SeanPaul223 is in no way done spreading the joy with his homebrew game on the other half of the famed plumbing Mario brothers, Luigi, with Luigi’s World v4. He’s now upped the game to version 4 and you’re sure to enjoy the additions he’s put in for this on.

In case you have not come across this game, there’s no need to fret cos the idea is basically the same as in the original game. Bowser has kidnapped the perpetual kidnap victim Princess Peach and has locked her up in his badass Castle. Of course. you’ll need funds to support you in your rescue operation so you’ll have to collect as much Gold Coins as you can (out of 70) to bring her back to your brother’s house.

Changelog for this version are as follows:

• Coverflow Menu (Coded By Masterlau)
• New game Code
• And Many Others Things I Don’t Remember

SeanPaul 223 also notes that the story for this version has been divided into chapters. Here you’ll be playing Chapter 1, which has two levels available, while the rest of the Chapters will be put into following releases. So you may very well expect that this won’t be the last of Luigi’s adventure.

Download: Luigi’s World v4-Chapter I
Discuss: QJ.NET’s PSP Development Forums

More: continued here

My favorite part of “Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure” came when they figured out the paradoxes of time travel and, simply by saying “Must remember to bring a trash can!” one appears in Ted’s hands and he stuffs it over a bad guy’s head.

Not that you can do any of that in “Chronotron,” but the idea is the same, think in the present, giving orders to yourself in the past. Sort of. In Chronotron, the idea is to Clone multiple versions of yourself, using a time machine, to get through a puzzle level. The catch — all past versions will spawn and recreate your actions, so you need to think in chronological order for each step of the puzzle, and leave enough time for your final self to get through the gates and ride the risers to your objective.

It’s a hell of a fun flash game — my co-worker showed it to me yesterday, so I can vouch for its productivity killing effect.

Chronotron [Addicting Games]

More: continued here

Gamasutra has a great interview up with Masafumi Takada, best known for his work on the Grasshopper Manufacture games killer7 and No More Heroes and contributor on projects ranging from Super Smash Bros. Brawl to Resident Evil: The Umbrella Chronicles. The interview covers a ton of ground, from what it’s like to work with Goichi Suda to Takada’s work on Samurai Champloo to his theory on composing for games:

Music is really tied to your experiences and memories, similar to how your sense of smell is. If you hear music that you’ve heard before, it should bring memories from that previous time rushing back. So the game is of course a virtual world, where there are naturally things that don’t have any relation to reality.

But perhaps these experiences could happen to you in the future. The music will be tied to these potential future experiences. So I want to create music that will tie you to, and remind you of, the virtual world, but also come back to you in the real world, and create future memories. The soundtrack should recall your old memories, but also help forge new ones.

After you’ve played the game, when you listen to just the music, I want players to be able to remember the feelings they had at that time, and their feelings of that era.

I, like most people, have an unholy mix of music on my ‘favorites’ list on my iPod; it’s always nice to have some of my favorite gaming tracks sandwiched between diverse music and have those tracks stand out in a good way (’Really? That’s from a video game?’ is a reasonably common refrain from non-gamer passengers in my car). We do get so attached to music, and I’m so attached to music from some of my favorite games — to think of it as something that should be part of the memory process and not merely unobtrusive background is something that’s not new, but important to remember. Somewhat lengthy interview that’s certainly worth perusing.

Masafumi Takada: Grasshopper’s Musical Craftsman [Gamasutra]

More: continued here

Filed under: Misc. Gadgets

With the introduction of the Air Guitar Rocker, we pretty much bid the art of air rockin’ adieu. No longer could we slam our belt buckles in an attempt to whammy a downright nasty Bb chord without feeling ashamed. Thanks to the AirPiano, however, imaginary musicians the world over may have one more chance to garner the respect of innocent bystanders. This instrument, which is truthfully more akin to a theremin than a bona fide piano, enables users to emit beautiful tones without ever touching the “keys.” It’s even smart enough to sustain a note if you hold your hand over a particular area for an extended time. We don’t hand out unwarranted props, but we can’t help but tip our hats to this one. Head past the break for a video of what we’re gushing over.

[Via Hack-A-Day]

Continue reading AirPiano single-handedly redeems air instruments from irrelevancy

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

More: continued here

To: Luke
From: Owen
Re: Nobody Knows Good Pasta Like Stephen Totilo Does (Photo Proof!)

Alright. I’m out of here. It’s almost July and I have a cold. Tell me how that happens. I have to rest up because tonight I am “on the radio.” It’s a comedy gig. The person who conscripted me said, “You can say anything you want, you can get drunk, we don’t care.” That means it’s Internet radio, so, not even the truckers will be listening. But for anyone who wants to tune in and listen to me swear and embarrass myself, it’ll be from 11 pm to 1 am Crecente time tonight. The sites are www.piratecatradio.com or www.fccfree.com, where, I shit you not, Postal 2 is a sponsor (on fccfree, anyway). The episodes are archived in podcast form too.

However, if you are in San Francisco or Los Angeles, it’s 87.9 FM on your dial — which leads me to believe this is something broadcast using a college dorm radiator. Oh, also, if you are in Berlin, 104.8 FM, but this’ll be about 5 am local time, I think. And everyone there is still in mourning over Euro 2008.

