game

Online retailer Amazon has tallied up sales in its Video Games category for the year 2009, and the results are overwhelmingly in favor of the Nintendo Wii, with nine out of the top ten spots going to Nintendo’s console, various official accessories, and games. The best-selling game on the list is New Super Mario Bros. Wii at spot number 5, a feat made even more impressive by the fact that the game came out in November — selling more copies in under two months than most games sold all year. But above that it’s all Wii gear, from the Nunchuk and the MotionPlus addon to the console itself at the top.

Modern Warfare 2 is the only non-Nintendo title in the top ten, and it’s specifically the Xbox 360 version, while the PS3 version comes in at number 13. There are only two titles exclusive to another console on the list: Halo 3: ODST for Microsoft at 16, and Uncharted 2 for Sony at 18. But that’s not much to cheer about: even the Wii Wheel beat them both. It’s fair to say Nintendo can declare Wii-ctory on Amazon in 2009. See the full list below.

[Via Kotaku]

Continue reading Wii dominates Amazon’s video game best sellers of 2009

Wii dominates Amazon’s video game best sellers of 2009 originally appeared on Joystiq on Thu, 31 Dec 2009 23:35:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

It’s rare that creator curators in the LittleBigPlanet community are rewarded for their homebrewed platforming projects — a policy Media Molecule seems to want to reverse. Over the past few weeks, the developer has been handing out awards in various categories to the game’s wide base of level designers. In a recent PlayStation.Blog post, the studio wrapped these awards up into a single presentation, cheekily titled the “2009 Sackies.”

Check out the PlayStation.Blog post to see the full list of winners, including “Roll Over Beethoven,” which we think we can all agree is just the coolest thing ever.

Media Molecule awards LittleBigPlanet community with ‘Sackies’ originally appeared on Joystiq on Thu, 31 Dec 2009 22:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Back in September, we heard the initial reports claiming Activision and FreeStyleGames had already begun work on the sequel to DJ Hero. These reports were corroborated by a recent article by Kelowna.com, in which DJ David Guetta, a contributor to the soundtrack of the first mixmaster simulator, mentioned that he’d been working on “the No. 2 version” of the game. We’re assuming he’s talking about a sequel, and not about the tone of graphite that’s so popular amongst pencil manufacturers.

It only makes sense that a second game using the costly, rotating peripheral would be in the works. What would really be shocking is some kind of lid-unscrewing sim. Or a Lazy Suzan puzzle game!

[Via Destructoid]

DJ Guetta references work on DJ Hero 2 originally appeared on Joystiq on Thu, 31 Dec 2009 19:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Nozomi, the erstwhile love interest of Shenmue’s Ryo Hazuki, has lived a virtual life of ignominy. All she wanted in life was to form a meaningful connection before leaving the town of Yokosuka to live in Canada, but she had the misfortune to fall for the most oblivious teenage boy in the world, who simply failed to notice her overt advances.

And now news has come out that she was ruled out for inclusion in Sonic & Sega All-Stars Racing. “She was going to ride on the back of Ryo’s bike,” executive producer Steve Lycett allegedly said in a Sonic Stadium forum post, “but there was the small issue of where does she go when the Forklift appears.”

Because, while having the martial arts student on a quest for vengeance in the mascot racing game is a perfectly sensible move, it would simply have been silly for his friend to disappear when his motorcycle was replaced by a forklift in the middle of a race.

In an earlier post, Lycett mentioned that Saturn mascot Segata Sanshiro was also considered for inclusion, but rejected. We would suggest that if Segata didn’t work in this game, Sumo Digital should start over, and keep trying until it arrives at a game design that includes Segata Sanshiro.

Of course, it should be noted that Lycett also coyly downplayed rumors of Banjo and Kazooie’s inclusion in the Xbox 360 version of the game, so anything he says should be met with a measure of skepticism.

[Via Kombo]

Rumor: Shenmue’s Nozomi cut from Sonic & Sega All-Stars Racing originally appeared on Joystiq on Thu, 31 Dec 2009 17:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Words matter. And in a world where the Internet makes sure that anything you write or say will never, ever disappear (so long as no one detonates a weapon to wipe out all technology like that totally rad scene at the end of Escape from L.A.), they matter more than ever — which is something we’re not quite sure the video games industry has fully appreciated yet. And with any luck they never will, because the world would be a lot more mundane without deliciously insane quips like these flowing through the digital ether.

So in accordance with the custom at this time of year, we’ve put together a list of our favorite industry quotes of 2009. From hilarious to delusional, poignant to revelatory, there were nearly enough “say whaaa?” moments this year to fill two of these features. But below is the best of the best (or worst?) for your reading pleasure. Enjoy.

