Features// Another week in Games - X05, Nintendo online, drugs and more
I'll have a dongle, chips and some Net nuggets - and make it snappy!
Moving on, Nintendo announced the end of Xbox Live this week in an announcement that perhaps only SPOnG realised the importance of. You can read the full news detailing how Nintendo kicked in the Internet’s back doors right here.
The DS Wireless Adapter represents some of the biggest news of the past five years in gaming. Make no mistake, this is a monster. You plug a little dongle into your PC. You then have a wireless network in your home for Nintendo DS and Revolution for free and forever. Nintendo promises to match what Microsoft offers over Xbox Live for free. Imagine Live but being nice, without the endless racist homophobic aggravation that Live content seems to proliferate. And you only need have a broadband connection and spend £15 on a piece of plastic to take part.
Sony had a small legal hiccup last week in Australia with sales, distribution and installation of mod-chips deemed legal in the country by the Sydney High Court. For some reason, the Australians aren’t content with spending their time eating charred meat and harassing minority groups. And being rubbish at cricket and dodging endless deadly creatures. They also like to sit about in court worrying about all things videogame. From banning this, to allowing that, the courts in Koalaland see more litigious game action than anywhere else… As to whether this ruling will have implications outside of Australia - a PAL territory incidentally - remains to be seen…
It’s been a slow week for funny and cool stuff, though we have dredged out some nuggets for your inspection. First up is the brilliant if email-ignoring VGMusic.com. This site contains MIDI files for 20,000 game levels, intro screens and so on, all of which are mobile phone friendly. A good starter is this little ditty from Donkey Kong Country. Imagine a developer in 1993 being forced to work on Saturday with a brain full of disco biscuits and in desperate need of a hug. Aquatic Ambience could so easily have been born this way…
The most impressive piece of gamery to reach our eyeballs of late is this man playing Ikaruga. Of course, a man playing Ikaruga, one of the most challenging shooters ever made, isn’t that impressive. However, when a man plays the game in two player mode, one hand on each set of controls, it’s well worth a look.
We also found this is the reason why Xbox Live scares the shit out of us. This chap is more than likely known to anyone who’s dipped a toe in online Halo 2 play. He’s the kid that makes you take off your headset, switch off your Xbox and go to the pub, wondering how you could have ever thought it a good idea to play soldiers with children at 28 years of age.
And finally, we have a sneaky Amsterdam export for you to sell on eBay or even keep, depending on your bent. Its not a bag of drugs but an Xbox 360 facia. It’s one of only 1,000 made for X05 and currently shifts for upwards $250 or so on eBay, which we imagine will be the fate of this one. To win it simply take an amusing photograph of yourself (or anything else) which illustrates why you deserve to win it. This can be anything from a picture of your token leccy meter with 42 pence of emergency credit remaining, to a snapshot of your girlfriend tied to a radiator, complete with ransom note of course.
Take the pic, host it, and post it in the forum below. We’ll announce the winner and dish up the goods when we run our next weekly round-up, likely to be in about two and half weeks at this rate.
Highlights in the coming week will include a rather interesting piece about Japanese development studio Treasure. We’ll have the answers to a few important questions as part of a feature commemorating the launch of the GBA-exclusive GunStar Super Heroes.
See you next time, and get snapping…
Note: Usual Competition rules apply.
The DS Wireless Adapter represents some of the biggest news of the past five years in gaming. Make no mistake, this is a monster. You plug a little dongle into your PC. You then have a wireless network in your home for Nintendo DS and Revolution for free and forever. Nintendo promises to match what Microsoft offers over Xbox Live for free. Imagine Live but being nice, without the endless racist homophobic aggravation that Live content seems to proliferate. And you only need have a broadband connection and spend £15 on a piece of plastic to take part.
Sony had a small legal hiccup last week in Australia with sales, distribution and installation of mod-chips deemed legal in the country by the Sydney High Court. For some reason, the Australians aren’t content with spending their time eating charred meat and harassing minority groups. And being rubbish at cricket and dodging endless deadly creatures. They also like to sit about in court worrying about all things videogame. From banning this, to allowing that, the courts in Koalaland see more litigious game action than anywhere else… As to whether this ruling will have implications outside of Australia - a PAL territory incidentally - remains to be seen…
It’s been a slow week for funny and cool stuff, though we have dredged out some nuggets for your inspection. First up is the brilliant if email-ignoring VGMusic.com. This site contains MIDI files for 20,000 game levels, intro screens and so on, all of which are mobile phone friendly. A good starter is this little ditty from Donkey Kong Country. Imagine a developer in 1993 being forced to work on Saturday with a brain full of disco biscuits and in desperate need of a hug. Aquatic Ambience could so easily have been born this way…
The most impressive piece of gamery to reach our eyeballs of late is this man playing Ikaruga. Of course, a man playing Ikaruga, one of the most challenging shooters ever made, isn’t that impressive. However, when a man plays the game in two player mode, one hand on each set of controls, it’s well worth a look.
