Discs of Tron Review

When Disney released the motion picture Tron in 1982, the special effects seamlessly transported audiences from the real world into the digital world of computers. Originally released the year after the movie, Discs of Tron focused on the ever-so-brief data-disk deathmatches found in the movie. Discs of Tron did one thing, but it did it very well for 1983. You are the movie’s titular character facing off against Sark, the master control program’s digitally embodied majordomo.

If you make it to the later levels, you can actually throw your deadly discs upward and downward.

Unfortunately, this Xbox Live Arcade port of a 25-year-old game doesn’t hold up as well as the movie. You jump from platform to curiously suspended platform, hurling deadly data disks at your opponent. Some illuminated lines on the sides of the screen show which vertical plane upon which your discs fly. Until you get to the multilevels section of the single-player game (a feat requiring both practice and skill), you will never make use of the ascending or descending throwing functions. While this setting never occurs in the movie, it is central to the gameplay.

When Sark defeats you, he will invoke one-liners from the movie that come across as garbled nonsense most times. But those obfuscated ribbings represent the majority of the audio you will hear in the game. Some light trappings from the movie’s audio show up, but in barely recognizable forms.

The graphics update offers interesting background depth. The computer cityscape, complete with pulsating input/output towers, gives life to what was formerly the inside of a black box. Despite the fact that the character sprites are lightly filtered on enhanced settings, they look identical to the original version. It is unlikely you will want to return to the original graphics because they look horribly dated and only accentuate the predominantly 2D gameplay.

The recently rereleased Tron arcade game provides variety in four different gameplay types. The one-note gameplay in Discs of Tron–despite being historically accurate to the arcade cabinet–makes this game very shallow in comparison to its similarly emulated cousin. Even at a price of 400 Microsoft points, Discs of Tron seems disappointing while still delivering similar features as the other retro-arcade games currently available for download.

The biggest disappointment in this game comes from not having a true deathmatch versus mode. Backbone’s multiplayer support offers four online modes in which to play: versus, speed versus, versus deadly discs, and co-op. Deadly discs shows great potential. You can hit power-ups and power-downs off the back wall with your disc to then throw off your online opponent’s game or improve your own. Power-downs include stealing a life, paralyzing your opponent, or limiting your versus opponent to one shot at a time. While it is an interesting mode, finding someone to play with online is a bit of a chore because even at release, no one seems to be online. Unless you have a friend willing to spend the 400 points, chances are you will never be able to experience the subtlety of the online action. If Backbone had expanded this single-player-focused game to accommodate local support for mano-a-mano showdowns, it would have given this classic the code it needed to operate in a free system.

You’re getting brutal, Sark; brutal and needlessly sadistic.

The achievements in this game could be considered the most punishing currently unlockable in Xbox Live Arcade games. One of the achievements is to score 60,000 points without losing a life. While it’s worth a significant 45 points, you’d have to be a real user to unlock that achievement! The rest of the achievements are not as punishing, but they will require more than a few hours of play to unlock.

Thanks to the shallow gameplay and the lack of differentiating features, Discs of Tron fails to make a case for trips down memory lane justifying even a budget price tag. Only the most die-hard of Tron fans will derive any lasting enjoyment out of this port.

NPD: January game sales slip 6 percent, Wii and PS3 neck-and-neck

The US gaming industry ended 2007 with record retail sales of nearly $18 billion. This week, though, the NPD Group provided a sobering reminder that market growth is not guaranteed.

Today, the industry-research firm released its US retail sales data for its January 2008 reporting period. While software sales for the month were up 11 percent to nearly $611 million for the month, hardware sales fell by a quarter to about $378 million. Combined with modestly declining accessory sales, the overall industry was down 6 percent for the month, posting $1.18 billion compared to January 2007’s $1.25 billion take.

Despite that, the month contained indications that the industry actually grew. That’s because NPD’s January 2007 reporting period was actually five weeks long as opposed to this January’s four-week span. NPD analyst Anita Frazier noted that the numbers are much rosier when that adjustment is taken into account.

“At the top-line, on an average sales per week basis, January 2007 was actually up nearly 18 percent as compared to last year,” Frazier said. “And the big winner was console software which was up nearly 50 percent when compared on a level playing field to last year.”

