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GB Review: Star Ocean: The Last Hope (360)

Solomon Lee — Sun, 22 Mar 2009 09:26:14 -0500

Star Ocean is an enjoyable RPG with engaging battles and an addictive item creation mode. Despite the bland dialogue and vague mission objectives, role playing fans will love the open worlds and intense combat with their party members. Ultimately, Star Ocean is a vastly superior game to Infinite Undiscovery and The Last Remnant titles. With multiple endings, battle trophies and various achievements, the Last Hope appeals to both casual and hardcore players. Though the game is plagued by bad dialogue and long cutscenes, The Last Hope is definitely an RPG that is worth the investment.

Click here for an explanation of our review and scoring format.

Star Ocean has been an RPG series that has only received modest attention. Overshadowed by other Square Enix series like Final Fantasy and Dragon Quest, the Star Ocean series has only begun to receive attention thanks to its recent PSP ports and the earlier Till the End of Time PS2 instalment. To the surprise of many RPG fans, the next title was announced exclusively for Xbox 360 with possible development for the PlayStation 3 left as unconfirmed. Despite the mediocre cutscenes and dialogue, Star Ocean: The Last Hope is a deeply complex but satisfying game.

Star Ocean tells the tale of World War III that erupted between the World Republic Federation and the opposing world nations. Most of the earth was left in devastated ruins with a cease-fire negotiated two weeks after (wait for it) weapons of mass destruction were unleashed on a global scale. Survivors of the war wandered underground cities with little hope of deliverance. The remaining nations formed the Greater United Nations and eventually launched a space campaign to explore inhabitable planets. Edge Maverick, a young soldier and Reimi, a childhood friend and expert archer, are sent on the SRF (Space Reconnaissance Force) maiden voyage. Along the journey, Edge meets other such characters like Faize, a young Eldearian, Lymle, a spoiled Lemurisian village child and Meracle, a spunky feline humanoid.

The Last Hope utilizes a real time battle system. You can issue commands to use items, switch characters, cast symbols and unleash skills, all on-the-fly. One of the highlights of these is the jump ability, allowing you to dodge enemy attacks or surprise them with blindside attacks, (where a ! symbol appears that makes enemies vulnerable to getting attacked when you escape from their line of sight). While most battles can feel like a chore in other RPGs, the ability to quickly maneuver around enemies keeps the battles intense and engaging.

As you take damage, your rush gauge slowly fills up enabling you to initiate rush attacks upon your enemies once the gauge is full. When initiated, they temporarily give you more speed and higher defense stats against various enemy attacks. There are no random battles as monsters prowl in open sight on the battlefield. In the event you are attacked while moving or standing still in battle, your party member may, depending on your stats, block the attack entirely. You can also execute special attacks with the trigger buttons and link combos together to inflict heavy damage on your foes. A battle simulator is accessible for those that wish to hone their skills prior to fighting real battles in the game.

As you build your repertoire of skills, you will be able to harvest and mine for materials on the open field with your character. Many of these points are both visible and well hidden in different locales and terrains on differing planets. Disintegration rings allow you to interact with the environment to remove barriers by utilizing different elements. For example, a large ice block can be removed with a fire disintegration ring. All of the rings have limited uses and can only be recharged by Lymle with her charge command ability or by ring experts in villages. Battle skills can also be upgraded frequently to unleash devastating attacks on enemies that increase your Bonus board, a tiled gauge that grants you extra bonuses for stylish and hard-fought battles.

The Calnus is your spaceship hub used to travel between planets. As you progress in the game, you can assign rooms to different party members. Depending on how you treat them, opposite party members can be assigned the same room for opportunities to trigger Private Events in the game. Private events are made of up of personal dialogue and interaction between two characters with a unique sidestory. Save points are also located in various rooms to allow you to rest and recover after difficult missions. Though the use of save points is convenient on the Calnus, the lack of sufficient save points during missions can be quite frustrating.

Item creation is one of the most satisfying features in this game. New items can be created by using old items with the help of your party members. This is done by designating your teammates into groups to invent recipes. The catch is that the recipes must be created in a timed session with the results hinging on the IC (Item Creation) abilities of your comrades. Once they are out of ideas, the message No Plan will appear and the session will end. You can also end the session manually if you are satisfied with the recipes before the timer is up. Much time can easily be spent on item creation to boost your partys offensive attacks in battle.

Visually, the game sports beautiful environments and polished character designs. The special effects are stunning in battle with a lot of symbology and chain combo attacks. Regarding the characters, the anime-style designs are decent but the vacant stares and awkward facial expressions in various cutscenes are rather disappointing. As for the soundtrack, the music is exceptional and is composed by Motoi Sakuraba, the acclaimed Star Ocean and Valkryie Profile maestro. The voice actors, however, dont fare nearly as well as the soundtrack.

One of the issues in this game is the mission objectives. You will find yourself either talking to your comrades often or wandering around aimlessly just to finish your objectives. They are not always clearly defined resulting in a bit of exploring and backtracking. In battles, the camera tends to swing or position itself poorly when fighting numerous enemies. With respect to the story and character development, the cutscenes are too long and would be more effective if they were shortened to emphasize key plot points.

More Fable 2 DLC on the Way

Zach Lott — Sun, 15 Mar 2009 19:40:43 -0500

Even the folks at Lionhead are "tweeting" these days, and CVG has discovered that the developer has announced via their Twitter page that more DLC for Fable 2 is on its way:

"Will there be any more DLC for Fable 2? The answer is quite simple: Yes. The team here in Guildford is working on some new content right now! More information will be shared in the coming weeks."

