On Bill Murray, And Ghostbusters Dialogue [Ghostbusters]
Written on 28 April 2008 by GameNewsThis post brought to you by Kotaku.
Best part of the new Ghostbusters game has got to be the fact the title will feature the voices of the movie cast. But…are they actually going to record new dialogue? Or is the game just going to use canned soundbytes from the two movies? Good news, kids: it’s the former. Bill Murray’s due to hit the studio next week to record all-new lines for the game. It’s a mystery as to how the game’s producer, Joel Mechner, managed to first find then get the reclusive Murray to sit down to work on a videogame, but who cares. He did, we all win. Let’s hope Ernie Hudson’s an easier man to track down.
Bill Murray recording his Ghostbusters game lines this week [VG247]
Apparently, Rockstar’s "Kept Quiet" On GTA IV [Marketing]
Written on 28 April 2008 by GameNewsThis post brought to you by Kotaku.
Pssst. Hey, buddy. Grand Theft Auto IV is out tomorrow. It’s actually already out for gamers who live in The Future, but don’t tell anyone. Because, apparently, Rockstar Games is trying to keep things quiet on the GTA IV front. That’s according to an AP report, the one with a photograph of the 10-story tall promo posters plastered on a hotel in downtown Los Angeles. All those billboards and posters you’re seeing around town and tacked on to buses and such? On the down low.
Oh we’re just teasing, AP. We realize there’s a difference between marketing to gamers who identify with things like Mountain Dew and Burger King cross promotion and those who have the hots for GTA. We just think it’s amusing that Rockstar’s marketing, a slow drip of hype served via carefully edited and timed trailers, as well as “viral” tricks like “Wanted” posters could ever be considered “keeping quiet”—because the silence is deafening.
‘Grand Theft Auto’ Promo Campaign Kept Quiet [FOX News]
Metal Gear Online Beta Invites Going Out To PlayStation GAP Members [Konami]
Written on 28 April 2008 by GameNewsThis post brought to you by Kotaku.
PlayStation Gamer Advisory Panel members ought to check (and re-check) their spam filters, as they may be on the receiving end of an unsolicited Metal Gear Online beta invite. Our helpful tipsters—who moonlight as lucky bastards—have already been notified that they’ll be able to participate without having to pre-order Metal Gear Solid 4. Good thing Sony and Konami waited until (most of) the bugs were shaken out before distributing to GAPers. Oh, that’s a horrid name for it…
Thanks to Marcus and Ernesto for the heads up.
Miyamoto Never Thought He’d Be Making Wii Fit [Nintendo]
Written on 28 April 2008 by GameNewsThis post brought to you by Kotaku.
Over the weekend, Famitsu held its Famitsu Award 2007 ceremony, giving industry luminaries awards — because hey, Famitsu does more than give 10s and crunch press releases! Nintendo’s Shigeru Miyamoto got the MVP award with “MVP” standing for “Most Valuable Person.” Clever! Said Miyamoto:
Ladies and gentlemen, thank you. Getting something like this really makes the last thirty years worth it. It’s somewhat unreal, somewhat of a dream. Five years ago, I never thought I’d be making something like Wii Fit. I thought I’d be making more Mario and Zelda.
You’ve changed man, you’ve changed.
Nintendo Gets Innovation Award for Wii Fit [Famitsu via Game|Life]
No XBLA Release This Week. It doesn’t come … [Xbox Live Arcade]
Written on 28 April 2008 by GameNewsThis post brought to you by Kotaku.
No XBLA Release This Week. It doesn’t come as much of a surprise to learn from Xbox’s Larry Hryb that we won’t see an Xbox Live Arcade release this Wednesday. Not only would some poor, unfortunate XBLA release go nearly completely ignored by the GTA IV playing masses, it frees up some of the sweet, sweet bandwidth that we hope will make the Live experience smoother.
College Humor Taking On Halo [Halo]
Written on 28 April 2008 by GameNewsThis post brought to you by Kotaku.
