“Any consumer who may have misplaced their Wii Download Ticket number for the Wii Speak Channel or require a new number following a Wii exchange may contact their local Nintendo Customer Services department, where they can request a replacement Wii Download Ticket number.”

I have never been very keen on the idea of offering one time use codes, and I am GLAD that Nintendo will be allowing customers to transfer their Wii Speak devices down the road. Although… their method leaves much to be desired. I mean, having to actually contact Nintendo to have them replace the code for you is quite cumbersome. Isn’t there a way to detect the Wii speak peripheral when it is plugged in and then download the channel then? ( and if it isn’t connected, don’t allow the use of the channel).

Well, it was shortsighted move, and I am glad that they changed their mind (although it still isn’t 100% acceptable).

Via JoyStiq

I just installed the homebrew channel the other night, and I am enjoying all of the legit homebrew games that you can download for the Wii. It kinda sucks that Nintendo is cracking down on this now, after letting it go by for quite a while. Granted, the update does bring some functionality ( like USB keyboard support for the Mii channel)l, thats where anything good stops. Here is the bulk of the text for the update:

Message from Nintendo

Wii Menu version 3.4 is now available for your Wii console. To update your Wii Menu to the latest version, please select the Update button at the bottom of the screen or select the System Update option in Wii System Settings.

With this update, Parental Controls have been enhanced, USB keyboard support is available for the Mii Channel, and system functions have been improved.

The Wii User Agreement, which includes the Wii Privacy Policy, has been updated. Because the updated agreement applies to you and your use of the Wii Network Service, you should view the updated version by clicking on the Wii icon located on the lower-left portion of the Wii Channel menu, selecting Wii Settings, accessing the Internet setting, and selecting User Agreements.

You may also view the updated Wii User Agreement online at http://support.nintendo.com

Because unauthorized modifications to save files may impair game play or the Wii console, updating to Wii Menu version 3.4 will also check for and automatically remove such save files.

**Please note: If you’ve updated your Wii Menu after 11/17/08, you may not need to update again.

Thank you for updating your Wii console!

Nintendo

So remember.. if you want to install homebrew… don’t install the 3.4 System Update!

via Gizmodo

“I’ve talked to some developers who are saying ‘If you want to fight the final boss you go online and pay USD 20, but if you bought the retail version you got it for free’. We don’t make any money when someone rents it, and we don’t make any money when someone buys it used - way more than twice as many people played Gears than bought it.”

Isn’t that a bunch of crap? Just because I rented a game I shouldn’t be able to enjoy it to the very end? So you want every renter of that game to cough up $20 to finish it? I mean c’mon what he is saying is to take out content from the game and then charge you to put it right back in. Don’t these people know that they shouldn’t anger their base? Look at the Spore DRM backlash.

The other point of view comes from Lost Wind’s dev David Braben. Braben claims that used games are “really damaging to the single-player experience.” He pointed out that single-player games are frequently traded back in at stores once players have completed them. What I say to him is that so what, the concept of First Sale Doctrine applies to video games. I am free to do whatever I want with a game after I purchase ( or purchase it from somebody who paid retail).

I know the argument comes up that developing games is expensive, and I get that. The point is that they don’t “deserve” a slice of the secondhand game market just because their costs are up. Look at how the RIAA has gone about trying to kill the secondhand market for cds (Hint: it hasn’t worked). I suggest spending less on massive media blitz for hype, and rely more on demo’s/word of mouth to build up that hype.

Via Kotaku and 1up.

So the Left 4 Dead early access demo for the PC and 360 went live today and I figured I should grab it and setup a Left 4 Dead dedicated server. Getting the files was easy, but setting up ( and getting my L4D dedicated server up wasn’t).

I did a lot of searching for how to setup a Left 4 Dead dedicated server and found next to nothing for resources. Thankfully, my prior experience with setting up Source dedicated server helped a little. I figure I will share my steps for setting up a Windows Left 4 Dead dedicated server so maybe it will save somebody else some time.

