Upcoming games (through the end of the year)

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OK, I meant to follow up fairly quickly from my basically Q3 list of upcoming games, and got distracted -- Largely because I've been playing several of those games, and some from the new list: Games from Q4 (I need sexier names for my lists).
To review from last time, I list the games I'm excited about as an armchair analyst, industry professional (?), and gamer -- particularly with an affinity for co-op games (so, L4D2, New Super Mario Bros., and Borderlands rise to the top.
Here are the games:
Dreamkiller (360, PC) -- There need to be more, frenetic, memorable PC first-person shooters, a la Painkiller (not related to this title, other than it looks like it's unofficially "inspired-by"). So, this title has my interest because of that, and because I've been carefully watching ASPYR and it its evolving business model over the years. I hope the game does well on PC, and while I hope for the same on 360, I expect it to falter as it goes up against top-notch FPS offerings like Modern Warfare 2, ODST, and even L4D2 -- but especially against Serious Sam HD on XBLA, which will provide that same super-frenetic action, with über polish and a fractional price point.

South Park Let's Go Tower Defense Play! (XBLA) -- A South Park tower defense game? Brilliant!

Lucidity (XBLA) -- LucasArts brings a new platformer to the XBLA platform? Brilliant!
Magna Carta 2 (360) -- I'm always on the lookout for a gorgeous, accessible JRPG. Magna Carta 2, the sequel to the 2002 PC title, may just foot the bill.

A Boy and His Blob (Wii) -- I'm a big fan of the original, and the absolutely beautiful nature of this new one has me really excite. I own a Wii, but play very few games for myself, but Q42009 will likely change that.
Brütal Legend (360, PS3) -- It's Tim [bleeping] Schafer, ladies and gents! And while this game was on my "must get, but maybe not right away" list, the demo changed that for me. If it's representative, this game is the perfect mix of Shafer humor and gameplay, Jack Black is used appropriately (not overwhelmingly), and the game seems to be scratching every itch for me. I'm excited. Wicked excited.
Fallout 3: Game of the Year Edition (360, PC, PS3) -- This single-player, first-person RPG is one of my all-time favorites, and now you can get the GOTY edition, which comes with the original game, and all five DLC expansion packs (The Pitt, Operation: Anchorage, Broken Steel, Point Lookout and Mothership Zeta). And you'll probably be able to find it for cheaper than full price or with purchase incentives. If you haven't bought this game before, you should. Both of you.
Marvel Super Hero Squad (Wii, PS2, NDS, PSP) -- I am such a fan of Marvel's cutified franchise, and while I worry about the possible rushed quality of this licensed brawler title, I'm likely to pick it up regardless for its scratching my multiplayer-plus-fanboy itch.
FIFA Soccer 2010 (360, PC, PS3, Wii, PS2, PSP, NDS) -- I'm not a big soccer fan, but I'm savvy enough to know this sport is the big dog 'round the world, and one of the biggest movers for EA (and therefore, biggest moments for sports-minded gamers). So it gets listed.
Uncharted 2: Among Thieves (PS3) -- This Sony exclusive is arguably the big-dog for October, and probably the first of the genuine heavy hitters for the holiday. Taking a Tomb Raider formula that actually works, injecting top visuals and gameplay mechanics, story, and the introduction of multiplayer, this week's midnight launch will likely have people stacked up like cordwood throughout the nation.
Ratchet & Clank Future: A Crack in Time (PS3) -- You gotta respect the R&C, and this additional PS3-exclusive is (I think) going to make those console faithful happy with an updated take on the franchise.
Demon's Souls (PS3) -- YAPE (Yet Another PS3 Exclusive), this game is already garnering rave reviews, with people trumpeting the game's difficulty, but difficulty that makes you a far better gamer (akin to Ninja Gaiden, but with seemingly less profanity; slightly less). And the game looks slick.
DJ Hero (360, PS3, Wii) -- While it doesn't exactly float my boat, there are going to be a number of DJ-type games hitting shelves as the next wave of music-related games, so I'm curious to watch the trend. And peripherals make people lots of money. And it does look kind of nifty.
Borderlands (360, PC, PS3) -- (This one actually moved to Q4 after I did the original post) Teased for so long, with a relatively recent shiny new coat of paint, I have worked hard not to lose interest in this one. Gearbox has earned their place in the industry, so I'll likely pick up this game just to vote with my dollars as to how to do it right, and I'm guessing the game will live up to the studio that made it. This may be overselling it, but think "4-player co-op Fallout 3."
Tekken 6 (360, PS3) -- I've got a hankering for a new fighting game, and I like the marketing win of one of PlayStation's most venerable exclusive fighting franchises now bing on the 360 (starting with 5). That and I want to be able to pit a panda against a kangaroo. Over and over again.
Fairytale Fights (360, PS3) -- Twisted fairy tale trope at its best (and most violent). Think cutesy plus Kill Bill plus online multiplayer. Let's see if lands as expected.
Dragon Age Origins (360, PC, PS3) -- I think this Bioware RPG is going to be Oblivion / Fallout 3 awesome. Yes. That awesome.
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 (360, PC, PS3) -- I actually expect this game to be the big mover for the holiday season. It addresses all of the right markets -- it's not console exclusive, so it sells more individual units; it's an FPS, so it hits that crowd; It's not as hardcore as a simulation, but hardcore enough to get both casual and hardcore FPS fans on board; it's not niche-genre ("modern war" is much broader than "zombie"); etc. Members of my CoD clan are actually planning to take the day off to play this game. Seriously. (There will also be derivations of this game on Wii, PSP, and NDS, but they are differently titled, obviously have very different game mechanics.)
New Super Mario Bros. (Wii) -- It's Mario. On the Wii. With co-op (and adversarial, it looks like), a la classic Super Mario Bros. My hope is to be playing this all holiday long with my sweetie, which may cost me Xbox and NDS time (and will be well worth it).
Phantasy Star ∅ (NDS) -- This game (which would make my list just because of my love of the franchise) is allegedly an action RPG amalgam of the best of Phantasy Star Online and Phantasy Star Universe. Sign me up!
Left 4 Dead 2 (360, PC) -- I should not be this addicted to the first game. It's short, it's too niche, etc. Instead, I'm like a social crackhead at a snow party. Every Tuesday night (every), I and 3 other guys get online and play and replay the same campaigns, go after insane achievements, and pull other peopleion for the online modes. And just a year after that game, the sequel is shipping, which makes me all sorts of happy. All sorts.
Assassin's Creed II (360, PC, PS3) -- This sequel to a great stealth title from two years ago looks to up the ante on quality, gameplay diversity, and historical tie-in significance.
Ok, that's what I have. Dates my change, I feel like I've missed some titles, etc.
But it's still more than I can play without being professionally paid to do so.

