Gary's Blog

Just a place to find out what's on my mind, or what's occupying my time whilst I avoid actual "work."

 

VGN for August 26th, 2005

Video Game News:

More Cell news relating to the PS3

By Martyn Williams, IDG News Service MacCentral
Thu Aug 25, 9:41 AM ET
 
The four companies developing the powerful Cell processor that will sit at the heart of the PlayStation 3 released detailed specifications for the chip Thursday as part of a drive to get it adopted in a wider range of consumer electronics and computer products.

IBM Corp., Toshiba Corp., Sony Corp (NYSE:SNE - news). and Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. (SCEI), which are developing the chip together, published details on the Internet of the architecture of the “broadband engine” that sits at the heart of the processor. Details of the media and streaming acceleration processor and software programming language specifications were also made available.

“It’s aimed to accelerate the creation of Cell-based applications,” Nanako Kato, a spokeswoman at SCEI, said of the move to offer more information about the chip. SCEI is the Sony unit responsible for the company’s PlayStation games consoles.

The PlayStation 3 is expected to launch in the first half of next year and be the first Cell-based product on the market. Toshiba has said it’s looking at using the Cell in high-definition TVs, and Mercury Computer Systems Inc. has a deal with IBM that could see the Cell employed in computer systems.

Halo PWNS Hollywood
Wed Aug 24, 8:05 PM ET
 

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - Microsoft Corp. (Nasdaq:MSFT - news) has signed a deal with two film studios to make a movie based on its popular space-based video game series "Halo," a spokesman for Universal Pictures said on Wednesday.

Universal and Twentieth Century Fox agreed to pay Microsoft $5 million plus a percentage of movie ticket sales. The total price being paid is capped at 10 percent of domestic box office receipts.

The deal ends months of speculation over which studio would win the right to make a "Halo" film, which came to Hollywood last spring highly-touted by Microsoft and its representatives at Creative Artists Agency. Messengers delivered a script to the studios wearing costumes and toting laser guns.

But several studios balked at an initially high asking price, which at the time published reports pegged at $15 million plus 15 percent of box office receipts in the United States and Canada.

Under terms of the final agreement, Universal will oversee the film's production and domestic distribution, while Fox will handle international distribution.

Universal spokesman Paul Pflug said the studios are aiming for a summer 2007 release of a movie based on "Halo" and "Halo 2," a science fiction series about an alien-fighting warrior named Master Chief.

Will the Revolution be Intarwebized?

Posted: 13:14 on 21 Aug 2005
By: Chris Leyton

IGN ignites rumours of a Revolution announcement ahead of a European event this week...

A quick browse of the internet recently reveals intense speculation that Nintendo will shortly reveal information on the Revolution. This appears to stem from IGN’s Matt Casamassina, suggesting this to follow shortly after the Leipzig Games Convention.

Now the last thing Nintendo needs is another MegaTon fiasco, however it could be worth noting that a European event is scheduled for August 25th, in which we’re promised "Christmas will come early"!

If such an announcement were to figure then similar events would have to be planned across the globe, and to present knowledge this isn’t the case.

What I've been playing:

Sid Meier's Pirates!

What can I say, I'm addicted.:)

Anime News:
Provided by VGN listener Tasha!  Thanks!

Advent Children Delayed

According to the newest issue of Electronic Gaming Monthly, Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children will not be released in North America in September as previously reported.

Instead, EGM reports that Advent Children will be released "this holiday season." No further details about the date are mentioned.

Details about the release are however included in the article. There will be two releases, a single disc UMD release and a 2-disc Special Edition DVD. The 2-disc set will include extra trailers, bonus features and behind-the-scenes material, but not Last Order Final Fantasy VII. The short Last Order OAV will be included in the Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children Ultimate Edition, which will retail for 29,500 yen (~US$270) and is to be released on September 14.

Anime Swim Reschedules
New episodes of Samurai Champloo, and Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex on November 19.

On Saturday, October 8 InuYasha will take the 11 p.m. spot, followed by Fullmetal Alchemist, which will move its premieres to 11:30 p.m.

Samurai Champloo will begin repeats Saturday, October 8 at 12:30 a.m., leading up to new episodes beginning November 19.

The second-season premiere of Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex (2nd GIG) has been moved to Saturday, November 19 at 11 p.m.

 

Convention Corner:

Dragon*Con!!  I'll be gone for next week's VGN, I'll be in Atlanta instead.  Until then!

posted by: Gary1059 at 07:16 | link | comments |