News Round-up

It’s a good time to own a PS3, Warren Spector starts talking about his new game for Disney, and the stage is set for the worst videogame-to-movie ever, all after the break.

Uncharted 2: Awesome? Or COMPLETELY Awesome?

Uncharted 2: Among Thieves, an action-adventure game for the PS3, is set to be released next Tuesday, and game reviewers everywhere are already way, way too excited about it.

Here’s the Tech Herald naming it the PS3’s ‘killer app.’

Here’s USAToday reporting it a strong candidate for ‘Game of the Year.’”

Here’s a video of G4’s Adam Sessler calling it “the best single-player game experience ever.” … and wishing they had more time to gush over it.

And here’s the 97 on Metacritic.

Here’s the trailer, which looks like maybe the third best Indiana Jones movie:

Between this, Little Big Planet: Game of the Year Edition, and the recent price drop to $300, it might be a good time to pick up a PlayStation 3.

Warren Spector’s New Game for Disney

Game industry leader Warren Spector (Wing Commander, Deus Ex, Thief) went to work for Disney a while back, and wraps are starting to come up from his new Wii game. Titled Epic Mickey, it’s “a “surrealistically bizarre” look at Disney characters and locations in a steampunk environment,” according to Wikipedia.

Game Informer has this lovely piece of cover art:

Joystick Division has some fun details, including this bit:

Epic Mickey is set in a world where the old and forgotten Disney creations are cast into a dark wold of “broken machines and bitter personalities”. This world is under the control of Oswald the Rabbit (first appearance 1927), Walt Disney’s first character.

And here’s an information-light video of Spector talking about how much he loves Disney. It does have some nice collectables in it.

Track list for DJ Hero Announced

Activision released the track list for their newest music game — and that crazy turntable controller — and it looks great. Joystiq has the details.

Video Games to become Movies. Again.

WHY?

Wasn’t Resident Evil enough for you? No? Silent Hill? Max Payne?

Still living fat on the box office from the Doom movie?

Among the properties believed to be on the road to the big screen, in order of ‘chance of not completely sucking:’

• Call of Duty– I could see a middle of the road WWII action picture coming from this.
• World of Warcraft — already in pre-production with Sam Raimi (Spider-Man) to direct. Technically, an adaptation of a novel of a video game.
• Spore

Yeah. Spore — the virtually narrative- and conflict-free game where the player evolves a critter from a multi-celled organism to a space-faring race, where most of the fun comes from MAKING UP YOUR OWN CRITTER.

Chris Wedge — Ice Age and Robots — is to direct.

Queen Set Coming to Rock Band

On October 20th, Harmonix is releasing a 10-song track pack of some of Queen’s best. Included are:

• Another One Bites the Dust
• Crazy Little Thing Called Love
• One Vision
• Fat Bottomed Girls
• I Want It All
• I Want to Break Free
• Killer Queen
• Somebody to Love
• Tie Your Mother Down
• Under Pressure

New Release of the Week:

Demon’s Souls / PS3 (90 at Metacritic) – It’s a creepy, vicious, medieval combat game with some RPG elements, but what really sells it is the innovative online play. Fight with or against the other people who are playing now; see their spirits run around the same area you’re in, see where they died; leave mash notes that disintegrate over time. GameSpot has this 9.0 video review; they called it one of the most difficult games you’ll play this year, and one of the best.

Here’s one of the many trailers: