November 2008 Archives

IP e-Games has finally launched the massively multiplayer online game (MMOG) Zhu Xian Online in the Philippines. Beijing-based Perfect World Co. Ltd developed this game. It is also the same group behind Perfect World Online, also published by Level Up! Games. This is the first time that e-Games introduced an online game developed by a Chinese company. Its previous games are all developed by Korean game companies. ZX Online is currently in “closed-beta” and will go on open beta during the first quarter of 2009. Closed-beta means the game is only open for selected or limited number of players who are often invited. ZX Online is based on a popular Internet novel of the same name. It features elements of a Chinese mythological love story, which involves Zhan Xiaofan, a man from the Righteous group was betrothed to Lu Xueqi. However, Zhan loved Biyao, the daughter of their enemy, the Heretics. Their rivalry is put aside as the Righteous and the Heretics are attacked by monsters and demons from the Middle Plain. ZX Online has received several awards in China, including recognition in the Baidu Top 10 Outstanding Online Games. ZX Online Community Manager Bea Navarette said the game the local publisher is deploying is the international English version, which will not require a lot of translation. Like many MMORPGs, ZX Online features a battle system, pets and mounts, flying and a "3D pathing" option, where players can just click on a location in the game's huge map and will automatically take characters to the designated point.

X-Play, the joint venture between IP e-games and GMA New Media, announced the launch of Audition 2, the patch for the casual online dance game Audition Dance Battle. The patch will be made available to users in January 2009 and will improve the first game's graphics and gameplay. Audition was published in the Philippines in 2006. Aside from popular pop songs, the game also features some Filipino songs. (Photo: X-Play Audition Product Manager Jason Tomas dances with some fans of the casual online game Audition, which is celebrating its second year.) X-Play Product Manager Jason Tomas said the patch will also update Audition's songs and graphical user interface. "This will be the biggest and grandest patch for Audition,” he says. Audition is developed by Korean firm T3 Entertainment and is primarily a dance game similar to the popular Dance Dance Revolution arcade series. But instead on stepping on a dance pad, players can press directional buttons that correspond to the moving arrows in the game.

WIRELESS service provider Smart Communications is expecting growth in the mobile gaming business in the Philippines with stronger sales of Java-enabled mobile phones. The company has already expanded its Game Station WAP service with a series of tournaments for mobile phone gamers. The prizes include PlayStation 3 game consoles and over P100,000 in cash. Gian Conde, Smart Product Assistant for Value Added Service and Data, said gaming is huge in the Philippines, as shown by the popularity of online PC and stand-alone games, as well as handheld devices, such as the PlayStation Portable and Nintendo DS. The sales of Java-enabled phones that are capable of running games have also increased, largely because of lower cost of handsets. In the past few years, Java-enabled color-screen handsets would cost around P15,000 to P20,000. However, some Java phones now cost less than P10,000, creating a bigger market for Java applications. "Some people use their phones now not just for making calls or SMS but also to entertain themselves. If they are not listening to music, they might be playing some games," Conde said. Conde said Game Station has about 5,000 titles in its library, the majority of which are casual games built only for mobile phones. However, there are titles that are based on popular PC or console game licenses, such as the sports games created by Electronic Arts or Marvel. Some of these are being offered by Game Station. Among these titles are Ironman, Incredible Hulk, NBA Live, Hellboy, Need for Speed, Deal Or No Deal, among others. One of the more popular PC and console games today, Guitar Hero III, also has a mobile phone version.

MANDALUYONG CITY -- Game development firm Kuju Manila has launched the first Filipino-made Nintendo Wii game called Circus Games. Circus Game was launched in the US this October and is targeted at younger players, groups and families. The game can be played by up to two players and has about 20 different circus themed mini-games. These require the use of the NintendoWiimote and the nunchuk attachment. Some of the mini-games require players to shoot or throw objects while others allow for catching items. The game is published by French company Ubisoft, which distributes popular titles such as Rainbow Six and Splinter Cell series. The game is also sold locally at Datablitz for about P2,000. Kuju Manila is formerly Matahari Studios which created games for the arcade shop Timezone. Matahari was then acquired last October to become a subsidiary studio by Kuju Entertainment based in the UK. Kuju Manila becomes the seventh development studio for Kuju Entertainment, which is credited for their work in such games as the EyeToy: Play 2 and EyeToy: Play 3 for the PlayStation 2, Call of Duty: Finest Hour, Geometry Wars, among others. It currently has 27 employees all of whom are Filipinos. The company aims to grow their employment roster to 50 or 60 by 2009 in anticipation for new projects after the acquisition. Kuju Manila General Manager Eric Marlow said the company's acquisition will widen their scope towards console and handheld games. However, they will still focus on casual, family-oriented games for the arcade and consoles. Marlow also said they are now working on two new titles, one of which he said is based on a popular title. Marlow is also a member of the Game Development Association of the Philippines, which is promoting the country as a hub for outsourced and original game development.

