Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3 Gets 3D iPhone Remake

The announcement of a proper PS3 and Xbox 360 Mortal Kombat reboot of sorts – inspired by the first three arcade games in the series – was enough to get fans salivating. However, the retro-themed goodness doesn’t end there. Today on the Mortal Kombat Facebook page, it was finally confirmed that a complete reworking of Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3 was on its way to the iPhone, featuring brand new 3D graphics no less.


UMK3 on the iPhone will feature a total of 13 playable characters, each with their own fatalities, plus supports customisable controls, as well as a head-to-head kombat mode via Bluetooth or WiFi on both the iPhone and iPod touch. The game will also stay true to the arcade original by excluding any fancy 3D-based gameplay features. So that means plenty of bloody uppercuts and roundhouse kicks to the head, sweeps, and crazily over-the-top, jump in dial-a-combos.

The biggest draw however, isn’t so much the return of classic MK gameplay, but is with the game’s visuals, which have been completely redone using textured geometry rather than flat 2D sprites – although it looks like the texture work is partially based on the old digitised pixel art. Graphically UMK3 looks great, almost on-par with what you’d expect any of the first three titles in the series to look like if they were re-created to fit in with MK4’s three-dimensional leap, and certainly – in my opinion anyway – ripe for a porting to PSN and XBLA to coincide with the brand new, rebooted Mortal Kombat game.


As an iPhone title, UMK3 might indeed attract some serious attention, playing upon it’s reputation as being one of the best games in the series. Although, with the use of touch screen controls more than likely to put a dampner on things than please the franchise faithful, one can’t help but feel that an inclusion with the upcoming PS3 and 360 game, or a download console release would be a far better bet. Either way, we definitely look forward to checking UMK3 out upon its release, sampling what could turn out to be a nice reinvisioning of a classic.

Infinity Blade Leads iPhone Graphics Tech

When the iPhone 3GS was first released it’s graphical capabilities generally impressed for a potable device, with various visual effects normally home to regular gaming consoles showcasing the system’s potential for high-end like graphical prowess. However, outside of Doom Resurrection and a cut down, shortened version of Resident Evil 4, there were very few titles that demonstrated this fact, with many looking like enhanced PSP games with better visuals.

Moving on, and Epic Games with their Project Sword demo changed everything. Epic Citadel – as the demo finally became known – showcased the raw grunt contained inside Apple’s portable powerhouse, featuring various traditional GPU based effects such as normal mapping, specular highlighting, and real-time dynamic lighting. The game also used a baked global illumination system to give the impression of having a basic global lighting system, even if was admittedly non real-time.

As impressive as the technical demo was, it was indeed just that. With no enemies, characters, or even missions, it was simply designed to show how when used correctly, the kind of graphical potential the iPhone had within silicon confines. Recently, id software’s Rage expanded on this concept by delivering a similarly advanced looking game-come-demo in the form of a short on-rails shooter. It was pretty good for the most part. But now Epic Games has returned with their Epic Citadel/Project Sword demo in a finished game called Infinity Blade, once again raising the bar for iPhone related visuals.



As you can see in the trailer above (powered by the iPhone 4), Infinity Blade looks quite simply stunning. Running at around 30fps with what looks like a similarly almost on-rails design as seen in many iPhone titles, the game displays command of a small range of beautifully implemented advanced graphical effects along with current-gen console standard characters, which make it stand out more than any other iPhone game or demo seen so far. It’s looks incredible for something running on a handheld device.

By the looks of things, we’re talking about visuals and image quality that on an artistic level, and on some technical levels, stand above the best titles displayed on the 3DS thus far – approaching first gen, and even some second gen 360 and PS3 titles. Here we have detailed characters with decent amounts of geometry and a high level of normal mapping, crisp and clear use of texture mapping, plus good use of what looks like a mainly pre-baked lighting and shadowing system with some real-time elements.



While we won’t go into any further details into the technical side of the production just yet – if we have time, look out for a future tech analysis – the game as a whole looks to be significantly more impressive than any other handheld title on the market. And from initial reports, also looks like providing more replay value than the likes of id software’s Rage, in terms of being a proper game for the iPhone.

The actual game itself appears to be a weapon-based fighting game with limited movement – ala Punch Out – with the ability for you to dodge incoming attacks, and repel with your own strikes by moving your finger across the touch screen. Movement around the environment is largely automated, with you pointing and clicking where you want to go. And there is no real storyline in game either, other than what is uttered to you by the God King.

