Ni No Kuni Confirmed For U.S.

Level 5 CEO Akihiro Hino has confirmed that the PS3 game of Ni no Kuni: Shiroki Seihai no Joou (roughly translated Of Two Worlds: Queen of the White Ashes) is being localized for the English-language market. The planned release date for the game is early 2012.

Ni No Kuni is a collaboration between Level 5 (developer of Dragon Quest VIII and IX along with the Professor Layton games) and animation house Studio Ghibli (creators of animated feature films Princess Mononoke, Ponyo). The DS version of Ni no Kuni released last year, and the PS3 version is releasing in Japan on November 17.

Source: next-gen.biz

Gears Of War 3 Ad Details

The style of the recent Gears of War 3 TV advertisement is evocative of the spots for the first two games, but it is still more frenetic than those previous ads. One thing very similar is the inclusion of the melancholy song Into Dust, very evocative of Mad World and How It Ends.

“You want to run away from what you’ve done before,” says Scott Duchon. “But the right thing for Epic was to celebrate the end of this franchise as it always lived.”

While the ad was built using the same engine as the game, new effects were brought in so the environment could decay in the background even while the battle rages on in the foreground. “Everything moving is live action. Everything static and dead is time lapse,” says director Adam Berg.

Berg manipulated what was shown using an actual handheld monitor in a motion-capture studio to simulate the virtual camera movements. “You can see the animatic in the monitor, and move around in that world, seeing all the houses and streets and burned-out cars. It’s amazing,” he says.

There’s no sound other than the music, and Duchon points to the scene in Saving Private Ryan in which Captain Miller loses his hearing after an explosion as an example of the cinematic power. “There couldn’t be a more visceral reaction to that scene,” Duchon says. “In these first- and third-person shooters, there’s so much noise. Sometimes it’s the quiet that cuts through.”

Source: AdWeek

Deus Ex: Human Revolution Augmented With In-Game Ads

The latest update for the PC version of Deus Ex: Human Revolution has numerous bug fixes for the game. It also ads another augmentation — ads for the release of the Star Wars movies on Blu-ray.

Clearly LucasFilm is trying to reach the 18 to 34 year-old demographic where they are by inserting their ads into one of the hottest games right now. These ads appear limited to the PC version of Deus Ex: Human Revolution for now.

Source: Destructoid

Sims Social Plans Beyond Initial Release

The Sims Social has quickly risen to be one of the top games on Facebook with over 40 million active users. EA Playfish founder Kristian Segerstrale considers the game an evolution for social games.

“In bringing one of EA’s most popular game franchises to Facebook, Playfish and The Sims team have redefined the meaning of social in video games,” said Segerstrale. “By combining Playfish’s expertise and passion for social play with the deep creative heritage of The Sims franchise and the insights of its creators, we feel we’ve brought something very special to life – and tens of millions of players around the world have responded with extraordinary enthusiasm over the last few weeks.“

“We’re looking forward to working with players to evolve the game and its features in new and exciting ways in the coming months and beyond,” added Segerstrale.

Source: MCV

Devil’s Third Creator Says Lack Of New Japanese Talent ‘Terrible’

Veteran developer Tomonobu Itagaki is one of a generation of Japanese developers that helped change the face of gaming like Shigeru Miyamoto, Keiji Inafune and Hironobu Sakaguchi. However, there isn’t a generation of new talent on the rise in Japan right now and that has Itagaki fired up.

“It is terrible”, he says bluntly. “It is the worst thing possible. It’s terrible that there is no younger generation of prominent Japanese developers coming through. The young people of today should be confident. Even if that confidence comes from nowhere, you should act like it comes from somewhere.”

“No . . . I have never slapped a developer in the face. But many, many times I tell them, ‘you shouldn’t be afraid of getting a slap in the face’,” he added. “”Even the masters, like Picasso, can never please everybody. When you create something, there will always be people who don’t like it. There are people who don’t like what I make, and say bad things about them, and to me that’s like a slap in the face. So young people need to be more confident, they have to be willing to crash into something ahead of them whether other people like it or not.”

Raptr Reaches 10 Million Users

Raptr has announced that it has reached the 10 million registered user mark. The social network for gamers analyzes more than 23 million gaming sessions and a billion minutes of gameplay each month.

“With more than 10 million users, Raptr has become a vibrant community for gamers to share and discover a fun mix of content about the games they are passionate about.  We’re constantly adding features that enhance the Raptr community by leveraging our deep data tracking to help users get more out of their games and fuel conversation between players with similar interests,” said Dennis Fong, CEO of Raptr.  “As a result, Raptr is also in a unique position to provide developers and publishers a deeper understanding of consumer trends and habits, helping game creators connect with their consumers in meaningful ways.”

To find out more about Raptr, read this interview at [a]list daily.

Toyota Prius – People Person

Toyota has launched a new campaign to emphasize the fact that they have a family of Prius models. The spot makes use of an animated person comprised of many combined people – you decide whether it’s clever or creepy.

 

FIFA E-Activity Report

An overview of FIFA’s worldwide activities for the year, this e-Activity report presented a diverse range of the association’s enterprises and projects as a supplement to the print version. A full screen Flash experience localized into four languages fans can navigate through the most unforgettable moments of the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa and see the impact the tournament had on the people of Africa. Programs include everything from grassroots football to a financial assistance program to help the technical development, administration and infrastructure necessary as part of a cornerstone of football. Click to find out more about FIFA’s work worldwide in 2010 to develop the game, touch the world and build a better future.