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Annoyed Gamer

It's no big secret now that Aliens: Colonial Marines is a steaming pile of dogshit with a development cycle that is involving everyone pointing fingers at every else. Heck, reports can't even seem to agree upon the Wii U version and that hasn't even come out. Some say it's canceled, Sega says it's the best version there is, one points to another credited studio as handling the whole thing and creating a vastly superior performance. Of course, yet another report states the Wii U version is worse, with even poorer frame rate problems. Why am I not sitting back sending you all over the net to see these reports? Because it doesn't fucking matter. The game sucks. It's time to piss off and move on.

Of course, Marcus also goes into a little defense mode when someone called him out in response to his thoughts about a certain other "journalist", and he rather tastefully defends himself as he did back when the incident in question happened. Look, I may not always agree with how Marcus views everything, but at least I know he is going to tell me the truth as he sees it and he isn't going to beat around the bush.

Bungie has been hard at work in their post Halo world, and they have been working round the clock on a new First Person Shooter franchise that they have high hopes to be at least a decade long affair. It's an "always online" shooter, but that far from tells anyone the complete story. Watching the video above gives you some great insight into their vision behind the game itself. The game is supposedly playable by all skill levels and is truly about bringing their dreams to life. No limits. The game is slated for the PS3, Xbox 360, and other next-generation hardware. Essentially this likely refers to the PS4 and Xbox 720. Unfortunately, the Wii U is probably going to miss out on what looks like the next fantastic creation out of Bungie. Destiny is exactly what I want to play. Be sure to hop inside to see all of the absolutely stunning artwork for the game.

Kotaku got their hands on a leaked poster for Watch Dogs, where it clearly states, as you can see to the left, that the title is coming to all home consoles. This suggests support for a PS3, 360, and Wii U  as well as a PS4 and 720 release, assuming they come out before the game itself does. We mean no offense to the Wii, but it simply can't run the game. Kotaku reached out to Ubisoft about the leak and they didn't deny it, but they also refused to comment on what platforms they have committed Watch Dogs to. In other words - publicly there are still no known platforms for the game, internally... you get the idea.

Given that this poster (there is another section inside) has not been refuted and denied by Ubisoft, it's pretty much as close to a confirmation that this is real that we are going to get without them specifically talking about platforms. This is exciting stuff, folks. Of all versions, the Wii U one excites me the most with the GamePad possibilities with a game that truly looks built for it. It's also notable, for those that wish to not put stock in a Wii U version, that it's made by Ubisoft Montreal. The same folks who already have extensive experience with the Wii U thanks to ZombiU and Rayman Legends.

Gearbox Software has released a series of patches from their now almost universally reviled installment into the Aliens franchise.  The more positive reviews call it "a very generic shooter", and  say, "Alien Colonial Marines doesn't stand a chance if you compare it to James Cameron's seminal 1986 flick."  Some of the worst reviews seem to think it's barely even a game to begin with.  That being said, you shouldn't expect the patches to fix anything wrong with the game itself, but the gameplay may improve now that they've fixed it to the point that doors open and you will no longer be stuck eternally within quicktime events once they're over.  I mean, that's likely to make me like the game a bit more.  The new patch notes (after the jump) include some worrying details... For example, Spitter's "Acid Spray" will now originate from the mouth.  That sentence couldn't be more worrying if it were written in a Spitters non-mouth-originating "acid spray."

I know many here and across the net are giving Ubisoft a lot of flak over the Rayman Legends delay for the Wii U. It's ironic how one game delay is causing such a stir after how stellar Ubisoft has been lately, outside of the fact they were the only third party publisher to properly support the Wii U at launch (seriously, why is all their credit for that lost over one delay?). It's rather astounding how people want to boycott Ubisoft on the Wii U ignoring the fact they gave us one of our only third party exclusive titles in ZombiU... and unlike Razor's Edge, it hasn't been moved to other platforms. They also gave us Assassin's Creed III, while most other major third parties came up with excuses to not port their blockbuster hits, many of which have yet to come out (so they have had more time than Ubisoft did to make it happen).

Setting all of that aside, it has been reported that Microsoft reserves the right to refuse publishing rights on Xbox Live Arcade and at retail for multiplatform games. It gets more extensive beyond that with content and such, but the point is that if Ubisoft had released it on the Wii U next week Microsoft very well could have denied the game's appearance on their console. While there is no guarantee Microsoft denies the game, why take that decision out of your own hands? Sales on the Wii U were not going to justify skipping that popular platform.

Bungie has started an alternate-reality game today on their site. This one seems like it'll be revealing information on their next big title, Destiny.  Alternate-reality games, for the uninitiated, are a form of digital storytelling where various mediums are used, and clues and plots are dropped on various webpages and into various real-world locations to tell a story or release new information about a product.  The "trailhead", or starting place to get into the game was posted this morning, and it certainly looks intriguing.

Good news today for fans of the Batman branded series of "Arkham" games, to date including Batman: Arkham Asylum, and Batman: Arkham City. John K Martin, who is Time Warner's CFO, announced in an investor call today that the next release in the series is on its way. "... we also have a strong games release this year," said Martin, "which will include the next release in the Batman Arkham franchise. So all in all, we expect Warners to post another very strong year in 2013. And with a little luck, the year should be as good or maybe even a little bit better than 2012."

Will it be better? Only time will tell...