Infinity Blade looks rather interesting, not just down to its own technical merits – of we have no doubt are as solidly implemented as they are visually alluring – but because of how it supposedly manages to keep you immersed in its world without needing to give you any real depth to do so - word has it you simply replay the game over and over levelling up and upgrading weaponry until the God King can be killed. And that could make it a surprising success, as well as being more than just a hybrid game/fancy tech demo.

Infinity Blade is already available for download, with versions on both iPhone 4 and the older iPhone 3GS. The 3GS version has seen some graphical downgrades compared to tne title running on the iPhone 4, something we shall investigate at a later date.

Tech Report: LA Noire's Facial Animation System Detailed

We came away rather impressed with LA Noire after taking an early look at the trailer, which showcased what looked like some of the most advanced motion capturing we’ve seen used in any game thus far. However, motion capture was only half of the story. As what we’ve learned since our initial tech analysis, is that the game actually uses a far more complicated hybrid method of motion capture and video capturing in order to sample and realistically animate the in-game characters.

Much of what we’ve talked about was indeed correct – the bend of normal mapping and texture layers, complete with only basic shader effects and minimal surface skin shaders in general – although the core process behind creating the character models, and indeed the capturing of motion data from the actors themselves, is a far more closely aligned affair.

But how does it work?


Well, on the base of it, the technique that LA Noire uses actually begins with using a detailed level of motion capturing. Dozens of points across the actor are tracked as per usual before being mapped onto geometry as a starting point, before the actor's face is digitally scanned in 3D in order to create the character model. Both the audio and visuals are recorded at the same time in order to allow for precise lip-syncing with very few obvious errors, whilst preserving most facial expressions naturally.

Afterwards, this highly detailed model is converted for use in-game. Normal and colour maps are created for a wide range of facial expressions used in animation blending. These are created from both the marker data recorded during motion capture (for the geometry animations) and from the footage and lighting of the actors faces themselves. Combined together they create a series of mappings that display elements such as wrinkles, skin details, facial features etc, which are then used to build up a complex, finished character model. They form the normal maps used in the final in-game rendering.


Basically, everything from the actor’s facial features to their actual motion captured performance is recorded to gain the most detailed animation for use in-game. Once this is done you can’t change the make up of a character’s features as this has all been recorded and set up during the capturing phase. You have to record capture for every character in the game individually. The assets created cannot be shared between different character models, or even when a character under goes certain changes to their face as the game progresses – it all has to be recorded.

Also the lighting in the capturing process - to form the imagery used in creating colour and normal maps - is fundamental to the look of the end result of the modelling and animation capture. For this process best to work, you need to set up the lighting on-stage in a similar way to how it will look in the game.

Of course it is still possible to adjust and change the lighting composition in game, affecting the shading of the character models, although the results may not be quite as accurate. Instead an image-based lighting solution – such as the one found in Need For Speed: Hot Pursuit, whereby the characters are lit by their surrounding environments – in combination with recording data of the light reflections on the actors on set would provide a solid solution to this problem.


Moving on, and we can see that both Normal and colour maps are then blended together to form more detailed facial animation on top of the motion-captured geometry. There are different normal and colour map blends for different expressions and animations, and these are combined together to form the final, fully animated facial model. Some of the normal and colour maps also have specific pre-sets, modifications if you will, for varying facial expressions and detail changes, such as adding or expanding wrinkles, muscle details etc, all based off the original capturing session.

For the system to work accurately in providing an unflinchingly realistic representation of natural facial animation, and indeed smooth lip-syncing in line with the audio – so they both look correct when combined – lots of normal maps are required along with animated geometry, which takes up a huge amount of memory.

Here you have multiple textures with varying blends of normal and colour maps in order to represent some finite details, and these have a distinctly high memory cost associated with them. Additional costs are also incurred, as blending everything together, along with animating loads of small triangles takes a fair amount of processing, which means that some compromises have to take place in order to use such a system in-game.


As a result, we can see that normal and colour map resolution are relatively low compared to the rest of the frame – roughly about 1/4 of the framebuffer resolution – in order to save on memory bandwidth and processing costs. This is perhaps why none of the characters display any kind of advanced surface shaders, although there is some evidence of phong specular highlighting present, which is barely apparent in some of these shots and indeed the trailer.

