JAPAN GETS DSI SKETCH ANIMATION SHARING WITH UGOKUMEMOCHOU
Allow me just one last “this is awesome; you can’t have it” link for the morning: via andriasang I see that Nintendo has partnered with web company Hatena to let users of the upcoming DSi downloadable sketchbook animation app Ugoku Memo Chou (Moving Memo Book) upload their creations to a full-on YouTube like video sharing site.
The site’s already launched and is currently populated with demo movies from the app’s developers, including the slightly sinister one above [stripped out because I couldn’t get the embed to not autoplay, and the music was driving me crazy], some stop motion claymation done via the DSi’s camera, and some otherwise quite impressive animation.
This one wasn’t originally on my tentative shopping list, but I might be having a re-think.
UgoMemoHatena [via andriasang.com]
See more posts about: Offworld Originals
STATE YOUR BUSINESS (AND YOUR FRIEND CODE) WITH MII CARDS
Kotaku notes that Nintendo of Japan is offering a new Club Nintendo gift: 150 points will net you 30 business cards printed with the unmistakable visage of your Mii — and, this time, the added bonus of your Wii’s friend code.
In July of this year, Nintendo launched a new Digital Camera Print Channel in the region which, in partnership with Fujifilm, let you order bound photo books featuring images uploaded from your camera and, yes, Mii business cards, all via the Wii itself. In that case a set of 30 cards would set you back 500 yen (roughly $5.60).
The only difference now, from what I can gather, is that extra line with the code, though I’m not positive that the originals let you also add 1-up mushrooms above your name — I mention this here primarily because, if you’re listening and gauging interest, stateside Nintendo, this is something we’d also like.
Club Nintendo new point award: “Wii number exchange business cards”! [via Kotaku]
See more posts about: Offworld Originals
SPACE INVADERS EVOLVE ON JAPAN’S MOBILES
Taito really knows how to throw a 30th anniversary blowout party, but this invite unfortunately is for Japan only: Space Invaders Infinity Gene is a new retro-futurist reimagining of the classic arcade game, done up with a new low-bit techno soundtrack and razor-sharp vector beam dressing.
As the title suggests (somewhat, it actually comes off more in the brilliant Darwin quote opener), the premise this round is a standard monochromatic version of the arcade original slowly evolving into more complexity as you work your way deeper into the game.
Like a smaller cousin to Space Invaders Extreme, your ship’s been upgraded with twin shots, homing lasers, and beautifully contrail-ed missiles, and the aliens and UFOs morph into creatures and structures too large to fill the screen (along with some clearly Rez inspired cargo ships).
The catch: it’s currently a mobile phone-only release, but as Siliconera suggests, it’s ripe for a DSiWare release. See the clean video and screenshots via the Famitsu preview.
Space Invaders Infinity Gene preview [Famitsu, Google translated, via Siliconera]
See more posts about: Offworld Originals
RPS GETS A TRUTHDOSE FROM VIDELECTRIX
Friends of Offworld Rock, Paper, Shotgun have landed the ultimate exclusive interview with developer Videlectrix, the team behind Hallrunner, STRONGBADZONE, Trogdor, and our recently noted Dangeresque Roomisode 1: Behind the Dangerdesque.
RPS has previously covered the growing rift between the company and publisher Telltale, and the interview delves into the issue further:
RPS: Now of course the disagreement with Telltale has become public, with the release of the first of your Roomisodes. Telltale are distancing themselves from you, and going ahead with the release of Episode 5 despite this all. Could you explain what led up to the current situation?
‘TRIX: It’s very simple, actually. Telltale claims they invented the ’sode’ when they know good and well Videlectrix did decades ago. Are they just ignoring our ‘Cartridgisodes’ or forgetting that we pioneered the ‘LCD Handheldisode?’ Roomisodes were just a natural extension of our earlier innovations. And we will continue to innovashe despite whatever fanciful, pranciful claims Telltale makes.
RPS Speaks Exclusively To Videlectrix* [Rock, Paper, Shotgun]
See more posts about: Offworld Originals
TOUCH ME I’M SLICK: AREA/CODE’S DROP7
Update: Shortly after publishing, snap7 was removed from the App Store, but will be returning after the new year under a new name. Until then, consider this an introduction to Chain Factor and a preview of what’s to come, and I’ll update again when the game’s re-released. As noted via this January post, snap7 has officially been re-released to the App Store as Drop7. Check the updated post for more information!
In my top freeware games of 2007 recap, I noted a then-mysterious TV ad campaign related Flash game called Chain Factor. It was a curious mix of falling-block and number games, and, for me, stood so well on its own that it completely overshadowed the promotional ARG purpose it was supposed to serve.
