1P Start

You are all in luck, as the tournament will be taking place on a Sunday, a day I normally work, so I probably won’t be present, which means you have a chance of winning, as well as I have played with JW, he is a Halo 3 noob who poses no challenge to you if he gets in. Here is the official rules and all that fine print stuff that you need to know:

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Halo 3, Legendary Edition, Contest, PlatformNation, XBL Radio, Tournament, KontrolFreak, GamerGraffix, Microsoft Points

I await to hear .. anything more about this project. I know he isn’t the only person who has an internet connection and subscribes to Game Informer magazine (then again, if someone is a Game Informer subscriber, maybe they don’t have the internet and thus the reason they are reading a magazine for their gaming news).

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As JW would say, UPDATO MAGNIFICO!!:

Destructoid user Suff0catingSight has posted the 10 pages from the Game Informer issue. All scans are big enough so you can read all that good text, I am too lazy to transcribe, but below you will find all the information that the public will know about this game for now:
Read the rest of this entry »

Wow, when Mark Rein said that the UT3 demo would be here within two weeks, I did not imagine it would be this soon, I guess he didn’t either. In a move that is probably only really pissing off FilePlanet new subscribers right now who thought they would be playing first, the Unreal Tournament 3 Demo/Beta is here! Unfortunately, if you are subscribed to FilePlanet, you have basically paid for nothing (that’ll teach you to pay for a demo).

Then again, who knows, maybe IPs are being logged as to who is online with this leaked version, however, that is nothing I care about, I am currently downloading the demo as I type. Maybe this file won’t boot up correctly. Maybe this is the megaton virus trojan to end all trojans. At the moment though, I am guessing that it is a good file because there is a big fuss going on at the official UT forums right now, with all links pointing to the file getting deleted real quick. Someone posted a video of gameplay and it got deleted really quick, luckily I saved it and bring it to you youtube.com/watch?v=eBGIQ7ZuuiU (Yes, that link was actually posted, and yes, they actually deleted it… not a bunch of observant mods/admins over at Epic).

Without further adieu, I bring you, the link for the torrent download of Unreal Tournament 3 Beta/Demo:

Unreal Tournament 3, UT3, Epic Games, Mark Rein, Leaked, Beta, Demo, Bit Torrent, Torrent

By now I’m sure you’ve all heard something about the next game from resident gaming genius/madman Richard “Lord British” Garriott. Whether you love his work (Ultima Online, City of Heroes/Villains, ) or hate his work, you can’t deny that Garriott has had a definite impact on the industry. So, now that his latest effort, Tabula Rasa, is now in for foreseeable future, you can imagine that fans of his work are psyched about this latest entry into the crowded MMO market.

Yahtzee is not impressed.

PC, Tabula Rasa, Lord British, Richard Garriott

Boys and girls across the world rejoice, for Burger King and Microsoft have teamed up yet again. Fresh off the success of the Halo 3 campaign at Burger King, the two have shacked up again, this time promoting the new Xbox 360 title Viva Pinata Party Animals.

For a Limited Time (naturally), if you order a kids meal from BK, you will receive one of eight different Viva Pinata toys:

You’ll get one toy per meal, while supplies last, for a limited time only. So, if you’re a Viva Pinata nut, get your happy ass down to BK first thing tomorrow mornin’ and pick yourself up one of these nifty little trinkets.

[Burger King]

Burger King, Microsoft, Xbox 360, Viva Pinata, Party Animals

Gamers of the world, today marks a dark, sad day. Through a press release issued today, publishing juggernaut Electronic Arts has announced that it has purchased both BioWare Corp. and Pandemic Studios. Considering the lackluster quality of titles to come from EA in recent years, this is heartbreaking news.

By the way, this officially strikes the KotOR 3 rumors dead.

Full press release after the break.

Read the rest of this entry »

Shut up, watch this, and come back to this text when you’re done.

…done? Good. Now, as I said a while back, G4 really doesn’t do Adam Sessler justice. In all honesty, he’s one of the smartest people in the industry, so I look forward to seeing these little snippets of a somewhat more subdued, competent Sessler. This time, he didn’t disappoint, voicing both his opinion on Halo 3, and telling those Halo 3 haters who just HAVE to find something wrong with the game so they can feel like they’re cool, exactly what to do with themselves.