The game’s use of lighting is also fairly simply in this regard too, from what we can see from the trailer. However, this is boosted by the use of SSAO, which has been implemented to expand the use of shadowing in the game, whilst adding depth to the highly stylised, slightly washed out look that has been artistically chosen.

The use of such an advanced, high-end capturing technology for use in LA Noire is also incredibly costly from a financial point of view. Seeing as every actor has to not only be marker tracked, but also their acted lines delivered for every scene found in the game. The result is you get some of the most realistic and downright refined examples of facial animation in any videogame to date, with characters that are uncannily lifelike in this regard. What the development team in LA noire is dabbling here looks to be the future for creating cut-scenes in the majority of next-generation games.


Naturally, Rockstar’s choice in using such expensive and high-end tech is maybe just a little surprising. But when you consider what they are aiming for – to create an environment filled with natural looking characters in which to drive forward a very strong narrative– then the choice completely makes sense. You can definitely see such things being used again, possibly in the next GTA, and in other similar games which focus on strong story and characterisation.

Even this early on – with just a few screenshots and brief teaser trailers – the tech powering LA Noire is remarkable impressive. The actual game engine itself, from what we can see, may not be all that spectacular, but the delivery of the characters, their own delivery of emotion, actions, whatever else you want to call it, definitely stands high above the rest, backed up a competent rendering engine with snippets of advanced, forward thinking rendering technology.

You can check out our original tech report on the LA Noire trailer here, which provides a nice companion piece to today’s motion capture-based article.

Review: Rage HD (iPhone)

There must have been much excitement amongst fans when ID announced RAGE for the iPhone, even more when it was first demoed as an example of the versatility of the company’s Megatexture technology. The thought of having a lavishly grim and detailed mutant populated world in which to roam around in must have been as alluring as it was too good to be true. And indeed it is, because anyone at least half expecting an open world, or even a closed off, linear FPS experience on Apple’s portable powerhouse will be disappointed. Because RAGE in this guise, is absolutely nothing like that at all.


In many ways RAGE plays upon the strength of the iPhone in delivering a short but entertaining excursion into the low down and dirty wasteland contained within, using the device’s trademark touch screen for simple control and a journey that barely kicks off, to keep things from getting too repetitive before the end is reached. It is you could say, the antithesis of what to expect iPhone gaming to be all about, having more in common with Sega’s HotD series of lightgun games than the title’s own console bigger brother.

Even compared to basic, twenty year old shooters like Doom or Wolfenstein, RAGE is pretty simple. It’s meant to be. It’s something you can pop into and play for a few minutes, before trying again to beat it a few hours later. So, the game follows the tried and tested blueprint found in on-rails shooters pretty closely, with a dashing of FPS targeting for your pleasure. You are automatically moved around the environment via the game’s camera, while control of a cursor allows you to aim and shoot enemies as you are tightly directed to the next location.

There are only a handful of levels to work through, along with the same number of mutated enemies in which to kill, and three weapons to use (pistol, AK-47, and a shotgun). The difference comes into play with the ability to doge incoming attacks, and being able to control the outcome of your reloads with a reload bar of sorts, which allows you to rack up extra damage if you manage to get the icon in the sweet spot indicated on screen. It’s like Gears in this regard.


The sheer simplicity of it all however, is given a noticeable amount of depth with the reload system at hand. You’ve only got a limited number of shots before having to reload again, and timing in this regard, to score the best combo, thus dealing the maximum amount of damage per shot, is essential. Since there is no way of making a last ditch melee attack from the late bumrush of foes you can encounter (dodging isn’t always an option this late in the game) knowing when to shoot, where to shoot, and how to reload with efficiency, all plays a significant part in expanding the overly simple experience as a whole.

Another, is the game’s cleansweep style bonus system, whereby if you manage to get through an entire stage without getting hit, your points score dramatically grows in size. The more kills you make without getting hit, the bigger the bonus paid out at the end. And this scoring system is backed up by the ability to gain even more extra points by shooting down the many flip-up target boards that appear throughout each stage.

While at first all these layered elements to gameplay may in fact be beneficial, the game’s controls simply don’t do them justice. Perhaps if RAGE was simply a HotD clone, where all you do is tap on the enemies to kill them, then maybe things would feel a touch smoother, making you feel like you had more control over your actions.


