Barbie was right, math class is tough!

Numbers seem to be tricky things, but a few simple rules can get most people through their everyday lives.  Addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division are all you really need, thankfully, because if I had to use calculus ever again I'd probably just quit civilization entirely.  Even if someone finds the basics mathematical functions troublesome, calculators are cheap enough that they're given away free with cereal and fast food.  All of which means that there's really no reason for Gamespot to report the PS3 gaining on the Wii in Japan.

I'll admit that it wasn't until Squall pointed it out on the Got Next message boards that I noticed, but sure enough, the headline is completely wrong.  Here's the numbers to prove it.

The numbers from two weeks ago-

PS3:   17,139
Wii:  24,932

Or, the PS3 sold 68.74% of the Wii's total

Last week's numbers-

PS3:  18,785
Wii:  27,502

Meaning that the PS3 sold 68.30% of the Wii's total, or 0.44% less than the previous week.  While it's true that a headline saying "PS3 Registers Barely Noticeable Dip vs Wii in Japan" doesn't have the same ring, it would come with the advantage of not being 100% wrong.

Specifically, about the Wii version of Okami.

Christian Svensson responded like a person talking to other people today, putting him head and shoulders above most executives dealing with their company's fans.  Capcom forum-ites have been saying the same thing just about everyone else has about the Wii version of Okami, and the lack of confirmation on 480p 16:9 resolution.  Here's his response-

"A few points here… I get the issues, I really do, but people seem to be missing a few things.

We selected Ready at Dawn to do the port. These guys are all ex-Naughty Dog and ex-Blizzard, and they have already shipped their own titles that have ridiculously high review scores and sales (and have more on the way). Their attention to detail and technical prowess is among the best of any team I've ever worked with.

If we wanted a cheap and dirty port, I could have turned around and picked any one of 50 houses and gotten it done for less and perhaps more quickly. Clearly, that wasn't the approach we sought for a variety of reasons (for the fans, for the reputation of our company, for the potential of the product, etc.).

Lastly, if this were a quick cash in, let's face it, there's TONS of other products that had higher sales on other platforms we could have chosen to port, quickly and cheaply. Okami, as great as it was, wasn't a huge seller on PS2 such that it's quick and dirty port would be assured "sales success" on a new platform. We picked a huge game (read: expensive, especially on testing costs), with a ton of moving parts.

So, on the contrary, we have a lot to prove with this game and I know we, and RAD are up to the task. I apologize if I bristle at the accusation that this is a cheap port, but I do.

Given that the only port we've done to date was RE4, which has a 90+ gamerankings score and provided AMAZING value for the platform, has this really been Capcom's modus operendi such that this allegation should be leveled at us? Zack & Wiki is getting better reviews than just about anything you'll see this year on Wii, except possibly Galaxy. Shovelware is not what we do.

As I've said in prior interviews, we're getting the game up and running first. The game is enormous. If after we have everything working correctly, cleanly and as desired so as not to "break" the amazing experience that is Okami, we will worry about potential enhancements. As we are NOT at that point in the process yet, we are loathe to even mention any potential changes or enhancements for fear of disappointing the fans/media.

So for now, if you MUST assume the worst, assume that you will have an amazing 40-60 hour adventure that is one of gaming's most impressive pieces of art to play in fantastic new ways. If you want to hope for the best, well, perhaps we'll have more to say in a few months, but for now we're going to have to ask for your patience."

I could pick apart a few things in there, but for the most part I agree wholeheartedly, especially in tone.  A little bit "bristle"-y is just the way to be when everyone knows your business better than you.  I've had it up to here (picture my hand held way up high for proper effect) with bland "We strive to give our customers the best value possible, and hope they can appreciate our product in the intended fashion" answers.  I'd rather read any David Jaffe rant than yet another boring, inoffensive, and utterly forgettable interview that's been run through seventeen layers of public relations before I could read a pre-approved word.  Hell, Svensson's comments were pretty mild, it's just that they read relatively honestly.