This comes after Wednesday's accidental announcement of Fable 3, which came via voice actor Jonathan Ross' Twitter page. Perhaps companies like Valve and Nintendo should start practicing the art of Twitter leaks.

Nintendo's EarthBound Gameplan: Cold Water on the Crotch.

Ryan Fulton — Mon, 16 Feb 2009 17:40:47 -0600

In a move that, honestly, surprises no one, Nintendo has essentially shelved plans of releasing the best SNES RPG (empirical fact; eat it FF/CT fans) on Virtual Console. Earthbound fans, accustomed to being the red-headed, freckled, bastard step-children of a drunken, abusive Nintendo, have long since given up hope of Mother 3 or 1 ever being officially translated. In fact, they actually got so down and out over it that they decided that the only way to ever see a translaton was to do it on their own. That being said, at least there was some glimmer of hope that maybe, just maybe, if they wished hard enough Earthbound would be released on VC and the glorious throngs who would show that there was in fact a market for the title would convince Nintendo to release Mother 3 in America with the only currency that currently holds currency with Nintendo, curren... cash. Alas due to any number of possibilities it will never happen. Move along, nothing to see here. Please, kindly, click the link if you wish to know more. I think I may go take up drinking.

No Longer Left Hanging: Left 4 Dead Content is Free.

Ryan Fulton — Wed, 11 Feb 2009 14:25:52 -0600

In a move that is seemingly solely intended to alleviate some of my (mostly) irrational anger towards Gabe Newell, Valve has announced their plans for pricing on both the PC and Xbox formats, free. While it could be, rightfully, argued that the two additional versus mode maps were already paid for in the initial asking price, the freebie pricetag is a welcome sight nontheless. Additionally, they are including a new mode dubbed, "Survival" with 12 maps; it is not known whether these maps are entirely new or simply segmented maps from the four existing campaigns. The new mode is said to be something like an extended siege/assault. Players can look forward to both updates on the same day... at some point in the, hopefully, near future.

Epic Releases Patch for Gears of War PC

Zach Lott — Sun, 08 Feb 2009 14:23:01 -0600

If you're still playing Gears of War on the PC, then you should head over to the game's official website, where Epic has released a mandatory patch update that fixes a digital signature error.

You can download the patch here.

Valve Announces Left 4 Dead DLC

Zach Lott — Thu, 05 Feb 2009 18:37:47 -0600

News has arrived via 1up that Valve has announced that DLC for 360 and PC shooter Left 4 Dead is in the works, offering a new "Survival" mode, two new campaigns for Versus mode, and, if you're a PC gamer, the ability to create custom campaigns with the Source Software Development Kit.

In addition, a Critic's Choice Edition of the game will include the content and will arrive on store shelves around the time of the release. Prices for the content or what to expect from the new mode and campaigns aren't currently available, but we'll keep you updated.

New Gears of War 2 Update Goes Live

Solomon Lee — Sun, 25 Jan 2009 21:03:12 -0600

Epic has released a new patch for Gears of War 2 that fixes various multiplayer glitches and gameplay bugs. Included with the update is a list of new achievements involving the Combustible and Flashback map packs. They are listed below as follows:

Skeletons in your Closet (20G) - Complete waves 1 through 10 on all Flashback Map Pack maps in Horde (any difficulty)
More Mystery, Less History (15G) - Win a multiplayer match on each of the 5 Flashback Map Pack maps (any mode except Wingman)
Bound by a Shared Past (15G) - Win a Wingman match on each of the 5 Flashback Map Pack maps
Trial by, and on, Fire (20G) - Survive first 10 Horde waves on Combustible Map Pack maps as a team
The Roof! The Roof! The Roof... (15G) - Win a multiplayer match on each of the 3 Combustible Map Pack maps (any mode except Wingman)
Forged in the Fire (15G) - Win a Wingman match on each of the 3 Combustible Map Pack maps
Annex: Now With Execution Rules (75G) - Win an Annex match on each Flashback and Combustible Map Pack map (public only)

Fable 2 DLC Delayed Until January

Zach Lott — Thu, 18 Dec 2008 14:28:12 -0600

Looks like those of you that have been eagerly awaiting the upcoming Fable 2 DLC will have to wait a bit longer, as Lionhead has announced that the content has been delayed from December 22 until late January.

"Due to unexpected technical difficulties, the Fable 2: Knothole Island expansion will not be available until late January 2009. As a result, the Fable 2, Knothole Island Download and Win, originally scheduled to take place December 22 23, 2008, has been temporarily suspended," reads a notice on the game's page on the official Xbox website.

Hopefully it won't take any longer for the issues to be worked out and everyone will be enjoying the DLC come next month.

Maxis releases third Spore patch, includes 24 new limbs

Zach Lott — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 10:40:31 -0600

Over at the official Spore website there's news that the third patch for the game is now available, offering twenty-four new limbs for your creatures. The limbs are intended to be used with the Creepy & Cute Parts Pack, which was released today. Imagine how much freakier your creatures will be now.

There's also a few patch fixes:

Fix for esc key not bringing up Options in Galaxy Game Entry
Fix for creator backgrounds appearing on small sporepedia cards
Update to help keep achievements on the server in sync with achievements in the game

The patch is available for both PC and Mac.

Metal Gear Online MEME expansion set for November 25

Zach Lott — Mon, 17 Nov 2008 20:39:47 -0600

Good news for those of you still playing Metal Gear Online: Joystiq is reporting that MEME, the game's second expansion, is set for a November 25 release at the low price of $9.99. You'll also be able to pick up the expansion through a $14.99 bundle that includes GENE, the first expansion.