Cost of games, slice of the pie, and business opportunities

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This is more of a biz dev(ish) post, because I want to talk through the cost of games, and use this post as a possible launching point for some other biz dev topics.
Since I think some of the industry numbers I have may not shareable, I'm going to use some public numbers, like those from Dave Thomas ("The Crispy Gamer").
Dave digs into the $60 game -- a price point I've railed against repeatedly in this blog. It's kind of an arbitrary price point, I would argue it should go down to $50 (for consumer and economics reasons), and the PC gaming side seems to "get" this, with the same newly released games routinely being available on console costing $10-20 less on the PC side.
Anyway, for purposes of discussion, I'm going to use Dave's numbers for who gets what pieces of the retail pie. Assuming a sixty-dollar game, Dave (citing Jesse Divnich over at Electronic Entertainment Design and Research) argues $12 goes to "Retail", $5 goes to "Marketing", $10 to "Cost of Goods", and $33 goes to the "Publisher", looking something like this (using my own charts and graphs):



And it probably helps to understand three quick things:

1. Each of these areas would have a breakout underneath them (e.g., "Retailer" has facilities overhead, employee salary / benefits, etc.) that defines their monetary success criteria.
2. What these categories include.
3. How this percentage breakout varies on a case-by-case basis (which is partially why the numbers bother me).

Assuming the first item is pretty self-explanatory, here's a brief description of each of the categories, and representative costs associated with them (some from Thomas, and some from me):

• Retailer: The (usually brick-and-mortar) establishment from which you buy your game -- so think of it as the money Best Buy gets when you by a $60 game.
• Marketing: Discounts, game returns, and retail cross-marketing (Toys "R" Us gift cards and exclusive action figures, etc.).
• Cost of Goods: Cost of getting the goods sold, which includes making the game disc, shipping the games to the store, translation, and anything else directly related to production, and distribution of the game package.
• Publisher: According to Thomas, "It is generally accepted that most publishers receive $30 to $35 per game sold before they run into overhead, development and marketing costs."

