t looks like the ESRB was in overdrive trying to knock out as many ratings as possibly before the long Labor Day Weekend. They cranked out a total of 85 titles this last week. Included were, the usual fare on the PC, Wii and DS, a solid week for the PS3 and 360 and a first for the Xbox 360 user created content.
I almost laughed while reading the list of PC, Wii and DS titles this week. It has a ton of casual and card games (Hoyle Puzzle & Board Games 2009, Hoyle Card Games 2009, Reel Deal Casino Millionaire's Club, Monopoly and Poker For Dummies), kid’s titles and crazy named titles. However, there were a couple of gems like far Cry for PC, Wii Music (if you want to look like a tool in front of your friends), Rayman Raving Rabbids TV Party (DS) and Pass the Pigs (DS). Well, the last one is a real title, but not a gem I would imagine.
The Xbox 360 and Playstation 3 had another solid week, with the PS3 even having a non-shared title on the list. They both had the following games rated: Fallout 3, Civil War: Secret Missions, James Bond: Quantum of Solace, Golden Axe: Beast Rider, WWE SmackDown vs. Raw 2009 and NBA LIVE 09. The Playstation 3 also had future PSN title Supersonic Acrobatic Rocket-Powered Battle-Cars get rated. This game is a combination RC cars, floor hockey and Amateur rocket building. As for the first, the XNA Creators Club for the Xbox 360 had its first rated title show up. The Dishwasher: Dead Samurai which we all got a taste of after E3 garnered an impressive rating of ‘M’ In addition, The Last Remnant and Death Tank (originally hidden in the bowls of multiple Sega Saturn games. The 360 also had ratings of Monopoly and TNA iMPACT! Wrestling (Best Buy Sting Gift with Purchase Pre-Sell). A decent week with a nice blend of titles across the board for both consoles.
The Intriguing Title of the Week is the XNA Creators Club release that was rated. The Dishwasher: Dead Samurai is the first user created title for the Xbox 360 that the ESRB has rated. What is interesting is that The Dishwasher garnered an ‘M’ rating for “Blood and Gore, Violence”. Not surprising based on the demo and trailer I saw. Still, right off the bat this title should be unavailable to any Xbox 360 that has an under aged Gamercard or the Family Settings set to prevent the play or downloading of ‘M’ rated content. It makes you wonder how this will impact the sales of these titles, and whether the developers will have the opportunity to go back and tone the game down to get the more retail friendly ‘T’ for Teen rating. Other than the ‘M’ garnered by The Dishwasher, the fact that these titles are starting to show up means we are getting closer to the launch of this new user created games through Live Marketplace. It remains to be seen when these games will pop on the service, but after the Fall Dash redesign would be my best guess.
| Title |
Publisher |
Rating |
Platforms |
| Backyard Football '09 |
Atari |
Everyone |
Windows PC, PlayStation 2, Wii |
| Civil War: Secret Missions |
Activision Value |
Teen |
Windows PC, Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 |
| Fashion Craze |
Viva Media LLC |
Everyone |
Windows PC |
| Fishing Craze |
RealNetworks |
Everyone |
Macintosh, Windows PC |
| Hoyle Card Games 2009 |
Encore Software |
Teen |
Macintosh, Windows PC |
| Hoyle Puzzle & Board Games 2009 |
Encore Software |
Everyone |
Macintosh, Windows PC |
| Imagine Party Babyz |
Ubisoft |
Everyone |
Wii |
| James Bond : Quantum of Solace |
Activision |
Teen |
Windows PC, Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 |
| OPERATION Mania |
Electronic Arts |
Everyone |
Windows PC |
| Outcry |
DreamCatcher Interactive, Inc. |
Everyone 10+ |
Windows PC |
| Poker For Dummies |
Electronic Arts |
Teen |
Windows PC |
| Rayman Raving Rabbids TV Party |
Ubisoft |
Everyone 10+ |
Nintendo DS |
| Reel Deal Casino Millionaire's Club |
Phantom EFX, Inc. |
Teen |
Macintosh, Windows PC |
| The Equestrian |
IGS Inc. |
Everyone |
Windows PC |
| The Mystery of Crystal Portal |
RealNetworks |
Everyone |
Macintosh, Windows PC |
| Pass the Pigs |