We also found this is the reason why Xbox Live scares the shit out of us. This chap is more than likely known to anyone who’s dipped a toe in online Halo 2 play. He’s the kid that makes you take off your headset, switch off your Xbox and go to the pub, wondering how you could have ever thought it a good idea to play soldiers with children at 28 years of age.
And finally, we have a sneaky Amsterdam export for you to sell on eBay or even keep, depending on your bent. Its not a bag of drugs but an Xbox 360 facia. It’s one of only 1,000 made for X05 and currently shifts for upwards $250 or so on eBay, which we imagine will be the fate of this one. To win it simply take an amusing photograph of yourself (or anything else) which illustrates why you deserve to win it. This can be anything from a picture of your token leccy meter with 42 pence of emergency credit remaining, to a snapshot of your girlfriend tied to a radiator, complete with ransom note of course.
Take the pic, host it, and post it in the forum below. We’ll announce the winner and dish up the goods when we run our next weekly round-up, likely to be in about two and half weeks at this rate.
Highlights in the coming week will include a rather interesting piece about Japanese development studio Treasure. We’ll have the answers to a few important questions as part of a feature commemorating the launch of the GBA-exclusive GunStar Super Heroes.
See you next time, and get snapping…
Note: Usual Competition rules apply.
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Comments
TigerUppercut 11 Oct 2005 14:36
1/5
Come on, you know you want it!
Mr Shame 12 Oct 2005 10:24
2/5
Hello.
Here is a picture of two of my dear friends, Reginald and Dwyer.
It was Reginald's 25th birthday and he, Dwyer and myself, among a group of others all went out and got absolutely plastered. of course, Reg and Dwyer drank more than everyone as we often expect and respect of them.
The night carried on and I with them. Eventually, we ended up back at Reg's house and drank Tequila and viewed pornographic films until the early hours, suddenly realising it was 11am! Reg and Dwyer who are drinkers of Olympian standards, decided we should go imediately to the pub.
We did. And midway through they fell asleep. All that partying just did them in. I feel I deserve this prize, as I stuck with them through tick and thin and was sober enough to take this; the finest photograph in existence. Not only is it funny, but it's also deeply artistic. If you study the posture and expressions of both subjects, you can read their emotional state quite clearly.
On the left is Reginald, a web designer from Hoxton, clinging onto his beer thinking selflessly to preserve it's last drops, even when unconscious.
On the right is Dwyer, a contruction manger from Ealing, giving up on the ambitious two pints he has before him, choosing to clutch his stomach in aim or self preservation.
I won't tell you how the day continued after they woke, but rest assured any proceeds I receive upon Ebaying said faceplate, will go toward documenting the drunken adventures of these two fine gentlemen for you all to see.
Love,
D Falafel
Here is a picture of two of my dear friends, Reginald and Dwyer.
It was Reginald's 25th birthday and he, Dwyer and myself, among a group of others all went out and got absolutely plastered. of course, Reg and Dwyer drank more than everyone as we often expect and respect of them.
The night carried on and I with them. Eventually, we ended up back at Reg's house and drank Tequila and viewed pornographic films until the early hours, suddenly realising it was 11am! Reg and Dwyer who are drinkers of Olympian standards, decided we should go imediately to the pub.
We did. And midway through they fell asleep. All that partying just did them in. I feel I deserve this prize, as I stuck with them through tick and thin and was sober enough to take this; the finest photograph in existence. Not only is it funny, but it's also deeply artistic. If you study the posture and expressions of both subjects, you can read their emotional state quite clearly.
On the left is Reginald, a web designer from Hoxton, clinging onto his beer thinking selflessly to preserve it's last drops, even when unconscious.
On the right is Dwyer, a contruction manger from Ealing, giving up on the ambitious two pints he has before him, choosing to clutch his stomach in aim or self preservation.
I won't tell you how the day continued after they woke, but rest assured any proceeds I receive upon Ebaying said faceplate, will go toward documenting the drunken adventures of these two fine gentlemen for you all to see.
Love,
D Falafel
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TigerUppercut 13 Oct 2005 10:35
3/5
L@@K! RARE!! XO5 XBOX 360 Face-Plate - NR!
You guys should really get sending in photographs. Really. Look, these pieces of plastic go for a whole loada dollar. Also, you might even want to keep it! Take photos - get stuff - sell for money!
You guys should really get sending in photographs. Really. Look, these pieces of plastic go for a whole loada dollar. Also, you might even want to keep it! Take photos - get stuff - sell for money!
king skins 14 Oct 2005 09:44
4/5
I'll try and get one up tomorrow
king skins 21 Oct 2005 11:49
5/5
is this compition still open?