New content includes two new characters, Mei Ling and Liquid Ocelot, as well as new avatar content and three new maps, Silo Sunset, Forest Firefight, and Winter Warehouse. An official tournament lobby and a couple new modes will be available without purchasing MEME.

Valve offers "Complete Pack" for $99

Zach Lott — Mon, 17 Nov 2008 00:05:44 -0600

Valve, not to be outdone by themselves with the incredible value of the Orange Box, has announced that the Valve Complete Pack, which offers just about every title the developer/publisher has ever released, is now available on Steam for the low, low price of $99.

Why is that price so low? Because you're getting a package that would run about $235 if you bought each game separately. It's a great deal if you're interested in exploring Valve's back catalog or if you want to gift it to someone else.

GB Review: Gears of War 2 (360)

Solomon Lee — Sun, 16 Nov 2008 20:43:07 -0600

Gears of War 2 is the highly anticipated sequel to Gears; the title that gathered quite a following with its impressive visuals, intuitive run-and-cover gameplay, and engaging characters. The game doesn't mess with its own formula of success but rather, it focuses on what it does best -- delivering an intense, visceral, adrenaline-pumping experience. The sinister violence and gore is a trademark of this game that has been well received by fans and one that Epic doesn't shy away from. Although it fails to revolutionize the genre, Gears 2 delivers on all fronts and surpasses the original with more weapons, deadlier monsters, larger campaigns, more multiplayer maps and an incredibly addictive Horde mode. Gears of War 2 is this year's game to own on the Xbox 360.

Click here for an explanation of our review and scoring format.

Gears of War was quite the blockbuster when it first arrived on Xbox 360. The game offered solid controls, great visuals, intuitive third person camera and chainsaws. Though the plot wasn't the main focus, Gears effectively brought us the memorable, wisecracking Delta squad members: Marcus, Dom, Cole and Baird. Fast forward to Gears 2 -- the game takes everything that made the original Gears a solid shooter and takes it a step further on the epic scale. To quote Epic Lead Designer, Cliff Bleszinski, Gears of War 2 is definitely "bigger, better and more badass."

Gears 2 continue right after the original shooter; following General RAAM's defeat and the light mass bombing. Marcus and Dom fight with fellow COG soldiers fatally wounded defending the city after subsequent Locust attacks. It is there on the hospital grounds we meet the rook, Benjamin, brother to his sibling Carmine who died from an infamous sniper shot and Tai, a militaristic but calm leader. They quickly learn that the Locusts have quietly regrouped underground and have launched attacks in endless numbers. Entire cities have been sunk underground as the Horde employs powerful forces and tactical equipment and that's not all; they've brought grotesque and far deadlier creatures this time around. Epic has placed a strong emphasis on the story behind the war that sheds light on Marcus Fenix's history and Dom's continued search for his missing wife, Maria.

As expected, the returning weapons are the Lancer, Sniper Rifle, Shotgun, Torque Bow, Pistol and the Hammer of Dawn. New weapons added to your arsenal include the Hammerburst Rifle (enemy weapon), Gorgon Pistol, Ink Grenade (emits poison), Mortar (distance artillery weapon), Mulcher (turret gun) and the fan-favorite, the Scorcher Flamethrower. Grenades can be stuck to walls and used as proximity mines to destroy enemies lurking around. If you are pinned in battle, you can crawl while bleeding to try to reach your teammates to be revived. The new weapons are available in the latter half of the game and can be found by looting Locust corpses. Each weapon is distinct and allows you to perform unique executions on fallen enemies crawling away. You can also grab a dying Locust for use as a meat shield to flank your enemies. Be warned that using the corpse for cover lasts for a very short time -- limiting you to the use of a pistol. The shield will either explode into bits under heavy gunfire or be disposed of after breaking the Locust's neck.

The original Gears saw players destroying their opponents with a chainsaw attack; granting them temporary invulnerability to gunfire or melee attacks. Pulling the attack off was often based on luck between two players with the one who revved up his chainsaw just a split second earlier winning the fight; which was infuriating. Epic has addressed the Chainsaw attack complaints with a new Chainsaw duel feature. Two players that rush one another with the Lancer will be thrown into a mini-game; quickly mashing the B button ensures victory. If a third player approaches two people engaged in a Chainsaw duel, the poor guy or gal on the receiving end will instantly be overpowered.

Both single player and coop campaigns allow you to finish the game by yourself or with a friend. The option to play at your own pace is simplified as campaigns can be played with two separate difficulty settings. An extra difficulty setting Normal can be selected with the Insane difficulty unlocked after the game has been completed. You can invite your friends with the "What's Up" feature that lets you see the status and progress of your Gears' friends online. Personally, I found the friendly menu list to be useful in keeping tabs with other online players.

The all new Horde mode is one of the highlights of Gears 2. In Horde mode, you join a team of five players collaborating to destroy Locusts waves on various maps. Eventually, your enemies grow stronger with more health, better weapons and increased numbers. A total of 50 waves are featured in Horde mode for which the difficulty level rises considerably after the tenth wave. Fighting together in groups, reviving teammates, giving cover fire and using key vantage points is crucial for your survival. Linked achievements play a big role in the Horde and multiplayer modes. Gears fans will be happy to hear that specific achievements (completed from the original) unlock new playable characters such as Anthony Carmine, Minh Young Kim (former Delta squad leader) and General RAAM. Your progress ultimately dictates your rank; which is used for matchmaking purposes. Horde mode is tough as nails but is easily the most satisfying and rewarding to play with everyone.