CHRISTOPHER Natsuume, best known as the producer of the hit first-person shooter game Far Cry, is one of the speakers at the Business Process Outsourcing Summit that will be held in the Philippines. Natsuume, who is now co-founder of casual PC games development firm Boomzap (http://www.boomzap.com), will speak about game development during the summit, which starts December 2. Natsuume will be one of the first major game development icons invited to the Philippines to talk on game development, according to the Games Development Association of the Philippines (GDAP), which worked on bringing Natsuume to the Philippines. Game development is considered to be niche markets in the booming Philippine outsourcing industry. The local game development industry in the Philippines, however, remains small. However, GDAP has said that the number of companies and employment opportunities have been growing steadily in the last few years. In previous years, the annual BPO Summit included game development as a minor track. But it was only last year that game development became a separate track, along with BPO services, transcription and digital animation. For this year's BPO Summit, GDAP has prepared a more extensive track focusing on game development not just for PCs but also on the new generation of game consoles, such as the Xbox 360 and Nintendo Wii. The summit will be held at the Crowne Plaza in Mandaluyong City, Philippines.

MANILA, Philippines -- Amid a flurry of disappointed fans and players of the online game Tantra, game distributor Amped announced that they will continue to support the first Tantra while preparing to launch Tantra II. The company also announced that it is merging four game servers into two. The Manas and Kriya servers will be merged, while the Samadi and Diyana servers will become one. The company said that support for Tantra I will include new patches, new in-game weapons and armor and future gaming events. "Despite all of the problems, rumors, and critics that Tantra is facing. The game still manages to survive and compete in the business. This is due to the loyal players that support Tantra in its journey to success," the company said in an official statement posted on its website. Fans of Tantra have complained about Tantra II, which was initially thought as an update to Tantra I. But it was revealed later that it was a new game. Gamers complained they have spent large amounts of money to play Tantra I only to discover that they have to start from scratch if they intend to play Tantra II, and that their old characters will not be ported to the new game. However, an earlier Hackenslash interview with an Amped executive indicated that the game is a new game and can be considered a separate game. The Tantra Online games are developed by HanbitSoft. Amped announced that Tantra II will start closed beta testing in time for the company's Amped Fest on November 21.

By Alexander Villafania INQUIRER.NET MANILA, Philippines -- Mobile games distributor MegaMobile is planning to introduce more Java-based mobile games, both licensed and locally developed, as it expands its product portfolio. MegaMobile President Manny Fernando said that apart from their existing titles, the company will also introduce homegrown games. He did not describe what these games are but said that plans are being finalized with their partners. "Expect that we will be seriously capitalizing on this growth segment," Fernando said in an e-mail reply to queries from INQUIRER.net. Fernando said mobile gaming is one of the biggest mobile business segments, next to mobile music. He said all of the mobile service providers have gaming portals that have extensive library of titles. MegaMobile was acquired by IPVG Corp in February this year, under a stock purchase agreement. Currently, the company is providing six mobile games, all of which are related to the massively-multiplayer online games being offered by IPVG's gaming division, e-Games. Three of the mobile games are sub-adventures from RAN Online. These are Swordsman, Karuso's Escape, and Ran Girls Jealousy. The three other games are sub-adventures of Granado Espada Online, which are Girl Fight, Little Red Riding Elementalist and Musketeer's Wrath.

By Alexander Villafania INQUIRER.NET MANILA, Philippines -- The Game Development Association of the Philippines (GDAP) is holding costume play (cosplay) competition opened to participants portraying characters from any video game. Characters can come from games of any gaming platform, including PC, PlayStation or Xbox, Nintendo platforms and handheld gaming devices. Ranulf Goss, International Game Developers Association (IGDA) Philippine Chapter chairman, said the competition highlights gamers' endearment to their favorite video game characters. The cosplay competition is part of GDAP's Game Craft, which also highlights a series of business sessions and classes for developers and artists during the entire BPO Summit. For the past three years game development has been one of the latest highlights of the BPO Summit, largely due to a number of outsourced projects that local game development companies have been receiving. GDAP has been promoting game development as one of the sunshine industries in the Philippines. The competition will be part of the BPO Summit at the Crowne Plaza, Mandaluyong City in on December 2. The competition will be divided into three categories. Best Male, Best Female, and Best Armor/Mecha cosplay. Scores will be based on Accuracy, Craftsmanship and characterization. Winners in each category will receive P5,000. However, a grand champion will be chosen and will take home P10,000. Goss is the first president of the GDAP when it was formed a few years ago. He was succeeded by Flipside Games President Gabriel Dizon. Meanwhile, the GDAP event during the BPO Summit will highlight the visit of Chris Natsuume, producer of the high popular first person game Far Cry. Natsuume will speak on game development and will also be one of the judges during the cosplay competition.

