DCEmu Homebrew Emulation & Theme Park News
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by Published on March 14th, 2008 18:46
via Eurogamer
NPD's US hardware sales figures for the month of February have revealed Nintendo is winning, you will be shocked and stunned to hear.
More than 587,000 DS units were shifted during the month - that's more than twice the number of PSPs sold (243,000).
The Wii was in second place with 432,000 units shifted. The PlayStation 2 outsold its big brother with more than 351,000 units snapped up compared to the PS3's 280,000. Xbox 360 was in fifth place, racking up sales of 254,000 consoles.
But Microsoft will have been cheered up by news that the two best-selling games of the month, Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare and Devil May Cry 4, were both on Xbox 360. Wii Play came in at No. 3 followed by the PS3 version of DMC4.
In fifth place was Guitar Hero III for Wii, while the PS2 version made it to No. 9. Mario & Sonic at the Olympics DS was at six, followed by more Xbox 360 games - Lost Odyssey and Turok - at seven and eight. The Xbox 360 version of Rock Band rounded off the chart at No. 10.
See, said Microsoft, everyone likes us really, pointing out that USD 332 million was spent on Xbox 360 games and consoles during February - compared to USD 283 million on Wii and USD 235 million on PS3. And besides, the company claimed, again, stock shortages meant it didn't have enough machines to sell.
The number of Americans who own an Xbox 360 has now reached 9.6 million. The figure for Wii stands at 8.1 million while for PS3 it's 3.8 million - though it's worth remembering that Microsoft's console had a head start.
People are buying more games for 360, all the same; the attach rate is now 7.2 games per console, nearly double the rate for Nintendo and Sony's machines.
Who cares, said Sony, we sold 10 per cent more consoles than you, and year-on-year sales growth is up 120 per cent. According to bossman Jack Tretton, "Consumers are recognising the tremendous value of PS3 and we believe that Blu-ray becoming the high-def format of choice was the tipping point for many consumers."
He reckons the release of titles like Gran Turismo 5 Prologue, Metal Gear Solid 4 and Grand Theft Auto IV will make this "the year for PS3".
Hahaha whatever said Nintendo, having kicked both Sony and Microsoft's faces off in no uncertain terms. "Our momentum has not let up since the holidays and we expect it to continue throughout the year," observed Nintendo of America exec Cammie Dunaway.
"We have the industry's strongest line-up of games for everyone from core to casual gamers." And the strongest lineup of gold bars, diamond rings and luxury yachts, of course. ...by Published on March 14th, 2008 18:45
via Games Industry
Following the earlier news that Video Appeals Committee had reaffirmed its decision regarding the release of Manhunt 2, and the BBFC's admission that further action on its part was likely to yield realistic results, Rockstar is now working towards a new release date for the title in the UK.
"We are pleased that the VAC has reaffirmed its decision recognizing that Manhunt 2 is well within the bounds established by other 18-plus rated entertainment," a company statement read.
"Rockstar Games is committed to making great interactive entertainment, while also marketing our products responsibly and supporting an effective rating system."
The version of the game to be released in the UK has been confirmed as the same one currently available in the US under a Mature rating - the version which was rejected by the BBFC the second time around.
A Rockstar spokesperson told GamesIndustry.biz that due to the news of the VAC's decision only breaking earlier today, no official decision had yet been made on a release date, but discussions were expected to take place shortly.
UK stores have not taken delivery of stock in anticipation of any decision, so the title will not hit the shelves immediately. ...by Published on March 14th, 2008 18:30
Another week passes and another update for console sales in Japan are in with the change in the first 3 ranks:
Nintendo Wii: 57,068
Playstation Portable: 53,924
NintendoDS Lite: 48,658
Playstation 3: 21,008
Playstation 2: 10,429
Xbox 360: 2,891
PSP slides by roughly 19,800 into second place while the Wii tops it despite taking a 7,500 drop. The DS lite sinks further by around 3,300. PS3 see a rise by 6,500, PS2 dips 500 and the Xbox 360 up by 9, virtually no different to last week's reading. ...by Published on March 14th, 2008 16:44
via ActionTrip
You know a few days back, when we've said that Sega and Obsidian Entertainment are working on a Bond-style RPG? Well, it turns out they are and both Sega and Obsidian have officially confirmed it. It's an espionage themed action RPG and you'll be playing as a young rogue - agent Michael Thornton.
