If you own an Xbox 360, then there’s a very good chance you’re looking forward to Gears of War 2, the sequel to one of 2006’s best shooters. The original game was ultra-violent, visually stunning, and immensely satisfying. A PC version of Gears was released a year later, so it’s probably fair to say that Gears of War 2 would also have one eventually, right?

Wrong—for now at least. Epic Games lead designer Cliff Bleszinski told TVG that there are no plans for a PC version because:

“Here’s the problem right now; the person who is savvy enough to want to have a good PC to upgrade their video card, is a person who is savvy enough to know bit torrent to know all the elements so they can pirate software.”

There’s a flaw (or three) in this reasoning.

• First: does this mean the solution to piracy is to stop making games? We all know how harebrained that sounds.
• Second, Bleszinski is pretty much saying that everyone who has (or had) a fairly-powerful PC is also a software pirate. Granted that these people, present company included, is savvy enough to know bit torrent, but that doesn’t mean that we do use it.
• Third—piracy isn’t exclusive to the PC. Among the current-gen consoles, Wii and Xbox 360 games are arguably the most pilfered. In fact, the number of pirated PC games is dwarfed due to the volume of pirated games for these consoles.

Bleszinski seems to have forgotten that a well-constructed and continuously-supported online multiplayer keeps players around for years. To name a few, there’s Counter-Strike, Half-Life, Battlefield 2, and Epic’s own Unreal Tournament games.

If the sales of Gears of War PC weren’t up to snuff by Bleszinski’s standards, then someone should tell him it wasn’t because of piracy. If you’d recall, Gears PC came out in late 2007, roughly the same period when the heavens conspired to release an insane amount of excellent shooters like Call of Duty 4, Bioshock, The Orange Box (which came with five terrific games), Metroid Prime 3: Corruption, Crysis, and Unreal Tournament 3. Did I miss anything?

Interestingly, Epic Games wouldn’t be here today if it wasn’t for PC gamers. Now, he thinks they’re pirates. Funny how time and a Ferrari changes things.

Image for Gears of War 2 is courtesy of Microsoft Game Studios.

Post from: EveryJoe

CliffyB says Gears of War 2 not coming to PC, calls savvy PC gamers “pirates”

So Bioshock is finally coming to the PlayStation 3 on October 21st. Gamers unable to play Bioshock’s earlier iterations on the PC and Xbox 360 get their chance when the survival-horror shooter makes its way to Sony’s console next month. Like other multiplatform releases between the two rival consoles, comparisons are made. Watch the video and see for yourself which one looks prettier.

First impressions say the Xbox 360 looks prettier with cleaner graphics overall. Interestingly, other comparisons made by GameVideos have provided the same result. But you know what trumps these two versions handily?

The PC version, hands down. Of course, this would still depend on what’s under the hood of the PC.

Post from: EveryJoe

Which Bioshock is prettier? PS3, Xbox 360 versions duke it out

Gabe Newell, Valve Software’s big cheese, told VideoGamer that Left 4 Dead will have a demo for the Xbox 360 and PC. According to Newell, the demo would “probably” include the Hospital level and would include online cooperative play, in addition to the single player component.

Left 4 Dead is an upcoming multiplayer FPS-cum-survival horror game developed by Valve, and it’s coming out for the Xbox 360 and PC. Unfortunately, Valve’s co-founder could not provide a release date for the demo. If you’re wondering what the Hospital level that Newell is referring to, then watch its video after the jump.

Strangely, the level looks nothing like a hospital. Left 4 Dead is shipping on November 17 for the Xbox 360, and November 20 for the PC.

Image of Left 4 Dead is courtesy of EA.

Post from: EveryJoe

Left 4 Dead demo is coming to Xbox 360, PC

Do you still remember what made Battlefield games special? Any self-respecting FPS fan is likely to have experienced his or her share of Conquest, the multiplayer mode that placed developer Digital Illusions CE on the who’s who of first-person shooting. As you may have heard, Battlefield: Bad Company didn’t come with the gametype when it shipped last June.

