Today, Nintendo has announced that the 13th annual Camp Hyrule will be cancelled this year, because of the fact that 13 is an unlucky number. But they are giving away human-sized statue of Link to make up for it.
Camp Hyrule was a virtual online summer camp run by Nintendo on CampHyrule.com and each year they gave away many prizes to hundreds of campers by competing in contests (Flash games), trivia, and more. There were also chat rooms where you could talk with some Nintendo executives. (last year Charles Martinett, the voice of Mario was there).
To read the official bulletin, go to:
CampHyrule.com
Get the GamersCast Newsletter! All of the quality news you would find here can be sent directly to your e-mail's inbox or Wii's Message Board the instant news is posted here! Simply send an e-mail to GCnewsletter@gmail.com or register GCnewsletter@gmail.com into your Nintendo Wii's Address Book to subscribe!
Friday, July 20, 2007
Tuesday, July 17, 2007
The Death of the Gameboy
George Harrison recently released a statement, suggesting that Nintendo may never return to the gameboy again, as the Nintendo DS appears to have taken over. This idea has been in the minds of gamers ever since Nintendo announced their newest handheld and it launched in 2004. But never, has a Nintendo executive yet said that it was likely to happen.
The original Nintendo Gameboy launched in 1989 with a price tag of $170, bundled with Tetris, which became an instant classic in the hearts of gamers. The handheld was the first of its kind. It was black and white and only in 8-bit graphics, but it worked smoothly with a satisfyingly long battery. It was these two advantages that put it over the competition such as the Atari Lynx, which had over twice the graphical resolution (with color) of the gameboy. The lynx, however, was unstable and the battery could only manage around 90 minutes of life or less.
Then, as technology advanced, Nintendo was able to slowly add more to their gameboys, taking what some gamers thought was the safe route by only using technology that was very familiar and comfortable rather than putting the newest hardware into their systems (as they still do today). Then, after a few years Gameboy Color came out in its 16-bit color display. It too, took the gaming world by storm. And eventually, by 2001 they released the last major step of the gameboy, the Gameboy Advance with new shoulder buttons added and a nicely done 32-bit display, and the ability to play all past gameboy games on the device.
Over the years, Nintendo branched out with their gameboys, releasing slightly improved models, such as the Gameboy Pocket and the Gameboy Advance SP. The last model of the gameboy released was the 2nd model of the Gameboy Advance SP, with the only difference being a brighter backlight than its predecessor, and features of every previous gameboy (with the exception of the removable faceplate of the Gameboy Micro, which many gamers saw as a joke).
Then, in 2004 Nintendo began to change their focus to expand to not only gamers, but everyone. And Mr. Satoru Iwata (currently the worldwide Nintendo President) said the only way to expand the audience by as much as they wanted to, was to release the device with a brand-new game and image. And they also included a Gameboy Advance slot at the bottom of the device so that, in case the device flopped, it would have something to fall back on (though gameboy color and original gameboy game were unsupported). But it did not flop and it soon overshadowed the gameboy, with over twice the graphics on two screens, a touch screen, a longer chargeable lithium-ion battery, a brighter backlight, and using SD cards rather than their traditional cartridges (though the SD cards were modified so they would not fit into any other SD slot).
In George Harrison's statement he said:
"This year in our marketing you really won't see much push against Game Boy itself, so it will kind of seek its own level. It's hard to say in the future if we will ever bring back the Game Boy trademark.
"It was a big risk for us to actually pass on it and call the new product the Nintendo DS, but it was part of Mr. Iwata's philosophy that if we're going to make a radical difference and try to reach a new audience, then we have to change the name... we had to make a break even though we had one of the greatest trademarks in the history of the industry."
So, I'm sorry to say, that it is incredibly likely, that the rumored Gameboy Evolution may never be released.
Get the GamersCast Newsletter! All of the quality news you would find here can be sent directly to your e-mail's inbox or Wii's Message Board the instant news is posted here! Simply send an e-mail to GCnewsletter@gmail.com or register GCnewsletter@gmail.com into your Nintendo Wii's Address Book to subscribe!
The original Nintendo Gameboy launched in 1989 with a price tag of $170, bundled with Tetris, which became an instant classic in the hearts of gamers. The handheld was the first of its kind. It was black and white and only in 8-bit graphics, but it worked smoothly with a satisfyingly long battery. It was these two advantages that put it over the competition such as the Atari Lynx, which had over twice the graphical resolution (with color) of the gameboy. The lynx, however, was unstable and the battery could only manage around 90 minutes of life or less.