“Alpha Protocol blends Obsidian’s knack for intricate stories, engrossing characters, and significant character advancement with fast-paced modern combat. Alpha Protocol embraces everything we enjoy about making RPGs from a fresh perspective. We are confident our talented staff at Obsidian will enable us to deliver this exciting RPG experience,” said Obsidian CEO Feargus Urquhart.
They're calling the game Alpha Protocol and are preparing it for PC, PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 platforms. Apparently, it's slated for a 2009 launch. ...by Published on March 14th, 2008 16:15
via PSO-World
The March 14th content update which was reported earlier this week has been delayed on the PC/PS2 servers. The Xbox 360 servers, on the other hand, have received the full update as scheduled. No word yet on when the PC/PS2 servers can expect to see this update. Stay tuned, as we'll bring you more info as it arises. ...by Published on March 14th, 2008 16:10
Progress on the Sega Dreamcast emulator for PC.
From the official website:
First Kiss Story can't be fixed because it's not a bug that it doesn't show overlayed text and images properly. It's simply another case of 32-bit float to 24-bit integer Z-buffer resolution loss. Fortunately it can be worked around - so now sorting mode can be switched to 'alternate' for games that require that. I'm trying to determine if this can be made default setting, or will it break other games.
http://pics.livejournal.com/dknute/pic/000agc73
Another fix and Chocolat - Maid Cafe Curio doesn't cut off bottom part of the picture anymore - well aren't you glad, huh?
http://pics.livejournal.com/dknute/pic/000ahp79
Something for soccer fans. Now, these games have some ugly sorting/priority issues but nothing can be done about that right now. Hey, at least they boot and play.
http://pics.livejournal.com/dknute/pic/000akke4
http://pics.livejournal.com/dknute/pic/000apk9g
http://pics.livejournal.com/dknute/pic/000aq60h
A flight simulator where you don't get to shoot anything down. Now where is the fun in that?
Anyway, due to slight FPU inaccuracies the plane slowly loses altitude during training mission and might crash before tutorial is over. Should be playable though, because during normal gameplay you have full control and can simply level if necessary.
http://pics.livejournal.com/dknute/pic/000ar61a
Baldr Force EXE had same screen size problem as Chocolat. In addition to that there were some DMA issues that caused texture corruption. Fixed.
I've yet to test if this does anything for those unstable Windows CE games.
By the way, vibration works in this game as well. I don't really test for this, but in this case it was obvious since it's used very early in the game and is pretty hard to miss.
http://pics.livejournal.com/dknute/pic/000as7w4
http://pics.livejournal.com/dknute/pic/000atg43
Yet another sim - I've got quite a few of those. You'd think those are the easiest to emulate, just some simple 2D/3D. Most of them are like that, true, but some are pretty tough cases
http://pics.livejournal.com/dknute/pic/000awddf
http://pics.livejournal.com/dknute/pic/000axb30 ...by Published on March 14th, 2008 10:03
As of this release I'm no longer releasing the dependent configurator or the manual tutorial separately as I will include it in future releases of DC Dev ISO.
Here is the list of changes.
- GDB is setup and working
- bin2o program (located in the "Tools" menu)
- MinGW 3.4.6 toolchain
- KOS updated to revision 561
- KOS built in MinGW
- dc-tool IP and Serial included and built in MinGW (/kos/utils/dc-tool)
- scramble has been included (/kos/utils/scramble)
- SDL headers and lib issues has been resolved
- Option to compress the toolchain using UPX
This is working with the official February 08 release (8.02) of CodeBlocks, so if you're still using the nightlies then now is the perfect time upgrade I think.
GDB is working. However, after you run the debugger (by pressing the "Debug / Continue" button) do not push it again or push the "Run to cursor" button as they will reset your DC. Hopefully someone will convince the CodeBlocks guys to pass "continue" to GDB rather than "run," or at least the option to change this behavior.
To build a romdisk:
Goto Tools, genromfs (indep).
Then Tools, bin2o (indep).
Open romdisk.img and save it as romdisk.o.
I recommend you also grab dc-tool GUI and extract it to a permanent home and add it as one of the tools.
Don't forget to check "Start GDB server" in the settings of dc-tool GUI if you want to use GDB.Code:Name: dc-tool GUI Executable: D:\dreamcast\pc tools\dctoolgui\dctoolgui.exe Parameters: ${PROJECT_DIR}${TARGET_OUTPUT_FILE}
http://dcemulation.com/?title=CodeBlocks_DC_Dev ...by Published on March 14th, 2008 09:21
via IGN
Conspiracy Entertainment, a developer, publisher and marketer of interactive entertainment software in North America and Western Europe, announced today the commercial release of Biathlon 2008 for the PlayStation 2 system. Recommended by biathlon stars Magdalena Neuner, Kati Wilhelm and Michael Greis, Biathlon 2008 is marketed as the most exciting video game adaptation of the booming biathlon sport.
