X360Racketboy has collected a list of retrogaming port announcements that are sure to interest retrogamers who don't want to go the emulator route. The GBA is getting a 3-game Capcom pack that includes Bionic Commando and Strider (whatever happened to that franchise?), and the Xbox 360 Live Arcade is getting a whole suite of really sweet classics (including Paperboy and Sonic). It really amuses me how many "obsolete" games are showing up on modern consoles these days--a testament to their status as true classics. Of course, this ties in nicely with Nintendo's announcement to cater more to touch gamers this time around.

Frankly, when this was first announced, I thought it was a hoax, though a hoax directly from Rockstar. After all, a table tennis game from the creators of "Grand Theft Auto" and "State of Emergency"? Rockstar's Table Tennis for the Xbox 360: Yes, it really does look that good. Imagine these games in a few years when developers really get a handle on next generation hardware...Sure enough, it turned out to be true and is actually looking very interesting. Rockstar's basic premise was to make the best possible playing game and put all their effort into great character models and animation. Essentially, take a simple game, make it a pleasure to control, and as beautiful as possible. Sounds good to me and something of a nod to earlier days of development. Hopefully such a high profile developer like Rockstar doing this and - fingers crossed - has a big success with this, will start to inspire other developers and publishers to take a chance. After all, this is the first stand alone table tennis game in ages and the basic design principle is a very positive one.

I had some time tonight to update the downloads on my Xbox 360 with the latest demos and Xbox Live Arcade stuff. Three games in particular that I got to try were "Test Drive Unlimited", "Ridge Racer 6" and "Blazing Angels: Squadrons of Doom". Only one truly stood out, and from the title of this posting, I think you can figure out which one...

With E3 long past and all the data readily available and no doubt already devoured by those reading this right now, I thought it would be a good time to make some of my thoughts surrounding Nintendo's Wii, Microsoft's Xbox 360 and Sony's PS3, as well as the GameTap service for the PC, known. (all my thoughts of course are US-centric)

Nintendo Wii Controller and AttachmentAnyway, whether the Wii - and yes, I still believe the name is a poor one and an unecessary liability - releases at $199 or $249, it should still come in at a good value in comparison to the high end $399 version of the Xbox 360 and the high end $599 version of the PS3. At the same time, the high end Microsoft and Sony systems are high quality multimedia centers, whereas the Wii is not. For many, this is not a factor, as they just want a game system, but I believe the higher prices - anywhere from $200 to $400 - are still justified, particularly as they're the only consoles to offer hi-definition gaming. Nintendo really has made a clear distinction with their direction, as have Microsoft and Sony with their hardware decisions. (and again, don't use the videogames are for kids argument with me, as a kid can't afford $200+ any more than one could afford $400+; don't forget, the average gamer age is now 33 and rises EVERY YEAR)