RandomNPC – Video Game RPG Reviews, Editorials, and Features

If life in the retail trenches has taught me anything, it’s that those jobs are really more precautionary prison sentences. True, there’s no cell and there aren’t as many gang fights, but it’s a stain on your past nonetheless, and the longer you stay in the harder it is to get out.

This depressing thought brought to you in part by nostalgia, for which I have that April Fools’ burst of Toonami to thank. Damn but that was good teevee. Anyhow, here’s the news:

• GAME exits administration, having found a buyer crazy enough willing to take on its debts.
• Sega, by contrast, announces a sizable drawdown in operations due to an income shortfall.  Basically, don’t expect Valkyria Chronicles 3 in English anytime soon.  Or ever.
• Meanwhile, Denis Dyack alternates between reassuring people that Too Human is still a thing, and warning that used games will crash the industry and kill your family in their sleep.
• EVE Online‘s developer partners with Nvidia to offer select video cards for virtual currency.  I’d love to hear Paul Krugman’s take on this.
• Brian Fargo speaks out on the lopsided balance of power between publishers and developers.  A lengthy interview on RipTen, but a good one: read it all here.
• Obsidian joins forces with inXile to help develop Wasteland 2, pending a Kickstarter goal of 2.1 million.  So, when I write the check for all of my money, which of you do I make it payable to?
• An OMGpop developer explains why he balked at Zynga’s offer, Michael Pachter disregards a silly PS4 rumor, GOG.com gets a facelift, and more!

Continue reading ‘What Happened This Week – Putting the Band Back Together’ »

I know, awful awful pun. I shall punish myself accordingly by eating this blueberry muffin. Anyway, we’ve got us some news!

• Wasteland 2‘s Kickstarter surpasses all expectations, especially mine.  Let the blood sausage festival commence!
• Obsidian is forced to lay people off and cancel a next-generation project.  I’d like to blame that Bethesda-New Vegas– Metacritic contract shenanigans, but the reality is slightly more complicated.
• Through a truly unexpected twist of fate, Giant Bomb winds up back inside the GameSpot offices from whence they came.  Awkwaaaard~
• Incidentally, GB’s Dave Snider wrote an excellent column about finding work in games media.  Well worth a read for even the most discouraged would-be content creator.
• Speaking of interesting columns, Joystiq’s Rowan Kaiser breaks down the year that Western RPGs… well, broke down.  Also a fascinating read, even if you disagree about when PC RPGs hit their Golden Age.
• Mass Effect 3‘s ending makes such a splash that it bypasses traditional spoiler alerts.  While I don’t spoil it myself, I do go over what it means for BioWare if they don’t address the criticism post-haste.
• Baldur’s Gate gets an enhanced edition, Microsoft gets a new Peter Moore, and more!

 
Continue reading ‘What Happened This Week – Let the Bio Beware’ »

Note to self: if Recettear is any indication, EasyGameStation’s Chantelise is worth a look.  It’s never too late to enjoy indie RPG goodness.  But I ramble, this isn’t about me and my compulsive Steam purchases, it’s time for the news!  Here’s what we’re covering:

• SCE’s Shu Yoshida explains why the Vita stumbled in Japan, and how for the US/EU release this time shall be different!  We examine why it probably won’t be different at all, Steve.
• Jack Tretton confirms we won’t see any PS4 developments this year, freeing them up to wait for Microsoft to release their specs focus on the Vita.
• Meanwhile, EA plans some unusual marketing schemes for Mass Effect 3, including launching early copies of it via weather balloons into the stratosphere.  Quoth Sarcastic Hawke, “What could possibly go wrong?”
• Brian Fargo of inXile Entertainment announces a Kickstarter plan to fund production of Wasteland 2.  And here I figured it’d take months to test the limits of Kickstarter’s power.
• The Guinness Book of World Records crowns, by popular vote, Call of Duty: Black Ops as the best videogame ending ever.  I wish I were kidding.
• One of BioWare’s more accomplished writers strikes out on their own, Bobby Kotick gets elected to Coca-Cola’s board of directors, and more!

Continue reading ‘What Happened This Week – Step One: Secure 3Gs’ »