A War Journal is a handy tool that tracks your listed achievements, unlocked characters, and collectables. Rather than using COG tags, Epic has placed hidden files, newspapers, memos and personal letters throughout the game. They comprise a total of 41 collectables that provides a side story to the events surrounding the war. A magnifying glass signifies the item is found and is easily picked up by pressing the X button. You don't need to guess how close you are to an achievement as the journal displays your progress towards obtaining it. This is a welcome change for fans wishing to complete the game in its entirety.

Multiplayer modes feature seven maps: Warzone, Execution, Annex, King of the Hill, Guardian, Submission and Wingman. Epic's gift to its fans is a code for the Flashback Map Pack for those with preorders and for those buying Gears 2 at launch. This map pack includes five maps: Subway, Canals, Tyro Station, Gridlock and Mansion. While it doesn't sound like much, each map is considerably different from the original Gears. The Subway is less dreary, Canals have been hit by a frozen icy spell, Tyro Station is more industrialized, Gridlock is filled with foliage and the Mansion has better lighting. A new Training Ground mode gives casual, novice and veteran players a brief tutorial on the basics of multiplayer controls and combat.

Gears 2 is a graphically intense game. Buildings, air-borne dust, the underground caverns and the city landscapes are very polished. Special effects ranging from hailing fire on your enemies with the Mortar to poisoning the enemy with Ink grenades are visually gratifying. The frame rate takes a severe hit at numerous checkpoint locations that could have used some tweaking. There is also a tendency for Locust corpses and weapon spoils to fall and to defy natural physics in its environment. Otherwise, Gears 2 is a game detailed to the core that manages to exceed the best visuals of the original Gears. With respect to audio, the soundtrack is top-notch and a great accompaniment.

Many of the flaws from the original Gears have sadly crept into Gears 2. The A.I. teammates tend to block your shots, run straight into enemy territory without cover, and get hopelessly pinned in a far corner amongst a group of Locusts. Regrettably, the vehicle stages are the most irritating part of many campaigns; especially on the higher difficulty settings. Despite its shortcomings, Gears 2 is an exciting game full of blood, action and suspense for anyone that enjoys a solid third person shooter.

Valkyrie Profile and Dragon Quest V Release Dates Announced.

Ryan Fulton — Tue, 11 Nov 2008 12:15:43 -0600

MarketWatch (I know, wtf.) has recently given away the release dates to several upcoming 2009 SquareEnix titles. Since I'm not a fan of making people wait:

Star Ocean: Second Evolution, Jan 6, 2009. (PSP)
Dragon Quest V: Hand of the Heavenly Bride, Feb 17, 2009. (DS)
Star Ocean: Last Hope, Mar 3, 2009. (360)
Valkyrie Profile: Covenant of the Plume, Mar 17, 2009. (DS)

Still no release date for FFXIII, but who honestly expected one.

Fable 2: Making Big Promises, Again.

Ryan Fulton — Tue, 11 Nov 2008 12:00:56 -0600

On the Fable 2 Dev Blog, Lionhead has gone and thrown down the big promises gauntlet again. This time they hint at big announcement next week. As to what it is? No clue, but since I'm here... and you're here... and maybe, just maybe someone at Lionhead may look at this before it's too late: Un-fix the co-op camera and give us the ability to be our own heroes in coop. You're welcome to add another dog, some new STDs, actually include the girl from the above posted shot (in fairness I have yet to finish it, but I'm going to guess she was replaced by the blind lady) you know, whatever you want. Just, please, fix the co-op.

Gears of War 2 Sweepstakes Details

Tim Grube — Tue, 04 Nov 2008 12:43:00 -0600

On behalf of Lionsgate, you can now win some cool Gears of War 2 swag thanks to the movie Transporter 3.

How to enter:

Register your gamertag now and get ready for a whole weekend of fun and competition! From 12:01 A.M. (ET) on Friday, November 7 until 11:59 P.M. (ET) on Sunday November 9, you'll get an entry into the sweepstakes when you play a multiplayer Gears of War 2 match.

Prize Information
After the entry period, will conduct a prize drawing for the following nine winners from among all eligible entries:

Two Grand Prizes: A custom Gears of War 2 Xbox 360 console
Two Second Prizes: A Gears of War 2 Special Edition Zune 120 GB digital media player
Five Third Prizes: A Gears of War 2 Limited Edition game

Get more details on the Play & Win Sweepstakes.

NO PURCHASE NECESSARY. Open only to legal residents of the 50 United States (includes the District of Columbia) 18+. Game ends November 9, 2008. For details including free, alternate method of entry, see the Official Rules.

Metal Gear Online Reaches One Million Mark

Tim Grube — Tue, 04 Nov 2008 10:02:57 -0600

With all the mass voting going on here in the states, Konami was able to sneak in some good news surrounding Metal Gear Online. The company revealed that Metal Gear Online has established over one million members since the service launched back in June.

To go along with this great news, Konami will launch a special campaign Metal Gear Online: Commemorative Campaign, which will officially begin on November 25, 2008, awarding reward points to gamers who access Metal Gear Online during the promotion. The 10,000 reward points will be updated to account owners on the last day of the campaign, December 9, 2008.

These reward points can be used to purchase new online gear from the in-game reward shop.

Heavy Rain: 30 Minutes of French and Good Lighting.

Ryan Fulton — Sat, 01 Nov 2008 21:20:20 -0500

Recently released video of Quantic Dream's Heavy Rain from the Micromania Expo in France has reached the gaming site formerly known as Jeuxfrance which shall henceforth be known as Gamekyo. The animations could use some work, and the gameplay looks as if it may be somewhat dry just yet, but damned if the game doesn't have lighting down to a science. Qualms aside it looks like it could very well be an interesting game. The video is definitely worth a look. Just excuse the French... unless you speak French, then please, by all means, ignore what I was just talking about.