Well, Conquest is heading to the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 today. According to IGN, Conquest would appear on the Xbox Live Marketplace after an automatic update is released. As for the PS3, one would need to download the patch. The gametype would be unlocked once this is done.

Post from: EveryJoe

Bad Company’s Conquest mode arrives today

If you know your shooter history, then you’re aware that the Unreal Engine has always been primarily for the PC. When Tim Sweeney, the creator and founder of Epic Games, suddenly says otherwise, then you just might see hell freezing over.

That’s right; the next edition of Unreal Engine (version 4 if you’re keeping count) is aimed at consoles.

“Version 4 will exclusively target the next console generation, Microsoft’s successor for the Xbox 360, Sony’s successor for the PlayStation 3 – and if Nintendo ships a machine with similar hardware specs, then that also. PCs will follow after that.”

Then again, if you’re a PC gamer for the past few years, then you may have noticed that the console love has already been happening since the beginning of the millennium.

It’s tough to be a PC gamer in this day and age, unless you have an unlimited source of funds for your l33t gaming rig. You have only to thank Halo and its offspring’s commercial success for Epic to worship console gaming’s feet.

Image for Unreal Engine 3 is courtesy of Midway Games.

Post from: EveryJoe

Next Unreal Engine is aimed at consoles first, PCs last

What I don’t like about the 360 is its unreliability. If there was a Guinness World Record for worst failure rate, I won’t be surprised to see the 360’s image placed beside it.

What’s even more surprising is that Xbox 360 gamers are commending Microsoft for having “great customer service.” Don’t believe me? Read the case of the wiped 360 at Gamerscore blog. All you have to do is look at the comments made by its faithful readers.

In a nutshell, this wiped 360 is about some kid’s prized Xbox 360 that had several (possibly important) signatures and drawings on it. The unit was brought in for repairs at Microsoft. When the console was returned, the signatures and drawings were gone. Microsoft said it’s working on the issue and the misguided applauded.

Naturally, I had to put in my two cents’ worth. I said I was surprised that people are okay in seeing 360 problems as a regular occurrence. Some guy stepped up and said “they” commend Microsoft for “fixing what was admittedly broken.”

The fellow even brought up “problems with the PS2,” and that Sony didn’t repair the faulty units for free and that “you were better off getting a new unit.”

My reply? Read below:

@ Torrence Davis

“Remember the problems with the PS2?”

Like any electronic product, I’m sure it had its share of problems. Care to give me a percentile versus the number of people that bought that console?

Now compare this with the 360.

Heck, take any mass-produced electronic product and compare its failure rate with the 360. See any difference?

Gee, you’re right man! The failure rate of the 360 is insane! How can I overlook that fact and still give props to Microsoft for their “good customer service?”

“360 gamers love the system… ”

Correction. 360 gamers love the games, but the system? Not so much. Why? They’re really disappointed that the failure rate is very high. Can you blame them?

Your launch 360 is still working, and you may argue till you’re blue in the face that majority of 360 units don’t fail (since reported figures reveal a ridiculous rate of 33% to 40%; 100% minus this figure means a very rough estimate of 70%+ that don’t fail, right?), but you must face the fact that no other electronic product has this high a failure rate.

I’ve heard of failure rates at .02%, I’ve read of failure rates at 3%, I’ve heard of even 8%, but I have never ever heard of 33% to 40%.

Until now, at least.

What is with you people? Has your devotion to Bill Gates blinded you so? Does he pay for your child’s tuition? Or your mortgage?

FYI, my ancient PS2 is seven years old and still running. My cousin’s PS2 is four years old and still running. My high school buddy’s PS2 was bought at launch and it’s still working. My officemate’s first-generation iPod (circa 2001) is still working, our old Betamax is still working and we bought that thing way back in 1988.

You know what? I would never exchange a quality product with bad customer service for an unreliable one with excellent customer service.

