Gamer's Source 4-1-2014

Welcome to another Gamer's Source, the place to find today's gaming news. It's April Fools, which means you can't believe everything you read, except for here! Microsoft is still working out the kinks in it's ID@Xbox program and some Mega Man classics come to 3DS Virtual Console. So, without further ado, the news:



NUMBER One!

Capcom is bringing the original GameBoy Mega Man games to 3DS. According to an article on IGN, the company will release Mega Man II through V from the original GameBoy plus Mega Man Extreme I and II for GameBoy color. These games join the original NES Mega Man games that are already available on the Virtual Console.

This is what Nintendo needs to continue to do. Unlike Microsoft and Sony, Nintendo has a very large, robust catalog of games from past generations that people are clamoring for and would be pay $5 or more to play on their current consoles. Keep churning them out Nintendo. 

NUMBER Two!!

Though the ID@Xbox program is kicking off strong, with over 64 developers announced as the first wave of Indies, more and more smaller developers are asking the company to drop it's launch parity clause. This clause means that any game released through the ID@Xbox program MUST release prior to or at the same time as the game launches on other platforms. According to a recent interview with Edge, VP Phil Harrison says this policy will continue to be addressed on a case by case basis. Harrison goes on to say, "it’s difficult to debate these kind of commercial relationships in a media interview so you’ll forgive me for not going into the details.What I would say is that everybody in our program, whether it’s a developer or people on the platform side working with Chris (Charla) is committed to making sure the best games are on Xbox One."

This is a tough one to debate. On a surface level, it just looks like the company is being poor sports and wants to have the games like everyone else, which makes sense. Microsoft is a business and wants to make money. In the long run, this may hurt them, but more than likely it will have little effect at all. 

I will say that it is an interesting stance, and one that is completely opposite of Sony, who is known to work with developers with release dates. For instance, Lone Survivor: Director's Cut released exclusively for Sony consoles last summer. Coming into Fall, the developer wanted to release the game on PC around Halloween, about a month prior to the exclusivity agreement the developer made with Sony. Sony allowed the developer to release the game anyways, potentially hurting sales on Sony platforms but helping the developer.

This is just a small anecdote, but it is important in the sense that Sony is being touted as flexible and welcoming to indie developers, and that can go a long way. It is definitely something Microsoft needs to think about in the coming years as more and more developers jump on the new console bandwagon.   

Number THREE!!!

Microsoft has released stats on the impact of Xbox One Twitch streaming. According to an article on Gamasutra, during the first week of launch for Titanfall, Xbox One accounted for 22% of the total streaming on the service. It also details that the total minutes of Xbox One Twitch streaming since the apps launch has been nearly 23 million minutes, 11 million of which Titanfall is responsible for.

The console wars wage on! Last month Sony announced how it's newest console is responsible for 20% of the streaming on Twitch and now here comes Microsoft. It is interesting data nonetheless.  

Number FOUR!!!!

inFamous: Second Sons will be receiving another update very soon. Aside from small bug fixes, this update will give players the option to cap the framerate at 30fps, turn the HUD on and off, and set the time of day to day or night after the game is complete, all of which fans have been clamoring for. 

This is so cool. I think this game looks amazing at night, and the option to do so is one I have wanted since I beat the game (my review will be up once I beat Evil). Though there are plenty of arguments for and against patches after launch, this is definitely an argument for them: adding in fan features that were not anticipated during creation. Thanks Sucker Punch!

NUMBER FIVE!!!!!

It's April Fools Day, so here are some great pranks gathered by IGN.

And as usual, there are more news stories than I have time to talk about. SO here are some links that caught my eye:

• Joe Danger releases soon on Vita with Sackboy, Iota and Atoi.
• Google Maps for mobile allows you to find Pokemon.
• There's a Wild West themed JRPG releasing on PS Mobile today.
• Natural Doctrine will be heading West this fall.
• EA tells some mean April Fools jokes...Then takes them back.

And that's all today folks. As always, please make sure you share with your friends and family. Feel free to speak to me on Twitter and comment below. Let me know what you like and what you don't like. And as always, keep the conversation going.