One, PlayStation 4, PC, Stadia) (game play available)
Assassin’s Creed Odyssey (game update)
Roller Champions (PC download available now, other platforms unknown) – Roller Derby + Rocket League + Quiddich
Gods & Monsters (Xbox One,PlayStation 4, PC, Stadia and Switch)

Sega

Panzer Dragoon: Remake (Nintendo Switch)
Phantasy Star Online 2 (Xbox One) – Mechs always make me more interested in a game, but MMO’s are too much dedication for me. I may try it as it is a Free To Play model.
SEGA Genesis mini console coming September 2019 with mini games like Mega Man:The Wily Wars, Earthworm Jim, Sonic the Hedgehog 1 & 2, Ecco the Dolphin and 35 more classic games.

Namco Bandai

Tales of Arise – Its been 4 years between Tales Of games, and I am only aware of them from fans of the series I have known.
Dragonball Z: Kakarot – That same old DragonBall Story, but you’re the Carrot! As most DBZ things they show up to Frieza, and leave my boy Cell in the wings.
Code Vein
The Dark Pictures Anthology: Man of Medan
RAD

Various

Elden Ring (via FromSoftware) –  An ode to “I’mma finish my books when I die”
Dying Light 2 (from Techland) – Zombie Parkour Batman
Way to the Woods (Team 17) – Beautiful adventure game as a Deer with magic antlers
Dauntless (coming to Nintendo Switch via Phoenix Labs)
The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance Tactics (En Masse Entertainment)
Dead by Daylight (coming to Nintendo Switch via Koch Media)
New Super Lucky’s Tale (coming to Nintendo Switch via Playful Corp.)
Empire of Sin (John Romero multi-console game)
Yooka-Laylee and the Impossible Lair (Playtonic)
Sakuna: Of Rice and Ruin (Playtonic)

Microsoft

*Phil spencer wore a Psyconauts shirt!
They also bought out DoubleFine. Which has lost a lot of credibility with me after Tim Schafer started Fig. A strange platform where it was like Kickstarter
Halo Infinite (release window, coming to Xbox Project Scarlett)
Gears 5 –  I am way out of the loop, and I’m totally lost with the trailer.
Escape – They Matrix’d themselves to pull an Independence Day? 3 Player Co-Op
Terminator Dark Fate Crossover – Sure happened.
Blair Witch – Thought it was evil dead at first, great use of the IP
Lego Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga (Xbox One and PC) – I want to 100% this biyatch
Psychonauts 2 – Still looking cool
Bleeding Edge
Battletoads – Y tho. I don’t get BattleToads.
Age of Empire II: Definitive Edition (PC) – Always loved when I got to play this, but I never owned it myself
Wasteland 3 – This game made me realize I have post-apoc burnout
Microsoft Flight Simulator (PC first, Xbox One later) – Looked great for its time, and looks amazing now!
Minecraft Dungeons – Isometric Dungeon Crawler for up to 4 players
Spiritfarer (coming to Xbox Game Pass) – Super adorable graphics and characters. I am really looking forward to playing this one!
12 Minutes (Xbox One and PC) – Abstract horror groundhog day? The carpet from the hallway is from the Overlook Hotel in the Shining
Forza Horizon 4: Lego Speed Champions Expansion – The crossover loos really cool, but I am not a simulated racing game person.
Crossfire X – Over the top guerrilla fighting in a modern setting
Gears Pop! – Neat remixes of franchises.
New Elite Controller – I may get this, as in ask for money towards one for a holiday.
Gamepass has a ton of cool looking indie titles added to the library, as well as Gamepass Ultimate which is GamePass on Console, PC and Xbox Live Gold!
Project Scarlet