Now, this varies widely, and the devil is in the details.
For example, in an interview with Wired Magazine, Epic Games' Mark Rein talked about Gears of War ostensibly being cheap to make:

"We spent less than $10 million to make Gears of War. Somewhere between nine and ten million dollars. People are always saying that making next-generation games is really expensive, and we’re saying, you should license our technology."

The interesting part of this is I would argue, in this context, Epic wasn't using licensed tech. Since they're the makers of the Unreal Engine, this was basically the equivalent of using internal tech, and reduced the cost to Gears significantly, because it they didn't have to bear the license fee that an external studio would have to bear. So maybe their cost of goods was down (or at least in line with) that 17%. (Now, the "unfunded" R&D expense that went into adding features to UE for Gears would be another interesting piece of the puzzle.)
But what about marketing? I think Mark is just talking cost of development --not Microsoft's hefty marketing part of the pie.
Remember those excellent "Mad World" and "Rendezvous" prime time NFL Football commercials? Those weren't cheap in licensed content, production, or placement, I'm sure easily blowing an 8% marketing budget, and/or eating heavily into publisher Microsoft's 55%. Add to that limited editions (expensive and small-run metal cases, art books, music CDs, etc.) and promotional deals like the radio controlled Centaur Tank that shipped with special editions of the game at Best Buy, or Fallout 3's lunch box / bobblehead / making of DVD / art book, and you can see costs for each of the categories eaten away at pretty quickly.
(Quick caveat is that I own the special / limited editions of a bunch of games, including those listed above, because I'm a passionate gamer, I like to vote for good games with my consumer dollars, and as an industry guy, the "making of" DVDs alone are worth the price of admission.)
As another example, MMOs don't fit into the breakout above nicely at all (I get very frustrated with people trying to shoehorn older industry models onto newer business that frankly isn't that new).
Look at a game like Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning. Where does the ongoing server cost, or the forum / community infrastructure and personnel overhead that is part of these games get wrapped into the above model? (Often times, "Community Management" comes out of marketing dollars, and are not well accounted for between developers and publishers.)
Exceptions aside, the numbers above give us an interesting launching point to explore return on investment (ROI) for game titles.
So, assuming the base numbers are OK (!?), and a game with a $10M overall budget, you would hit a break-even point for the publisher at an MSP of $60 ($33 publisher portion) after selling 303,030 units (303,030.3, to be exact):

But "break-even" isn't enough -- because there's no profit. If your publisher's profit target is, say, $5M, you're $5M "in the hole" when you "break even" -- and you need to move an additional ~150,ooo units (~454.5K total) to hit that profit target (and, probably, to realize developer royalties):


So, looking at a game like the recent Halo 3: ODST (and totally making up numbers), let's pretend the budget was a "mid-range" $25M -- Microsoft would need to move 757.5K units -- just to break even at the same $5M profit target. Of course, ODST moved 2.5M units in the first two weeks, so even without know their profit targets, it feels like "they did OK":
Now, I acknowledge these numbers are a little problematic, in that they're theoretical, and there's a bit of an apples-to-hand-grenades comparison of the $60 MSP price point of a title, and the $33 publisher portion of the pie placeholder I'm using.
But that's intentional, as I'm setting this up for some follow-on posts.
More later. Comment below.

Muddying who gets what piece of the pie

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So, my previous post, "Cost of games, slice of the pie, and business opportunities", has caused a bit of stir -- most of which, despite my urgings, haven't made it into the comments of that post.
To summarize that last post, I wrote brief thoughts about what percentage of a given game's sales go to which groups. For discussion purposes, I used numbers from Dave Thomas ("The Crispy Gamer") / Jesse Divnich (EEDAR), which suggest the following breakout from a title's sale:

• $12 (20%) goes to "Retail"
• $5 (8%) goes to "Marketing"
• $10 (17%) goes to "Cost of Goods"
• $33 (55%) goes to the "Publisher"

These numbers and that post are helpful as groundwork for some follow-on posts I want to do. These work as placeholder numbers (and maybe they're totally fine), but they don't feel like they address some very diverse business scenarios.
The "bit of a stir" I reference above is from the mix of comments I received, largely on the extreme ends:

1. "Spot on -- nice job!" (or, conversely "Too accurate, please do not share")
2. "Not even close to accurate"

