Hey Got Gamers!

Normally, I like to start off these show blogs with something witty, but this week I feel the need to start things off with a trailer for Ubisoft’s We Dare. It’s a 90 second moving picture that is worth a 1000 words, but don’t be surprised if most of those words are “WHAT THE HECK IS GOING ON?!” over and over again. You will see what I mean if you watch it.

Anyhow, as you can imagine we spent some time chatting about We Dare during this week’s show, and you can hear all of our thoughts on this “interesting” game in the podcast that is located below this sentence.

[audio:http://goo.gl/fb/3hFYP]

However, we spoke about more than just We Dare. This week on Got Game we also discussed:

• Female fighters coming to Supremacy MMA
• Our Top 5 picks for the upcoming Smithsonian Gaming Exhibit
• The day one launch line up for the 3DS (which is posted at the end of this blog)
• A possible new Call of Duty game

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However, we should mention that since taping last week’s show, Activison representatives have called out that possible new Call of Duty game, and its site with the countdown clock, as being a hoax. Normally when publishers aren’t prepared to talk about things, we in the gaming press get non-committal phrases that could be taken many ways. This time Activision just said that they’re in no way involved with the countdown website located at www.findmakarov.com.

In the second segment of this show, Zack Cooper makes a quick return. This week he joined us just long enough to talk with Brian Hayes, the lead designer for EA’s Fight Night Champion, about the first ever M rated sports game to come out of a EA Sports studio.

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In our weekly review segment, Calhoun determines if Killzone 3 is worth your hard earned dollars.

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And as promised from earlier, here are the day one launch titles for the Nintendo 3DS:

FIRST PARTY TITLES:

1. Nintendogs + cats
2. Pilotwings Resort
3. Steel Diver
4. Face Raiders
5. Mii Maker

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THIRD PARTY TITLES:

1. Asphalt 3D (Ubisoft)
2. Bust-A-Move Universe (Square Enix)
3. Combat of Giants: Dinosaurs 3D (Ubisoft)
4. Lego Star Wars III: The Clone Wars (LucasArts)
5. Madden NFL Football (EA Sports)
6. Pro Evolution Soccer 2011 3D (Konami)
7. Rayman 3D (Ubisoft)
8. Ridge Racer 3D (Namco Bandai Games)
9. Samurai Warriors: Chronicles (Tecmo Koei)
10. Super Monkey Ball 3D (Sega)
11. Super Street Fighter IV 3D Edition (Capcom)
12. The Sims 3 (EA)
13. Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon Shadow Wars (Ubisoft)

Hey Got Gamers,

Sadly, Zack could not join us for the show this weekend, but no matter what the show (and the show blog) must go on! Therefore, and in that spirit, let’s get things rolling this week with an unstoppable post-broadcast-podcast. As always you can find the podcast of our latest show in the audio file below this sentence.

[audio:http://goo.gl/fb/thiJD]

This week on Got Game we discuss:

• One game developer’s belief that game pirates should be treated as fans and not as thieves
• The Smithsonian American Art Museum announcing a new exhibition called The Art of Video Games
• EA renewing its deal with the NFL for the exclusive rights to make NFL licensed video games
• Sony banning hackers from the PlayStation Network and Qriocity service

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Plus we take a look at the upcoming PS3 exclusive, Killzone 3, with the help of the game’s Lead Level Designer: Chris Haluke. We also spent a bit of time this week talking about our experiences with a PlayStation Move accessory called the Sharpshooter. For your reference, here’s an image of that accessory.

And in our review segment, Justin Amirkhani helps us out with a review of Marvel vs Capcom 3.

While Calhoun takes a look at NBA JAM for the iPhone.

And like Calhoun promised, here’s a high quality image of what NBA JAM looks like on the iPhone.

Hey Got Gamers,

I don’t like to do this, but there are times when information comes in, and I don’t have the time to do anything but copy and paste it into the Got Game blog. The alternative is to wait until I have the time, not sure when that would be, and this information is so cool that I know you would want to see it as soon as possible. Therefore, here is a press release we got about the state of the upcoming Mortal Kombat film starring Michael Jai White, and Jeri Ryan.
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BURBANK, CALIF., February 14, 2011 – Warner Premiere today announced initial casting for their upcoming live-action digital new media series “Mortal Kombat” which is based on the iconic gaming franchise.  Jeri Ryan, (“Star Trek: Voyager”) will reprise her role as the headstrong “Lieutenant Sonya Blade” from the unofficial fan short.  She is joined by Michael Jai White (“The Dark Knight”) as “Major Jackson ‘Jax’ Briggs” and Darren Shahlavi (“300”) as the sly and cunning “Kano.”       Kevin Tancharoen who directed and produced the popular, unofficial “Mortal Kombat: Rebirth” fan short that garnered over 10 million views worldwide, is bringing the same immersive directing style to this live-action digital new media series.  Fans will be able to delve deep into the history of the warriors they know and love including “Sub-Zero” and “Scorpion.” Shooting for “Mortal Kombat” is currently underway in Vancouver.

“It’s extremely gratifying to have such talented actors playing these iconic roles,” said Kevin Tancharoen, Director, Producer and Co-Writer of “Mortal Kombat.”  “They will bring the essence of ‘Mortal Kombat’ to life and gamers will be deeply immersed into the game’s universe.” “Mortal Kombat” is one of the most celebrated videogame franchises of all time. Since its debut in 1992, it has spawned four arcade games, multiple console-based videogame titles, two movies (“Mortal Kombat” and “Mortal Kombat: Annihilation”), two television series and an animated prequel.  Additionally, a new “Mortal Kombat” video game developed by NetherRealm Studios and published by Warner Bros. Interactive Ent. will be available April 19, 2011 on the PlayStation®3 computer entertainment system and the Xbox 360® video game and entertainment system from Microsoft. Written by Kevin Tancharoen, Aaron Helbing  and Todd Helbing, and available online this spring from Warner Bros. Digital Distribution, the “Mortal Kombat” digital new media series is an anthology of multiple live action shorts.  Each episode will provide never-before-revealed insights into characters featured in the upcoming videogame as well as the game’s universe.   

