Danimal Cannon knows how to rock chiptunes HARD

You ought to know Danimal Cannon even if you don't know Danimal Canon. If you've jammed out to Armcannon or Metroid Metal Live, you'll be familiar with his shredding expertise. He also dabbles in chiptunes here and there -- he recently made a little time to work on his first full chiptune album, Roots.

Released back in December, Roots is a concentration of everything you know and love about chiptune music in 17 tracks. It's about a man, a Game Boy, and everything in between. And because it's all done on a Game Boy (with a few live instruments here and there), you get that deep, Konami-quality bass that simply can't be replicated. Speaking of which, I never did make the connection between Castlevania and Beethoven until I heard Danimal's spin on "Moonlight Sonata."

You can cop the album from Bandcamp for $10. A couple of tracks are free to download, however, including the title track which I've embedded after the jump.

Roots [Bandcamp]

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No UMD Transfer for the Vita

If you're hoping to transfer your collection of UMD-based PSP games to your shiny, new PlayStation Vita, then you're fresh out of luck.

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Naughty Dog Almost Made Another Jak and Daxter

Jak and Daxter nearly made a comeback on the PS3 before Naughty Dog transitioned its team to another game.

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[Game Play] The Problem with Catwoman

Arkham City has a lot of things going for it and for those things has earned plenty of accolades and inclusion in Game Of The Year discussions.  I'm not really going to to go on here about the improvements to the combat, or how the open world plays well with the Zelda-esque handling of the adventure genre in general.  Instead, we're going to talk about Catwoman.

The used games market is something of a villain for the games publishers in general and the reason why you now usually will need to enter in some kind of code to do things like play online.  The publishers are infuriated with the numbers stores like Gamestop make in repeat sales of their products without the publishers seeing an additional penny.

For gamers, the so-called "grey market" can be a huge boon.  By waiting for titles after the (insanely important to the publisher's PR) release day they can get increasingly better deals on titles and by trading in their recent titles they can see even better discounts on completely new titles.  This reason alone is probably why we shouldn't read too much into reports about game console X banning used games anytime soon (especially with said rumors reporting on extremely vague technology in order to accomplish said feat).

However, we should expect developers and publishers to continue to find new and inventive ways to force people who buy used games to give them money.  In fact, I just entered a code for the online pass for Kingdoms of Amalur.  This is notable because Amalur has no online mode.

For Arkham City, Rocksteady decided to include a code to unlock what could essentially be considered first day DLC - meaning that it was additional content outside of the normal gameplay which could otherwise be purchased separately - but Rocksteady decided to give people buying the game new a bonus of having the DLC right away.

At face value - I don't have any real issue with this strategy.  An argument could be made about what is truly "DLC" and what is simply normal content that is being intentionally divided out for an extra fee.  It gets particularly contentious when gamers discover this "DLC" was actually on the disc they paid for all along and the "download" is just a key to unlock it.

I'm honestly on the fence on that one - just can't bring myself to feel too strongly about it.

No, none of that is the problem I had with Catwoman - the star of the DLC for Arkham City.  The problem I had with it is all the ways Rocksteady made sure to shove the leather clad whiptress in your face.  It started with every single time I started a game, getting a reminder that Catwoman existed and I hadn't entered in any code to unlock her and am I sure I want to continue without doing that?

She also gets her own icon on the main menu, again reminding you if you haven't unlocked her that maybe, just maybe you should?

And of course, she gets a leading role in the first part of the game because if you didn't remember already, Catwoman is totally in this fucking game.

Now at this point I found the above mildly annoying.  Annoying enough that I eventually just entered the damn Catwoman code even though I had no intention of trying her out until I was completely done with the main Batman material.

Oh, how wrong I was.  Now remember that Batman is one of these non-linear designs with tons of side quests.  But it isn't open so much as branch - which means that some parts of the side quests until you get the right gear or whatnot.  Which is fine - and I didn't even think it was weird when late in the game I wasn't allowed to pursue side quests because "so-so is in trouble".

But that mission finished the main storyline.  And once you finish the main storyline, and you have unlocked Catwoman: Rocksteady forces you to play Catwoman.


Let me repeat that in bold, Rocksteady forces you to play Catwoman.  Continuing your existing mission will start as Catwoman.  Starting a New Game Plus starts as Catwoman.  Why "New Game Plus", which traditionally means starting completely over but with more difficult settings and more interesting bonuses - starts with supposedly completely optional content and no other options I am completely and utterly baffled.