I wonder how closely these numbers match what people actively experienced in the industry have seen throughout their career. I say "actively", because I think folks need to have a historical sense to dissect these figures, and they need to be in the industry now -- because it's changed in the last 2-3 years.
As I said before, I'm personally not crazy about the numbers as actionable, mainly because I'm concerned they're too averaged to be individually applicable, and/or are not representative enough -- and I'm looking to refine them.
Obviously, there are several levers /complicating factors that start significantly shifting percentages, and therefore opportunities.
For example:

• How do these numbers compare across console versus PC titles?
• Do the percentages stay intact between a $60 MSP 360 or PS3 title, compared to a $50 Wii title?
• Where do the first-parties (Microsoft, Sony, Nintendo) get their piece of the pie -- from the "Publisher" slice? Is it spread throughout?
• What happens to the percentages in a $30 "budget" title?
• Where are the cost savings and additional expenses in a digital distribution only model (Publishers, for example, are (arguably) largely in the risk management / brokering business, so how do the financial risk model change when that entity isn't involved)?
• What about royalty models?
• Are first- or third-party marketing development / discretionary funds "on top of" the "Marketing" budget?
• How do the numbers change (or do they) based on geography, or cross-geography development and publishing?

I'm very interested in identifying financial risk and revenue opportunity by further refining these numbers.
Feel free to respond directly to me, or as a comment to this or the initial blog post.

This week's releases

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I'm excited about a few of this week's game releases, as (after a bit of a lull), the holiday game season starts in earnest.
You can get full lists of the games at places like GameSpot.com or Kotaku, but here are a few to watch:

• Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 (360, PC, PS3) -- The sequel to a mondo game is a mondo game of its own, and the biggest of the week -- if not the year. We play every Monday and Wednesday nights.
  
  
• Phantasy Star Zero (NDS) -- As an RPG franchise, I really dig Phantasy Star, and Zero looks to rock the Nintendo DS. At around 20 hours of story / gameplay per character (and three characters), this game'll likely take up residence in my handheld, now that I'm finally wrapping up Chrono Trigger.
  
  
• Dreamkiller (360) -- I'm unabashedly a Painkiller fan (on the PC). Dreamkiller looks to be a spiritual successor to that game (complete with eastern European dev team), with a creepy, supernatural hook (psychiatrist goes into crazy's heads, a la an FPS trope, and ... erm ... cures them). Works for me!
  
  
• Dragon Ball Z: Attack of the Saiyans (NDS) -- Dunno if this one will work. I still keep trying to finish Dragon Ball: Origins, but the freaking 10-minute, non-skippable intro pisses me off, so I play it rarely. Still, I'm a franchise fan.
  
  
• Dragon Ball: Raging Blast (PS3, 360) -- I think DBZ: Burst Limit was really under-rated, and if you played this demo on XBL recently, you may agree that this frenetic 3D fighter might be the next Saiyan evolution. Or, you may not. But you're probably wrong.
  
  
• Final Fantasy XI: Ultimate Collection (360, PC) -- Granted, on the PC it's the "Vana'diel Collection 2010" ('cause that'll get you the ladies), but whatever. It's the MMO version of the FF universe, and while it's been patchily received, this rendition will have the base game, all four expansions, and all three add-on scenarios -- all for less than twenty bucks.
  
  
• Braid (PS3) -- If you missed this solid little indie title on XBLA, then PC, now's your chance on PSN. It's a fun, hearty little platformer that does a better job than some full-box titles. Sure, it might be a little over-rated. But genuinely good games are.
  
  
• WorldShift (PC) -- Pretty sure this title, from Crytek-purchased Black Sea Studios, is actually powered by Gamebryo tech, since development was fairly far along before the acquisition. It's a good-looking RTS / RPG online / offline hybrid.
  
  
• Rogue Trooper: Quartz Zone Massacre (Wii) -- OK, this one actually came out way earlier this year, but seeing it inadvertently included one someone's list for this week gives me an excuse to tout it again. I so liked this PS2/PC/original Xbox game, and gushed over it. Twice. Now, with my yearnings for a next-gen update, I kind of got my wish, as it's as it's polished and available for the now-gen Wii. No new content, per se, but if you missed it the first time, find an inexpensive copy. Go nuts.

That's it for this week. Next week, it's New Super Mario Bros. time!