Valve Unleashes Left 4 Dead Intro

Tim Grube — Sat, 01 Nov 2008 21:18:14 -0500

Valve has released the introduction video for its zombie shooter Left 4 Dead. Left 4 Dead will is expected to hit the Xbox 360 and PC on November 18.

The demo is scheduled for release on November 11. Expect more soon...

Official PS3 Headset: A Non-technical, Non-lengthy Review.

Ryan Fulton — Sun, 19 Oct 2008 16:40:57 -0500

The Official PS3 Wireless Headset that recently shipped with SOCOM and will see a future solo release on this upcoming Tuesday it is quite a nifty piece of tech. Through testing with a friend and by simply playing SOCOM it's rather apparent that this is a top quality headset.

The speaker is crisp and clear, and the dual microphone setup does an amazing job of picking up what you're saying with minimal distortion. Though untested and personally unconfirmed, the headset also works as a general microphone when docked if you should so chose to use it in such a manner. The inclusion of a mute button is also a welcome addition, especially when you consider the fact that games like Call of Duty 4 use an "open mic" system. The headset is considered comfortable by general consensus and personally I find it easy to forget that I'm even wearing it.

All in all, it's a top quality headset that if you own a PS3 and you happen to not have a headset, or if you're just sick of the horrible one that you have now, it's definitely worth looking into picking this headset up.

Mother 3: If You Want Nice Things, Sometimes You Just Have to Do It Yourself.

Ryan Fulton — Wed, 15 Oct 2008 18:12:22 -0500

Glorious news for those of you eager for information concerning the perennially disappointing handling of the Mother series by Nintendo. No, Nintendo hasn't announced that they're translating and releasing the title. If you're the sort of person who has been waiting for a new Earthbound, you're the sort of person who knows that Nintendo will never release a new Earthbound.

For several people who were faced with that stark reality the solution became apparent, if the masses were to ever have any hope of Mother 3 getting an English copy they would have to do it themselves. So thusly, they embarked upon an epic journey involving translating squiggles into slightly more recognizable characters and attempting to pay service to Shigesato Itoi's legendary writing ability.

Fortunately for them and for the rest of us who were not blessed with such multi-lingual functionality, their work is nearly at an end and the patch for an English Mother 3 is ever closer to release.

Thanks to Shannon of Ganza Watching for the amazing picture.

Fable 2: Revenge of the Molyneux, Redux!

Ryan Fulton — Thu, 09 Oct 2008 17:48:04 -0500

Remember many moons ago when we first reported that Fable 2 would be shipping without a vital component? Well, it looks as if the gang at Lionhead Studios may just have pulled it out in the last moment. Should all go according to plan and the patch passes certification, the feature should be available at launch. See what we get for worrying?

Rumor: PS4/Wii HD Planned for 2011.

Ryan Fulton — Wed, 01 Oct 2008 17:41:01 -0500

I never thought I would say this, but I think technology is moving too fast. Perhaps I'm growing old, but it seems as if this generation has hardly learned to crawl and already there are rumors of the next generation of consoles due in 3 years.

Within the last 24 hours, rumors for both the PS4 and Wii HD have surfaced on the web. Just for safety's sake, they're rumors, again, rumors. That being said, it's not implausible that both are interested in getting onto the market first after seeing how much having a first place spot helped the Xbox 360 and PS2 (Let's ignore Dreamcast for argument's sake.)

The PS4 is said to use a similar cell architecture with slight improvements and will be ditching the faster XDR RAM in favor of a more conventional form of RAM. Supposedly Sony has been mentioning the proposed specs to third parties. Other than that details are scant.

The Wii HD rumor is slightly more fleshed out citing rising R&D expenditures and various other tidbits. The tech end of it leaves much to be desired.

Maybe I'm just being cynical, but I'm not sure these tired bones can hope to keep up at this rate. The world seems to have gotten itself into a big damned hurry. Maybe the companies should work on maxing our their current product or providing enough to meet demand before they get too involved in producing what's next.

Thanks for both goes to NeoGAF for finding the information, and the respective sources found therein.

Clifford, Not a Huge Fan of DS3 Controller.

Ryan Fulton — Tue, 30 Sep 2008 20:29:43 -0500

Epic's outspoken Clifford Bleszinski is a man of refined tastes. When something suits him, he's all about it, like say the PS3's Blu-ray drive, but when something displeases him... Well let's just say you don't want to displease him, or he may call you out in the middle of a London press conference. The subject of his ire this time? Why none other than Sony's DualShock 3 bluetooth interface device for the PlayStation 3.

Quoted as having said, "I hate the [rough consensual sex between adults]ing controller" it's pretty safe to say that he's not a huge fan.

While the sentiment is seemingly widespread, many people consider the DS3 to be a great controller. Personally, my "40-foot hard on" tends to lean towards the SIXAXIS controller, but I prefer my controllers to feel light, as if they're not even there.

Any opinions from you guys?

Image: bliffyc.com

Additional Content Coming to Star Wars: The Force Unleashed

GB News — Tue, 30 Sep 2008 10:28:02 -0500

LucasArts today announced that it is preparing two rounds of additional content for Star Wars: The Force Unleashed this Fall. This new content will be available for Xbox 360 owners through Xbox Live Marketplace and for PlayStation 3 owners through the PlayStation Network.

The first piece of downloadable content will be comprised of additional costumes and character models that can used while playing through the single-player campaign, including Luke Skywalker, Obi-Wan Kenobi, Ki-Adi-Mundi, and Kit Fisto.