Supposedly, the appeal of New Game Plus in Arkham City is starting with all your gear.  Which would be cool, except that Rocksteady forces you to play fucking Catwoman.

And Catwoman?  She kinda sucks.  Towards the end of the game, Batman is tricked out with all kinds of gear and Catwoman has squat, crap and a whip.  So being forced to play as Catwoman is exactly like having all of your toys taken away.

The result?  I did not finish any of the side quests.  I did not finish the so-called Catwoman DLC.  I didn't do anything because I found being forced to play as Catwoman to be such a dull, that I simply exchanged the game for Kingdoms of Amalur when my pre-order came up.

Rocksteady.  If you're reading.  Hear this: I will not play your boring DLC to get back to my main game.  Forcing your DLC down my throat does not make your DLC more important, it makes me annoyed and your game an early contender for the very used game market system you apparently so despise.

If you want to have used game buyers buy DLC which was free for new game buyers - fine.  But, sweet Jeebus, Rocksteady - keep Catwoman in your pants.  Featuring her in all the promo gear, flashing her in my face on every new game, putting her in the main menu and then shoving her down my throat when it comes to the game does not make her compelling.  Giving her truly new compelling gameplay would make her compelling.  All you did was make her annoying, me annoyed, and your game sold for $23 to be resold for ~$50.

I sent some tweets to Rocksteady to explain why supposedly optional DLC suddenly became my only option.

They have yet to respond.

Read The Full Article:
http://cathodetan.blogspot.com/2012/02/game-play-problem-with-catwoman.html

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Try 2-player QWOP and MEGA GIRP in Austin this
weekend

Juegos Rancheros is once again gathering at The Highball in Austin, Texas for some ridiculous gaming fun. The next event is this Sunday, February 12 and fans of the eternally hilarious games QWOP and GIRP will want to attend for The Foddy Winter Olympics.

Though thoroughly entertaining in their current form, the gang is featuring updated versions of these games. Johann Sebastian Joust creator Doug Wilson has come up with MEGA GIRP, which is played using four dance mats and looks like a flexibility test. There's also high-stakes multiplayer QWOP, because playing it solo wasn't intense enough already.

Sounds like another great meet-up to attend if you're in the area. We know who you are.

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Hello Kitty Meets Hooters

The first 1,000 customers to visit a Hooter's branch in Tokyo will receive a limited edition Hello Kitty pin.

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Sup Holmes: VVVVVV 3DS sales and Cave Story+
updates!

video details and more

Did you miss the premiere episode of Sup, Holmes? last Sunday on Destructoid's Twitch.tv channel? Holmes was joined by Tyrone Rodriguez, CEO of Nicalis, and all sorts of madness transpired. Take this conversation, for example, in which Tyrone reveals that sales of VVVVVV on 3DS have worked out pretty well for the company and announces some details regarding upcoming content for Cave Story+ that get Holmes all hot and bothered.

Can you feel the excitement?!

Don't forget that you can watch the entire episode of Sup, Holmes? right here on Destructoid. You can also subscribe to the audio podcast version of the show (iTunes coming soon!). Send Holmes your questions and comments in video and audio form so we can include them in future episodes and remember to tune in Sunday at 4pm EST/1pm PST for another thrilling show!

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Skyrim Creation Kit Goes Live, With a Bonus

The Skyim Creation Kit is finally here, along with a gorgeous new high-resolution texture pack that will make your PC weep.

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Skyrim gets Creation Kit, high-res textures, and
a sale

The Creation Kit for The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim is here, which to me feels like we're only just at the very beginning of what the game will one day become. Steam Workshop is supported, allowing players to more easily view and install custom creations such as the above-pictured mod.

The promised surprise is none other than a high-resolution texture pack. Assuming you have the necessary hardware to handle the boost in visual fidelity, head to Skyrim's store page in Steam to download the pack for free. And if you've been waiting for the price to drop, the game is currently being sold for $39.99.

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Another Modern Warfare 3 map is on the way for
Elites

More maps are coming your way, premium Call of Duty Elite members. (If you're gaming on an Xbox 360, that is). The content season calendar has been updated to reflect that "Overwatch" is due out Tuesday, February 21. For PlayStation 3 users, it's unsurprisingly marked down as "coming soon."

The first Elite multiplayer maps "Liberation" and "Piazza" are currently available to Xbox Live players and are coming to PlayStation Network on February 28. Frustrating to see this content so staggered, but such is life. The add-ons planned for March, particularly the two Spec Ops missions, sound intriguing.

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