By Alexander Villafania INQUIRER.NET MAKATI CITY, Philippines -- Game distribution firm IP E-Games announced that it will become the local distributor of online game NosTale. The company will also become the payment gateway for Philippine players, utilizing its top-up cards. Korean company Entwell Co., Ltd. developed NosTale, which stands for The Tale of the Nomads of Silver Spirit. Despite its cartoonish, kid-friendly design, NosTale is considered a massively-multiplayer online game instead of a casual game. In an interview, Sonny Carlos, IP E-Games Product Manager for NosTale, said the game's server will be hosted in Korea while E-Games will provide a payment service for players in the country. Carlos said the game will target a younger generation of players. "We wanted to introduce something different in our MMORPG line up, so we decided on NosTale," Carlos said. NosTale features many of the same features found in MMORPGs including quests, party systems, item shops and chat. The online game is a story-driven adventure divided into four Acts. Players start out as an ordinary Adventurer. Later, they can be a Swordsman, Archer and Sorcerer they reach a certain level. Once a class has been reached, players can then select a "specialist card" to give their character new and unique skills. Another unique feature is the Mini Land, which is the player's own "home" where items can be stored. The Mini Lands can also be adorned with other objects, such as a house, lamp posts, trees and others. E-Games has activated a local website for NosTale players. NosTale international publisher Servex Co. Ltd. has also appointed E-Games as its global server distributor in the Philippines.

By Alex Villafania INQUIRER.net MANILA, Philippines -- It may sound like the fabled land of the Rohirrim in J.R.R. Tolkien's Lord of the Rings Trilogy. Rohan Online, however, is not related to it but it does have the same elements of medieval fantasy. Rohan Online is the latest massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) that game publisher Level Up! Online is introducing in the Philippines. The game is similar to most hack-and-slash online games and features six character classes, the Humans, Elves, Half Elves, Dhans, Dekans, Dark Elf. There are also male and female models for each class. Each of the classes have unique roles and attributes, some are close quarter combatants, some are long range fighters, while others are more balanced types. These character classes also own unique weapons and items. Some can wield two-handed weapons like the Human Knight. The Elf Archer for example can use bows more efficiently than the rest of the characters, while the Dhan Assasins can use stealth weapons to kill enemies quietly. Another unique feature of Rohan Online is its “Forge” wherein items of the same type can be forged together to bring out a more powerful weapon. However, the Forge feature also has a success and failure rate so players have to be aware what item they expect to create when forging. But the most unique feature of the game is “Revenge.” Unlike in most MMORPGs where low-level players are beaten during player-versus-player fights, Rohan Online's Revenge system allows "losers" in PvPs (player versus player) to take revenge against their antagonists once they have increased their levels. They could even bring their entire party to strike back at the opponent. Revenge is indicated as an icon in the interface of the game showing the name of the person who beats the character. Once the player decides to take on the antagonist, the player clicks on the icon and is automatically teleported to the area of the opponent. Think of it as "resbak" in an online environment. Level Up! Philippines has not announced when the game will be made available. However, more information can be received from Rohan Online's official international site.