Then, as technology advanced, Nintendo was able to slowly add more to their gameboys, taking what some gamers thought was the safe route by only using technology that was very familiar and comfortable rather than putting the newest hardware into their systems (as they still do today). Then, after a few years Gameboy Color came out in its 16-bit color display. It too, took the gaming world by storm. And eventually, by 2001 they released the last major step of the gameboy, the Gameboy Advance with new shoulder buttons added and a nicely done 32-bit display, and the ability to play all past gameboy games on the device.
Over the years, Nintendo branched out with their gameboys, releasing slightly improved models, such as the Gameboy Pocket and the Gameboy Advance SP. The last model of the gameboy released was the 2nd model of the Gameboy Advance SP, with the only difference being a brighter backlight than its predecessor, and features of every previous gameboy (with the exception of the removable faceplate of the Gameboy Micro, which many gamers saw as a joke).
Then, in 2004 Nintendo began to change their focus to expand to not only gamers, but everyone. And Mr. Satoru Iwata (currently the worldwide Nintendo President) said the only way to expand the audience by as much as they wanted to, was to release the device with a brand-new game and image. And they also included a Gameboy Advance slot at the bottom of the device so that, in case the device flopped, it would have something to fall back on (though gameboy color and original gameboy game were unsupported). But it did not flop and it soon overshadowed the gameboy, with over twice the graphics on two screens, a touch screen, a longer chargeable lithium-ion battery, a brighter backlight, and using SD cards rather than their traditional cartridges (though the SD cards were modified so they would not fit into any other SD slot).
In George Harrison's statement he said:
"This year in our marketing you really won't see much push against Game Boy itself, so it will kind of seek its own level. It's hard to say in the future if we will ever bring back the Game Boy trademark.
"It was a big risk for us to actually pass on it and call the new product the Nintendo DS, but it was part of Mr. Iwata's philosophy that if we're going to make a radical difference and try to reach a new audience, then we have to change the name... we had to make a break even though we had one of the greatest trademarks in the history of the industry."
So, I'm sorry to say, that it is incredibly likely, that the rumored Gameboy Evolution may never be released.
Get the GamersCast Newsletter! All of the quality news you would find here can be sent directly to your e-mail's inbox or Wii's Message Board the instant news is posted here! Simply send an e-mail to GCnewsletter@gmail.com or register GCnewsletter@gmail.com into your Nintendo Wii's Address Book to subscribe!
Monday, July 16, 2007
Game Release Schedule Coming Soon
We have been receiving many, many, many, many (yes, really.... THAT many) requests to put up a list of game release dates for the 3 consoles. And I told them all that I would (and yes, I still am), but I have been having trouble putting it into a format that would be "Wii-friendly" lets say. Of course, everything here has to be "Wii-friendly" in order for the newsletter to function properly.
So, just hang tight for a little while longer and we'll post the list as soon as we can get it working...
So, just hang tight for a little while longer and we'll post the list as soon as we can get it working...
Wednesday, July 11, 2007
E3 2007: Nintendo Press Conference Details
If you don't want to watch the full press conference, here's some bullet points from the event, which just ended a few minutes ago:
- Begins show showing the mass amount of headlines and press Nintendo has been getting
- Goes into hardware stats and gaming percentages
- Announced DS will get 140 new games by years end
- Wii gets 100 new games by years end
- Announces Wii Zapper, which will be bundled with 1st Party FPS titles
- Announces Wii Wheel (bundled with newly announced, Mario Kart Wii)
Announces release date for Super Smash Brothers Brawl to be December 3rd, 2007
- Announces Super Mario Galaxy on November 12, 2007
- Announces the "Check Mii Out Channel"
- Reggie calls Super Mario Galaxy, "The only worth successor to Super Mario 64"
- Nintendo announces WiiFit (uses Wii Balance Board)
- Announces Wii Balance Board (to be bundled with WiiFit)
We'll have our commentary on this converence on the feed soon, and within minutes we will also have the full conference on the podcast and this page!