Alas this isn’t the case. Doing everything the game asks of you whilst the camera is moving, while you are attempting to balance out dodging and reloading before making that last ditch precision shot, can often be quite difficult. Use of the touch screen controls often means that your thumbs can obscure vital parts of the screen. And during times where the camera is quickly moving to the next location - while you are still aiming at things - response times can feel sluggish, and the method of input, inadequate for the task at hand.

But of course, this isn’t so much a flaw with the game itself - more the iPhone, which clearly wasn’t made for these kinds of faster-paced action titles. But then again, maybe id’s decision to toe the line between basic on-rails shooter and HotD clone wasn’t the best choice given the medium it occupies.

Instead, I found it far easier to use the iPhone’s tilt functionality in order to aim around the screen, rather than rubbing my finger all over it in order to target my foes. Playing RAGE this way allows it to feel far more like a responsive on-rails FPS, with headshots being more down to skill rather than a spot of clumsily controlled luck. The downside, of course, is the fact that moving the iPhone around means that your view of the screen is constantly changing. And this isn’t such a good thing. However, controlling the game via the tilt mechanism is a far better option than using the touch screen.

Control quirks aside, RAGE was made to impress with its potential graphical prowess. And in this regard the game excels beautifully, looking very much like it belongs on Nintendo’s upcoming 3DS than it does on you fancy mobile communications device.


Here, Carmack and co showcase some nicely detailed environments, with bump-mapped enemies and impressively baked shadow routines. Compared to Epic Citadel, RAGE may not throw around quite as many basic shader effects (it is in fact fixed function). But then again, it has multiple characters on screen. And however simple it appears to be, feels more like an actual game than just a fancy tech demonstration.

It is a shame then, that the experience doesn’t last quite as long as it should have done. RAGE is only a paltry three levels long, with little else to do once the game has been completed. There is literally nothing to hold your attention outside of replaying the same stuff over and over again, even if it does look mightily impressive for a handheld game.

However, this stubbornness to exceed anything other than the size of a beautifully created, but obviously short tech demo, is exactly the philosophy that several games on Apple’s life conquering device follow to the letter. And with great success I might add. Where RAGE begins to fail though, is with the lack of any online support at all. While many other iPhone games rely on similarly short and constantly replayable bitesize chunks of fun, they make up for it with online leaderboards and other such features, which often pitch players off against each other in getting the highest score and the best ranking.


With the iPhone version of RAGE, id software seems to have come up with a great idea, but without having the real drive to do anything other than the basic, barebones treatment with it. RAGE works as a series of short, subtly deep experiences, with lovely graphics to boot. But doesn’t manage to free itself from being anything but a testing ground for something bigger in the future.

That said, at only 59p for the SD version, and £1.19 for the superior HD edition – which works on the older 3GS model, but with inferior performance – it doesn’t need anything else to offer considerably value for money.

And that’s the point many seem to be missing. Not only is RAGE cheaper than a cup of coffee – it’s like half the price – it’s also cheaper than most things you can buy. So in that sense, for a game, it is well worth the asking price, even if what we have here really is just an interesting, entertaining, albeit expanded technological demonstration of what the iPhone can do.

VERDICT: 7/10

Review: Super Mario All Stars (Wii)

For many people their first experience of playing a videogame system was with the original Super Mario Bros on the Nintendo Entertainment System in the late 1980’s or early 90’s. Squishing a Goomba, kicking a Koopa shell across the ground, or jumping up to a ‘? Block’ releasing a Super Mushroom. These were the beginnings of a journey that would take people into a whole new world of gaming goodness. I still remember the impact the NES, and specifically Mario had on my life, transitioning from a green screen Amstrad to Nintendo’s 8bit spectacular.

When Nintendo decided to release the original four 8bit Mario games to a new audience in 1993 on the Super NES, I was there waiting. I always preferred the likes of Super Mario 3 to Mario World. Although, today the Big N’s first and only proper 16bit excursion into the Mario universe clearly stands out as being superior. But for me, even now, there’s still something SMB3 delivers over and above any other game in the series to date. So back then having the very best the series had to offer all on one console was like a match made in per-pixel heaven.

Super Mario All-Stars brought over the delights of the original Super Mario Bros and its sequels, Super Mario Bros 2 and 3, whilst making available for the first time in the west the Japanese only SMB2, in the form of Super Mario Bros: The Lost Levels. All four games came complete with reworked 16bit quality graphics and sound. Mario now looked recognisably similar in the original SMB as he did in SMB3 – clearly tying in the first and third games together as sequels even more closely - while the backgrounds were given addition polish in the form of parallax scrolling and additional colourings and detail.