The second round of downloadable content, due later this year, will feature an entirely new single-player mission, set in the Jedi Temple on the planet Coruscant. Darth Vaders Secret Apprentice turns to the Jedi Temple to learn more about his father, and while searching through the rubble of the destroyed building he must confront his inner demons.

Pricing and availability for these downloadable items will be announced at a later date.

No Gears of War 2 For PC

Solomon Lee — Mon, 29 Sep 2008 20:35:31 -0500

With Gears of War 2 coming in November, fans hoping for a PC version are out of luck. Cliff Bleszinski, Epic Lead Designer, has reiterated the company's focus on the Xbox 360 by declaring the issue of piracy to be a deterrent for a PC version.

"The person who is savvy enough to want to have a good PC to upgrade their video card, is a person who is savvy enough to know bittorent to know all the elements so they can pirate software. Therefore, high-end videogames are suffering very much on the PC." states Cliff Bleszinski.

Gears of War 2 is set for release on November 7 on the Xbox 360.

Fresh Skate 2 Video Arrives

Zach Lott — Mon, 29 Sep 2008 19:14:03 -0500

A new video from EA for Skate 2, the upcoming skateboarding game, has been released. Check it out above as the game's developers discuss their plans for adding more authenticity to the game's tricks and gameplay mechanics to make it feel more like actual skating in addition to allowing players to explore and manipulate the world off their skateboard.

SCEA's John Koller: PSP's Got Games in 2009, Really. Probably?

Ryan Fulton — Thu, 25 Sep 2008 21:46:09 -0500

On Tuesday Edge Online posted a feature detailing the decline of third party games for the PSP. Backed with data the findings seemed almost damning despite the last years increase in PSP sales. Within two days, John Koller, SCEAs hardware marketing head, responded to this report.

In the short, boring, and abstract, the answer is that somewhere around two years ago businesses decided that the PSP wasnt selling super well and decided to push their resources elsewhere, specifically into the then emerging current-gen consoles.

Where the article gets interesting is when Koller mentions that, [Sony has] a number of very strong franchise games on the docket that will be launching next year. We havent gone public with those, and many third-parties have not yet either because theyre concentrating on holiday, but we have a number of very strong titles coming. As to what those titles may be is anyones guess. Needless to say, this is a welcome sign for PSP owners and an open invitation for those who were on the fence about the system.

Left 4 Dead Demo Coming

Zach Lott — Wed, 10 Sep 2008 23:37:37 -0500

If the wait for Valve's upcoming zombie-killing FPS Left 4 Dead is driving you crazy, then listen up: Videogamer is reporting that demos for both versions (360, PC) of the game are in the works.

"We will be releasing demos for both the Xbox and for the PC. I don't know what the date is for release on that, though. I think it's going to contain the first part of one of the campaigns. I think it'll probably be Hospital but I'm not sure. That's a decision that Doug Lombardi is making," said Gabe Newell, managing director and co-founder of Valve.

The demo will feature single player and online co-op play and will likely hit shortly before the game is released on November 21. We'll let you know once a date has been set in stone.

Disgaea 3: Absence of Justice (PS3) Released

Shiva Stella — Wed, 27 Aug 2008 10:20:00 -0500

Loyal Nippon Ichi fans rejoice: Disgaea 3: Absence of Justice has released for the PlayStation 3 and carries a cozy retail price of $49.99.

The game marks the popular RPG franchise's next-generation debut and releases just before Disgaea DS, an updated port of the PlayStation original, which is scheduled to ship early next month.

Hit the link to visit the game's official site, or drop by Disgaea HQ for more information on other titles in the series.

EA Releases New Madden 09 Cover

Zach Lott — Tue, 12 Aug 2008 11:58:59 -0500

If you're upset that your new copy of Madden 09 doesn't depict Brett Favre in all his glory as a New York Jet now that Green Bay has freed themselves of him, then don't worry - EA's got your back. Over at their website you can download and print a cover with Favre as a Jet, but only if you bought the 360, PS3, PS2, or PSP versions of the game.

EA's also offering an automatic download for the 360, original Xbox, PS3, PS2, and Wii versions that will put Favre at the starting QB position for the Jets. They also noted that those playing offline can use the Franchise Mode to place Favre in the free agent pool and then sign him to any NFL team you want.

GB Review: Battlefield: Bad Company (PS3)

Brian Mohr — Sun, 10 Aug 2008 14:07:13 -0500

Battlefield: Bad Company may not completely revamp the war game experience, but it does modify it enough to keep you interested throughout both on and offline. The biggest new feature clearly is the ability to blow buildings apart -- and visuals are spectacular, but the game features more than just that. For once, it features an entertaining single-player experience with a meaningful storyline. Of course, it brings a quality online experience as well to keep you playing for some time.

Click here for an explanation of our review and scoring format.

War games are so common today that in order to stand out from the crowd, the game really has to do something different. Battlefield: Bad Company may not revolutionize the genre by any means, but it does add some nice improvements to the next-generation experience to make it fun and interesting.

Easily the biggest new improvement to the series is the impressive visuals. Worth noting is that it is in first-person. Running through the levels, your player shakes and vibrates. The visuals of guns and various weapons on screen are very realistic.

Those are all well and good, but what really catches your eye the most is the incredible detail of the environments with fires, special effects and more. Even more notable than that are the destructible environments, explosions look incredibly real with chunks of rubble exploding around you. Hiding in a building is far from safe anymore, and can be a bit nerve-racking, as a tank can blow the roof off, literally.

The game features more than just visuals though. The sound is very good with impressive war sounds, the guns are very realistic and explosions are incredible too. The musical score works with the various environments and moods and the single-player experience actually has some good dialogue with character.

