The Zone

Kids and their tantrums! What would you do if you've learnt that your Level 70 character was killed by the swipe (or signing) of a credit card? 

Burnout Paradise is easily one of the best racing games of 2008, and we're looking forward to its PC incarnation next month. Taiwanese motherboard company Elitegroup Computer Systems appears to be equally excited too, which may explain the rather obvious "homage" of the game on the box cover of one of their latest motherboards. The similarity is quite uncanny, don't you think?

Even though there are many of us who are able-bodied, let's not forget the people who have not been able to enjoy life such as we do, and in particular, the story of KitsuneYume on the US PS3 boards has warmed up the hearts of practically any gamer who still has a soul in him (or her). Bedridden with Muscular Dystrophy, a muscular desease which slowly withers your muscles away, his passion for gaming is still burning brightly, and he's still able to catch up with his favorite PS3 titles using a specially designed controller (with his inputs) from GimpGear. To all the other disabled persons out there, this really is hope at work.

Check out his video after the jump, and a link to the PS3 boards here.

The Asus World GameMaster Tournament 2008 Malaysia Final comes to a close and the winners are announced. Who were triumphant? Who went home with the prize booty? More pictures after the jump!

For people who were disappointed with the recent E3 clampdown on skimpily-dressed booth babes, they could find some solace with the boothbabes at the TGS2008. Most of them were dressed pretty classily, though some dared to show off their midriffs. We weren't able to take pics of all of the booth babes due to lack of time (we were too busy playing the latest game demos and watching game trailers) but we still managed to compile an adequate pictorial collection of the booth babes of the show. 

Much more pictures after the jump! To view a larger size of the image, right-click and select 'View Image' in Firefox. 

The original LEGO Star Wars wasn't really a great game, but it was considered a cult classic for a lot of gamers (including yours truly). Part II is now out, so check it out at game shop near you.

 (More)

Not many game companies can afford to throw an anniversary bash for a game, unless you're GameFlier. The RO 3rd Anniversary 2006 Celebration was held last weekend over at The Summit USJ, and I managed to wriggle my way there to snap some photos. Here are a few of them.

The event has ended, the rivalries has started, now let the games begin! Our ardent shutterbug was at the CELgames 06 Kickoff's final day to capture a compressed look some of the exciting events that was held during the week.

The New York Times has confirmed that the Nintendo Wii will premiere in the US for USD250 on November 19, which works out to be around RM920 according to current exchange rates. It will come with a copy of Wii Sports, a compilation of sport games designed for the Wii. When it arrives in the retail shops around here, I reckon it'll probably go for around RM1200 - RM1300 after markup.

First-party games (i.e. games developed by Nintendo) will cost USD50 (RM185), though it's unclear how much third-party games will cost. Downloadable classic games for the Wii's Virtual Console will go for USD5 - 10 each. We'll keep you updated as soon as more details come in.

The Japanese press conference which just concluded actually prices the Wii at 25000 yen (RM780), while Nintendo America has yet to announce the retail price for the Wii in the US. What's more, the Japanese launch is confirmed for the 2nd of December, meaning if the New York Times report is accurate, the Wii will launch in the US first. How true is it? Good bets that the report is legit, but we'll know for sure by tonight or tomorrow morning.

If the local price is right, I'll get one at launch. :D Will you be getting one? Shout out here if you are.

Guild Wars may not have the same intricate lush worlds and PvE gameplay that WoW has, but one sector that they have them beat is their PvP gameplay. Last Sunday, e-Club Malaysia held a mini 4-vs-4 PvP tourney to commemorate the upcoming Guild Wars: Nightfall expansion pack. (More)

Hullo, missed me? :D I didn't update the blog last week since I was in Singapore (courtesy of Sendi Mutiara Multimedia) to check out the debut of Hellgate: London and Granado Espada at the IAH Game Conference.

I got to try out both games and they're sweet, especially Hellgate: London. It was really fun hacking and slashing hordes of demon, and the first-person view when using ranged weapons really felt like an FPS even though I was shooting all over the place.

Developers Bill Roper and Kim Hakkyu were like superstars at the event; dozens of people were asking them to autograph their Hellgate/Granado T-shirts and posters (I, too, also asked for their autographs). With so many game journalists circling them constantly, I was lucky enough to get one-on-one interviews with both Bill Roper and Kim Hakkyu, so look forward to their interviews in the upcoming GameAxis issues.

It wasn't all fun and games as upon returning home to Malaysia, a few sample products came in the mail for me to review. Here're a couple of stuff that you can look forward to next month's issue of HWM:

When the Sony PS3 SixAxis controller was presented at this year's E3, many players expressed disappointment not only at the controller reverting back to the old PS2 Dual Shock controller design, but also of the decision to remove the rumble feature of the Dual Shock controller.

In a recent interview from GameDaily BIZ, SCEA President Kaz Hirai said that the decision was made to make the controller more affordable. Quote:

"Is it technically feasible? Absolutely. But the balancing act that you need to do, is to be able to present the controller to the consumer at an affordable price."

"If we have to come up with technology... to isolate the vibration from the sensing, but if that means that the controllers are going to be so expensive, then we're doing the consumer a huge disservice by coming up with a controller that is not very affordable"

So nice to see Sony thinking of the consumers' wallet! Especially a little while ago they said that the PS3 was "too cheap". But is rumble technology that expensive? Immersive CEO Victor Viegas says otherwise.

Like a secret 1UP mushroom treat hidden among the forest of electrical goods and electronics, Malaysia finally has an official Nintendo store counter! Nintendo fans and gamers rejoice!