The music and sound effects were given an overhaul too, helping to create an atmosphere which brought the Mushroom Kingdom to life in a way the aging 8bt NES never could.


For me All-Stars represented the quintessential collection of Mario games: everything from the basic beginnings to the advanced direction of Super Mario 3 and everything in between. And this is exactly what we have here.

Marking the 25th anniversary of the birth of an entertainment legend (Mario spans far more than just games - toys, TV shows and more have all been persistent over the years) Nintendo has ported over the Super NES version of Super Mario All-Stars exclusively for Nintendo Wii owners. None of the games on this collection are available in their 16bit form on the Virtual Console. And on top of that Nintendo have also included a soundtrack CD and some history of memorabilia, just giving a tiny insight into the development of the series without really providing anything other than basic info. It’s like a fancy timeline with short developer comments for each game.

There’s almost no point in going into any detail on each of the individual titles found here. Most of you know exactly what to expect.

The original Super Mario Bros layed down the blueprint for the modern day platform game, with multiple worlds each with their own look and doppleganger Boweser end boss, the inclusion of power-ups etc, while the sequels expanded on the gameplay concepts found here in SMB: The Lost Levels and SMB3. The US and European versions of SMB2 of course took a different route, being based on the Japanese exclusive platformer, Doki Doki Panic.

All are excellent games, each with their own highlights and plus points. With SMB: The Lost levels, you can also add incredibly high difficulty to that list too.


Out of all the games available on this collection, it is arguably Super Mario Bros 3 that stands out the most. Even now it is still candidate for being the best Mario game in existence, alongside Super Mario World and Super Mario 64. Looking back now, it’s not hard to imagine the level of impact the game had on the world. But suffice to say, it was revolutionary to say the least.

Again, like with the original SMB, you had eight worlds to explore. But this time they were even bigger, with nearly double the amount of stages in each and loads of secret areas and levels to find, all of which were represented with a colourful map screen. You could now also accumulate a multitude of power-ups, thus being able to start off with one of many at the beginning of each stage if you had some in reserve. And there were loads of these to try: Fire Mario, Racoon Mario, Frog Mario etc.

Back in the day the game was also mildly criticised for its slightly high difficultly level, and this is still apparent now. Although by adding a save point midway through each world – the actual levels themselves can be rather hard, but are never unfair - this could be easily fixed.


Moving on, and in terms of the conversion itself, Super Mario All-Stars is on the whole actually very good. It isn’t quite perfect, lacking any option to be played in its original resolution. But otherwise Nintendo have done a great job. The port appears to be a straight up emulated version of the Super NES cartridge, meaning that there are no Wii specific options to be found anywhere, and the front end and all on-screen prompts are exactly the same as they were before. The game has also has been given the full 50Hz PAL optimisation treatment. It runs in full screen, at full speed, but without any widescreen options available.

However, there is no original 240p display mode available like with VC titles. Instead All-Stars runs in 480i when using both RGB SCART and Component cables. The result is a game that looks incredibly flickery when played on SD CRT’s, meaning that trying to view it as intended – or as close to – is largely uncomfortable. It’s such a shame as this was something we, along with most hardcore fans, were expecting. That said, the game does upscale very well in its 480i guise on my HDTV. And with no flicker, making it by far the best way to play given the choice.


The actual core of the collection overall is superb, as expected. Each and every one of the games included on this package is worth the price of admission as separate VC titles alone - sans perhaps SMB: The Lost Levels, which still feels far too difficult for its own good – and the port itself is as solid as they come.

One slight disappointment though, is that Super Mario World has been excluded from the pack. Seeing as the All-Stars package was updated to include it back in the mid 90’s, quite why it is absent here is rather perplexing. While it is indeed obvious that Nintendo would want to sell the first true 16bit Mario title as an added extra via their VC store on the Wii, one can’t help think that SMW - and perhaps the 8bit originals - deserve a recognised chunk of space on the disc. And when you consider how many top-selling Megadrive titles Sega puts on its collections, you can’t help but feel a little short-changed.