It was cerebral but accessible, and, as I said at the time, was most surprising for blending the mechanics in a way no one (in this age of casual copycats) had thought of before. And it had that fantastic, circular, rising/falling Steve Reich-ian soundtrack. The ARG ended, the show was picked up for another season, and the masses cleared out, but I still found myself continually coming back for another run.
That’s why I’m so happy, then, to have realized this morning that area/code, the developer behind Chain Factor, have quietly ported the game to the iPhone as Drop7.
Billed now as Tetris meets Sudoku (which hits all the right notes, but check Factor‘s rules page for a better gist), the new version has adopted a much cleaner Helvetica design (which gives me NYC subway nostalgia) but kept — more importantly — that music. It’s also added a new Sequence mode which drops identical discs for all players to compare global high scores, though, so far as I can tell, they’re not charted on the web anywhere quite yet (also: a paltry 87,560 so far, if you’re wondering).
From top web game of 2007 to one of the top iPhone games of 2008’s a very happy progression, and Drop7 comes very highly recommended.
See more posts about: area/code, Drop7, Offworld Originals, Touch Me I'm Slick
TOMORROW, ROLANDOS ROLL ON IPHONE
Tomorrow finally marks the day that ngmoco releases Hand Circus’s long-awaited puzzle-platformer Rolando, and the publisher has marked the occasion with one final gameplay trailer, as well as a new special Rolando themed downloadable level for Dropship, its dual-‘analog’ vectorbeam shooter (that I’ve yet to mention here, but will in the future).
I’ve spent the past couple days with Rolando, and will be giving the Offworld view tomorrow.
Rolando home [ngmoco]
See more posts about: Hand Circus, Offworld Originals, Rolando
LISTEN: PIXELMOD RECORDS’ MERRY PIXMAS COMPILATION
Even if you thought you’d had your fill with half of the 8-bit Jesus and our ongoing Blip Fest coverage, do not fail to download Pixelmod’s new Merry Pixmas Compilation [.zip].
In a fantastic show of love from the 8bitcollective community, the compilation brings together familiar micromusic names like goto80, 8 Bit Weapon and Computeher in HTML advent calendar style, popping up a new song or picture every day.
My tops: the Weapon’s chiptune Ave Maria (!), little-scale’s thickly echoed Coventry Carol, and Shaun Carley’s hyper-breakcore Carol of the Bells.
See more posts about: Listen, Music, Offworld Originals
WHAT FUN LIFE WAS: THE 1983 SEARS WISHBOOK’S GAME WARES
I was still content with my TI-99/4A when Sears was touting the Intellivision and the still frankly beautiful Vectrex (I’m still waiting on a nice package of repro- overlays, guys), but The Retroist’s scans of the 1983 Sears wishbook remind me of two holidays following, when I was absolutely fraught with anxiety over whether I’d be choosing this ‘NES’ newcomer or the Atari 5200.
The latter I wanted solely because months earlier I’d impressed my elementary school crush with a bowling alley arcade run of Food Fight so amazing I surprised even myself (the trackball was on fire that day). In the end, I made the “right” decision.
The Video Game Systems of the 1983 Sears Wishbook [The Retroist]
See more posts about: Offworld Originals
NINTENDO’S WII/DS OUTLOOK: THE OFFWORLD VIEW
Nintendo has released its first and third party release list through the end of winter, and — with 100 some titles on the list — I thought I’d do a little chaff separating and focus on the few that look the most promising. Nintendo’s own heavy hitters, the Wii remakes of Mario Power Tennis and Pikmin, DS’s Pokemon Platinum, and Rockstar’s top down DS exclusive Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars are the obvious choices, but let’s dig down even further… (more…)
See more posts about: Offworld Originals
EA’S SPORE DE-AUTHORIZATION TOOL GOES LIVE
Putting to rest at least part of the firestorm that arose from the SecuROM protection of Spore, Electronic Arts has released a standalone tool (currently for PCs only) to de-authorize machines, iTunes style, so players can manage their installs. From the email:
Machines can be de-authorized or re-authorized at any time. The total number of machines on which Spore can be authorized concurrently will continue to be five. To de-authorize a PC download and launch Spore_deauth.zip and run the Spore De-Authorization Tool.exe file.
You can de-authorize at any time, even without uninstalling Spore, and free up that machine authorization. If you re-launch Spore on the same machine, the game will attempt to re-authorize. If you have not reached the machine limitation, the game will authorize and the machine will be re-authorized using up one of the five available machines.
Spore De-Authorization Tool [EA, via xSpore]
See more posts about: Offworld Originals
