Sega denies song usage request to “avoid controversy”
Rock Paper Shotgun uncovered a bit of news via tip today regarding English writer and public speaker David Icke and a bit of a kerfuffle that seems to be brewing between him and Sega. The reason? An anti-war song…from Total War II. Let the irony there sink in for a second.
When someone lets themselves be labeled as “the most controversial speaker on the planet”, perhaps you should steer clear. Having said that, there’s a bit of truth under the madness of what Icke’s saying. Even if Sega doesn’t feel the need to associate themselves with a man who apparently has conspiracy theories regarding giant lizards, having a song that goes against war in a game that is all about that business is a bit odd. In an age where you can just listen to the song on YouTube anyway, what’s the harm in letting the guy use it at one of his talks?
[Source: RPS]
3D Realms gives crowdfunding, not Kickstarting, a shot
New crowdfunding site Gambitious spoke with Eurogamer about the apparent revival of 3D Realms, the studio behind such hits as Duke Nukem Forever. They’re throwing their scuffed-up hat into the crowdfunding ring in an attempt to bring back the studio name and get the post-apocalyptic Earth No More out the door.
I’ll admit that seeing 3D Realms attached to anything was a bit of a surprise, but the fact that this game was already shuttered once thanks to financial woes doesn’t fill me with much courage. Add in the fact that a 3D Realms founder also happens to be part of Gambitious’ advisory board and I can’t help but wonder how much of a passion project this is rather than a fully-fleshed out idea. Perhaps there’s something to Gambitious’ equity-optioned funding model – and the ideas behind Earth No More itself, for that matter – that I’m not seeing, but this all seems a bit risky to me.
At the very least, 3D Realms is only overseeing the project, and will be collaborating with another developer, in much the same vein as Prey or Max Payne.
[Source: Eurogamer]
Ultima Online turns 15, deposes a king to celebrate
One of the forefathers of MMO gaming, Ultima Online is still active and celebrated its 15th anniversary yesterday. To celebrate this momentous occasion, the team at Mythic and EA are whipping up a lengthy seven month story arc, the culmination of which will result in the deposition of the current king and, naturally, the ascension of a new one.
It’s always great to see games get supported well beyond launch, and I don’t think UO gets enough credit for still having an active player base. It may be out of the public view at this point, but hey, at least the servers are still up; that’s more than you can say about a lot of MMOs these days. I still have some fond memories of defunct games like Star Wars Galaxies and it’s unfortunate that we can’t go back there anymore, but Ultima seems to exist far from the MMO bug zapper.
Call ’em die-hards or just fervent supporters of the world they’ve helped to build, the citizens of Britannia have more to look forward to as this story arc takes off.
[Source: Polygon]
Monster Hunter 3 Ultimate’s cross-play features are extensive
Speaking with Eurogamer at TGS last week, Capcom dished out info on a suite of features that focus on cross-platform and online play between the Wii U and 3DS versions of the upcoming Monster Hunter 3 Ultimate. Cross-platform co-op and save data were both mentioned, allowing players to take their Wii U saves on the go with the 3DS version.
This is the kind of thing that gets me excited about the Wii U, even if only for a few fleeting moments at a time. It’s not quite the asynchronous multiplayer approach that Nintendo’s marketing seems so heavy-handed about, but there’s something to admire about Capcom trying to open up more ways to play and enjoy one singular save file. I know these features are already available to some extent with certain Vita/PS3 crossover titles, and I’m really hoping that this doesn’t serve as an exception rather than the rule for like-minded games down the line.
Championing this as an alternative to no online capabilities for the 3DS version feels a bit like a band-aid on a glaring wound. I also kinda wish they could have found a way to raise the player cap to five instead of four (three 3DS consoles and one Wii U) but it’s better than a kick in the pants.
[Source: Eurogamer]
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