PixlBit

I agree, Chris. I think there can still be a future for sandbox games, but I think the GTA 3 variety of them is going to quickly die. Dead Rising (I think that's what you're referring to), is a great example of how to broaden the genre as well.

There are plenty of themes that can be sandbox in design, and still be directed and interesting. I think if GTA doesn't change its tune, Take Two is going to be acquired by a bigger entity, and who knows what will happen from there.

RTS is definitely a candidate for deathwatch as well. StarCraft II was a decent enough game, but it's definitely not enough to keep the whole genre going. I blame this in large part to the decline of PC games. I think with peripherals like the Move and Kinect and the power of the PS3 and Xbox 360 respectively, that genre can continue to survive, albeit in a modified manner.

I'd like to see the next generation of home console embrace the Mouse and Keyboard as a viable control option so that any game type that once lived on the PC can also live on the home console without much tinkering. Maybe that's wishful thinking, but since when is control option a bad thing?

I'm with Chris, a holiday release seems most likely. I'd bet that Nintendo even tries to make it coincide with Twilight Princess' release date and 5? year anniversary of the Wii.

I just hope it doesn't get delayed into next year. It has been long enough since Twilight Princess and I'm hankering for more Zelda.

This is the trailer I was referring to in my other post. Kick ass looking, IMO.

Super Mario 3DS screenshots are exciting the hell out of me right now. Looks like a true return to Super Mario 64 form. The raccoon tail teaser is also quite exciting, can't wait to see what they do with that.

There was a Skyward Sword trailer released as well, and that looked really great too. Can't wait to see more of that one when E3 rolls around.

Good episode, too bad about all of the drops. It didn't hurt the flow too bad though, so kudos to Jason on the editing work.

I'm actually very interested in the topic of piracy's effect on gaming and what the demographic of pirates looks like. Soon enough I should be producing a little something about the topic, so stay tuned.

As far as the root key goes, it is just a string of numbers, which is actually not protected under copyright law. So even if you can draw parallels to something like a Credit Card Number or SSN, it's pretty irrelevant given the authorship of the DMCA. What is protected by the DMCA is the underlying firmware, which shouldn't be tampered with or redistributed. However, the legality of that idea will be called into question during this case, but the legal precedent set by iPhone hacking states that jailbreaking (what Hotz did) is permissible. I'll be watching the case to see the outcome, but I believe Hotz is in a position to win.

Moving on, I played some of Dead Space after picking it up for $10 directly from EA, and I definitely wasn't impressed. As a result, I can't say I have much interest in 2, so I'll probably skip out on it entirely.

As for Okamiden 3DS, I feel as if it's legit, but I don't think we'll hear anything on it until at least E3. I'm not quite sure what it'll be, whether it's a port or an entirely new game, but it seems like a logical home for another Okami game. IIRC, Okamiden has done pretty well in Japan, so a sequel or even a port would make sense.

As for Smash Bros., I like to play the game primarily in the competitive sense, but it can still be fun in casual matches to turn on the items and play in wacky stages. However, with a given group of friends, we stick to Final Destination, no items.

Fans of PixlTalk, Jason's show, PB & Jason, now has its own feed. I know they all used to be listed in the PixlTalk feed, but we shifted it over and you can now subscribe to that with the following URL:

http://www.pixlbit.com/podcast/pbjfeed.xml

Enjoy!

Hey Caliban, didn't see your message there when I replied to the Anon Troll or else I would've addressed it first.

If you aren't confident enough in your writing, why not try your hand at the Media/DB Maintenance position for a start? Maybe once you feel more comfortable, we can easily transition you to a different position. If you are legitimately interested, let me provide you with some confidence: give it a shot, I'm sure you'll do great.

Cool story, bro.

First off, Killzone 3 review is in editing right now (receiving 4.5/5). Sorry, I just had a baby, so it took me a little while to produce the review. Demon's Souls is not an enjoyable game and it got the score it deserved. We weren't provided with a review copy of Heavy Rain and no one on staff happened to pick it up, so it didn't get reviewed. However, Indigo Prophecy is one of my favorite games of the last generation.

As for Medal of Honor, we reviewed the PS3 version :o. Alan Wake? Jason Hillhouse picked that one up out of his own pocket, felt strongly about the content and produced a review. Mass Effect 2, you say? Stanton Daries is a Mass Effect junkie, and I don't think the system he plays it on would change his score in the slightest. Last I checked, a PS3 version of the game is now available, and you can bet that the score applied to the 360 version still applies to the PS3 just the same.

You do understand that there are many reviewers on staff, and they each represent a different opinion from the next? We're also not paid to do this, so we predominantly review games provided to us by publishers, and games we buy with our own money. If we didn't review a game, it's because we didn't get a review copy of it and no one on staff sprung for a copy themselves.

Also, just for you, here are our review averages per system:

PS3: 3.42

Wii: 3.38

360: 3.34

Very little variance from system to system, and PS3 is the highest.

The next time you're going to spout nonsense, make sure you know what you're talking about.

Let's lynch him! Who is it?

Thanks for your valuable input, Anonymous.