Switchy Business, Or: Blizzard, Just Do It.

Posted on March 3, 2018 by geelw

So, yeah. A few days ago this happened on Twitter:

Sweet dreams. pic.twitter.com/tZvCnjjzWb

— Blizzard Entertainment (@Blizzard_Ent) February 28, 2018

Naturally, a LOT of people jumped on this (including yours truly) and thought right off the bat that this cryptic tweet was not at all cryptic and meant we’d be seeing a Switch version of Diablo III at some point. Well, Blizzard says nope, it was all just a misinterpreted tweet. Boo. That said, I think they’re at the very least planning something and that tweet was a means of teasing and testing the waters as far as responses to a Nintendo version. While I despise speculation, I’m about to speculate on what’s up while adding a few thoughts on this matter.

Continue reading →

Switch-Eroos Make Waiting Until March Trial By Ire

Posted on October 22, 2016 by geelw

I’ll just leave this here:

You smarter gamers with a load of patience avoiding the babbly noise rumor mill sites know who it’s for. But it’s also for anyone else in the “news gathering” trade who dabbles too deeply in third-hand gossip just for attention’s sake and huge traffic rather than do the actual legwork legitimate journalism takes.

Opinions (mine included) and improper speculative analysis aren’t facts, and some sources are only “trusted” because their skin in this game is any attention they can get for themselves so they stay “relevant.” So they yak away daily, knowing full well that the mill wheel often grinds out a few nasty things as it turns on that 24/7 schedule when you hit a slow news day every so often but need to have a story to tell just to get your name in lights somewhere. Boo.

Back in a bit.

-GW

Yes, Virginia, There Will Be A New Deadly Premonition Game. Eventually…

Posted on November 26, 2013 by geelw

Oh, Frabulous Joy Or Whatever, Department: Can I get an “FK in the Coffee!” in the house (to go, light and sweet)?!! According to the fine folks at GamingBolt, Swery 65 says he was working on a sequel to Deadly Premonition during the time he was coming up with what’s turned into the Xbox One exclusive, D4. Granted, this is only noted at the end of a sentence, there’s no HUGE reveal of info about how far along that work went and the interview is 99.9% about D4 (and a good read), so don’t look too much at that 2014 calendar and start rubbing your hands for a release date on that DP follow-up.

The interview also COMFIRMS that D4 is an Xbox One exclusive (argh!), not a DP sequel or related in any way and will contain a load of “Easter Eggs” and other elements to give it more replay value. So now that that’s settled, I guess some Swery fans will be dropping five large to get an Xbox One JUST to play this game. I’m a huge fan of the man’s body of work, but I may be passing this game up entirely unless there’s a price drop on that console and that game comes complete on a disc at some point in the future. To date, it’s the ONLY reason I’m remotely interested in Microsoft’s new ~~service~~ console, as I don’t play online “bro” shooters, have ZERO interest in sports and have plenty of movies that I can watch on cable in a MUCH better quality than any streamed content. Your own mileage may vary, of course…

I HATE Speculation, But I’ve Thought The Last Guardian Was PS4-Bound For A While…

Posted on February 16, 2013 by geelw

Of course, if I’m wrong and this ends up as one of the last PS3 titles coming before the new system arrives, it’s no big deal. But given that the game is still in development according to this recent post on Fumito Ueda’s site, rumors of other studios assisting in the dev process and my thinking for a while now that this switch to a new console and the resulting stress may be one of the unspoken reasons for him leaving SCE Japan, things are adding up to something intriguing. Actually, for about a year or so I’ve been thinking that TLG would indeed make a spectacular launch title for the new system, given the penchant for many launch titles to, well… suck a whole lot when looked back upon (or worse, suck a lot when they’re initially played).

From the first reveal, it was clear that The Last Guardian was definitely not going to suck a lot (or even a little) and somehow, its former fate as a tail-end PS3 game doomed to history as “the last great game on a dying console” needed to be dealt with. Sure, the old gal needs to (and frankly, should) go out on a high note, shattering a few windows as she’s sent up to console Valhalla. However, Sony has a few key killer first-party games on the way that insure the system will be VERY well remembered as one where the company’s internal dev teams were knocking it out of the park early (and often) for years…

Continue reading →

Why A Console Diablo Is A Really Great Idea (Again)

Posted on August 18, 2011 by geelw

If you've been around for a few console cycles and managed to snag a copy of this game (which still fetches a premium price in some spots), you probably remember this shiny little gem from the “ancient” PlayStation days. It ate up nearly a whole memory card for saves, was brutal as hell and had endless replay value for those who loved it. Well, It looks like console owners may finally be getting another Diablo-like game after all… this time from the makers of Diablo, and I couldn't be happier.

According to a posting on the official Diablo III Community Forums:

“We're exploring a Diablo-related concept for consoles and are currently looking to fill a few senior console-related positions on the Diablo III team. As we've said in the past, with proper care the gameplay could suit the console platform, and we're interested in seeing what talent out there might be interested in such a project. If you're passionate about all things Diablo and have the requisite skill and experience, then head over to our jobs site to check out the positions and apply.

Please note that this is not an announcement of a console title. We are first and foremost developing Diablo III for Windows and Mac PCs and don't intend to allow any possibility of a console interpretation to delay or affect the release of the game.”

Reading that made me grin for a few minutes too long, but it's stellar news if it actually gets done at some point. Granted, the PC-only adherents are up in arms and whining as usual (in some over the top rants that make as much sense as a Rick Santorum supermarket speech). Nevertheless, I say it's one of the smartest moves Blizzard can make going forward and benefits everyone at the end of the day… Read more »