As internet-browsing gamers, we all get caught up in the infamous console wars from time-to-time, where Nintendo, Sony, and Microsoft fans argue over which is best. Although it is about much more than merely which is better, because the debate often quickly becomes about personal attack. Nintendo fans are criticized as being children and female, or mothers and grandmothers.

On the other hand, PlayStation and XBox gamers are bagged for being simpletons who think they are cool guys, but apparently have nothing but a taste for bloodshed with games like Call of Duty. These stereotypes of the console wars couldn’t be further from the truth, and yet the debates rage on.

What will the new Xbox look like?  Well, it's certainly hard to know for certain; the image here is just an artist mockup.  However, Kotaku just released the inside scoop on what the internals of new Xbox has in store, and let's just say it looks pretty good - though there are a few worrying pieces stuck in there.  For starters, the box is codenamed "Durango"—note that Durango isn't the final name for the system, but just the name Microsoft will use to refer to it before it's "officially" announced to the public. Check below the jump to see information on the specs.

In what seems to be the biggest spring in gaming's history, the Wii U is left with a handful of exclusives to bide its owner's time until E3. Although I'm looking forward to games such as The Wonderful 101 and Pikmin 3, I'll be unable to play some of the spring's juggernaut titles on my shiny new Nintendo console, such as Bioshock Infinite and Tomb Raider. We're seeing dozens of games missing the Wii U for the sole reason of lacking sales. Although it is a valid one, software sells hardware, and no third parties are taking the dive. Konami is joining the club now.

Konami producer Dave Cox has told us why Castlevania: Lords of Shadow 2 will not be making the jump to Wii U, and the reason is a lack of resources. Although Konami has given a different and more valid reason then the usual "Wii U is too difficult to develop on," I feel a little bit disappointed. I'm looking forward to the new Castlevania, but it looks like my PS3 will be getting the game. 

However, there is still the new 3DS entry in the beloved series, Mirror of Fate. I can't wait to join the franchise this March. Cox also spoke about the new 3DS entry. Hit the jump to see what he said!

With Sony and Microsoft's new consoles rumored to be coming out this year, game publishers Activision, Take Two, and Ubisoft have been contemplating the development costs of video games, and, by extension, a possible increase in the price of games from the current $59.99. Take Two and Ubisoft CEOs Strauss Zelnick and Yves Guillemot believe that development costs won't increase dramatically, at least during the beginning of the next generation.

"We don’t have any reason to believe our development budgets will change significantly. If anything we have become – group-wide – much tighter in terms of how we spend our money." — Strauss Zelnick

"What we've said is that, for the first two years of those machines, the costs will not increase because we can use a lot of the engines that we've already created." — Yves Guillemot

Activision CEO Bobby Kotick, on the other hand, expects prices to go up.

"This is my 22nd year doing this, and in every single console transition, we've seen an increase in development costs. Over long periods of time, it gets smoothed out, but I would say this is not a transition where that's going to be an exception. We're going to have to figure out how to take advantage of the unique capabilities of new hardware, and that requires new skills and investment in tools and technology and engines and so yes, that's likely." — Bobby Kotick

The fact that these people are even considering an increase in price shows that, at the very least, the technology of video games will become noticeably more powerful and complex. What are your thoughts on this?

Annoyed Gamer

I may be more of a Nintendo gamer than I am a PlayStation or Xbox gamer, and arguably a bigger PC gamer than any of the consoles, but even I know that blocking used games is going to be a console killer. We already know the Wii U doesn't do such things. I can attest to this because I own a used copy of New Super Mario Bros. U. Sure, maybe it only saved me $5, but that's still $5 I was able to put towards a pre-order for Pikmin 3. The fact remains that if this does happen, or if they attempt to do an "ultimate pass" for $100 which allows gamers to "unlock" unlimited used games, I tend to agree that the Wii U will reap the benefits of higher game sales since they will have the used game market all to themselves.

To be honest, I don't want any of the console makers to fail, so I just hope all these rumors (some dating a year old) just tend to be complete crap.

Bonus Round

This week's Bonus Round focus's squarely on genre preferences. You might be surprised to see what genre's are mentioned as it's not necessarily what many would expect. As an example, one of the panel's favorite genres is Tower Defense! Of course while it's a nice debate above, what we really want to know is what your favorite genre is. Sound off in the comments and let the debates begin!

Digital Foundry, a group of tech fanatics that specialize in analyzing technical fundamentals of technology and innovate digital possibilities, have taken apart Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed and decided that the Wii U version of the game is the best one. Digital Foundry honored the Wii U build for its reliable frame-rate and five person multiplayer.

Head past the jump to see why!

It's no secret that this past week has not been a good one for Ubisoft in the public eye. While more people have been attacking and bashing them over the Rayman Legends Wii U delay than people that were likely going to purchase the game to begin with, fact remains they haven't handled it well. Sure, we're getting a "Wii U" exclusive demo (you know, the first demo was Wii U exclusive too, Ubisoft) soon, but overall, they haven't responded well to the situation. In fact, it's almost like they didn't anticipate that anyone would actually care. Of course, Nintendo fans care, especially when the post launch schedule has been sparse for the Wii U. So, what to do about this mess now? Simple: Hire PR people to deal with it.

Ubisoft, one of the largest video game developers and publisher in the world, is looking for a stellar public relations professional to join its team as Public Relations Coordinator in its San Francisco Office. The Public Relations Coordinator is an extremely well-organized professional that wants to learn public relations from the best in the business and has a track record in multi-tasking, coverage tracking, database management and media outreach.