Microsoft, Xbox 360, G4TV, Adam Sessler, Halo 3, Bungie

Ok, so here’s the story: At the Capcom message boards, a user named “Kagari” asked this simple question: Since Monster Hunter 3 is now Wii-bound, does this mean the PS3 version is cancelled? This announcement, along with the removal of the game from the Capcom Japanese homepage sparked an entire debate which covered whether or not it’s exclusive, to whether or not it even exists.

Now, keep in mind that in a press release issued by Nintendo and Capcom last week, it was confirmed that Nintendo had “won an exclusive deal” which would bring Monster Hunter 3 to the Wii. Now, when you hear the word “exclusive” in a conversation about a game, and then hear “Wii”, naturally you’re going to assume that said game is exclusive to the Wii. So, why they were even having this conversation is beyond me. That’s not the story.

During the debate over the game’s future console home, a poster by the name of “Vampire_Saviour” (who, after reading the thread in its entirety, seems like a whiny child) made the following comment:

Capcom is losing fans. They obviously don’t care for their PS3-owner fans.

Personally, I can’t blame Capcom for wanting to avoid the PS3 like the plague — you want to release games on an economically viable console, like the 360 or Wii. Not one that you don’t feel you can make your money back on.

Regardless, in response to this comment, Christian Svensson, Capcom’s Senior Director of Strategic Planning & Research (they breed velociraptors, I think) responded with this somewhat cryptic message:

Let’s see how they feel at the end of next week about us.

…what is so special about next week? I assume it’s a new announcement of some sort, but what could it be? Is there something in development for the PS3 that fans will surely die for? Or did he mean this in jest, and that next week we’ll learn that the PS3 version of Devil May Cry 4 has been cancelled? …that would suck. Either way, what do you think it could be, people? …hopefully it’s not a Super Puzzle Fighter port…

Sony, PlayStation 3, Nintendo, Wii, Monster Hunter 3, Capcom

Bethesda has announced the final piece of downloadable content for The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion, entitled ‘Fighter’s Stronghold’, which along with Vile Lair, Thieves Den and Wizard’s Tower, comprise the four themed domiciles for Oblivion.

While it’s a shame to finally see the Oblivion support come to an end, Bethesda is giving us a little going away treat by allowing we, the people, to download Fighter’s Stronghold for FREE for the first week it’s available.

From the Bethesda blog:

Fighter’s Stronghold provides the last of four themed domiciles (along with Vile Lair, Thieves Den, and Wizard’s Tower) for the adventurer on-the-go. You inherit the rights to Battlehorn Castle, located on a lovely stretch of the Colovian Highlands, west of Chorrol. Dining Hall, barracks, wine cellar, training room, and your own private Shrine of Julianos. Update your castle furnishings, perhaps even a Dwemer Forge for the aspiring Armorer? Hire a taxidermist to tastfully decorate your new abode with trophies from your adventuring.

Now, now, PS3 owners — you’re not being left out in the cold. Also announced on Bethesda’s blog is the impending arrival of The Shivering Isles expansion pack on the PlayStation 3. While they can’t definitively say when, or whether it will be on disc or downloadable, they’ve promised that The Shivering Isles will be coming. Soon.

Finally, in addition to the Game of the Year version of Oblivion making its way to the PS3, we’re reminded that the boxed version of The Elder Scrolls IV: The Shivering Isles will be making its way to the Xbox 360. So, all in all, a good week for Oblivion fans. It’s just a shame that this is the last of the Oblivion content.

[Bethesda Blog]
[Fighter's Stronghold]

Bethesda, The Elder Scrolls, Oblivion, The Shivering Isles, Fighter’s Stronghold, PC, Microsoft, Xbox 360, Sony, PlayStation 3

c|net’s Don Reisinger asks a very simple question on his c|net blog: Is Sony as desperate as it looks? He goes on to make the case that Sony is, indeed, as desperate as they look.

By just looking at news from the last week, it’s quite easy to see that Sony is grasping at anything that will make the PS3 stick. Whether it’s a new color, a cheaper price, or a rumbling controller, the company is hoping we will like something that make us spend our hard-earned money.

Basically, he makes the argument that Sony’s recent actions, like those listed above, are signs of desperation on the part of the company. If you read the entire piece, he ends by implying that the PS3 is the next Sega Saturn.

You know, it seems like Sony can’t win. First we’re tearing into them because the price was too high, and now that they’ve taken steps to remedy this complaint, we’re calling them desperate? Jesus. They just can’t get ahead in this world.

Yes, Sony still has a ways to go to get the ship righted. Their painfully weak library is the most obvious issue, although games like Metal Gear Solid 4, Gran Turismo 5 and Killzone 2 will definitely be system sellers.