ValuSoft Inc. |
Everyone |
Nintendo DS |
| Jewel Quest III |
iWin, Inc. |
Everyone |
Windows PC |
| Golden Axe: Beast Rider |
SEGA |
Mature |
Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 |
| Monopoly |
Electronic Arts |
Everyone |
PlayStation 2, Xbox 360, Wii, PlayStation 3 |
| Fallout 3 |
Bethesda Softworks |
Mature |
Windows PC, Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 |
| Dora The Explorer: Dora Saves The Snow Princess |
2K Games |
Everyone |
PlayStation 2, Wii |
| Aurora: The Secret Within |
Tri Synergy Inc. |
Everyone 10+ |
Windows PC |
| NBA LIVE 09 |
Electronic Arts |
Everyone |
Xbox 360, PS2, PS 3, PSP |
| NBA LIVE 09 All-Play |
Electronic Arts |
Everyone |
Wii |
| Luxor: Treasures of Ra |
UDGAMES |
Everyone |
Wii |
| Go, Diego, Go! Great Dinosaur Rescue |
2K Games |
Everyone |
PlayStation 2, Wii |
| Guinness World Records: The Videogame |
Warner Bros. |
Everyone |
Nintendo DS |
| High School Musical 3: Senior Year DANCE! |
Disney Interactive Studios |
Everyone |
Wii |
| Princess On Ice |
Aksys Games Localization, Inc. |
Everyone |
Nintendo DS |
| Real Soccer 2009 |
Gameloft |
Everyone |
Nintendo DS |
| THE LAST REMNANT |
Square Enix, Inc |
Mature |
Xbox 360 |
| SPACE INVADERS GET EVEN |
Square Enix, Inc |
Everyone 10+ |
Wii |
| SpongeBob SquarePants featuring Nicktoons: Globs of Doom |
THQ Inc |
Everyone |
PlayStation 2, Wii |
| TNA iMPACT! Wrestling (Best Buy Sting Gift with Purchase Pre-Sell) |
Midway Home Entertainment |
Teen |
PlayStation 2, Xbox 360, Wii |
| Ubersoldier 2 |
Strategy First, Inc. |
Mature |
Windows PC |
| UltiMotion - Disney Fairies & Sleeping Beauty |
Jakks Pacific Inc. |
Everyone |
Plug-and-Play |
| Valhalla Knights 2 |
XSEED JKS, Inc. |
Everyone 10+ |
PSP |
| What's Cooking? Jaime Oliver |
Atari |
Everyone |
Nintendo DS |
| WWE SmackDown vs. Raw 2009 |
THQ Inc |
Teen |
Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, Wii |
| Wii Music |
Nintendo |
Everyone |
Wii |
| The Magician's Handbook: Cursed Valley |
THQ Inc |
Everyone |
Windows PC |
| The Dishwasher: Dead Samurai |
Ska Studios |
Mature |
Xbox 360 |
| Supermarket Mania |
Viva Media LLC |
Everyone |
Windows PC |
| Supersonic Acrobatic Rocket-Powered Battle-Cars |
Psyonix |
Everyone |
PlayStation 3 |
| Rock University Presents: The Naked Brothers Band The Videogame |
THQ Inc |
Everyone |
Windows PC, DS, PlayStation 2, Wii |
| Go Go Gourmet: Chef of the Year |
ValuSoft Inc. |
Everyone |
Windows PC |
| My Spanish Coach |
Ubisoft |
Everyone |
PSP |
| Mystery Stories: Island of Hope |
Masque Publishing |
Everyone 10+ |
Windows PC |
| Betty Boop Games - Collector's Edition |
Selectsoft Publishing / MPS |
Everyone |
Windows PC |
| Dream Day Wedding: Married in Manhattan |
ValuSoft Inc. |
Everyone |
Windows PC |
| Doggie Daycare |
Viva Media LLC |
Everyone |
Windows PC |
| Far Cry |
Encore Software |
Mature |
Windows PC |
| Club Penguin: Elite Penguin Force / DGamer |
Disney Interactive Studios |
Everyone |
Nintendo DS |
| Death Tank |
Snowblind Studios, Inc. |
Everyone 10+ |
Xbox 360 |
| Diamond Drop Deluxe |
Viva Media LLC |
Everyone |
Windows PC |
Here is the final tally on who, what and where everything was rated for the last week. There were 85 rated titles on nine platforms. PC (27), Wii (14), Xbox 360 (11), Playstation 3 (8), DS (8), Playstation 2 (8) and Mac (5) had the most games rated. There were 42 of the 85 titles rated at E10+ or lower, seven rated at T for Teen and six (Ubersoldier 2, Far Cry, Fallout 3, THE LAST REMNANT, The Dishwasher: Dead Samurai and Golden Axe: Beast Rider) rated at M for Mature.
Got a comment on the article or a rated games, put it in the section below or send me an e-mail. Until next week, make sure you know what your kids are playing……
*The weekly Intriguing Title of the Week (and any game that is tossed in that paragraph) is identified based on a game on the list that catches the eye of the author for any number of reasons. Good, bad or otherwise, feel free to agree, disagree or add some constructive input to the discussion.
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