After all, if I purchased a good product, I would rarely need to deal with crappy customer service in the first place. But that’s just me.

Post from: EveryJoe

Xbox 360 fans commend MS customer service, but are fine with console unreliability

GDC – Gears Of War 2 from Joy Stiq on Vimeo.

Cliffy B. then shows up after the trailer was shown to confirm that the rumors of a sequel are indeed true. The most surprising part? The game is coming out this November. As expected, Gears of War 2 is an Xbox 360 exclusive. Yeah, expect a terrible PC port a year after.

This news bodes well for the legions of Xbox 360 owners who’ve been pining for a big 2008 release. If you think Halo Wars alone is going to save the Microsoft console from coming out third in the race, think again. The caliber of a Gears of War sequel would definitely help the 360’s rather slim 2008 lineup.

Question is: Would Gears 2 be enough to keep the 360 ahead of the PS3?

Post from: EveryJoe

Confirmed: Gears of War 2 is for real and it’s coming soon

Legendary is coming. According to Atari and Gamecock, the FPS will be available on the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, and PC when it ships this summer. The game is developed by Spark Unlimited and is set in a world where someone was foolish enough to open Pandora’s Box.

Bet you can guess who that someone is.

Legendary puts you in the boots of Charles Deckard, an art thief who is suckered into stealing the infamous box. When Deckard inadvertently opens it, he releases hordes of nasty beasts like werewolves and griffons into a modern world. We’re promised action, secret societies, saving mankind, and all that jazz.

Problem: summer is a pretty long period. There’s no other info given as to when exactly is the game’s release date.

Post from: EveryJoe

Launch period for Legendary revealed, but still no exact date

Local stores may have a shortage of PlayStation 3 titles, but the arrival of Turok this week hopes to address that. According to Hackenslash, the FPS is available starting February 7^th, Thursday.

Maricel Espiritu of DataBlitz revealed that there is still no advisory when Turok will be available for the Xbox 360. What does it matter anyway? The 360 owners have too many games to think about, so they can afford to wait for Turok.

Of course, another question is: would you care? So far, Turok has garnered an average of 72% at GameRankings.com. It seems to be lower than I expected.

Turok will come out for the PC on March 18.

Image: Jeux-France

Post from: EveryJoe

Turok for the PS3 hits Datablitz shelves

You’ve probably received word that EA dismissed rumors of Crysis being ported over to the Xbox 360. It’s not really breaking news since EA has denied this before. Add to the fact that Crytek actually boasted of next-generation consoles (i.e. Xbox 360 and the PS3) not being powerful enough to run its shooter and you get a closed chapter.

Is it really closed? Hogwash, I say.

This is not wishful thinking, mind you. Frankly, I don’t care if Crysis does land on consoles because I’ve always believed that shooters should only be played on the PC.

Then why am I making a big fuss over this? Here’s why: for starters, the company in question is EA, one of the world’s largest third-party publishers. Just recall what happened to this PC game titled Far Cry, and you’re virtually guaranteed that Crysis is indeed hitting the consoles.

Here’s another load of crap: that strong PC sales would convince Crytek to port Crysis for the consoles. If you have the least bit of familiarity of the games industry, you should know that the PC market is way smaller than the console market.

Making PC sales the determining factor if a company would port a game into consoles is absurd. Why? Anyone in this business knows that if you want “strong” sales, you don’t stay exclusively on the PC because it’s the smallest slice in the games industry pie.

Instead of waiting for a game to yield strong sales in the PC, a company normally goes multiplatform so that said game is made available more people—thus bringing in better sales.

Looking back at what Crytek said, there are two possibilities: either its powers-that-be are lying or are daft.

Then again, Crytek could be telling the truth: Crysis may not really be coming to the Xbox 360. The shooter might instead be ported to the PS3 only. That job opening in Crytek’s Web site is beginning to make sense.

Post from: EveryJoe

Crap-Detector: Strong PC sales would convince Crytek to port Crysis to consoles