- Begins show showing the mass amount of headlines and press Nintendo has been getting
- Goes into hardware stats and gaming percentages
- Announced DS will get 140 new games by years end
- Wii gets 100 new games by years end
- Announces Wii Zapper, which will be bundled with 1st Party FPS titles
- Announces Wii Wheel (bundled with newly announced, Mario Kart Wii)
Announces release date for Super Smash Brothers Brawl to be December 3rd, 2007
- Announces Super Mario Galaxy on November 12, 2007
- Announces the "Check Mii Out Channel"
- Reggie calls Super Mario Galaxy, "The only worth successor to Super Mario 64"
- Nintendo announces WiiFit (uses Wii Balance Board)
- Announces Wii Balance Board (to be bundled with WiiFit)
We'll have our commentary on this converence on the feed soon, and within minutes we will also have the full conference on the podcast and this page!
E3 2007:Microsoft Press Conference Details
Last night, Microsoft aired their annual E3 Press Conference, in case you don't want to watch the full thing, then here are a few bullet points:
- Microsoft went into the hardware's sales stats
- Microsoft announced many new games for the Xbox LIVE arcade
- An affiliation with Disney adds hundreds of new HD movies to download on the Xbox Live Marketplace
- Microsoft says they want to tap into the casual audience by releasing Scene It for the Xbox 360
- Gears of War is being released on XP and Vista this Novemeber
- A new Halo Edition Xbox is being released in September (bundled with Halo 3)
- New game trailers were unveiled
The full conference plus a special commentary will be released on the GamersCast podcast feed and this page soon! (Conference will be up within minutes)
- Microsoft went into the hardware's sales stats
- Microsoft announced many new games for the Xbox LIVE arcade
- An affiliation with Disney adds hundreds of new HD movies to download on the Xbox Live Marketplace
- Microsoft says they want to tap into the casual audience by releasing Scene It for the Xbox 360
- Gears of War is being released on XP and Vista this Novemeber
- A new Halo Edition Xbox is being released in September (bundled with Halo 3)
- New game trailers were unveiled
The full conference plus a special commentary will be released on the GamersCast podcast feed and this page soon! (Conference will be up within minutes)
Tuesday, July 10, 2007
E3 2007: Microsoft Media Breifing
Here are the announcments made at Microsofts E3 media briefing
- All titles shown except Resident Evil 5 are coming THIS year
- New Viva Pinata game based on the TV show called Viva Pinata: Party Animals revealed
- New XBLA titles shown Sonic and Golden Axe are available now on Xbox Live Arcade
- Limited edition Halo 3 Xbox 360 console and accesories coming in September
- Viva Pinata coming to Games for Windows
- Gears of War coming to Games for Windows (XP and Vista) this fall with map editor and new single player and multiplayer content
- Halo 3 single player shown: looks amazing
look for more updates all this week
Monday, July 09, 2007
E3 2007 Video Playlist
Yeah, you could download all of greatest videos and trailers from E3 on the podcast feed.....
Yeah, you could put all of these same videos from the feed onto your iPod, iPhone, Apple TV, PSP, or any other MPEG-4 device......
But what if you don't got enough room on your computer for all this downloading?
We here at GamersCast have the answer! Every video that you'll find on the GamersCast podcast feed you can also find on our new E3 2007 YouTube playlist. This way, you'll get every video from E3 2007 all in spot without having to download. And as much as I would have liked you guys to download everything to your iPod, you don't have to.
Life has options.... Why shouldn't your gaming news be the same?
This E3 2007 playlist can be seen below (unless your viewing this via the newsletter) and will appear on the homepage of the GamersCast website, which is scheduled to launch later today!
This is....
GamersCast: Special E3 Edition!
Yeah, you could put all of these same videos from the feed onto your iPod, iPhone, Apple TV, PSP, or any other MPEG-4 device......
But what if you don't got enough room on your computer for all this downloading?
We here at GamersCast have the answer! Every video that you'll find on the GamersCast podcast feed you can also find on our new E3 2007 YouTube playlist. This way, you'll get every video from E3 2007 all in spot without having to download. And as much as I would have liked you guys to download everything to your iPod, you don't have to.
Life has options.... Why shouldn't your gaming news be the same?
This E3 2007 playlist can be seen below (unless your viewing this via the newsletter) and will appear on the homepage of the GamersCast website, which is scheduled to launch later today!
This is....
GamersCast: Special E3 Edition!
PS3 Price Drop!