First off I am using a Windows host, so if you are using linux you will have to change your steps accordingly.

If you are starting from scratch, you will have to grab the hldsupdatetool and install that. Then either by making a batch file, or by using the command line, use this to grab the files for your Left 4 Dead Dedicated server. I will depend on where you installed the hldsupdate tool and where you want to put the files. For me it looks like this:

C:\HLServer\hldsupdatetool -command update -game l4d_full -dir C:\HLServer

This will hit Valves server and grab all the files you need for your Left 4 Dead Dedicated server; this is also how you keep your dedicated server up to date. This is the easy part.

Now what you should do is head to \HLServer\l4d\left4dead and make two text files named mapcycle.txt and maplist.txt. Then put l4d_hospital01_apartment and l4d_dem_hospital02_subway in both. This will allow your server to switch between the two demo mapsEdit: the maps are all in there now. Now all of the maps should be in there allready.

Next head to \HLServer\l4d\left4dead\cfg and make a text file named server.cfg and put this in as a minimum:

hostname Server Name Here
// Rcon Cvars
rcon_password “your recon password” //Set’s remote control password
// Server Cvars
mp_disable_autokick 1 //Prevents a userid from being auto-kicked
sv_allow_color_correction 0 //Allow or disallow clients to use color correction on this server.
sv_allow_wait_command 0 //Allow or disallow the wait command on clients connected to this server.
sv_alltalk 0 //Players can hear all other players, no team restrictions
sv_alternateticks 0 //If set, server only simulates entities on even numbered ticks.
sv_cheats 0 //Allow cheats on server
sv_clearhinthistory 0 //Clear memory of server side hints displayed to the player.
sv_consistency 1 //Whether the server enforces file consistency for critical files
sv_contact “your_admin@whatever.com” //Contact email for server sysop
sv_downloadurl “” //Location from which clients can download missing files

// Lan or internet play, Server region cvars
//sv_lan 0 //Server is a lan server ( no heartbeat, no authentication, no non-class C addresses )
sv_region 255 // Region Codes: 0 - US East coast, 1 - US West coast, 2 - South America, 3 - Europe, 4 - Asia, 5 - Australia, 6 - Middle East, 7 - Africa, 255 - world

// Server Logging
sv_log_onefile 0 //Log server information to only one file.
sv_logbans 1 //Log server bans in the server logs.
sv_logecho 0 //Echo log information to the console.
sv_logfile 1 //Log server information in the log file.
sv_logflush 0 //Flush the log file to disk on each write (slow).
sv_logsdir “logs” //Folder in the game directory where server logs will be stored.

//Server Rates
sv_maxcmdrate 100 //(If sv_mincmdrate is > 0), this sets the maximum value for cl_cmdrate.
sv_unlag 1
sv_maxunlag .5
//Fix to get your server onto the master lists
setmaster add 68.142.72.250:27011
setmaster add 72.165.61.189:27011
sv_steamgroup //this is your group’s steam group id.. allows members to join from main menu add
//sv_steamgroup_exclusive 1 //to make it exclusive and private
z_difficulty “Impossible” “//this is the difficulty setting

You could probably put more cvars and whatnot in there, but for now this will give you a basic setup that will get you going. Edit: I added the last cvar to make it so anybody can join from the server broswer. I found a list of Left 4 Dead server commands and cvars; It weighs in at a whopping 21 pages. From what I have seen, you could use a Team Fortress 2 config generator, but I am not sure what will work and what wont.

The last step for getting your Left 4 Dead Dedicated server up is to start it,by the command line, a batch file or making a shortcut to the srcds.exe in your left4dead directory. I did it the last way and added this to the end of the Target parameter:

-console -game left4dead +ip “your ip address” +hostport 27015 +map l4d_hospital01_apartment.bsp

All you have to change is the ip address (take out the “” characters) and your Left 4 Dead dedicated server will be up and running in no time. By having the -console in there, it will bring up a console of the server when you double click on the shortcut, making for easy administration. The +map will start your server with the specified map. If you don’t have it, your server won’t work properly. If you want to setup your server for VS, put in a VS map in there ( like l4d_vs_farm01_hilltop.bsp)

If you have any questions, leave a comment and I will help you get your Left 4 Dead dedicated server up as best I can.

