Headline RePLAY – 5.25.12

Today on Headline RePLAY: A patent to interrupt gameplay with ads, a Zone of the Enders reveal and evil never dies in Demon’s Souls.

While Microsoft is adding TV-spots to Xbox LIVE, according to a patent filed in July 2011, Sony is planning to take a more direct approach by interrupting video games with commercials.

Aptly titled as “Advertisement Scheme for use with Interactive Content,” the patent describes the use of a computer program or system to warn users of an impending ad, slows down and suspends the game, plays the ad and resumes the game.  

Thankfully, a patent being filed does not guarantee its implementation. The fact that it is being discussed at all is a troubling, however.  

|Source: NeoGAF

Zone of the Enders HD Edition’s release date of October 25th in Japan is supposed to be the big news from today’s Zone of the Enders HD ReBOOT Preview Event, however, Hideo Kojima had one more reveal up his sleeve: a long-awaited Zone of the Enders sequel.

Called the “Enders Project,” Kojima explained that the game is currently in an early prototyping phase and testing what can be done with the Fox Engine. Producer Ryosuke Toriyama added that he and the Zone of the Enders team are currently making models to convert as Fox Engine assets.   

|Source: Famitsu via Andriasang

Atlus is doing a complete 360 by announcing an extension to the North American Demon’s Souls online servers.

“While it originally seemed as though it would be unfeasible for us to continue to sustain the servers,” said Tim Pivnicny, Atlus’ vice president of marketing and sales, “a number of developments have made it possible for us to continue to invest in  and support our fans as they have continued to invest and support us and Demon’s Souls.”

The servers will continue to operate for the “foreseeable future” as long as user activity and interest “remain constant.”

Headline RePLAY – 4.25.12

Today on Headline RePLAY: The Wii U can’t run Crysis 3, the father of Resident Evil returns to survival horror and the attack of the ads on Xbox LIVE.  

Recently there were conflicting rumors about the upcoming Wii U’s hardware capabilities. When one of Crytek’s directors says there’s “not a fat chance” that the Wii U can run Crysis 3, the limitations of Nintendo’s next console seems to be laid bare.

“I don’t think it’s going to be possible,” Crytek’s Rasmus Hoejengaard told Destructoid. “It’s not in the cards.”

Hoejengaard noted that Crysis 3 is planned for the PC, PS3 and Xbox 360 however.   

|Source: Destructoid

Shinji Mikami, the man responsible for coining the survival horror genre, is returning to his roots with a project codenamed “Zwei.”

In an interview Famitsu, Mikami reveals that he’s the executive producer of Zwei, which happens to be a survival-horror game. Mikami tells the magazine that he chose survival-horror, a genre where he excels, to meet player expectations.

A first look at Zwei’s image boards is expected later this week, of which Mikami said would be close to expressing the game’s atmosphere.

|Source: Andriasang

Expect more commercials in Xbox LIVE’s future: Microsoft revealed on Tuesday that more media apps will now include 15 to 30 second TV-like ad spots.  

ESPN, Last.fm, Manga Entertainment, GameSpot and MUZU.TV join the rank of media apps that now show video ad spots. Previously, only UFC, TMZ and Crackle engaged in the practice.

According to Gamasutra, the move is part of a larger initiative to turn the Xbox 360 into a “full-blown entertainment hub.” And Microsoft reports that the plan is working: entertainment app usage has doubled every year for U.S. Xbox LIVE Gold members.

Case in point: ad spending on Xbox LIVE has increased by 142 percent since 2010 and Gold members spend an average of 84 hours a month using the service.

With these numbers, it just makes sense for Microsoft to expanding its lineup of advertising partners on Xbox LIVE.

|Source: Gamasutra