Remember the guy in the self-made Master Chief armor at the New York launch of Halo 3? Seems like we weren’t the only ones to take notice of his shiny metal carapace. The folks at College Humor, creators of Street Fighter: The Early Years, got in touch with Jim, who comments on Kotaku as NYC Armor Guy, about appearing in a short for the site, and Jim passed along some pictures of the set where the action takes place. The movie, which may or may not be called Halo Detective, should be showing up on the humor site in the coming weeks. For now, check out our little gallery taken from Jim’s site, or visit the Flickr gallery below for more shots of Master Chief in action.
Halo Detective [CHTV Flickr]
Report: UPS Is Stealin’ Ur GTA IV [Gta Iv]
Written on 28 April 2008 by GameNewsThis post brought to you by Kotaku.
As we’re about to crest on the Grand Theft Auto IV hype wave, Ars Technica passes on a somewhat amusing, definitely puzzling anecdote, writing that UPS may be experiencing an upswing in employee theft, with GTA IV to blame. Hearsay? Oh, totally, but Ars passes on that “In one 24-hour period, three workers were fired, and more interviews were scheduled for today that would likely end in termination.”
The story comes from someone who appears to work in human resources or security, claiming that tracking down the offending GTA IV package thief isn’t hard. Want to learn how you’re going to be snatched, sticky fingered UPS man? Ars has the details.
Grand Theft UPS: copies of GTA stolen en route to retailers [Ars Technica]
Interviews, Interviews, Interviews [Day Note]
Written on 28 April 2008 by GameNewsThis post brought to you by Kotaku.
To: Ash
From: Crecente
Re: I’m Sorry Mister Ashukurafuto, Really, Truly Sorry
So I spent the morning down at the local PBS affiliate taping an interview with X-Play for their big GTA IV blow-out tonight. Last week Bloomberg and ABC World News both interviewed me and tomorrow I’m doing three live radio interviews and one live online interview, all about Grand Theft Auto IV. It’s nice to see the press covering video games, I just wish it wasn’t only once or twice a year.
Oh, get this, my first interview is on a public radio show based in New York called The Takeaway, it’s at 4:30 a.m. my time. I may or may not be awake while doing it.
What you missed:
Sierra Gamer’s Day: Ghostbusters to 50 Cent
Grand Theft Auto IV: Our Review, The Hyperbole, Lots More
Blockbuster Video Gunning For GameStop?
Let’s Unbox My GTA IV CE Together!
My Second Gaming Tattoo - Reader’s Choice
New Prince of Persia Coming This Year
Mario Kart Wii Launch Starring Jason Priestley
Take-Two Stock Trading Higher Than EA’s Offer
Amazonians Buying Wii Fit And Mario Kart Faster Than GTA IV
SCi Spurns Infogrames Buyout Bid
Everything You Wanted To Know About GTA IV (So Stop Asking!)
Battlefield Heroes Shows Off Its Character Customization Chops [Clips]
Written on 28 April 2008 by GameNewsThis post brought to you by Kotaku.
Character customization in DICE’s Battlefield Heroes certainly looks deep, but we suspect the majority of the good stuff will be had via microtransaction only. I mean, they can’t possibly give away the ability to sport a wooden leg for free, can they? The many ways one can primp out their character can be seen in the new trailer above, with screen shots below for the bandwidth starved. It’s so cute!
Guardian Warns Politicians, Columnists: Gamers Are Taking Over, Deal With It [Government]
Written on 28 April 2008 by GameNewsThis post brought to you by Kotaku.
Richard Bartle, co-author of the original MUD, as MTV Multiplayer’s Stephen Totilo was kind enough to remind us, has a warning for UK politicians—and, we assume, the other silver haired no-funster luddite types—that their wrinkly old asses are about to be in the minority. That is, the minority of the population who have grown up with computer games in their lives. The best part, according to Bartle? “They aren’t addicted, they aren’t psychopathic killers, and they resent those boneheads - that’s you - who imply that they are addicted and are psychopathic killers,” he writes.
Bartle smugly namechecks Tanya Byron’s level-headed report on the plight of raising children in a digital age, with access to realistic, sometimes violent video games. He finally warns “Gamers vote. Gamers buy newspapers. They won’t vote for you, or buy your newspapers, if you trash their entertainment with your ignorant ravings.” Yeah! Get ‘em, Rich!
We’ve won: get over it [Guardian]