However, even on a week-by-week basis, hardware sales were still down 6 percent from last year. Frazier blamed that slide on price cuts made to the consoles, and speculated that hardware shortages in the wake of stellar December sales contributed to January’s slide. That assertion was backed up a statement from Microsoft saying the Xbox 360 was suffering from temporary shortages.

Hardware sales weren’t the only thing shrinking last month, and Nintendo’s longtime lead on its competitors was similarly slimmed. The Wii once again took the system sales crown, but by a much narrower margin than in previous months–and with a new challenger nipping at its heels. In a month that saw significant advances for the PlayStation 3’s chosen Blu-ray disc format, Sony’s system ran nearly neck-and-neck with the Wii, selling 269,000 systems compared to the Nintendo console’s 275,000. The third-place Nintendo DS racked up 251,000 system sales, while the PlayStation Portable and Xbox 360 brought up the rear, selling 230,000 units each.

As is customary after the holiday rush, January was a light month for game releases. Only two new titles cracked the top 10 software sales, with the Xbox 360 version of Burnout Paradise coming in seventh place with more than 144,000 sold, while the DS debut of Mario and Sonic at the Olympic Games rounded out the 10 spot with 133,000 copies sold.

More familiar faces dominated the software list, with Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare for the Xbox 360 once again besting all challengers, notching up another 331,000 in sales. The PS3 edition also did well, taking eighth place overall. Nintendo’s Wii Play completed a full lap of the calendar, as the February 2007 release was second with just over 298,000 in sales. Guitar Hero on the Wii and Xbox 360 took third and fifth respectively, sandwiching the Xbox 360 version of competitor Rock Band at number four. The remaining spots were claimed by Super Mario Galaxy for the Wii at six and the DS edition of Mario Party in ninth.

THE NPD GROUP’s JANUARY 2008 US GAME INDUSTRY SALES



Category / Total / Change

Video Games: $1.18 billion -6%

Video Games Hardware: $378 million -25%

Video Games Software: $550 million +11%

Video Game Accessories: $191 million -4%

Total Sales Per Week: $295 million +18%



Hardware Sales (in units sold)

Wii: 274,000

PlayStation 3: 269,000

Nintendo DS: 251,000

PlayStation Portable: 230,000

Xbox 360: 230,000



Game Software (in units sold)

1) Call of Duty 4: Modern Combat (360, Activision) - 331,000

2) Wii Play with Wii Remote (Wii, Nintendo) - 298,000

3) Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock (Wii, Activision) - 240,000

4) Rock Band (Xbox 360, MTV Games) - 184,000

5) Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock (Xbox 360, Activision) - 183,000

6) Super Mario Galaxy (Wii, Nintendo) - 172,000

7) Burnout Paradise (Xbox 360, EA) - 144,000

Call of Duty 4: Modern Combat (PS3, Activision) - 140,000

9) Mario Party DS (DS, Nintendo) - 139,000

10) Mario and Sonic at the Olympic Games (DS, Sega) - 133,000

AU Shippin’ Out February 11-February 15: FFXII Final: Revenant Wings

Final Fantasy XII: Revenant Wings is set one year after the original FFXII game, and you take on the role of Vaan, who is now a sky pirate. While going about their business, Vaan and his friends–both new and old characters–discover a treasure called the Cache of Glabados, which uncovers the legendary sky continent of Lemur

NCAA Football optioned to Wii, PSP

Is Wii ready for some (amateur) football? Electronic Arts will finally find out later this year, as the publisher today announced NCAA Football 09 for a slate of five systems, including Nintendo’s latest console. The collegiate gridiron sim will also take the field this fall for the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, PlayStation 2, and PlayStation Portable, but has now been discontinued for the original Xbox.

While the Wii is the only system welcoming NCAA Football for the first time, the PlayStation Portable release is notable as well. The series first appeared on Sony’s handheld with the 07 installment, but it was quietly left off the schedule for last July’s NCAA Football 08. Collegiate pigskin wasn’t the only PSP no-show in EA Sports’ 08 lineup; the NHL series of hockey games also took a one-year break, though it isn’t clear if that line will return to the portable for NHL 09.

As with the Wii editions of the Madden, NBA Live, and FIFA series, NCAA Football will include EA Sports’ increasingly ominpresent “Family Play” mode. Intended to lure novices into the EA Sports fold, the mode strips away complicated Wii controls to allow neophytes to compete with veterans.