“Mortal Kombat,” the newest chapter of the award-winning videogame franchise, will be on store shelves starting April 19^th, 2011. Marking a triumphant return to the series’ mature presentation and a reinvention of its classic 2D fighting mechanic, “Mortal Kombat” will introduce a number of new game-play features including tag team, a deeper story mode and nostalgic online and offline arcade battles. Players will be able to choose from an extensive lineup of iconic warriors and challenge their friends in head-to-head competition as well as several new game modes.

Hey Got Gamers,

We’ve been playing a lot of You Don’t Know Jack recently, so this week I couldn’t help but change the show blog into a trivia question. So let’s say that 4 gamers got together to make a radio show about video games. If they were to discuss a topic on their show this week, what would it be?

1. Why a parent group is mad at EA over the “Your Mother Hates DeadSpace” ads
2. The demise of the Guitar Hero franchise once all of the February DLC is released
3. Harmonix confirming that Rockband is still alive
4. How the people who operate the Kevin Butler twitter account accidentally retweeted the PS3 security code
5. The situation a single mother faces after her 11 year old son spent over £1,000 of her savings on Xbox Live
6. Or how Sony is attempting to sue people they can’t identify

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If you said, “This is a trick question” you would be right. We ended up talking about all of these topics on the show this week. However, despite the temporary format change to the show blog, you can still find our weekly podcast version of the show in the audio file below this sentence.

[audio:http://goo.gl/fb/hgU5V]

Plus on this show, Momin gives his first hand impressions of the 3DS and we have Steve Tilley from Reviews on the Run on to discuss his recent hands on time with Duke Nukem Forever.

And in our review section; Zack, Christine, and Calhoun co-review You Don’t Know Jack.

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While Momin takes a look at Plants Vs Zombies for the Nintendo DS (Lite, XL, or DSi).

Hey Got Gamers,

It’s Super Bowl weekend! I hope your team wins today; and if you take the EA Madden predictions as gospel, then you’re team has a great chance of winning. In the last 7 years, the Madden predictions have only been wrong once.

2004′s Super Bowl XXXVIII

• Prediction: Patriots 23, Panthers 20
• Final Score: Patriots 32, Panthers 29

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2005′s Super Bowl XXXIX

• Prediction: Patriots 47, Eagles 31
• Final score: Patriots 24, Eagles 21

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2006′s Super Bowl XL

• Prediction: Steelers 24, Seahawks 19
• Final score: Steelers 21, Seahawks 10

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2007′s Super Bowl XLI

• Prediction: Colts 38, Bears 27
• Final score: Colts 29, Bears 17

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2008′s Super Bowl XLII – Madden was incorrect when the Giants ended up beating the Patriots.
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2009′s Super Bowl XLIII

• Prediction: Steelers 28, Cardinals 24
• Final score: Steelers 27, Cardinals 23

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2010′s Super Bowl XLIV

• Prediction: Saints 35, Colts 31
• Final score: Saints 31, Colts 17

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Although, even though it is Super Bowl weekend, we talked about more than just EA’s predictions for Sunday’s game. You can hear our debates on these various subjects in the audio file below this paragraph, but we just call it the podcasted version of the February 5th Edition of Got Game.

[audio:http://goo.gl/fb/FSg1X]

On this week’s show we discussed:

• Two studies that say gaming can have positive and negative affects on gamers
• A special Angry Birds Super Bowl commercial
• The recently announced Micheal Phelps swimming game
• The idea that a studio other than Bungie or 343 Studios is remaking the original HALO game
• The fact that the 11 year old PlayStation 2 is still selling at a consistent rate (sales chart below)

(image of chart courtesy of www.kotaku.com)

Plus Momin is finally able to review Dead Space 2

Calhoun reviews Bionic Commando Rearmed 2

And Zack looks at the 1st Call of Duty: Black Ops map pack

As game technology continues to expand, some die hard purest are bringing back the love of the classic video game. A group gathered at the Toronto Underground Cinema, last Saturday, for Throwdown III, a classic Mortal Kombat tournament interspersed with some classic B-movie cinema.

The second I got there I was drawn to a table in the corner where a Nintendo console and a Sega Genesis console sat in front of two screen. As people began to play games like Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and Sonic the Hedgehog, I couldn’t help but feel like I’d just gone home again. It’s amazing how the simplicity of these classic games can be just as entertaining as hours of COD.

Gamers play classic consoles before the start of the Mortal Kombat tournament

The event, run by Eric Kim, Paul Hillier, and Ben Rivers, brought out gamers, creators and general fans for almost five hours of good times.

Gamers go head-to-head in Mortal Kombat on the big screen at the Toronto Underground Cinema

They also premiered a few indie games by local designers. “They Bleed Pixels” created by Miguel Sternberg and Shaun Hatton – which will soon be available on Xbox indie online – made its premier as well as “Home” by designer and event co-host Benjamin Rivers.

2010 Throwdown champion Krystle Tabujara

A full 16 person Mortal Kombat tournament took place where the reigning champion Krystle Tabujara was knocked out in the quarterfinals. In the end, new champ Ben Rivers was handed the belt – they assure me it was not fixed.

It is events like this that remind me that no matter how far out there games get, be it 3D or motion controlled systems, sometimes it’s just fun getting together with friends and kicking it old school.

ROUND ONE – FIGHT!

(All photos courtesy of Paul Hillier from http://www.paulhillier.com)