By Agence France-Presse SAN FRANCISCO -- Bespectacled teenager John Chitman and a couple of friends marked Veterans Day by wiping out an elite US Marine unit without so much as straining a thumb. The battleground was an Eastern European front from World War II and the weapons were virtual machine guns, flame throwers, tanks and more wielded by on-screen soldiers in a new "Call of Duty: World at War" videogame. "They weren't so hard at all," Chitman said as he stepped from a GameStop shop in downtown San Francisco that was decked out like an Army field base for the Tuesday launch of the latest installment in the hit COD franchise. Videogame maker Activision teamed with retail chain GameStop to debut "World at War" by letting COD fans using XBox 360 consoles play the new release online against real soldiers. "We totally waxed them," Chitman's 22-year-old teammate, Glen Robinson, said as one of San Francisco's famed cable cars rattled past. "It was awesome. We smoked them." Camouflage netting lined walls inside the crowded railroad car-sized shop. Event workers were dressed in GI garb. Fuel drums and ammunition boxes strewn about the scene were stamped with "Call of Duty." An estimated 1,500 gamers queued to get a shot at the Marines. About a third of the players reportedly showed up for a simultaneous event taking place at a GameStop near the Pentagon in Washington. "This store should be giving the beat-down to the Marines," said David Vonderhaar, head of multi-person play for the latest COD created by Treyarch studio and published by Activision. "But, a lot of people in the military love our game so it could be a challenge." Players were divided into six-person units and got to equip their virtual soldiers with period-appropriate weapons of choice. Vonderhaar recommended Thompson submachine guns for close-quarter fighting. "Sure you can do it in the game," a Marine shouted through a video conferencing link. "We do it for real." "World at War" is the fifth release in the COD franchise and its storyline focuses on key clashes between US, Japanese, Soviet Union and Nazi Germany forces at the close of World War II. Scenes are based on historical battles in places including Berlin, Peleliu, and Makin Island. "I went positive in my kill-to-death ratio; that was pretty slick," Andrew Conley, 21, said in reference to his in-game soldier giving better than he got on the battlefield. "A couple of times I got swarmed. I go off on my own to fight, and those Marines tend to work as a team." Along with new territories to explore, the videogame for the first time lets as many as four people play online in a "co-operative mode" that follows the story line. COD and other shooter games are already popular for online play that lets people join teams and battle against each other from their homes. "There is a lot to love about the new game, of course," Vonderhaar told AFP before dashing off to coach players riveted to screens at the back of the shop. A woman on-screen from a Southern California Marine base yelled "We're going to kick your butt San Francisco." The audience for first-person shooter games such as COD and freshly-released "Gears of War" has been broadening beyond the typical young male demographic, as people from varied walks of life start playing, according to GameStop spokesman Chris Olivera. "I've definitely seen the change," Olivera said. "It used to be mothers would drop their sons off at GameStop and then head over to an Anne Taylor store to shop. Now, mothers and their children are coming in and shopping for games together." Tough financial times offer hope to videogame sales as people forego costly vacations or nights out and instead treat themselves to at-home fun in the form of videogames that typically cost about 60 dollars for new titles. "We are seeing a lot of people not taking those expensive vacations, or even cutting out going to the movies," Olivera said. "Instead of going out, and for the same money, they are buying a videogame and playing it." The war between the geeks and the Marines was fought to a tie, with each side winning eight battles. The Marines claimed victory in a tie-breaking round that sparked shouts of "Hoo-ah" in the camp. "Awesome," said Marine Shane Palmer in an online video connection. "It's great fun."

By Alexander Villafania INQUIRER.NET MANILA, Philippines -- The Philippines' top gamers fought but checked out early in all of the games at the World Cyber Games 2008 in Cologne, Germany, according to the game's official website. None of the Filipino video gamers were able to break through round 16, just three steps closer to the championship finals which was held November 10. The eight-man Filipino team joined four of the 14 games included in the WCG 2008. These are the PC games “Command and Conquer 3,” “Counterstrike 1.6” and “WarCraft III: Frozen Throne.” The country also sent one player for the Xbox 360 version of Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock. Nevertheless, the Filipino gamers did manage to win a few rounds early on before facing more formidable players. The Philippines' Command and Conquer 3 player John Raymond Tan won three rounds and lost two. Guitar Hero III player Rafael Formoso had three wins and three losses, while WarCraft III player Frederick Pe had one win and five losses. The Philippines' Counterstrike team Horsemen of the Apocalypse (HoA) won twice and but lost three times. HoA has been a returning Philippine champion since 2005, though it has yet to win a medal. Tan, Formoso and Pe are first-time participants in this international competition. The five-man HoA is composed of Gary Guevarras, Arvin Agbisit, Jupiter Mars Gaboy, Paolo Miguel Nacho, and Erwin John Clores. Champions for some of the WCG-sanctioned games have been announced. Champions include Netherlands' Manuel Schenkhuizen for WarCraft III; Denmark's mtw.AMD [spelled as is] for Counterstrike; German Pascal Pfefferle for Command and Conquer 3; British George Boothby for Guitar Hero III. The full list of winners is available from the official WCG website.

