Get some creativity, game designers (or writers). You always (almost) use the same chessy words over and over and over again.

Whether for titles, places, things, or NPCs…

Here are the 20 Overused Words for Game Names

1. Age
2. Blade
3. Command
4. Darkness
5. Dawn
6. Dead
7. Eternal
8. Hero
9. Legend
10. Mario
11. Origin
12. Party
13. Red
14. Shadow
15. Space
16. Star
17. Super
18. Unleashed
19. War
20. World

Via Gamedaily

We take a look at the new features of L4D 2 and feature a gamespot interview with designer Doug Lombardi.

Left 4 Dead 2 new features

• Melee combat such as pans and the great chainsaw!
• Weapon upgrades
• New zombie type – the Charger: picks you up and slams you to the ground repeatedly until your teammates come to rescue you.
• New characters
• New Maps

L4D 2 Preview and Interview

You heard it right, due to the threat of a pandemic (and the sensitive nature of the subject), the launch/announcement of Dead Rising 2 at E3 won’t be happening.

Although Capcom said that they ain’t finished with the code, their Japanese staff won’t be able to make it to E3 because of Swine Flu concerns.

Dead Rising 2 is the only game we won’t be able to showcase at E3, because it’s at an early stage of development and the team is not comfortable having anyone else demo the code.

Yeah, right.

Via exophase

With the tough rivalry between Rock Band and Guitar Hero, the folks at Harmonix and MTV are pulling all the stops to come up with something innovative.

We’ve all seen something tied to Lego and actually worked – Star Wars, Harry Potter and Indiana Jones, to name a few.

Announcing – Lego Rock Band! The secret was short lived when some folks at GDC 2009 (Game Developers Conference 2009) had some photos on their slides.

So, the folks at Harmonix announced the release of the game this year (2009).

1Up called it a family friendly system with some songs revealed:

• “Song 2″ — Blur
• “Kung Fu Fighting” — Carl Douglas
• “The Final Countdown” — Europe
• “Boys and Girls” — Good Charlotte
• “So What” — Pink

Meanwhile Rock Band still has Pearl Jam and Beatles slated for a September release while Guitar Hero is riding on the powers of Metallica to bring home the bacon.

Lego Rock band is slated for a September release too.

Let’s see who wins eh?

If this service stays true on their promise, we will see a rovultion for the industry.

Imagine this – you either have a TV set or a PC (or Mac). Second, imagine that it’s an old PC or laptop – something slow and couldn’t possibly run games such as Left 4 Dead or Crysis.

Now, there’s a new technology that allows you play the games via a service called Onlive. Onlive claims that you don’t need all the processing power: RAM, harddrive or even video card juice, the Onlive services computes all the graphics algorithims in THEIR server and just streams it to you. Thus, you DO NOT need a fast computer or even the latest consoles such as the Xbox 360 or PS3 to enjoy all the games you wish to play. All you need is a (fast) Internet connection and an account.

If this becomes succesful, it WILL revolutionize the gaming industry.

Oh, did I tell you that downloads will also be kept at a minimum? Read on….

OnLive, Inc., the pioneer of the on demand era of video games, today emerged from seven years of stealth development within the Rearden incubator to unveil The OnLive Game Service and OnLive MicroConsole™ at the 2009 Game Developers Conference. OnLive is a revolutionary, on demand video game platform delivering the latest and most advanced games instantly, on any TV via a sleek, inexpensive MicroConsole, or on almost any PC or Mac.

OnLive is supported by many of the top names in the video games industry including Electronic Arts, Ubisoft, Take-Two Interactive Software, Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment, THQ Inc., Epic Games, Eidos, Atari Interactive and Codemasters.

“OnLive is the most powerful game system in the world. No high-end hardware, no upgrades, no endless downloads, no discs, no recalls, no obsolescence,” said Steve Perlman, Founder and CEO of OnLive. “With OnLive, your video game experience is always state-of-the-art.”

Designed for gamers of all skills and ages, the OnLive Game Service is easy to use. The elegantly designed OnLive MicroConsole—about as small as a deck of cards—easily connects any TV and home broadband connection to the OnLive Game Service and is operated by an OnLive wireless controller. Gamers can enjoy the same experience on almost any Internet-connected PC or Mac via a small browser plug-in from OnLive.com—even entry-level computers will play the highest performance games. Whether on TV, PC or Mac, OnLive provides instant access to the most advanced games in the world, solo and multiplayer.

“OnLive combines the successful components of video games, online distribution and social networking into one affordable, flexible platform that offers a new way for game fans to access and enjoy content,” said Mike McGarvey, COO of OnLive. “By substantially lowering the barriers between content and consumers, OnLive has created an environment that is highly beneficial for every facet of the video game ecosystem. With OnLive, gamers can play what they want, when they want, how they want. That level of freedom has never been possible until now.”

HOW IT WORKS

The secret? Decompressing algorithms.

