MMO Clerks

Okay, that’s it! We’re done. Five readers found boxes, took pics and shot off emails fast. Here are five lighting quick readers. In boxes.
galleryPost(’boxcontest’, 3, ‘Boxed’);

Original post by Brian Ashcraft

We’ve got five, count ‘em FIVE, Metal Gear Online Beta keys we’re itching to give away. But, we don’t want to give them away, we want you to work for them. Quick! Contest time!! The first five people who snap a picture of themselves in a box Metal Gear style and send it our way will get one of these keys, no voting, no nothing. Remember, the Beta runs until May 11th, so time is of the essence. The sooner you hide in a box, the sooner you could be Manapulting. (Online and outside of said box, hopefully.)

Original post by Brian Ashcraft

This is either a tip of the hat to some friends or some of the most targeted marketing we’ve yet seen in a game, I’m not sure, but it turns out not every company/piece of branding in GTA IV is fake. Label RockersNYC were given the chance to “dress” two of the game’s characters, Jamaican gangsters Little Jacob and Real Badman, who appear in the game wearing the company’s hoodies and shirts. Not that any of you would ever notice had you not known this, but it does go to show the level of detail that went into not just Liberty City, but the game’s marketing and PR as well.
Rockers NYC x Grand Theft Auto IV [Hypebeast]

Original post by Luke Plunkett

Atari founder and old dude Nolan Bushnell doesn’t like in-game advertising. He doesn’t believe those kinds of ads are very effective. Says Bushnell:

I don’t believe those kinds of ads are very effective.

SEE? Bushnell’s rationalization is that while playing have to focus on the in-game objectives and can’t be bombarded with ads. We disagree! Gearbox’s Randy Pitchford has done a pretty damn good job of convincing us otherwise. Thanks for that, Randy!
In-Game Ads Don’t Work [MTV]

Original post by Brian Ashcraft

Filed under: Historical, MMOFPS, WWIIOL: Battleground Europe

On the war torn battlefields of Europe, the armies of the Axis and the Allies have been fighting a bitter struggle for years. Armies are surrounded and crushed, Tigers break through the Ardennes, and countless cities have been reduced to rubble in the struggle for ultimate domination. At the bottom of the totem pole of this conflict, is the gun totting, foot marching, cold food eating grunt. The war effort needs more of you and World War II Online: Battleground Europe is offering new players tantalizing rewards and updates to help send you directly into the path of blitzkreig.

WWIIOL has been actively recruiting since early April by offering some combat bonuses. Other than free stuff and pats on the back for your patriotism, the game has announced some planned implementations to get players right into the meat grinder. They are promoting an upgraded graphics engine known as Unity II. In a press release provided to Massively, the WWIIOL team promises troopers much improved graphics and an exciting new experience when entering into combat on urban ground. Before you get there, your survivability will hopefully be increased by a new tutorial system that not only touts a form of basic training, but also a combat training scenario that puts you in an instanced battle to practice what you’ve learned. If you wish to put your mark on the dotted line, the sign-up page is here. Be sure to bring a box of mom’s apple pie, because it will be rations from here on out soldier!

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Original post by Andrew Russo

Unreal’s an engine that’s making Epic some serious money. Pity, then, that Unreal as a franchise is a shadow of its former self. UTIII’s done OK, don’t get me wrong, but few at Epic or Midway would say it’s performed as expected. So what does that mean for the proper Unreal games? You remember, those singleplayer ones with a story and stuff. What about them? Take it away, Mark Rein:

I’m sure that at some point in our future we will make another Unreal, single-player, story-driven game. I’m sure at some point there will be one…[however] there are no plans to do one today.

What about tomorrow? Oh yeah. Gears 2. OK, we’ll get back to you in 2011, thanks.
Unreal Tournament 3 [Eurogamer]

Original post by Luke Plunkett

To recap the pissing match: Director Uwe Boll called director Michael Bay a “fucking retard.” Bay responded by saying Boll was a “sad being.” Boll then stated Michael Bay and Steven Spielberg were signing the anti-Uwe internet petition on various assumed names. Your move, Bay:

Can we stop talking about this guy! I never even heard his name till last week when he made threats and rants. The guy is a fucking idiot, making threats to me, Clooney, Eli Roth, says he has a doctorate - but uses the word “retard” in his vocabulary, come on. When you look at his videos, what is interesting are the backgrounds. I guess his low rent offices, with 15 year old 3/4 machines, archaic computers, this is just some dumb chump trying to get some fame when he has none, so he has to make Youtube lame quality anger rants. Guy just want attention because he can’t get any for the so called movies he makes. Nothing sadder when he had his screening in LA to an over half empty movie house.

He is a troubled soul — let’s not waste time on talking about him please.

Dumb chump? Troubled soul? Let’s not talk about him? Michael Bay’s certainly not as much fun as Uwe. Hit the jump for the inevitable clip of Boll talking about pudding.

Bay’s Blog [Shoot For The Edit]
The Pudding Show [MTV]

Original post by Brian Ashcraft

Filed under: Business

There’s been a changing of the guard at Hudson Entertainment, the North American flavor of Konami-owned Hudson Soft, as president and CEO John Greiner will take his leave of the company on May 15. Hudson notes that it currently has no plans to look for new blood to bring in to replace Greiner, instead stating that the U.S. division’s senior exec and chairman Seiichi Ishigaki will step in to fill his shoes.

Citing the reason for his departure, the 20-year exec noted plans to “spend time with his family and pursue personal interests,” which knowing Hudson as we do probably means hemming them into a corner with a bomb before admiring the carnage from a safe distance. Once the smoke clears, we wish Greiner the very best.

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Original post by Jason Dobson

Background: My favourite versions of GTAIII, Vice City and San Andreas were, believe it or not, the PC ones. Higher resolution, longer draw distance, better controls, custom soundtracks…they were tops. So where’s the PC version of GTA IV at? No comment from Rockstar. While blind optimists will say “they were quiet on the last three, too”, and hope it’ll be with us by Christmas, you should try and remember Rockstar have backed slowly away from PC ports over the past 2-3 years. Where once most Rockstar games would make it to the PC (Manhunt, again, was the superior version), Red Dead Revolver, Bully and Manhunt 2 have all come and gone with no home computer conversion in sight.
Rockstar: “No comment” on GTA IV PC reports [CVG]

Original post by Luke Plunkett

Do you hate Nintendo’s online setup for the Wii? OK if you do. It’s too slow, too cumbersome, too…impersonal. But that’s OK! Because it’s not for people like us. NoA’s Eric Walter explains:

Different services do things differently. Nintendo’s three goals for Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection are to make the service free, easy and safe. These goals are there not just for young players, but also older ones and new players. Nintendo is bringing a lot of new people into the world of video games, and we want to reduce barriers while making the online experience as enjoyable as possible.

Close, Eric. Close. Think you mean “different services do things better“.
Online Enn-Wii [1UP]

Original post by Luke Plunkett