Another slight letdown comes with the inclusion of the soundtrack CD and history book. Nintendo could have padded out the book with at least a few pages of more elaborate info and more unseen artwork for each of the four titles. But instead, all we are given is a barebones treatment of sorts. There are some cool photos of level design sketches and concept art to see, along with shots of promo material and developer comments to go with each game. It’s all been nicely arranged, and acts as a rushed, but pretty good companion piece to the package’s excellently produced instruction booklet, but hardly goes the extra mile to please fans despite some neat little touches.

The soundtrack CD contains a range of tunes and effects spanning from the original SMB to Mario Galaxy, coming complete with a small range of signature music and a small collection of sound effects. Altogether, the extras here aren’t bad but seem somewhat lacking for a 25th anniversary re-release spectacular of what are arguably some of Nintendo’s most revered hits.


Still, at £24.99 Super Mario All-Stars can be considered fairly priced. Each one of these titles would have retailed on the VC at a reasonable £5 a piece. So for the extra £5 we get all four games in a box with cool, if shallow booklet and soundtrack CD. The games themselves are as awesome as you remember them to be, gracefully standing the test of time while providing a perfect example of just how to create satisfyingly challenging experiences.

Besides that, little else can be said. Sure the lack of 240p support is a bummer, and the extra stuff merely scratches the surface of what could have been included about the background and development of each title. But don’t let that stop you. Super Mario All-Stars is easily worth picking up to relive a small slice of exceptional gaming history, and for those who have yet to sample these delights. Definitely, more could have been done to make the whole collection worthy of the 25th anniversary banner, although the games themselves still make it worthwhile for fans and newcommers alike.

VERDICT: 8/10

Screenshots and images courtesy of IGN and NintendoLife.

Sony Delivers a PS2 And HDTV In One

It appears that convergence between mainstream electronics and videogaming has finally come to fruition. Many years after Sega pioneered to have their Dreamcast on a chip system integrated into PACE Sky Digital TV boxes, Sony have taken the next step and integrated a Slim line PS2 into the constructs of a HDTV. The result is perhaps the potential beginnings for an eventual change console gaming as we know it.

Okay, so maybe that is a massive overstatement. Trying to fit in the lastest high-end, next-generation videogame system into a slim HDTV isn’t going to be possible. But with development costs rising, and savings through hardware process shrinks quickly becoming a thing of the past, maybe the time will come when next-generation doesn’t mean bleeding edge hardware in a separate box. Either way, Sony’s latest venture marks an intriguing testing ground for an altogether different future for out favourite pastime.


Costing just £199, the BRAVIA KDL-22PX300 is clearly built around mainstream bedroom gaming. With a 22” screen size it might be too small to replace the living room HDTV, but it does come with a rather complete feature set.

Not only does the TV have a built-in PS2 (contained within the units stand), along with one Dual Shock 2 controller included. It also features the Bravia Internet Video Access - used to view sites such as YouTube, Lovefilm and BBC’s much loved iPlayer. The PS2 means that the set has the ability to play both PS1 and PS2 games, plus DVD’s and music CDs, making it a real entertainment centre and TV in one.

The set doesn’t skimp on inputs either. Four HDMI ports are present, along with one VGA input, an RGB SCART socket, as well as component too. So you’ll be able to hook up all your other pieces of gaming hardware – or just hardware in general – up to it. There are also two optical outputs, a headphone jack, and three USB ports.

The TV apparently supports up to 720p, 1080i, and 1080p. The HD Ready 1080p badge means that the screen features a native 1920x1080 pixel display, and is capable of handling 1080p content without any overscan. Naturally, it de-interlaces and upscales all 480i/p and 576i/p content respectively. Whether or not it has decent processing is another matter. Usually, HDTV’s with such small screen sizes tend to get lower end processing tech, making SD signals and legacy console outputs look dire in general. But I guess we’ll have to wait and see.

One thing is for sure though, that this £199 foray into converging both videogames and mass consumable electronics is a clear sign of where gaming could be heading. That is, if the whole concept takes off. While we don’t expect to see the traditional, separate console ‘box under the TV’ disappear quite yet, convergence between the two mediums is now inevitable, with perhaps a TV plus gaming system catering to the lower-end market, whilst console market as we know it continues on for a few more generations.

Sony taking the first step with such a low priced, consumer friendly HDTV means that this could be the norm in a few years time. We already see HDTVs with web browsers and other multimedia functionality on the market, so having a range with a gaming system built in seems like the next logical step forward. Let’s hope that the move towards such things doesn’t stall ongoing development of traditional videogames hardware, and the high-end big budget experiences we now demand from developers across the globe.