GamingBits.com Podcast #21 (week of 7/7/08): Thought we’d leave you hanging? Your GamingBits.com Podcast is in! A slight delay, but there’s a nice bonus interview that Sha’ul, Rivithed (me) and Koei Canada bring you.
Listen for a chat with Mike Bond, lead game designer behind Fatal Inertia EX on the PLAYSTATION 3 and Fatal Inertia on the Xbox 360. Mike shares some insight on how he helped break the mold of what we’ve typically come to expect from Koei. How did the PLAYSTATION 3 Fatal Inertia EX release benefit from the original Xbox 360 release? What Nintendo game is an inspiration, and favorite, for Mike? What about Trophies on Fatal Inertia EX? Listen for Mike’s answers on the podcast!
Fatal Inertia EX will be coming to the European PlayStation Network soon, on July 15th. It’s currently available on the PSN for North America and Japan. An extensive playable demo is available as well. Thanks to Mike Bond, Koei Canada and Jarik Sikat for making the interview possible.
Sha’ul also brings you the weekly updates, like what’s new in videogame releases, a couple of news bits, what GamingBits.com YouTube videos BitHeads are watching most, and what game he just finished up! Enjoy it!
Don’t forget to send in your E3 questions to podcast@gamingbits.com. Last call!
Get GamingBits.com Podcast Episode 21 here.
Subscribe to the GamingBits.com Podcast here!
It’s the 22nd century. There you sit, strapped down in your vehicle, swerving out
of the way of rocket fire, attempting to finalize your run on
the race course. Through a wilderness untamed, you defy gravity which is based on realistic physics and magnetism found in Koei’s Fatal
Inertia EX. The futuristic racer provides 59 courses in seven exotic
high-def environments like rainforests, glacier fields and canyons
embedded with razor-sharp rock.
Fatal Inertia EX for the PLAYSTATION 3 features a re-tuned
flight model and improved racing speeds previously unseen. With
rumble technology from the Dualshock 3 and SIXAXIS motion controls, the player is equipped with many options.
Koei Canada’s Fatal Inertia EX comes HD ready with 720p support and
Dolby Digital audio. Multiplayer features split-screen two player
races, online and LAN racing for up to eight players, including
leaderboards. Fatal Inertia EX is rated E10+ by the ESRB, and is
being sold for $29.99 from the PlayStation Store (PSN).
KOEI announced that Fatal Inertia EX will be coming in just one week to the US PlayStation Network. The full game and demo will be available next week, June 19th, but if you have a Japanese PSN account, you can download it today! It’s all in English as well, so you’ll have no problem understanding what to do. The download is close to 550MB. The demo includes a sampling of single player (quick race and career mode) and multiplayer modes (online or splitscreen).
Visit the official website for Fatal Inertia EX here.
Read more on Fatal Inertia EX from KOEI’s announcement below.
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One of the PLAYSTATION 3 games that was frequently showcased before the launch of the system was Fatal Inertia. The futuristic racer from Koei was never released on the PLAYSTATION 3, but did make it to the Xbox 360. Critical reception on the Xbox 360 platform was weak, as reviews came out to a 61% average on Gamerankings and Metacritic. Now Koei is planning on finally releasing Fatal Inertia on the PLAYSTATION 3 as “Fatal Inertia EX.” The game is set to hit the PlayStation Network in late May for $29.99, as mentioned on the MTV Multiplayer Blog.
From the MTV Multiplayer Blog: “After the launch of the Xbox 360 version, we had a unique situation that allowed us to reflect on what could be done with the PlayStation 3 version,” said lead producer Mike Bond in an e-mail interview with Multiplayer. “But having watched the growth of the PlayStation Network’s user base and the game’s multiplayer component, we felt the strength of this game would be in its online community.”
Difficulty has also been adjusted to give beginners a not-so-frustrating gameplay experience. Fatal Inertia EX will not be available in disc format, only to be available as a download from the PlayStation Network. No word if a demo will be available prior to the game’s release.
See a couple more screenshots of Fatal Inertia EX below.
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