Also, don’t forget to check out Left 4 Dead 411, they have all the info you need ( like how to open the server browser in Left 4 Dead) and if you want to directly connect to my server you can use tf2.last-save.com as the host name

This intro cinematic for Left 4 Dead, the cooperative multiplayer game where players battle against a legions of undead, should help calm gamers anxiously awaiting the game… or it could make them even more impatient with excitement. Pre-order customers will have a chance to play the demo on November 6th, and the full game releases soon after on November 18th. Either way, would-be zombie apocalypse survivors won’t have much longer to wait before putting their survival skills to the test.

Wooowzers.. This is AMAZING. I Just cant wait for Left 4 Dead to come out. I love zombie survivor horror, and Zombie Panic! Source and Zombie master have just been whetting my appetite. The Left 4 Dead into really captures the suspense and horror of being trapped against hordes of zombies. So, enjoy the Left 4 Dead intro cinematic as much as I did! To view the Left 4 Dead intro video in high definition, hit the link below to grab the 300+ meg file.

Via Big Download

To enter the contest, create a Far Cry 2 map (Xbox 360 or PC), paying special attention to playability, graphics, visual appearance, map complexity and customization, and detail compared to the original map. Make sure to name your map in this format: iGAMES_ShowcaseCenterName_EntrantName

Then you turn your Far Cry 2 map into your nearest iGames game center and hope for the best. Now they are offering some great prizes to give you an incentive to make an awesome Far Cry 2 map:

1st - NVIDIA GeForce 9800 GT 512 MB DDR3
6 Ubisoft 2008 games (PC, Xbox 360, or PS3)

2nd (Xbox 360) - 12 months of Microsoft Xbox 360 Live Gold access
2 Microsoft Xbox 360 Live cards with 4,000 points each
2 Ubisoft holiday 2008 Xbox 360 games

2nd (PC) - NVIDIA GeForce 9800 GT 512 MB DDR3
2 Ubisoft holiday 2008 PC games

In addition, the best map submitted to each participating showcase center will receive 1 copy of Far Cry 2 (either Xbox 360 retail game or PC key to be used with Steam).

That’s a total of over $6,000 in product prizes! You can’t afford to miss this great opportunity. Get started on your Far Cry 2 map today!

Getting first place in this iGames Far Cry 2 map contest would be awesome ( in terms of prizes) but even second place would be just as awesome. I mean with 12 months of Xbox Live and 8,000 MS points, you cant really go wrong (for the 360 version) and the PC version gets a very nice video card and games.

The deadline for submissions is November 14th, so get cracking on those Far Cry 2 maps!.

Via iGames

For complete Far Cry 2 map contest rules, click here

This is an awesome shor tvideo that goes to show that Valve is spending their 10 million on advertising really nicely. This is only one of the two that are out there for the moment, so I hope I can catch the other soon. Video is from That Video Game Blog and to quote them:

The spot uses scenes from the game’s intro sequence, which we will be able to see in its full glory on Nov. 8. It then runs down the greatest checklist ever created: zombies, co-op, apocalypse. Is anyone not extremely excited for this game?

So keep your eyes peeled for the other Left 4 Dead Television Ads!

On one hand, I think it is a better route than trying to get laws passed to crack down on used video game sales, it really doesn’t help either. All Epic will be doing is trying to sell infinite goods, not scarce goods. I agree with Techdirt that this route will just diminish the actual value of any game, because many people ( myself included) often realize that I can turn around and sell a used video game to a friend for close to what I paid. So I get to recoup some of my limited means, and my friend gets a deal as well. Techdirt also makes this comment, and I couldn’t put it any better:

Second, when the focus is on charging for infinite goods (or only promising them to those who buy first hand copies), the incentives get risky. Suddenly, gaming companies are put in a position of choosing what “virtual” items are allowed in the game for first hand buyers vs. second hand buyers, and that leads them to make bad decisions in locking up important aspects of a game, frustrating potential buyers.