Black Friday Gaming Deals

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I'm in the midst of a move, so I'm not going to be able to do my typical pre-Black Friday shopping suggestions lists.

Be sure to check out value-add Black Friday ad aggregators like BFADS (link is to the video game section, but check out other categories as well), and deal mainstay CheapAssGamer.

There are some great deals from last Sunday through this weekend, like $15-20 off just released games (Left 4 Dead 2, Borderlands, etc. at Target), amazing bundle deals (like an Xbox Live Arcade unit with Guitar Hero World Tour and free shipping for $199 at Amazon), and Xbox titles from $10-$25, but you need to be watchful to scalp stuff quickly or you're SOL (ask Mom to explain the acronym).

Me? I've already picked up things like the Tekken 6 LE version (with the Hori wireless fighting pad) for the price of the game alone, and will likely run around to get some cheapy games as stocking stuffers. Maybe.

Apologies again for punting on the Black Friday list this year -- things'll settle down once I relo.

Starhawk Public Multiplayer Beta Is Approaching

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The Starhawk Public Multiplayer Beta is coming. Get all the info before it become available.

Last November the Starhawk private multiplayer beta had engaged. About two months later, our time to climb the ranks of this sure to be thrilling game is approaching with the public beta.

Starting January 17th, all Playstation Plus subscribers will have access to the beta as well as all people who participated in the Private Beta (if you have kept the Starhawk beta file on your system).

Everyone who purchased Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception and it came with an "Early Access Starhawk Public Beta Code" can get into the action on January 31th.


On February 7th "visit Gamestop and Playstation on Facebook" to learn how you can get access to the beta.

On February 14th "IGN" will get access to the beta. Expect more details to come.


On February 21st the even becomes available to anyone, and everyone. All you need is a Playstation Network account.

What are your thought on Starhawk's Multiplayer Beta availability schedule?

Posted in: Beta,Playstation,PSN,Starhawk,Uncharted

Uncharted 3: Patch 1.03 Details

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Learn about the Uncharted 3 Patch 1.03 and what changes it brought.    

Naughty Dog has released the Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception Patch 1.03. This update is the third to have been released for the game since it's release in November 2011.

Uncharted 3 Patch 1.03 became available on January 12th, 2011 and brought a few noticeable changes to the game's multiplayer and single player. The patch also was issued to prepare the game for the release of upcoming downloadable content for the game. Naughty Dog made it clear that you must download the patch to play the upcoming DLC.

Check out the full details below:

Updates to Single Player

When using the "Cutscene Viewer" in 3D audio issues have been corrected.

Updates to Multiplayer

When in the largest party in a game lobby, you will no longer be defaulted as "Villains"

The "Creepy Crawler Kickback" previously was "15 Medals", now you will have to earn "17 Medals."

The "Quick Boom Kickback" previously required "7 Medals" and lasted "20 seconds." Now the kickback costs "10 Medals" and lasts "15 seconds."


Naughty Dog also makes it clear that they are looking into tweaking specific weapons for later updates.

Uncharted 3 Patch 1.02 Details

11/28/2011 Tim Swoboda Comments (0)
     The Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception Patch 1.02 has arrived and brings tithings of both single player and multiplayer stability. Feast your eyes on the many improvements and additions that this update brought below. Updates to Single Player Now you can take a look at all of thoseRead more »

Posted in: Naughty Dog,Patch,Uncharted,Updates

New Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception DLC to be Announced

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On Naughty Dog's official blog they announced the release of the Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception Patch 1.03. The patch brought a seemingly small amount noticeable tweaks, but in the long run Naughty Dog was preparing the game for some new downloadable content.

Update 01/17/11: Take a look at the brand new Flashback Map Pack #1 for Uncharted 3.

In the post Naughty Dog stated, "Full details on the DLC content will be posted by January 17th."

Although the official content has not yet been announced, one could assume that the content will most likely be the "Flashback map pack" announced by Naughty Dog not too long after the game's release.

The "Flashback" map pack features two revamped maps from Uncharted 2: Among Thieves. "The Fort" and "The Cave" are both based off of maps in Uncharted 2, but the forecast is different.

"The Fort" map has been rendered to a dark, gloomy, and rainy experience.

"The Cave" is most likely the "defrosted" version of "The Ice Caves" from Uncharted 2.


Do you want some new maps to duke it out heroes against villains style?