Sony may be obnoxiously arrogant, but it seems that they finally figured out, making a console cost $600 is insane. So, the 60 gigabyte PS3 will soon only cost a mere $500. Despite the price drop, this still makes the PS3 the most expensive console. The Xbox 360 Elite is costs $480, with a 120 GB HDD, which is twice of that found in the PS3.
But for those you who simply enjoy downloading everything they can find, fear not, for this August, Sony will be releasing an 80GB PS3, bundled with a copy of MotorStorm, all for a mere.... $600!
In Korea, they too have an 80GB PS3 being sold, however it is only $550, though it is not bundled with any games. But keep in mind, that MotorStorm isn't that good of a game. And if they want to bundle something that will help the PS3s case, perhaps bundling Resistance would be a better move?
It has also been confirmed at this time that Japanese PS3s will not see a price drop (they already have the least expensive model), but European Sony officials have said they may say something about it during E3. As always we'll keep you updated!
This is GamersCast: Special E3 Edition
But for those you who simply enjoy downloading everything they can find, fear not, for this August, Sony will be releasing an 80GB PS3, bundled with a copy of MotorStorm, all for a mere.... $600!
In Korea, they too have an 80GB PS3 being sold, however it is only $550, though it is not bundled with any games. But keep in mind, that MotorStorm isn't that good of a game. And if they want to bundle something that will help the PS3s case, perhaps bundling Resistance would be a better move?
It has also been confirmed at this time that Japanese PS3s will not see a price drop (they already have the least expensive model), but European Sony officials have said they may say something about it during E3. As always we'll keep you updated!
This is GamersCast: Special E3 Edition
Friday, July 06, 2007
GamersCast E3 Coverage!
Well, companies are already releasing what are now being called "pre-E3" trailers to hype E3 2007, so why not start updating the podcast feed. The feed is gonna be even bigger than last year with loads and loads of game videos and daily updates. However, on iTunes you will find that where it once said "GamersCast: Video Game Podcasting" it will now read as "GamersCast: Special E3 Edition" with a new look and logo. So, as trailers become available they will be posted on the podcast feed constantly around clock. I'm telling you right now, that I will be losing sleep over this!
This means that on your iPod "GamersCast: Video Game Podcasting" section won't be updated during E3, but the name will be changing back as soon as E3 is over (perhaps with a new logo). Also, all the trailers posted from E3 will be available at:
http://www.YouTube.com/GCvids
Get ready for more gaming news than your brain can handle! This is GamersCast: Special E3 Edition!
This means that on your iPod "GamersCast: Video Game Podcasting" section won't be updated during E3, but the name will be changing back as soon as E3 is over (perhaps with a new logo). Also, all the trailers posted from E3 will be available at:
http://www.YouTube.com/GCvids
Get ready for more gaming news than your brain can handle! This is GamersCast: Special E3 Edition!
Thursday, July 05, 2007
Episode 22: The Answer is 7
Well, we have finished recording our Pre-E3 Special Edition of GamersCast, and I from this experience I have found that bad things come to those who do not wish to edit.... :P But seriously, I apologize for the background noise in this episode, but considering the conditions at hand we couldn't do our usual thorough background noise removal check. So, don't worry, it won't happen again.
On this episode we are joined again Edward "Beanz" Nunez, who for the 1st time didn't drop! And again, we had the always controversial Steve Caskey, and the usually mute Adam Shear (and me!).
During this episode, we took an exclusively in-depth look at the Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass and answered your questions about the game on the show (keep sending them in as we will be doing occassional check-ups on the game leading upto its release).
We held our 1st annual GamersCast Awards and took a quick look at what's to come at E3 2007.
EXCLUSIVE Look at Phantom Hourglass!
If you thought getting the GamersCast Newsletter was just a bunch of articles getting sent to your Wii, then you're only partly right. Because now, we're opening up something very special to our newsletter subscribers only!
If you got this e-mail from subscribing to the GamersCast Newsletter, then you'll get an exclusive look at Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass! How so? Well, our own Steve Caskey got his hands on the Japanese version of the game, which was just released and we are going to be previewing it on our pre-E3 episode of GamersCast! But how does that help you?
Well, if you are a newsletter subscriber and received this e-mail, simply reply to this e-mail with ANY question or anything you ever wanted to know about Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass and we'll answer ALL of your questions on the show!