PS2 Okami wasn't exactly a big-ticket item for Capcom.  The Wii port is hardly a gift to the fans from a generous and loving corporation, but I seriously doubt they're planning their yearly take around its earnings.  If wanted features can be put in as the budget allows, great.  If not, then all I ask is that it be as beautiful and fun as the PS2 original.

If Capcom and Ready At Dawn do have time for a tweak or two, though, might I suggest a difficulty option offering a challenge for someone above the age of 12?  I'd take that over all the hi-res ultra-polygon models in the world.

Chibi Robo: Park Patrol for the Nintendo DS is a WalMart exclusive.

Why, God, why!?

According to a Gamespot article about why all Gamestop reserves for Chibi Robo: Park Patrol were cancelled, the official word from Nintendo was that the game is now only sold at the urban blight redneck paradise of WalMart.  While losing Gamestop's support for Chibi Robo isn't all that big a deal, seeing as there are many places in the world that sell video games, limiting its sales to… um…

Yeah, trying to figure out the WalMart demographic for Chibi Robo isn't working here.

Anyway, Chibi Robo: Park Patrol ships for the DS on October 2, and probably arrives on the shelves at a location near you a minimum of a week afterwards.  Now I'm just going to cross my fingers that smaller local suppliers aren't counted in the exclusivity deal.

[Via Gamespot]

Scratch one "must own" title off your X-mas list. 

Oh, that can't be fun.  Take Two announced today that what would have been its biggest game of the year is going to miss its ship date by a minimum of four months.  Creating a next-gen title of the scope demanded by GTA apparently required more grunt-work than anticipated, and Grand Theft Auto IV is now slated for fiscal quarter 2, 2008.  That would be some time between February and April to you and me, and well clear of the holiday shopping frenzy.  What kind of dent that makes in GTAIV's potential sales remains to be seen, but if the game isn't done then no force on earth is getting it to retail any earlier. 

On the plus side, it's one less game vying for attention at the end of the year.  Speaking as a gamer with enough on his plate already, that's hardly anything I'm going to be complaining about.

Someone was bound to get offended by Resident Evil 5. One white guy on a killing spree in a third-world village filled with black zombie-like creatures isn't a particularly good image, despite nobody caring when the same white boy mowed down dozens of latino enemies. It's a big world, filled with many interesting places for zombie outbreaks, and expecting Leon to stay in Lilywhite Land is a bit much. Still, it was only a matter of time before the articles started.

The inevitable happened today. Kym Platt, one of the members of the Black Looks blog, posted her displeasure over the Resident Evil 5 imagery while displaying a lack of understanding of how the M rating works. "…this video game is marketed to children and young adults." isn't exactly true, but that's not really the point.

Gamespot

GamePolitics

Joystiq

Kotaku

That's just so far, and doesn't count web sites I'm unfamiliar with or the innumerable threads in gaming forums the world over. I'd be very surprised if this didn't hit the mainstream news in the next day or two. It's summer, there isn't a whole lot is going on, and this would fill up column inches nicely.

The important thing here is that this is just a blog article. Or at least, it was a simple article until everyone decided to splatter this individual's viewpoint all over the web. I've got to admit, though, that I don't understand how an opinion written by someone who seems to believe all video games are for children is news. Kym Platt even goes so far as to admit that she doesn't know much about video games. She is, however, outraged, and apparently that's enough to make it news.

A slightly more informed opinion piece than the Black Looks commentary can be found over at Microscopiq. He cracks on the mojas in LocoRoco, though, so it probably shouldn't be taken too seriously.

Personal view- zombie-like creatures in (most likely) Africa being fought by current series protagonist Leon isn't racist. If you want to read racism into the game, by all means, have fun with it. Just be aware that it's all happening inside your own head, and don't try to tell me what a white imperialist bastard I am because I like having fun killing the undead of any ethnicity.