The Wii version of NCAA Football 09 will also be distinguished from other ports of the game by its cover athlete. Instead of a college star now out of school, the game will feature one school’s mascot on the front of the box. Fans will be able to vote on which school’s mascot that will be by logging onto the game’s official Web site.

Electronic Arts did not specify a release window for the game, but the series has launched in mid-July for the past seven years.

Nvidia Completes Acquisition Of Gaming Software Maker Ageia (TechWeb)

TechWeb - Ageia’s software and hardware, which adds realism to the video game experience, will be added to Nvidia’s graphics processing technology.

Report claims 16.4% of all Xbox 360 consoles will fail (Macworld.com)

Macworld.com - A new report from independent warranty provider SquareTrade has found that the failure rate of an Xbox 360 is not as high as critics would have you believe, but it is still much higher than the official number from Microsoft.

Electronic Arts and IMG reach branding deal (Reuters)

Reuters - Electronic Arts Inc , the video game publisher, said on Thursday it reached a deal to form a strategic partnership with IMG, the sports and entertainment marketing firm.

“The Club,” a game that shoots for style (Reuters)

Reuters - Last year’s bumper crop of shooter video games, such as “BioShock,”"Halo 3″ and “Call of Duty 4,” were notable for coupling bone-jarring realism with finely crafted epic stories. “The Club,” coming out next week from Sega, promises something a little different.

Sony PS3 seen leading hardware growth in 2008 (Reuters)

Reuters - Sony Corp’s (6758.T) PlayStation 3 will double its installed base this year, posting the strongest growth of any video game console and narrowing the gap with rivals, research firm iSuppli said on Thursday.

January video game sales hit $1.18 billion (Reuters)

Reuters - U.S. sales of video game hardware and software were $1.18 billion, with Nintendo Co Ltd’s (7974.OS) Wii console keeping a slim edge over rivals amid ongoing supply constraints.

Disney gasses up Pure

The more things change, the more they stay the same for Climax Racing. After being acquired by Buena Vista Games in 2006, the developer of ATV Offroad Fury and THQ’s MotoGP series saw both its name and that of its parent change. Buena Vista Games is now Disney Interactive Studios, and Climax Racing has become Black Rock Studio.

Thrilling!

Despite the new genre-agnostic moniker, one constant for the developer is that it continues to work on racers. Disney Interactive Studios today revealed the first Black Rock Studio game, the off-road racer Pure. Under development for the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, and PC, Pure returns Black Rock to the world of all-terrain vehicles. Contrary to the name’s implications, Pure will mix off-road racing with stunt driving through real-world environments pulled from around the globe.

Ill-advised!

Gamers will be able to choose from an assortment of male and female riders before going head-to-head with the computer or other games in online races or freestyle competitions for up to 16 players. The development team is being advised on the project by pro rider and H-Bomb Films founder Wes Miller “to assure the game adheres to the sport’s culture and authenticity but still allows creative liberties.”

Pure is slated for release this fall. For more on the last off-road racing and stunt action game from Black Rock Studio/Climax Racing, check out If Its Games’s review of ATV Offroad Fury 4.

Nintendo and Best Buy team up in SSBB tournament

Attention all Smash fans: Put up your dukes! Just before the launch of the much-anticipated Super Smash Bros. Brawl, Mario and friends are hosting four regional Wii tournaments. The competitions will visit Los Angeles, San Francisco, Boston and finally New York for a Midnight Madness Launch event at the Best Buy store at 622 Broadway in New York. All of the 256 participants at each location will receive a $10 Best Buy gift card. One lucky grand prize winner will receive a custom-designed, crystal-covered Wii, a home theater system from Best Buy and other prizes.

Nintendo asks U.S. to address video game piracy problems Worldwide

Nintendo of America Inc. has asked the U.S. Trade Representative to encourage specific governments around the world to take a more aggressive stance to combat piracy of Nintendo video games and systems. Nintendo filed its comments under a \”Special 301\” process, in which the U.S. Trade Representative solicits input from the public to underscore specific areas of concern. China, Korea, Brazil, Hong Kong, Paraguay and Mexico have been called out specifically.