Nintendo

Luigi’s Mansion 3 (new trailer and release window)
Animal Crossing: New Horizons (new trailer, but delayed)
Super Mario Maker 2 (new trailer)
Astral Chain (new trailer)
Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3: The Black Order (new trailer)
Cadence of Hyrule ~ Crypt of the NecroDancer Featuring The Legend of Zelda
Fire Emblem: Three Houses
Dragon Quest XI S: Echoes of an Elusive Age – Definitive Edition
Dragon Quest Builders 2 (coming to North America via Nintendo)
No More Heroes 3 (announced for a 2020 release date window)
Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020
Resident Evil 5 and Resident Evil 6

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A huge thanks to Karen, for believing in us for so long. And thanks to all our ‘fanily’ that support us. And if you want to support us too, its as easy as clicking this link! Also, make sure to check out RIPT Apparel for sweet 24 tee shirt designs. And don’t forget to use the coupon code PS2JSHOW for 10% off! We are a proud member of the Alberta Podcast Network powered by ATB And talk to us in the comments! Or… Discord Server Twitter and Instagram @ps2jshow Facebook

A Japanese voice actor’s arrest is making waves in the games industry, with some surprisingly large-scale effects

  • Actor and musician Pierre Taki was arrested for cocaine use, testing positive on a drug test administered by police If found guilty he could be facing up to seven years in prison, and apparently in Japan it’s common that artists arrested for drug-related crimes are completely scrubbed from creative works
  • It’s a bit of a culture-shock, but it seems like they’re concerned about their IP being associated with that behaviour If that was a thing in North America, we’d have a lot less media Sega has suspended sales of the Yakuza spinoff Judgement, which had Taki providing the voice and facial capture for Kyohei Hamura. Hamura is apparently heavily involved with the player throughout the game
  • It’s been pulled from digital stores and physical shipments have been halted
  • Taki also voiced the Olaf from Frozen in Kingdom Hearts 3, and according to a press release Square Enix will be removing his work from that title and pushing an update with a new dub

YouTube fought back against trolls by tweaking its search algorithm to tag Brie Larson as a news-worthy search term

  • Previously looking her up on YouTube would show a bunch of angry rants and calls for a boycott of Captain Marvel (which, spoiler, definitely didn’t work)This week they recategorized “Brie Larson” as news, which forces more reliable sources like Entertainment Tonight, ABC, CNN, and other news outlets to the top of the results
  • We originally saw these tools rolled out in October 2017, after search results were favouring conspiracy videos over the actual news of a mass shooting in Las Vegas
  • So it looks like YouTube has the tools to prioritize higher-quality videos- do you think it’s something they should roll out more widely? Or do you think the potential harm to small creators is too much of a risk?

Halo: Master Chief Collection is coming to PC, and bringing Reach along with it

  • It’s going to feature full mouse/keyboard support, 4K resolutions, and an HDR toggle, but no word on things like ultra-wide monitors or higher frame rates
  • Arriving “later this year” according to the official Waypoint site, and will be available via Steam or Windows Store, but with a twist
  • Each game will be released one at a time, rather than all six at once, because they want to make sure they get each port right and give players a chance to jump in as soon as possible
  • Interestingly, the release order is going by the in-game continuity: Reach, then CE, 2, 3, ODST, and 4
  • People who own the collection on Xbox One will get some Reach content for free, but the campaign and firefight modes will be a paid add-on

Overwatch’s latest hero, the combat medic Baptiste, is hitting the game next week

  • He’s a former member of the Caribbean Coalition military group and Talon, and features:
    • A submachine gun that launches healing biotic grenades a heal-over-time called Regenerative Burst
    • An Immortality Field that prevents allies in its range from going below 40hp
    • His ultimate, Amplification Matrix, that doubles ally damage and healing
  • I’m looking forward to seeing how he meshes into the OWL meta, though as a support he might just get combined into the existing 3/3 strategy – Alan