Did I do that?

Speaking of the single-player experience, it puts you in the role of the new player in Bad Company. A group of problem soldiers who take on the worst of assignments in order to score money in the form of gold bars. Although youre not able to command your teammates, the action is exciting and the missions are interesting. The game features a number of weapons to play with as well as explosives and health injectors to gain life. There are side goals as well as numerous vehicles including helicopters, boats, trucks and more in the seven-level offline campaign.

As for the control scheme, its very user friendly with the use of the triggers and sticks. If youve played a first-person shooter before it will take little time to adjust. The only difficulty was flying helicopters, which takes some getting used to.

Not to be forgotten from any Battlefield experience is the online component which is once again solid. It features up to 24 players per map, all vehicles in the single-player mode including tanks, jeeps, boats, helicopters and hummers, a variety of weapons including turrets, cannons and rockets on the field as well as five arm sets to choose from, each group features unlockable bonuses too. While the conquest mode that Battlefield is known for isnt featured yet, the online option is solid nonetheless.

Valve Interested In Acquisition

Zach Lott — Tue, 05 Aug 2008 17:31:13 -0500

Are you a developer-chomping publisher interested in acquiring even more companies? Well, you might want to call Valve, as Doug Lombardi, their VP, mentioned in an interview with Gamasutra that Valve would be "happy to have that conversation" with interested parties even though they are content with being independent.

Valve already has a relationship with EA, who is currently the publisher for Left 4 Dead, and Lombardi said that things are still good between the two companies, which could potentially hamper talks with another publisher.

Valve's acquisition would be huge for any publisher, as Valve's Steam service is currently a mammoth in the PC arena since it's a huge source for digital distribution and online gaming. It'll be interesting to see how how things work out if someone acquires Valve.

Left 4 Dead Headed To PS3?

Zach Lott — Sun, 03 Aug 2008 20:11:01 -0500

If you're bummed that Left 4 Dead hasn't been announced for the PS3, here's an interesting bit for you: Joystiq is reporting that the Official Playstation Magazine's latest issue claims that the game is hitting the PS3 but will be developed by EA instead of Turtle Rock Studios. However, the mag doesn't disclose its source for the information, so you might not want to get too excited until an official confirmation is made.

If true, EA will be under pressure to deliver a strong port, as their PS3 port of the Orange Box angered many PS3 owners because of its numerous bugs, framerate issues, and other technical mishaps. Let's hope that this one turns out better.

New Sims 3 Screens

Aaron Dunlap — Thu, 24 Jul 2008 17:23:12 -0500

While they don't tell us much about the game other than that it contains Sims, EA just released these 12 new screenshots from Sims 3.

Launch Gallery: Sims 3

(12 images)

E3 2008: Knights of the Old Republic MMO Confirmed

Zach Lott — Thu, 17 Jul 2008 15:54:23 -0500

It's been rumored for years, but it looks like a Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic MMO is finally on its way.

The news comes from Joystiq, who reports that Portfolio.com has published an excerpt from their interview with EA CEO John Riccitiello, who says that one of EA's two MMOs in development is "in partnership with Lucas, coming out of BioWare," sparking excitement that the game could be a KOTOR MMO as Bioware was behind the first KOTOR game.

Joystiq then contacted N. Evan Van Zelfden, who wrote the report, who confirmed to them that the game in question is indeed an online KOTOR. Sounds good!

E3 2008: Animal Crossing: City Fok, Wii Speak Screenshots

Shiva Stella — Tue, 15 Jul 2008 14:00:11 -0500

Nintendo has unveiled new screenshots of Animal Crossing: City Folk on the Wii, including two shots of the new Wii Speak accessory.

Launch Gallery: Animal Crossing City Folk

(14 images)

E3 2008: Left 4 Dead Screenshots

Aaron Dunlap — Tue, 15 Jul 2008 12:27:29 -0500

EA has released these new screenshots from Valve's upcoming co-op survival horror shooter, Left 4 Dead, coming to the Xbox 360 and PC.

Launch Gallery: Left 4 Dead E3 2008

(9 images)

E3 2008: Dead Space Screenshots

Tim Grube — Tue, 15 Jul 2008 09:20:03 -0500

Launch Gallery: Dead Space

(4 images)

E3 2008: Crysis Warhead Screenshots

Tim Grube — Tue, 15 Jul 2008 09:11:21 -0500

Launch Gallery: Crysis Warhead

(5 images)

E3 2008: 5 New Gears of War 2 Screenshots

Aaron Dunlap — Tue, 15 Jul 2008 01:45:26 -0500

Launch Gallery: Gears of War 2 E308

(5 images)

E3 2008: Star Ocean: The Last Hope Trailer

Solomon Lee — Mon, 14 Jul 2008 21:35:19 -0500

The trailer has been unveiled for Star Ocean: The Last Hope, one of three highly anticipated Square RPGs (Infinite Undiscovery, The Last Remnant) for the Xbox 360. Check out the video below.

E3 2008: Unreal Tournament 3 Trailer

Tim Grube — Mon, 14 Jul 2008 20:13:39 -0500

Unreal Tournament 3 for the Xbox 360 just recently came out, but Midway wanted to show off a new trailer just for E3. Check it out below.

E3 2008: Gears 2 November 7 Release Date Confirmed

Aaron Dunlap — Mon, 14 Jul 2008 14:00:38 -0500

Today at the Microsoft E3 2008 Press Conference it was confirmed that Gears of War 2 will release on the Xbox 360 November 7th, 2008.

Launch Gallery: Gears of War 2

(10 images)

Hey, We've Got A Gallery System..