Some highlights today:

Mario Marathon Raises More than $10,000
Microsoft Poll: One of Five Canadian Men Game in the Nude
Blizzard Worldwide Invitational: “There Is No Penguin Level.”
Is That a 360 Devkit on Kojima’s Desk?
Preserving Our History: Good Games Never Go Out of Style

Plus a ton of Diablo III coverage.

More: continued here

Filed under: Cellphones

We’re not sure where our tipster got these pictures (nor are we going to ask), but they appear to be screens from the Treo 800w’s specification and knowledge training documentation. New tidbits include a 333 Mhz processor, 4.4.1 x 2.28 x 0.73-inch dimensions, 320 x 320 pixel screen, and a weight of 4.94 ounces. Windows Mobile 6.1 looks to be in full-force, the camera shoots at 2 MP, and the USB port is 2.0. As for other revealed features, you’re looking at threaded SMS chat, but MMS is mysteriously missing in lieu of Sprint Picture Mail, a trend that continues to confuse us. If all this pans out, look for the 800w to be available on July 13th for $249.99. Hit the continue link to see the rest of the juicy shots and details.

[Thanks, brian]

Continue reading Treo 800w spec sheets and training materials reveal details, lack of MMS

Permalink | Email this | Comments

More: continued here

There was a time when Sonic rivaled even the great Mario himself, but those days are gone and now the blazin’ blue hedgehog is on a quest to restore his old glory. Will Sonic Unleashed(Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, Wii) be his ticket back to the big time? Check out the gameplay trailer below and decide for yourself.

Sonic Unleashed looks to deliver the same brand of high-octane platforming fun that all its predecessors had. In this video, the visuals aren’t looking too shabby but we’d be pushing it if we say we haven’t seen better.

In any case, this one should appeal to the young and the young at heart. Sonic still has plenty of charm about him to draw crowds, so you might want to check this one out when it launches.

More: continued here

Is the problem with gaming today that there’s just too much out there — and not enough time? So posits Michael Zenke, who discusses why too many games could be a bad thing, and one reason it’s increasingly hard to be a gamer. Too many AAA titles? Is such a thing possible? Well, when it means that a lot of people will never finish those AAA titles, maybe:

You couldn’t go into a store and buy Call of Duty 4 without *having* to pick up Super Mario Galaxy. Can’t snag Rock Band without that Burning Crusade box. And - seriously - can you even still be called a gamer if you didn’t play at least one of the offerings from The Orange Box?

The happy shopping sprees and smiling faces at GameStop, more than likely, eventually turned into sour grimaces and furrowed brows at home. Like it or not, the gaming public is an aging public. We’ve got kids, jobs, and responsibilities. Ironically, at a time when more gamers are able to afford these games than ever before, the Western lifestyle precludes the time to play more than a handful.

So I’m willing to bet that, across the country, gamers brought home games they didn’t play. They downloaded titles they never loaded up, purchased handheld games that stayed in the packaging.

Interesting concept, and probably has a lot of truth to it for some of us — my days of blitzing through long games in a couple of marathon sessions are (for the most part) long gone, and it’s hard to justify spending more money on games that are going to languish for months until I have the time to devote to them. Zenke doesn’t offer a solution, other than to say ‘It’s OK to slow down.’ And really, it is.

The Z-Axis: ‘Lust for the New’ [GameSetWatch]

More: continued here XBOX, PS3 and WII Gaming News

Update 6.26 has just arrived for the PlayStation Store and we’ve got a ton of new content flowing in. The usual barrage of demos, trailers, add-ons and what not are here, and you’ll probably find something to your liking no matter what your gaming preferences are. Have a load of this:

PS3 content

• PAIN Nigel Character ($0.99)
• Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock I am Murloc World of Warcraft Single (free)
• Rock Band tracks: The Pixies and Weezer are on stage this week and they’re unleashing a plethora of their biggest hits. Follow the source link below to view the full list of songs included in this update.
• Hot Shots Golf Out of Bounds Demo
• Top Spin 3 official demo
• Battlefield: Bad Company Accolades TV Spot
• Battlefield: Bad Company Preston s Blog
• Brothers in Arms: Hells Highway - Ubidays Trailer
• Call of Duty: World at War
• The Incredible Hulk Trailer
• HAZE Launch Trailer
• HAZE Song Trailer
• PAIN: Nigel Theme
• PlayStation Theme
• The House Bunny trailer (movie)
• So I Married An Axe Murderer Blu-ray Disc trailer
• Men In Black Blu-ray Disc trailer

PlayStation Store for the PC

• Medievil Resurrection ($16.99) (also downloadable via PS3)
• Medievil Resurrection interview trailer
  PSP Wallpaper (free)
• Medievil Resurrection wallpaper

More: continued here

Filed under: Gaming, GPS

An enterprising nerd by the name of Ryan VanMiddlesworth is clearly a bigger Portal fan than you, since he’s cobbled together a GLaDOS-simulating voice pack for Garmin Nüvis. Just don’t try to prevent “GLaGPS” from constantly trying to divert you to cake-related points of interest, else you may find yourself tossing your Garmin into an incinerator. Video after the break.

Continue reading GLaDOS GPS voice pack just wants to help you find your way. To the morgue.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

More: continued here