But what if you aren't a newsletter subscriber, but want to get in on this? Well, simply send an e-mail to: GCnewsletter@gmail.com . If you would like to get this newsletter sent to your Wii Message Board, then simply register GCnewsletter@gmail.com into your Wii's Address Book
Once the Europeon version of Phantom Hourglass is released, we will be doing this "Q & A" again, but that isn't for another two months! Don't miss your chance to find out everything you wanted to know about one of the most highly anticipated games of the year!
The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass will be released in the United States on October 1, 2007.
If you got this e-mail from subscribing to the GamersCast Newsletter, then you'll get an exclusive look at Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass! How so? Well, our own Steve Caskey got his hands on the Japanese version of the game, which was just released and we are going to be previewing it on our pre-E3 episode of GamersCast! But how does that help you?
Well, if you are a newsletter subscriber and received this e-mail, simply reply to this e-mail with ANY question or anything you ever wanted to know about Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass and we'll answer ALL of your questions on the show!
But what if you aren't a newsletter subscriber, but want to get in on this? Well, simply send an e-mail to: GCnewsletter@gmail.com . If you would like to get this newsletter sent to your Wii Message Board, then simply register GCnewsletter@gmail.com into your Wii's Address Book
Once the Europeon version of Phantom Hourglass is released, we will be doing this "Q & A" again, but that isn't for another two months! Don't miss your chance to find out everything you wanted to know about one of the most highly anticipated games of the year!
The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass will be released in the United States on October 1, 2007.
Monday, July 02, 2007
E3 Coverage Begins! Website Launches!
E3 may have shrunk, but the hype is still as big as it ever was! Some say this may be the biggest E3 ever (news wise :P) So, we here at GamersCast are kicking off our coverage of E3 2007 a week early! How could we do that? Well, we are going to have a special pre-E3 edition of GamersCast being recorded this week, another special edition of GamersCast during E3, and a special post-E3 edition of GamersCast after E3. But there's still more!
For the past three and a half years, the site has been under construction....
Ideas have been scrapped....
Server Conflictions occured....
And so many other disasters happened.....
BUT now, after almost four years of waiting, within the next few days, the site will finally launch in its completed form! So, be sure to check that out once it happens, over at:
GamersCastPodCast.com
But now, you ask, What could you possibly talk about in these special episodes? Well, in our 1st pre-E3 episode, we're kicking off the 1st Annual GamersCast Awards! We're gonna give out awards for the best games from 2006, talk about the most promising games to be released, and take a peak at what's in store for us this year at E3!
Our special E3 episode, we'll talk about the ups and downs of each company's press conference and take a look at the games themselves showed off at E3 in a truely in depth discussion, you will know what games to buy, and which will flop *coughredsteelcough*!
In our post E3 episode we'll look at the events of the entire conference as a whole, games that didn't pop up until after the press conference (like Super Smash Brothers Brawl did last year), and take a more detailed view of the games shown, now that we've had time to digest what's happened.
But don't worry, we've got more than just special episodes to give you. Just like last year, we're gonna stick-up LOADS and LOADS of game trailers and videos straight from the E3 show floor! It's all coming your way within the next few days, at one of your best sources for EVERYTHING going on in the world of video games.
This is GamersCast: E3 Edition!
Phantom Hourglass Dated
Well, possibly to become one of the greatest handheld games to come in a long, long time, Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass has launched in Japan! Now, isn't that just great, but WHAT ABOUT US? Well, this morning Nintendo officially announced on its press site (alongside their "Wiikly VC Updates") that the game would be released in North America on the 1st of October, 2007.
Wanna know what's better? Our own Steve Caskey got his hands on a copy of the Japanese version of the game! The bad news? Steve can't read Japanese, and trivia questions are required to pass a certain point in the game. Don't worry, though. I'll make sure he makes a preview of it during E3! Speaking of E3, I'm sure we're almost guaranteed to hear more about this game, at E3. I mean, it's probably the highlight of the Nintendo DS this year (if Pokemon isn't).
Wanna know what's better? Our own Steve Caskey got his hands on a copy of the Japanese version of the game! The bad news? Steve can't read Japanese, and trivia questions are required to pass a certain point in the game. Don't worry, though. I'll make sure he makes a preview of it during E3! Speaking of E3, I'm sure we're almost guaranteed to hear more about this game, at E3. I mean, it's probably the highlight of the Nintendo DS this year (if Pokemon isn't).
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