Aaron Dunlap — Mon, 14 Jul 2008 02:05:13 -0500

See that new-looking thing below this paragraph? I hope you do, because it would mean that the gallery system I just built (from scratch, because I'm like that) is working.

Launch Gallery: Gears of War 2

(10 images)

Lucky that I should get it done now, at 3am the morning E3 begins and the floodgates of screenshots and media kits are opened. Like everything else on this site, it's still a work in progress, so any feedback can be left in the comments of this story.

Right now it makes nearly exclusive use of JavaScript, which isn't very friendly to most mobile browsers and people who think any type of HTML newer than baggy pants will explode their computers. A flat, static, boring alternative will be available eventually.

Launch Gallery: Strong Bad's Cool Game

(12 images)

E3 2008: Electronic Arts E3 Lineup

Zach Lott — Thu, 10 Jul 2008 17:20:34 -0500

Evil Avatar has received word of what EA is planning to show off at their E3 press conference on Monday, and the list of what to expect is quite monstrous.

From John Riccitiello, CEO of EA:

"EAs 2008 lineup is our best ever. This is the year that our core franchises leap forward with stunning innovation and we introduce more brand new games than any other year in our history.... EA has never offered consumers a stronger, more innovative and diverse line up of new games."

Check the full list of games after the jump.

Dead Space
FaceBreaker
HASBRO FAMILY GAME NIGHT
LITTLEST PET SHOP
Madden NFL 09
Mercenaries 2: World in Flames
Mirrors Edge
iPhone/iPod Touch Games from EA Mobile

SCRABBLE
Sudoku
TetrisSpore Origins

iPod Games from EA Mobile

Monopoly
Scrabble
Yahtzee!

Mobile Phone Games from EA Mobile

Spore Origins
Wolfenstein RPG
Tetris® POP

The Sims 2 Apartment Pets
Tiger Woods PGA TOUR 09
Zubo
MySims
MySims Kingdom
Spore
Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning
Command & Conquer Red Alert 3
Crysis Warhead
Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
The Lord of the Rings: Conquest
SimCity Creator
NBA LIVE 09
NCAA FOOTBALL 09
Skate It
Rock Band 2 (Will be displayed at MTV Games' booth.)
Left 4 Dead (Will be displayed at Valve's booth.)

E3 2008: Southpeak Games E3 Lineup

Zach Lott — Thu, 10 Jul 2008 12:43:47 -0500

SouthPeak Games has also revealed what to expect from their E3 booth:

Big Bang Mini
Brave: A Warrior's Tale
Brave: Shaman's Challenge
Igor The Game
Monster Madness: Grave Danger
Ninjatown
Raven Squad
X-Blades

They'll be set up at booth #426.

Double Fusion Provides PS3 In-Game Advertising

Tim Grube — Thu, 10 Jul 2008 08:13:40 -0500

Sony Computer Entertainment America (SCEA) and Sony Computer Entertainment Europe (SCEE) today announced a partnership with Double Fusion to deliver dynamic in-game advertising on the PlayStation 3 console.

Double Fusion will leverage its expertise, technology and sales force, working with publishers and advertisers to create effective marketing programs for brands targeting PS3's coveted gamer demographic.

The worldwide in-game advertising industry is expected to grow 1,150 percent to $971.3 million between 2006 and 2011 according to the Yankee Group.

"PS3 is open for the ad business," said Phil Rosenberg, Senior Vice President, SCEA. "We are very excited about hosting contextually relevant and well-crafted creative advertising on PS3. PlayStation is taking a major role in enabling this fast-developing sector that is both positive and inevitable for the games medium."

"We have already received tremendous support from publishers who want to incorporate ads into their PS3 games, across all of the regions of the world," Jonathan Epstein, president and CEO, Double Fusion, said. "We are very excited to work with SCE on this and PS3 will add a vast number of players to our already robust network. SCE's participation strengthens the in-game advertising ecosystem."

Advertisers interested in opportunities within the Double Fusion Network; and developers and publishers interested in increasing their per-title revenues through integrated and dynamic ad placement opportunities should visit http://www.AdvertisingInPlay.com

The Heavy Up Next For Team Fortress 2 Update

Zach Lott — Thu, 03 Jul 2008 01:37:06 -0500

With the updates to the Medic and Pyro classes now done, it looks like Valve isn't wasting any time in continuing their renovations of Team Fortress 2's classes, as they've posted on the official TF2 blog that the Heavy is next in line.

The blog post reveals details about how Valve is approaching the Heavy update, with their main goal being to make the class "more viable when he has no Medic to pair with." Their design plan displays a desire to balance the augmented Heavy with the other classes while still making him more fun to play.

Hit up the link to read more about Valve's design process.

New Gears of War 2 Imagery

Solomon Lee — Wed, 25 Jun 2008 20:56:19 -0500

Microsoft has published new screens for the highly anticipated Gears of War 2. The game features an enhanced multiplayer mode and a chainsaw duelling mini-game. Gears of War 2 is set for a November release for Xbox 360.

Hit the link to view more images.

Left 4 Dead Coming On November 4

Zach Lott — Tue, 24 Jun 2008 15:58:09 -0500

After enduring numerous delays, Left 4 Dead, the survival-horror FPS from Valve's Turtle Rock Studios, is finally coming on November 4, according to Big Download.

Left 4 Dead is built around four-player co-op in which gamers fight off hordes of zombies throughout several scenarios while also having the chance to play as zombie bosses. The game also features an A.I. "director" that changes the spawn points for enemy zombies with each play-through and controls the flow of the action.

You'll be able to pick it up on the Xbox 360 and PC.