Sirus Ahmadi, president of Conspiracy Entertainment, said, "Biathlon 2008 is enjoying rapid market acceptance. The excitement of this sports simulation game provides an authentic experience alongside world-class athletes. With Wii: Winter Sports attracting such a strong following for us, we were pleased to bring to market a similarly thrilling action packed game that lets PS2 owners 'go for the gold' in a Winter Wonderland."
Keith Tanaka, CFO of Conspiracy Entertainment, said, "Our commercial gaming portfolio is continually growing to capitalize on global consumer trends. Biathlon 2008 is an Olympic and World Cup Sport, which has a massive following in Europe. Interest in this highly challenging sport, which combines cross-country skiing with shooting, is catching on in North America. With these innovative games, we look forward to building additional sales in the current quarter." ...by Published on March 13th, 2008 22:43
News/release from Phnord:
0xtob suggested I share with you guys this program I've been coding up. I've used his DSMIDIWifi library to build a unique, original MIDI-Controller that takes advantage of the DS hardware in formulating a new instrument - one in which you can essentially "draw music." I am hosting this project at my website - http://www.andrewbuch.com/prog.php
There have been similar products like this before, such as Harmonix's AXE and it's DS homebrew version. However, in this case you actually have full 1:1 musical control over what you are doing.
Here's how it works. You first hit Start to connect to the network. Then set the channel you want to send MIDI on with the X & Y buttons. You then use the D-Pad to set what key and octaves you'll be playing in, choose a scale/mode with the A & B buttons. All of this is explained on the top-screen, and your choices are reflected up top as well.
On the bottom screen you will see a gradient of lines fading from left-to-right, resetting every 7 lines. These represent the notes of the key/scale you chose. For example, if you chose "C3 Major," the leftmost black line is C3, and each black line going right is another C (C4, C5, etc.) All of the gradients in-between are notes from the scale you chose.
To play music, you just draw across these gradients. The pressure of the stylus determines the Velocity of the note, and will also send Aftertouch data while you are holding a single note. The axis that is not controlling pitch can be used to send MIDI CC#1 (Mod-wheel data).
There are a couple of additional features. Holding the shoulder button sends out MIDI CC#64, which is the equivalent to holding the sustain pedal on a MIDI keyboard. You can toggle "modes" with select - as of now, there is a horizontal pitch, vertical pitch, and controller only mode. In controller only mode, it acts as a KAOSS pad - with both axis sending controller data (controllers can be assigned with the D-Pad). Finally, since sometimes note-off messages aren't always received, hitting Start will sweep through all the notes and make sure they're turned off.
Anyway, that's my program. I'm planning on eventually implementing a stand-alone mode which can be used with the DS on it's own, as well as refining the pressure sensitivity (right now it's soley calibrated to my own DS) and possibly adding a rhythmic-filter mode.
Please let me know what you think. I've taken down the source temporarily, but if you want to take a look at it let me know as well. My email is me at andrewbuch dot com.
-Andy
Download and Give Feedback Via Comments ...by Published on March 13th, 2008 22:41
Updated version of LoneWolfDS Released, heres the details:
This project has begun as a way to learn how to program on the Nintendo DS. After seeing how the DS was used vertically as a book by some famous games, I thought it would be really cool to have some old gamebooks converted on this system.
Unfortunately, due to copyright issues, it was not really easy to find good contents to use as a working base. Then I found the Project Aon site, which offered many books from the award-winning Lone Wolf series, fully converted to HTML by some loving fans.
For those who didn't know about Gamebooks, they were novels which had a nice success during the 80's, and which were allowing the readers to choose their own path by jumping from one numbered section to another, in a fun and interactive way. They were introducing the concepts of inventory, enemies fights, random dice results, and other nice ideas which were the precursors of what we find today in role playing video games.
The philosophy behind the port of the Lone Wolf books to the DS is to let the console handle all the rules related to combats, stats and so on, so the player can be really immersed in the story and doesn't need to bother with the gameplay elements.
For now, only the first volume of the series, called "Flight From The Dark", is available. If people show enough interest in this first book, other volumes will be ported too. So if you find a bug, have a suggestion, or simply want to contact me, please feel free to write to lonewolfdsfree.fr (replace the " " by the "@" symbol). Any feedback will be greatly appreciated!
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