The Wonders of Motion Controls

“[It's] like the 2D to 3D shift…that was the degree of shock I felt.”

- Hideo Kojima, on his reaction to seeing Project Natal for the first time.

After the ESRB rating for Game Arts’ Thexder Neo listed it as a PSP and PS3 game, Square Enix released the downloadable shooter remake on PSP only, leaving PS3 retro fans vexed and un-Thex’d. However, a post on Square Enix’s Facebook page reveals that the transforming spaceship/robot will make an appearance on PS3 after all.

“With PS3 graphic THEXDER NEO becomes more THEXDER,” Square Enix PR staffer Akira Kokushoh said, suggesting that the new version isn’t just a direct port of the PSP title. The game will be out sometime in 2010 — possibly on the early side, since Kokushoh indicated that the game is almost complete.

[Via Gamerbytes]

Thexder Neo transforming into a PS3 game originally appeared on Joystiq on Thu, 31 Dec 2009 14:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

We know that EA and BioWare have a long-term plan for Dragon Age: Origins. Even at launch the developer stated that two years worth of of DLC are in the works, and we’ll be receiving our first major bit of it next week. But a rumor is circulating today that the plans may be even more ambitious than we realized, with a full packaged expansion planned for March.

Big Download Blog reports on a page from Eurogamer.cz, the Czech gaming site. According to the translated text, the expansion is titled “The Awakening,” and will come out on March 19. The suggested price is around 2/3 the price of the original game, which would probably translate to $30-40 U.S. dollars. It’s also said to be a full packaged product that would be found in stores, and while only the PC version is mentioned, we expect BioWare would similarly support the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 versions. The original game is reported to be required, and it will raise the level cap while also creating an entirely new, shorter campaign with a new character. The report states that EA will make the announcement official in early January, so we may see it any day now.

We don’t usually see such specificity in a rumor, so it’s hard not to think Eurogamer is on to something. Origins was always meant to be the start of a lucrative RPG franchise — it’s even present in the title. Still, until we hear official word from EA, we’re going to categorize this strictly as a rumor. We’ll keep you posted when, and if, we get more details.

Despite all the economic mishaps, Nintendo has had a pretty good year for sales — particularly at Amazon.com. The online retailer released a list (via Kotaku) of their top sellers for the year, which includes both hardware and software. Of the top 10 alone, Nintendo claimed nine spots.

1. Wii
2. Wii Remote
3. Wii Motion Plus
4. Wii Nunchuck
5. New Super Mario Bros. Wii
6. Wii Fit Plus with Balance Board
7. Wii Sports Resort
8. Wii Fit
9. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 (360)
10. Mario Kart Wii with Wheel
11. PS3 DualShock controller
12. Wii Play with Remote
13. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 (PS3)
14. Official Wii Wheel
15. Assassin’s Creed 2 (360)
16. Halo 3 ODST
17. PlayStation 3 120 GB
18. Uncharted 2: Among Thieves
19. EA Sports Active
20. Left 4 Dead 2 (360)

For those curious only about software, if we remove hardware and accessories from the list, the top 10 sales are a little more evenly spread among the consoles.

Dragon Age: Origins may seem expansive enough, but BioWare has already proven willing to inflate the game further with DLC and talk of retail expansion packs. And according to an unidentified retailer listing spotted by Eurogamer.cz, the first of those expansions, titled Awakening, will supposedly arrive in Europe on March 19.

According to Eurogamer’s summary, the expansion will star a new player character with a new origin story, new areas and enemies, for about 15 hours of new content. The expansion will also raise the level cap. Eurogamer speculates that EA will announce this expansion sometime in January, though we can’t fathom how that information would be extrapolated from a retailer’s erroneously hasty listing.

[Via Big Download]

Rumor: Dragon Age expansion ‘Awakening’ in March originally appeared on Joystiq on Thu, 31 Dec 2009 11:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

The official Two Worlds II site has added a handful of screens and something called “moveshots” — three-second clips featuring some of the game’s characters in idle poses. Do idle animation clips get you hyped up for the third-person sequel to a less-than-stellar role-playing title?

Mind you, if the latest batch of screens represents developer Reality Pump’s way of showcasing its state-of-the-art, horrific medieval clown technology, then a hearty “job well done.” Look at them in the shot above, they’re the stuff of nightmares! More screens and those “moveshot” things are available on the game’s official site.

Two Worlds II site updates with new screens, ‘moveshots’ originally appeared on Joystiq on Thu, 31 Dec 2009 10:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments