Alien Crush Returns - WiiWare - Trailer

Now available on WiiWare, via Wii Shop: Alien Crush Returns. A follow-up to the Turbografx-16 classic.

Mega Man 9 gets new DLC: hard mode, expert mode, time attack stage

brimg alt=PR -Second Wave of Mega Man 9 DLC Released this week - Image 1 title=PR -Second Wave of Mega Man 9 DLC Released this week - Image 1 src=http://img.qj.net/uploads/articles_module/125106/megaman-2.jpg?661526 style=cursor: pointer; margin-bottom: 3px; margin-left: 3px; align=right border=0Mastered span style=font-style: italic;Mega Man 9/span yet? Know the game like the back of your hand? Bosses just don’t challenge you anymore? The game’s so easy that you can play it with a blindfold and with your hands tied behind your back?brbr Well then, if you want a bit more challenge from span style=font-style: italic;Mega Man 9/span, then look out for the a href=http://xbox360.qj.net/tags/downloadable-content/3535 id=tag title=Downloadable Contentdownloadable content/a packs coming this week, introducing two new difficulty modes, and a new time attack stage.brbrThe two new modes are Hard Mode and Expert Mode. Hard Mode gives you a tougher game, with increased difficulty, alternate enemy distribution, and new spawning points. Expert Mode, on the other hand, triples the difficulty level of the game. Better get your pew pew on. Side note: both modes are not compatible with rankings or challenges modes.brbrTime Attack gives you an additional stage, with a new robot master boss called Fake Man. No, I’m not pulling your leg. That’s his name.brbrThe download packs should be available from WiiWare today. It will be available on Xbox Live tomorrow, and on the a href=http://xbox360.qj.net/tags/playstation-network/10982 id=tag title=Sony’s live networkPlayStation Network/a on the 23rd.brbrhr style=width: 100 ; height: 2px;brspan style=font-weight: bold;Related Articles:/spanbrullia title=Mega Man 9 DLC: Proto Man gets some action href=http://xbox360.qj.net/Mega-Man-9-DLC-Proto-Man-gets-some-action/pg/49/aid/124222span style=font-style: italic;Mega Man 9 DLC: Proto Man gets some action/span/a/li/ulbrbr pa href=http://feeds.feedburner.com/~a/qj/xbox?a=h2A4M2img src=http://feeds.feedburner.com/~a/qj/xbox?i=h2A4M2 border=0/img/a/pimg src=http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/qj/xbox/~4/426775195 height=1 width=1/ a target=_blank rel=nofollow href=’http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/qj/xbox/~3/426775195/125106 ‘Source [qj.xbox]/abr

Behind The Bad: The Making Of Strong Bad’s Cool Game

From Telltale Games, a behind the scenes look at Strong Bad and his first day on the job.

My Aquarium (WiiWare) Trailer From Hudson Entertainment

A trailer for the WiiWare game, My Aquarium.

PS3 release of Braid ‘might happen’ - WiiWare not happening

Filed under: Sony PlayStation 3, Microsoft Xbox 360

Blow explains, “I talked to some folks at Sony but they were not interested in carrying the game. Later on I talked to someone from a different division who *was* interested, but by then I had signed with Microsoft and started the XBLA port.” Sounds like Sony may get a second chance of having the downloadable hit on its PSN service. In an interview with GameFocus, Braid creator Jonathan Blow says that a PlayStation 3 port “might happen in the future.” He explained, “It’s a limited exclusive, so if I were to try to make a PS3 or WiiWare version of the game, I would have to wait a little bit.”

While Blow did not elaborate on how long the Xbox 360 timed exclusivity would last, he did reiterate that a PC release - presumably outside the limitations of any exclusivity contract - will “definitely happen this year” while a WiiWare release “is not going to happen for this game.” With over 30K downloads already logged on Xbox Live Arcade, adding two additional platforms should go some way towards obviating that whole price dilemma situation.

[Via PS3 Fanboy]

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Today in Joystiq: August 4, 2008

Labeling a Metroid warning as a Half-Life headcrab is a crime punishable by Metroid attack. Epic Fail. Check out the highlights for today:

Joystiquery
Joystiq hands-on: Skate 2
Joyswag: Samsung 22″ widescreen LCD monitor
Law of the Game on Joystiq: Trademark infringement? Not like-wii
The Joystiq Free Game Club: Tap Tap Revenge
New games this month: August 2008

News
New games this week: Books edition
OFLC rates R-Type Dimensions for Xbox 360
Wild West Guns fire onto WiiWare
Virtual Console update adds speed and gore, lacks swords
Uncharted Trophies discovered in Europe, US
Dem-o-rama: Alone in the Dark, Wallo.E samples on 360
Thailand’s GTA IV distributor pulls game following murder
Iwata: Nintendo may slow down the new peripheral parade
Burnout Paradise ‘Cagney’ update rolls onto Xbox 360
This Wednesday: Braid makes timely arrival on XBLA
See what you’re doing wrong with Geometry Wars’ 3D camera
2K reveals some PS3 BioShock Trophies; Survivor mode still a mystery
Next TF2 update may feature ‘new type of environment’
Saints Row 2 controversy concerns, graphics keeping it off Wii
Midway bleeds another $34.8 million in Q2
Obvious: Next Team Ico game will be ‘really, really good’
Free Battlefield: Bad Company Conquest mode hits Thursday
See the Mirror’s Edge demo recreated in Portal

Rumors & Speculation
Rumorang: 360 Arcade dropping to $199 on Sept. 7

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Celebrating 20 years of Cid in the Final Fantasy series

Let me start this article with a bit of an apology: originally, I intended this post to be part of my “Dissecting Dissidia” series, but for some strange reason (mostly because of my typical geekgasming), the article wrote itself into a full blown in-depth look at one of the Final Fantasy franchise’s recurring characters. Talk about getting carried away, eh?

The concept of this mini-encyclopedia is based off of the question that, if Dissidia were to be a celebration of twenty years of Final Fantasy, will Cid eventually grace his presence in Square Enix’s upcoming cross-over battle arena? Don’t worry, Dissidia fans, I’ll eventually run a post regarding this glaring question. But for now, we’ll be celebrating, not just Dissidia, but twenty years of Cid’s glory. Who he was, what he did, where he’s been… all of that in the many lifetimes he’s ever lived.

This means everyone else can join in on the fun! Whether you’re a console gamer or a handheld enthusiast, rest assured you’ll be seeing a handful of Cids that you’ve seen before, whether in previous or current-gen consoles that you might own. It’s our celebration of one gaming history’s most celebrated franchises, after all. So we better start celebrating!

Grab those airship goggles, put on your best Cid-moustache (what I’d like to call a Cid-stache), and maybe a toothpick to chew on. It’s a Cid-a-thon like no other: an exciting airship romp across the entire FF series!

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The Cid 411 file: many faces, one name. Cid, or Shidu in Japanese, is a recurring character featured in the Final Fantasy series. Sometimes, he’s even found in non-FF titles that have been developed by Square Enix. Playable or no, Cid comes in different flavors: a headmaster for a flying school, a chain-smoking airship pilot with a spear, or a tank-engineering duck (didn’t know that, did you?!). Choose your poison!

While each one of us may have our very own “favorite Cid” character, it still pays to see the full spectrum and get to know the Cid archetype as a whole. And the only way to do that is to get to know each of the characters. “All is one and one is all,” to paraphrase the Three Musketeer’s battlecry.

See, pretty much every Cid out there seems to be cut from the same cloth. More often than not, every iteration of Cid is depicted as a middle-aged man who has some close affinity to engineering, gadgetry, and mechanics. More specifically, he’s often a character command or has built an airship. But that, my friends, is as far as the similarities go.

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Cid across the ages: the life (lives?) and times of Cid. Numbers? You want numbers? How many times has Cid appeared in Final Fantasy and Square Enix titles combined? That’s a pretty hard thing to pull off, since the same Cid character may appear in different games. However, if we simply isolate the question to how many Square Enix games (or movies) has a Cid in it, then the answer is simple: more than twenty of them!

For those who are afraid of encountering any spoilers, I humbly beseech your forgiveness - I’ve tried compiling this library without touching on the most major of spoilers. If you wish, you may just skip the game you’re intending to play in the future to still keep a tabula rasa experience of that game. Otherwise, if you don’t fancy playing through all of these games, it’s still going to be nice to know what you may have missed.

Hey there, Mister Moogle! Fire up the slideshow projector, will ya? It’s time to have a recap of all of them Cids! Let’s start with the main string of Final Fantasy titles first!

FF: Cid. Ah yes, the NES era. The game that started it all! Final Fantasy. Actually, contrary to popular belief, Cid was actually absent in the first FF game. He was, however, mentioned - yes, just mentioned, and not really appeared - in the re-releases (Final Fantasy Origins for the PS One; Final Fantasy I & II: Dawn of Souls for the GBA; and FF 20th Anniversary for the PSP). In the course of the story, Cid is later revealed as an ancient Lufenian who had built the airship that the Warrior of Light’s party eventually discovers.

FFII: Cid. Chronologically speaking, FF2 is the first game to feature a Cid character. Here, he’s built the world’s one and only airship and has been charging exorbitant amounts of money to those who wanted a ride (ahh, the perks of monopolizing technology). He was asked by Princess Hilda to help the rebel cause, and eventually lent his airship. Too bad he died - no thanks to Emperor Palamecia, of course. Hmm. Thinking about it now though, I guess it all turned out to be OK. If Cid hadn’t died of Palamecia’s Cyclone onslaught, he wouldn’t have passed down the airship to Firion.

FFIII: Cid Haze. A floating continent can’t live by without airships. And as you know, if you’ve got airships all around, you’re bound to find a Cid nearby. In FF3, Cid Haze is an airship pilot working for the King. That’s before you rescue him, of course. He’s introduced in the story as someone trapped by the Jinn’s curse over Kazus Village and asks you to go get his airship and lift the curse. In the DS remake, even more depth is given to Cid, as it’s later revealed that he was the one who rescued the orphans (your party) as kids.

FFIV: Cid Pollendina. Here’s the first-ever playable Cid character. Cooky-crazy as he is, Cid was the chief engineer who discovered the key to airships (thereby an invaluable asset the the Red Wings fleet). Cid Pollendina is painted as a passionate workaholic - a very daring-doo sort of person who does free fall stunts. He is a close friend to the Baron Castle crew of Cecil, Kain, and Rosa, and eventually, Cid helps your party out in their pursuit of Golbez. For some reason, he looks to me like a jolly old man in a very tight Mega Man outfit. Especially in the DS remake.

FFV: Cid Previa. Previa’s led quite a ripe life of scholarly genius and exceptional engineering. He built the device that allowed the city of Karnak to harness the power of the Fire Crystal, especially for airships - too bad Exdeath found a way to corrupt it. While the crystals were failing, he was thrown into prison where he eventually meets Bartz/Butz. If Cid Pollendina had a daughter, this time he’s got a grandson: Mid. Together, the grandfather-grandson duo help out the party through feats of great engineering throughout the game.

FFVI: Cid del Norte Marguez. It’s all about the hat. If he were given a different colored palette and painted purple, I’d say he might look like Grimace from the Ronald McDonald club. Cid in FF6 is a very close friend to Celes and an engineer and researcher working for the Magitek Empire. Too bad his discoveries were used for vile means, and he eventually catches whiff of the Emperor and Kefka’s plans. He helps the party out with their rebel group, and depending on certain actions done by the player, stands the chance of dying later on.

FFVII: Cid Highwind. “Everyone’s Cid.” The legendary captain of the Highwind airship and always carrying that iconic spear and smoking a cigarette - which of course had to be Disney-fied and replaced with a toothpick in Kingdom Hearts - boo.

Currently, Cid Highwind is probably the top-billing Cid character who appears in the most number of Square Enix titles, spanning a handful of games and two movies, including the following (aside from the original FF7, of course):

• Dirge of Cerberus: as leader of WRO’s airship division
• Crisis Core: a cameo where Zack gets mail from Shinra about a rocket launch
• Advent Children: trying to spear down the great Bahamut
• Kingdom Hearts: a gummi ship mechanic
• Kingdom Hearts II: worked with other FF characters to restore Radiant Garden
• Kingdom Hearts - Chain of Memories: just a memory-version of him though

FFVIII: Cid Kramer. Isaac C., Victor B., and myself were just arguing about this guy. Both of them say he looks like Robin Williams; I still insist he looks more like Elton John. Anyways. Cid of FF8 is the headmaster of Balamb Garden and husband of Edea. Together, they founded the orphanage where everyone apparently comes from. Eventually, he formed the SEED to order around a bunch of emo kids to go out and slaughter his Ultimecia-possessed wife (I’m loosely recounting the story, so forgive me for certain… exaggerations).

FFIX: Regent Cid Fabool IX. This guy was actually playable for a very quick scenario somewhere towards the later part of the game. He’s the prime ruler of Lindblum, but due to a lovers’ quarrel with his wife, Hilda, he eventually turned into a frog. Well, he turned into an oglop first, and in the process of getting him to turn back into a human, was turned into a frog instead. He’s also good with airship building (given he’s in his human form) and was the one who ordered Zidane to “kidnap” Princess Garnet from her crazy and hostile mother.

FFX: Cid. He of green eyes, bald head, and Al-Bhedian glory. Cid (who doesn’t reveal his last name this time around, aww), is the father of Rikku and Brother - and the uncle of a certain heterochromic summoner we know. While Cid was pretty cool in FFX, even to the point of being “playable” during certain key boss battles when you could use him as a Trigger command to move the Fahrenheit airship that you helped excavate, he kinda went all emo in FFX-2 after he regretted turning “Yuna’s” Zanarkand into a tourist spot.

FFXI: Cid. With this game being an MMORPG, this guy is plopped into the world of Vana’diel (in the city of Bastok, to be precise) as the head engineer who built, you guessed it!, the airships. You first meet him via the “Cid’s Secret” quest, where you have to help him manage certain matters at the Steaming Sheep restaurant. “Manage certain matters” here would mean Hilda - she’s Cid’s love interest in the game - and Cid wants you to check in on her. This isn’t the first time a Hilda appears alongside a Cid, by the way: see FFII and FFIX.

FFXII: Doctor Cidolfus Demen Bunansa.FF12 is the first of sorts for the Cid character. For one, we have two instances of Cid in one game. Another first is that the more prominent Cid (Dr. Cid) is the first-ever villainous Cid in a game - with a boss battle against him thrown in too. He’s a pretty cool Cid, and a pretty cool villain too (much like how Kefka was a “cool” villain). Directly, he doesn’t give Vaan and the rest of the party any airship transportation - well, he’s a villain, so why would he help out the good guys? - however… his son does. wink

FFXII: Al-Cid Margrace. The other Cid in FF12, Al-Cid Margrace, plays a less important role than Dr. Cid, but still figures as a strong character who excels in politicking - he is, after all, a noble; a member of the Rozarrian family of rulers - and he’s aided Larsa in formulating strategies to avoid an impending war. You can also probably see Al-Cid as the dashing debonaire gentleman type - respecting ladies and admonishing the men who try to hurt them. He later becomes a playable character in FF Tactics A2 for the DS.

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An alliance of Cids across Ivalice. Great! With FFXII over and done with (as well as the main line of Roman-numeral’ed Final Fantasy games), we might as well jump into FF12’s mothership, collectively known as the Ivalice Alliance project. There’s a whole slew of games under this banner, and just as you would expect, a whole slew of Cid characters (I guess “Cid” is a pretty popular name in the world history of Ivalice, eh?).

• FF Tactics: Cidolfas Orlandu.Final Fantasy Tactics was actually the first game published for Ivalice Alliance, and of all the characters that you could acquire for your army, how could we ever forget the Thunder God Cid? He’s got one of the game’s best and most powerful weapons, after all. Cid’s one of Ivalice’s best generals and remained the undefeated champion over the 50-year war in which he got his nickname. He’s a close friend to Ramza’s dad, and after being thrown in jail after Delita’s schemy politicking (oh, Delita, you slimy bastard, you), he gets rescued by Ramza and joins their party.
• FF Tactics Advance: Cid Randell. He’s actually a St. Ivalice local (meaning, he lives in the “real world” Ivalice) and is the dad of Mewt, one of the game’s main protagonist. After Cid’s wife’s death, he became a pathetic loser who resorted to alcoholism. Eventually, he found himself in the parallel Ivalice universe as the Judgemaster. Talk about a life-changing u-turn. Cid’s actually playable if you finish all 300 missions (no thanks).
• FF Tactics A2: Cid. Here’s another game with two Cids in it. And what makes matters more confusing is that both Cids are playable (another first in the FF franchise). You first meet Cid. Yes, just Cid. He leads the Gully Clan and whaddya know, he’s of the Bangaa race - he’s a non-human/non-hume Cid! Another first.