Posted in: DLC,Naughty Dog,News,Playstation,Uncharted

Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon: Future Soldier Launch Dates Revealed

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The release dates for Ubisoft's upcoming Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon: Future Soldier have been released. Check out the release dates for your region.    


If you were as astounded as I was after viewing the trailer for the upcoming Ghost Recon release then you are probably dieing to know when it will be released. Don't you worry any longer, Ubisoft has revealed the official release date for North America and Europe.

On May 22nd, 2012 Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon: Future Soldier will hit all major retailers in North America.

On May 24th, 2012 the game will become available for purchase in Europe.

Hopefully Ubisoft is able to craft an all around masterpiece and throw gamers into an overall beautiful game.

Ubisoft also announced the official beta period for the game.

Posted in: Future Soldier,Ghost Recon,News,Tom Clancy's

(Video) Batman: Arkham City 'x50 Combo' Achievement/Trophy Gameplay

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Learn a thing or two about ass kicking your way to a x50 multiplier combo in this Batman: Arkham City video.  



More from Batman: Arkham City

Arkham City: Get the "x50 Combo" Achievement/Trophy Recommendations

1/08/2012 Tim Swoboda Comments (0)
Get some helpful tips for use on your quest to accumulate a x50 combo in Batman: Arkham City.   Read more » Posted in: Achievement Guide,Arkham City,Batman,Gaming,Trophy Guide,Tutorials

Batman: Arkham City "Pay Your Respects" Achievement/Trophy Guide

1/07/2012 Tim Swoboda Comments (0)
Get some help earning the "Pay Your Respect" achievement/trophy in Batman: Arkham City.  Read more » Posted in: Achievement Guide,Arkham City,Batman,Gaming,Trophy Guide,Tutorials

Batman: Arkham City "Catch" Achievement/Trophy Guide

1/04/2012 Tim Swoboda Comments (0)
Need some help getting some Trophies/Achievements for Batman: Arkham City? Check this guide ouRead more » Posted in: Achievement Guide,Arkham City,Batman,Trophy Guide,Tutorials

Batman: Arkham City Review

12/28/2011 Tim Swoboda Comments (0)
     Video game sequels can get a bit dull now-a-days, especially when developers start spewing them out as if they were rendered on a mechanical manufacturing line. Since we, as a gaming community, are exposed quite often to sequels that were "rushed out of the gate", we might beRead more » Posted in: Arkham City,Batman,Review

Posted in: Achievement Guide,Arkham City,Batman,Trophy Guide,Tutorials,Video,Videos

Injustice: Gods Among Us Box Art and Three New Characters Revealed

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The official box art for Injustice Gods: Among Us has been revealed on the official Facebook page here, and in addition, three new characters have been revealed:  Green Arrow, Joker, and Green Lantern have all been confirmed.

You can check out the announcement video for Green Arrow here or below:



Absolutely love that trailer; great style.  An official screenshot showing the Joker and Green Lantern has also been released here or below.

So my Lumias Won't get Wp8; I Don't Care, You Shouldn't Either

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  So the news has been out for a while now that the current range of WPs won't be getting the next major Overhaul AKA WP8 or WP Apollo; guess what? It doesn't matter since my Lumias are "Content". No, Not content as in "The things that are held or included in something." but the other more peaceful definition:

con·tent/kÉ™nˈtent/

Adjective:

In a state of peaceful happiness

Noun:

1. A state of satisfaction: "the greater part of the century was a time of content".

Allow me to explain why, first of all we need to delve into the age-old question, "Are updates a Right or are they a gifted privilege??", Keep in mind when I say updates I mean MAJOR Updates adding NEW features and not just bug fixes. Personally I can't see a clear black or white answer to this issue, there are countless factors that affect the answer but let's take some examples.

Caution! Personal views below; if you're incapable of carrying a civilized conversation this would be your moment to exit.

Case A: If the Update was promised BEFORE/WITH the launch of the device,  the best example I can think of for this case is the Sony Xperia S, the 12mp shooter from Sony released early this year; although the phone did not launch with ICS (Android 4.0) early adopters and all future adopters were promised the update; in this case it is the companies DUTY to deliver on this update as it's a major decision factor; i.e. choosing between One X vs Xperia S the OS would be removed from the comparison as it's a promised upgrade. In this case the ONLY excuse for a device NOT to receive this update is complete bankruptcy; even if Sony had decided to stop producing Android phones and move to WP it would still be their duty to deliver the update to their users.