So they should focus on the services that they offer for the game ( which will better suit them in the long run anyways) as opposed to try and lock out used video game sales. Either way, their game does get out there, but if they try to lock out those used video game sales, they just end up frightening potential buyers away.

This is exactly why you should be worried, because Sony also has the right to keep records of anything you say or do online, or to simply listen in.

“SCEA reserves the right to monitor and record any online activity and communication throughout PSN and you give SCEA your express consent to monitor and record your activities, Any data collected in this way, including the content of your communications, the time and location of your activities, your Online ID and IP address and other related information may be used by us to enforce this Agreement or protect the interests of SCEA, its users, or licensors.”  So basically, don’t talk about how you are going pirate a game, or what custom firmware you are running on your PSP (which I do).

This new and “improved” Terms of Service for Playstation 3 comes with this little gem in regards to the restrictive DRM in their video store:

You bear all risk of loss for completing the download of any content and for any loss of content you have downloaded, including any loss due to a file corruption or hard drive crash.You are solely responsible for the storage and safekeeping of your content,” the agreement warns. “SCEA is not responsible for providing you with replacement copies for any reason.”

To begin with, I am pretty anti DRM and would never purchase a video that had it (or i didn’t have the abillity to remove it myself), but this is beyond stupid. Not only can you NOT re-download your movies, it is all up to you to have a backup as well because you have agreed that Sony doesn’t have to help you get your stuff back. I love you to Sony!

So the other Big Brother change in the Playstation 3 terms of service is about user created content. Again here is the exact spot from the Playstation terms of service:

“To the extent permitted by law, You authorize and license SCEA a royalty free and perpetual right to use, distribute, copy, modify, display, and publish your User Material for any reason without any restrictions or payments to you or any third parties. You further agree that SCEA may sublicense its rights to any third party, including its affiliates and subsidiaries. You hereby waive all claims, including any moral rights, against SCEA, its affiliates and subsidiaries for SCEA or any other third party’s use of User Material to the extent permitted by applicable law.”

So say you make any custom content in Little Big Planet or the new Guitar Hero: World Tour, it no longer is yours; Sony can distribute it and use it for whatever they want without contacting you.

Now the interesting part will bee seen if any of this gets used against a gamer, and mostly these terms of service are just there to cover the companie’s butt in case of emergency.

For more info on the restrictive Digital Rights Management on the PS3 video store, you can goto Ars here

I looooove zombie based games and I am really looking forward to Left 4 Dead for the PC ( it will also be available on the XboX360). It seems that I am not the only one that is salivating for some survival horror as the Left 4 Dead pre orders are exceeding those of the much anticipated Orange Box.

According to Doug Lombardi via
Game Daily

“With just over four weeks until launch, Left 4 Dead is showing every sign of topping The Orange Box on both the PC and Xbox 360, at retail as well as on Steam,” said Doug Lombardi, VP of marketing at Valve. “Our pre-sell numbers at retail have jumped to over 65% greater than Orange Box at the same proximity to launch, and we’re seeing tremendous enthusiasm for the product in what promises to be another great year for gaming on both platforms.”

Another reason that Left 4 Dead pre orders are soo high is the fact that any pre order automatically gets $5 off. So that means that the $50 dollar PC gave is now $45 ( and $55 for the 360 version). Personally, I will be definitely picking this up for my PC (If my wife is reading this… HINT HINT). You can pick it up via Steam ( for the PC) or the boxed version. Plus it comes out on the 360. I cannot WAIT for a demo soon!

You can find more info about Left 4 Dead at www.l4d.com