Internet turns 30! Original Article Here

  • The world wide web was invented by Sir Tim Berners-Lee in 1989 – originally he was trying to find a new way for scientists to easily share the data from their experiments. Hypertext (text displayed on a computer display that links to other text the reader can immediately access) and the internet already existed, but no one had thought of a way to use the internet to link one document directly to another.
  • Berners-Lee created the world wide web while he was working at CERN, the European Organization for Nuclear Research in Switzerland. His vision soon went beyond a network for scientists to share information, in that he wanted it to be a universal and free ‘information space’ to share knowledge, to communicate, and to collaborate.
  • There are three main ingredients that make up the world wide web. URL (uniform resource locator), which is the addressing scheme to find a document; HTTP (hypertext transfer protocol), which connects computers together; and HTML (hypertext markup language), which formats pages containing hypertext links.
  • Berners-Lee also made the world’s first web browser and web server. During the 1990s the amount of web browsers being produced rapidly multiplied and a whole load more web-based technologies started sprouting up.
  • The world wide web opened up the internet to everyone, not just scientists. It connected the world in a way that made it much easier for people to get information, share, and communicate. It has since allowed people to share their work and thoughts through social networking sites, blogs, video sharing, and more.

Tidbits

  • Beat Saber has officially sold more than 1M copies, just in time for the first DLC song pack to release
  • The Monstercat Music pack adds 10 songs to the game for $13USD, $17.50CAD
  • They’ve also said that they’ll continue to regularly add free songs as well, like One Hope and Pop/Stars
  • Apple has announced their next event titled “It’s show time.”, scheduled for March 25th
  • They’ll likely be talking about their upcoming Apple News and streaming TV services, as well as the next iOS version, but I’m more hoping for hardware- specifically AirPods 2 and potentially AirPower

Recommend Captain Marvel

  • Fantastic movie, great acting, and a solid turn part way through It’s an origin story that acts as a crucible, bringing out Captain Marvel’s true power and motivation by the end of it. And when I say power I don’t mean photon blasts
  • I’m normally a big Iron Man fan, but she might be my new favourite character
  • I loved seeing how the beginning of things came together right before we see the Endgame

Literally Misleading

Without any original songs, thier band covers others artists work and become the number one rock band in the world. (Video Game)

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A huge thanks to Dalton, for believing in us for so long. And thanks to all our ‘fanily’ that support us. And if you want to support us too, its as easy as clicking this link! Also, make sure to check out RIPT Apparel for sweet 24 tee shirt designs. And don’t forget to use the coupon code PS2JSHOW for 10% off! We are a proud member of the Alberta Podcast Network powered by ATB And talk to us in the comments! Or… Discord Server Twitter and Instagram @ps2jshow Facebook

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PS2J 212 News – Same But More Secure

New update to the Master Chief collection. Josh thanks a listener and gives a site update. Alan recommends a cute indie game, and Josh has a free boadgame app to check out.

For more info, Patreon supports get access to our show notes!

A huge thanks to Dalton, our favourite fan. And thanks to all our Official Fans that support us.
And if you want to support us too, its as easy as clicking this link!

Also, make sure to check out RIPT Apparel for sweet 24 tee shirt designs. And don’t forget to use the coupon code PS2JSHOW for 10% off!

We are a proud member of the Alberta Podcast Network powered by ATB

And talk to us in the comments!
Or…

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A great example of modern Japanese culture, this franchise focuses on the dealings behind the scenes. With a long running main series, as well as some spin-offs which can take you back to the era of samurai. Its time to be Like a Dragon, this is the history of the Yakuza games.

For more info, Patreon supports get access to our show notes!

A huge thanks to Dalton, our favourite fan. And thanks to all our Official Fans that support us.
And if you want to support us too, its as easy as clicking this link!

Also, make sure to check out RIPT Apparel for sweet 24 tee shirt designs. And don’t forget to use the coupon code PS2JSHOW for 10% off!

We are a proud member of the Alberta Podcast Network powered by ATB

And talk to us in the comments!
Or…

Discord Server
Twitter and Instagram @ps2jshow
Facebook