Case B: If the Update was not promised before the product launch but is crucial for the phone to be taken seriously (More important in Flagship devices); clear example is the N8 launching with the crappiest half-baked OS in the world, without a proper keyboard or split screen typing. I've said it before, even though I purchased an N8 in release week for a CRAZY amount of money releasing the Stock S^3 as it was on the N8, C7 and E7 is a crime against both the phone and the user. in this position I would consider the Anna update which brought some crucial fixes and updates a RIGHT to all the users, Belle is a nice touch but it wouldn't qualify as a "rightful update" as it was mostly UI changes and didn't do much to enhance the actual core functions of the phone.

Case C: The update was never mentioned or promised and the phone itself works fine. This is obviously where all the Lumias land in regards to WP8; never did any Nokia official go on record stating that they would get them, nor is there a gaping flaw in the Usability of the OS itself that would deserve similar treatment (this is where the "you shouldn't buy a phone you're not COMPLETELY satisfied with at the moment of purchase" argument might come in,  the reason I'm not demanding Bluetooth transfer or file manager on my Lumais is because WP is a closed OS; asking for this feature would be requesting a change in an integral part of the OS which is definitely not your right). For this group of phone users any update received should be considered a "gift" as the phone is not crippled by a software defect, if any change does occur that requires a bug support/fix then it would be considered their duty to provide the customer with this simple fix (example: if facebook changed its APIs stopping notifications from loading in the people hub; you would have the right to ask for a fix).

As you should have surmised from above my Lumias would fall into category C; meaning that users should be Content (see definition above) with what they've gotten (as well what's to come= Tango + WP 7.8 which qualify as Case A). I personally have yet to see a single Lumia (or any WP owner) who thinks they've gotten a sour deal with the WP 7.8 update, besides the fact that the Lumia 900 has the highest satisfaction rating of any phone on the internet (which usually means users aren't in need of an update) Nokia has promised a slew of awesome apps that nobody knew was coming (I'm really looking forward to the data counter app).

In a nutshell I love my stormtrooper I still smile everytime I pick it up; sure I'd love WP8 but I don't demand it nor did I expect it, a new start screen is nice to keep the spice in things though; in short if you think your phone deserves an upgrade then chances are an update won't make you feel much better since you're "settling"; don't settle- find true love, for me it was the stormtrooper who knows what yours is?

Microsoft Mouse Gestures Reviewed

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A while back I posted a couple pictures of the "Microsoft Touch mouse" and promised you a full coverage of the functions/gestures supported; well here it is.

As soon as you connect the mouse to your Laptop/PC it automatically downloads the drivers (no need for those pesky CDs) as well as a tutorial program that teaches you how to use all the mouse gestures.

The groove down the middle separates the mouse into left and right side for right button/left button clicks.

The basic gestures are:

• Single Finger Scrolling- Just dragging a single finger up or down scrolls across the page
• Two Finger Panning Up/Down- Dragging two fingers upwards or downwards toggles between Full screen and windowed mode (maximize/minimize), while two consecutive swipes downward of a maximized window will dock it into the taskbar
• Two Fingers Panning Left/Right- Swiping to the left or right with two fingers will "justify" the current window onto the right or left half of the screen (Splits the screen)
• Three Finger Panning Up/Down- Swiping up with three fingers will bring up a really neat multitasking view that allows you to switch quickly between open applications/folders (as seen in the image below), swiping with three fingers downwards will automatically dock any open window into the taskbar regardless if its maximized or minimized.

• Thumb Flicks Left/Right-  This gesture was a little tricky to get the hang of , basically you first have to grip the mouse in a normal fashion (fingers on top, thumb against the side of the mouse) then from this position either move your thumb towards the center of the mouse (Right) or towards the surface of your desk/mousepad (left); these gestures are used to navigate Forward/Back in webpages and folder directories.

Overall the gestures on the mouse become very natural, almost second nature; making switching back to any other mouse a pain a nuisance, the two gestures I use most are the "thumb flick: for navigating webpages as well as the "dock to right/left" to help organize my open applications/folders.

Verdict: The Microsoft touch mouse is pretty darn awesome, good looking and extremely useful, I really hope it's supported on Windows 8 as it would make scrolling through the Metro Desktop a breeze.

If you feel like picking one up you can get the Touch mouse from Amazon for $28 for the black version and $22 for the White "cheque" artist version (super saver shipping available).