By Agence France-Presse OTTAWA -- A Canadian boy who ran away from home after his father took away his Xbox game console has been found dead in a cornfield, local media said Wednesday. Brandon Crisp, 15, took off on his bicycle from his Barrie, Ontario home on October 13, provoking a massive police search with help from 1,600 volunteers that turned up no clues except for his abandoned bicycle with a flat tire. Xbox-maker Microsoft and others had offered a 50,000-dollar (39,000-dollar US) reward for information on his whereabouts. Wednesday, police said only that hunters had found a body in the search area. The daily Toronto Star said on its website Brandon's parents had been notified it was their son, and students at his school were told the sad news at an afternoon assembly. Brandon's father previously said he had removed Brandon's Xbox after noticing changes in his behavior since Brandon started playing "Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare" online. The boy started skipping school, stealing money and ignoring his studies, his father said. In an interview with the daily Globe and Mail, the boy's father, Steve Crisp, said he had not known how important the gaming system was to his son and how he would react when it was taken away. Experts commented that gamers may form bonds with fellow online players. "This had become his identity, and I didn't realize how in-depth this was until I took his Xbox away," Steve Crisp told the Globe and Mail. "That's like cutting his legs off." "This is such an issue that hits every parent out there, with video games that are starting to control our kids' lives," he said. "I just took away his identity, so I can understand why he got so mad and took off. Before, I couldn't understand why he was taking off for taking his game away."

By Alexander Villafania INQUIRER.net QUEZON City, Philippines -- After developing the first Filipino online game, VITAS Development is delving into game development outsourcing but will be focused mainly on the Philippine market. VITAS is both the developer and publisher of the online side-scrolling fighting game Bangu-Bang Mania! currently being beta tested. In an interview, VITAS President Ranier Umali said the company is targeting existing game publishers in the Philippines that are looking to have their own licensed property apart from publishing Korean, Chinese and Japanese online games. Although the main market is the Philippines, Umali said they can still offer their services to foreign firms. He said VITAS is ready to provide development for full-scale online PC games, both on 2D and 3D platforms. Umali said that even if they have so far created just one game, they could develop games equal to the quality of Ragnarok Online and even the graphics-heavy Granado Espada. He also said that VITAS can prevent many issues and bugs plaguing online games such as player kills, bots, farming, and game master abuse. "We're hoping to promote development of original games from the Philippines. There are companies that would want to have their own games that they could promote to the Philippines but they don't have the capabilities to do it. We're coming in with the necessary tools to make those games for them," Umali said.

Alexander Villafania INQUIRER.NET MANILA, Philippines -- Game publisher Level Up! is pushing its online multimedia experience, starting with a five-day online video show. The video channel is part of the Level Up! Liveblog service which begun during the recently held Level Up! Live gaming convention. This time, the company will provide both reruns of videos taken during the convention and fresh shows, most of which will be shot live and streamed on the Internet. There will also be scheduled live video streaming featuring prominent personalities among the communities of Level Up! games. Viewers can also interact with the guests through the liveblogging system. The project will be called Reliving Live: The Live 2008 Experience and will start on November 10 to 14. Level Up! Multimedia Head Joey Alarilla told hackenslash that the success of their livestreaming during Level Up! Live prompted the company to start a continuing activity that will entice their players to visit their site. During the Level Up! Live over 50,000 people from 27 countries viewed their video streaming. They also received over 22,000 comments for their liveblog. "We want our players to know that there are other stuff we could do and not just playing. We want them to enjoy their gaming experience beyond the games they play," Alarilla said.

By Alexander Villafania INQUIRER.net MANILA, Philippines -- After four years, game publisher Amped Games has finally announced the next iteration of their first massively-multiplayer online game Tantra. Tantra II is set to start beta testing this November, in time for the company's annual Amped Fest on November 21. Tantra II is also developed by HanbitSoft. It will have the same eight tribes from the original but with more character attributes. The maps in Tantra II have also been enlarged. Maps from the first game are also ported in Tantra II but are given bigger and better details. One new map is the Marana Dungeon where players have to eliminate all monsters in it before getting in-game certificates they could use to trade potions. The Marana Dungeon is divided to two parts: one is for characters with levels 30 to 90, and the other is for 100-and-above character levels. An additional feature in Tantra II is the Mail Box where players can send in-game items to other players. The Mail Box is accessible even if the player is not online. Just like its predecessor, Tantra II will also be a free-to-play game. Tantra Product Manager Ria Pineda told INQUIRER.NET that they are expecting new players to sign up for Tantra II but there should be more coming from existing and former players of the first Tantra. She also said that even when Tantra II goes commercial they will retain the original game. "We have a lot of loyal players in Tantra I so we don't plan to turn off the game servers until everyone has moved to the new game,” she said. Pineda added that despite new in-game and graphical features of Tantra II, it only requires the same computer configuration as the original. It can run on a Pentium III-powered processor, 128 megabytes memory and 64 MB video card memory.