Personally, I think Sony was screwed from the start. When you consider the monstrous success that the PlayStation 2 had, and people’s overly-lofty expectations for the PS3, it was almost a guarantee that the system would disappoint. However, when you look at the trends of the previous two PlayStation systems, the PS3 is actually right on track. According to some figures, it’s actually slightly ahead of the previous systems. When you take that into consideration, a year is a little quick to start making judgment on a console.

Either way, what do you fine folks think about it? Do you think Sony is at a desperate point, or are people such as Mr. Reisinger simply allowing personal bias and pessimistic thought to cloud their judgment?

[Original c|net editorial]

Sony, PlayStation 3, c|net, opinion

The Smash Bros Dojo gets some pretty frequent updates, giving a new character or item here and there just about every week. Of course some are more important than others, such as Solid Snake announcement in the game is news worthy, where as the Super Mario Bros character Lakitu may not be hitting the front page of every site on earth (unless it is from Press the Buttons.com, then it is okay). However their announcement today is definitely news worthy, it is big, way bigger than Sonic vs Mario in an Olympic game, this is Sonic vs Mario in the way we have all wanted to see them since the Genesis vs SNES days, kicking each others asses.

With this great news comes some bad news, the game is being pushed back in Japan until January 24th. What this means for American gamers is unknown as of this second, but I would go at this with a pessimistic view, as I can’t see American gamers getting a hold of this title well over a month before Japan, just not going to happen. Let us all just focus though on the good news, the many many many rumors of Sonic is or isn’t in the game can finally come to an end and we can now all start questioning when we hit Sonic in the game, will coins pop out of him (they better).

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Sonic the Hedgehog, Super Smash Bros Brawl, Nintendo, Sega, Video

Though Free Radical Design has made it known that Haze will be a PS3 exclusive, the TimeSplitters series has pretty much been a multiplatform event. Even the Wii might get some love, as “Dr” David Doak of Free Radical has made it known that he is interested in putting TimeSplitters 4 on the system. Other than that, not much has been said about the game, with good reason though, as Haze should really be getting the limelight.

For TimeSplitters fans like myself, I can’t wait to put down Halo 3, The Orange Box, Call of Duty 4, and every other first person shooter in existence to play the next in this series. This time around though, they better just add a *$%$ing jump button!
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TimeSplitters 4, TimeSplitters, Future Perfect, Free Radical Design, Monkey, David Doak, Goldeneye, Perfect Dark, Rare, Halo 3 Halo 3 Halo 3

You know, of all the franchises that scream “video game”, Gundam is it. I mean, think about it; you have giant robots with swords and guns beating the hell out of each other. Sure enough, there have been many cracks at a good Gundam game, but sadly, none of them have ever really lived up to the Gundam license.

Dynasty Warriors Gundam does it’s best to change that. Does it succeed? Keep reading and find out.

Read the rest of this entry »

Take a close look at the image above. If you need to, give it a click and view the bigger image. Notice something? Yeah, that’s Halo 3 with a nice, big “Bundle Copy” sticker slapped on it.

According to a message board user by the name of “Ppmateos”, he bought this bundle at his local electronics boutique… I think. Google Translate is truly God awful. Either way, as the images show, it certainly appears that Europe has gotten a Halo 3 Xbox 360 bundle. Don’t believe me? Well, pictures don’t lie.

…why don’t we ever get the cool bundles?

[Elotrolado - Translated]

Microsoft, Xbox 360, Bungie, Halo 3

According to “Games Bulletin”, a new service from media analyst publication Screen Digest, the Nintendo Wii will dominate the “New Releases” list this holiday season.

According to the new report, which will feature data, demographics and trend -forecasting, the Wii will lead all consoles in published titles for the remainder of the year, with an impressive 86. The Xbox 360 came in seconds with 47, while the PlayStation 3 will have 38 titles for the holidays.

So, why is the Wii so popular, you ask? Lower development costs and more exclusives, such as Super Mario Galaxies.

Following other analysts, the report went on to state that the Wii will most likely surpass the Xbox 360 to become the #1 console this year. The PlayStation 3 will, naturally, come in third due to the lack of “firepower to command consumer attention during this crucial trading quarter and it is difficult to see how the catalogue will drive hardware sales in such a competitive environment.”

…that’s industry speak for “lack of games”, fanboys.

[Screen Digest]

Microsoft, Xbox 360, Sony, PlayStation 3, Nintendo, Wii, Screen Digest