Normally, all the graphics and interaction is processed by the client (the computer you are viewing this post right now). With Onlive, all the processing power and the games are hosted in Onlive’s high performance game servers and your PC (or TV) will just “accept” the processed data without need for any major data processing.

The result will be mind-blowing, imagine playing games such as Crysis or Devil May Cry on an old Pentium 4 computer or, with the Onlive gadget, straight on your TV set.

This may hurt the console hardware industry but Onlive will certainly be a big blow to the nefarious pirate syndicate. You can even demo games before paying for it. There is no official word yet from the online gaming or MMORPG industry on how Onlive may impact operations.

Pricing on the service is yet to be determined.

To summarize,

• You don’t need a fast PC
• You just need a TV (with the Onlive gadget), Mac or PC and a FAST Internet connection
• Play any game you like, anywhere
• Choose from a list of hundreds of games supported by leading major developers
• You can try before you buy
• Service will launch initially in the United States
• Downloads are kept at the minimum since you get streamed, processed information and game data

RELATED LINKS

• Onlive Official website
• Onlive demo video
• Onlive Press Release
• Onlive feature article on venturebeat.com

Via gmtristan.com

Launch events used to be just camping outside the retail store and waiting in line to get your copy of this game. This one, done by Best Buy is pure brilliance!

Fans were made to make their way in a haunted house to pick up a copy of the game.

The event attracted more than 400 people. Best Buy’s David Partenio says that the store is now considering doing other premiers for games like Madden, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 and God of War 3. He added that their event is being reviewed by Best Buy corporate to determine if similar events should be held at other stores.

Being a marketer myself, all I can say is that this one helluva an idea. Pure genius!

[ source ]

The Gears of War chainsaw-gun, called the “Lancer” inside the game isn’t just for chopping up and blowing villians. There are a hundred applications for this beast. Check em out!

Practical Applications of the GoW Lancer

The greatest rock and roll band in the world will now be available for rock band

Kotaku announced that the new Rock Band title will be available this coming 09.09.09

Here’s the report:

The Beatles Rock Band will allow fans to pick up the guitar, bass, mic or drums and “experience The Beatles extraordinary catalog of music through gameplay that takes players on a journey through the legacy and evolution of the band’s legendary career,” according to the release.

The game will also have a limited number of new hardware offerings modeled after instruments used by John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr throughout their career.

The game will be sold as standalone software and hardware as well as a limited edition bundle. It will also be compatible with all Rock Band instrument controllers and other current music-based video game peripherals.

Available on 9/9/09:
• The Beatles: Rock Band Software – Xbox 360, PLAYSTATION 3, Wii: $59.99 MSRP
• The Beatles: Rock Band Standalone Guitars – Xbox 360, PLAYSTATION 3, Wii: $99.99 MSRP
• The Beatles: Rock Band Limited Edition Premium Bundle: Xbox 360, PLAYSTATION 3, Wii: $249.99 MSRP

The pricing for the game outside the U.S. have not yet been announced.

Giles Martin, co-producer of The Beatles LOVE album project, is providing his expertise and serving as Music Producer for the game, which is being developed by Haromonix, published by MTV Games and distributed by Electronic Arts.

Exclusive content created by Apple Corps, MTV Games and Harmonix will be made available to people who pre-order the game over the next few months. More details on The Beatles: Rock Band game and pre-order will be revealed in the coming months.

Meanwhile, check out the official site at

http://www.thebeatlesrockband.com/

Best known for their game, Mortal Kombat, it seems that Midway got the bad end of the “Finish Him” tagline.

Faced with around $240 million in debt, Midway corporation has recently filed for Chapter 11.

The report at gamespot said that

After months of slowly twisting in the financial wind, Midway Games has finally filed for bankruptcy. The Chicago-based publisher today submitted a petition in a federal bankruptcy court in Delaware to seek protection under Chapter 11 of the US Bankruptcy Code. The company blamed the move on last November’s “change in ownership,” when then-majority stockholder Sumner Redstone sold off his 87 percent stake in the company–valued at $30 million–for $100,000.

“This was a difficult but necessary decision,” Midway chairman, president, and CEO Matt Booty said in a statement. “We have been focused on realigning our operations and improving our execution, and this filing will relieve the immediate pressure from our creditors and provide us time for an orderly exploration of our strategic alternatives. This Chapter 11 filing is the next logical step in an ongoing process to address our capital structure.”

Via Gamespot

Japan has declared that it is no longer servicing Xbox (the first gen console, NOT the 360) effective March of this year.

In a recent post at Kotaku:

Starting March 3, Microsoft Japan will no longer service first generation original Xbox consoles (not Xbox 360s). This includes Xboxes that are under warranty as well as out-of-warranty consoles.

Microsoft Japan, however, is offering an upgrade to those owners with still-under-warranty first generation Xbox consoles in need of repair: Swap that busted console for an Xbox 360 free of charge.