Report: Court backs Interplay in Fallout MMO squabble; concept art surfaces
by Randy Nelson 
{ 9 days ago } 
The twists and turns in the saga of Interplay's suspected Fallout MMO, "Project V13," date back to 2006. The latest came this week when, according to a report by No Mutants Allowed, someone claiming to be an Interplay stockholder revealed that Fallout IP owner Bethesda was denied an injunction it had sought against Interplay.
Bethesda had hoped to strip Interplay of the Fallout license after the publisher had supposedly broken an agreement to begin development of the MMO before April 4, 2009. Interplay claims that's not the case and, perhaps to prove its point, has posted concept art from the could-be-a-game on its forums.
As much as we'd love to play an MMO based on our favorite post-nuclear RPG, we can't help but feel this falling out between the two companies is going to keep us waiting until the real apocalypse -- and beyond.
[Via BigDownload]
Bethesda had hoped to strip Interplay of the Fallout license after the publisher had supposedly broken an agreement to begin development of the MMO before April 4, 2009. Interplay claims that's not the case and, perhaps to prove its point, has posted concept art from the could-be-a-game on its forums.
As much as we'd love to play an MMO based on our favorite post-nuclear RPG, we can't help but feel this falling out between the two companies is going to keep us waiting until the real apocalypse -- and beyond.
Gallery: Project V13 (Fallout MMO)
[Via BigDownload]
Rumor: Left 4 Dead 2 demo files name two DLC packs
by Griffin McElroy { 9 days ago } 
Frankly, we think the game's already got its fair share of the Apocalypse, not to mention plenty of miracles, which is the only way we can explain how four people can survive continuous encounters with a city's worth of the walking dead. Still, we've contacted Valve to see if these two messages are a sign of more disastrous -- or miraculous -- things to come.
Blue Dragon: Awakened Shadow coming to DS in Spring 2010
by Ludwig Kietzmann { 9 days ago } 
Dubbed Blue Dragon: Ikai no Kyojuu in Japan (and published by Namco Bandai, which owns the majority of D3Publisher), the second DS entry in the Mistwalker's role-playing franchise stars a new protagonist, with gender, facial features and clothing determined by your input. Awakened Shadow is set two years after the events of the Xbox 360 game and finds Shu and the gang returning to Blue Dragon's "contemporary" RPG gameplay. Expect to upgrade weaponry, tactically change shadows and skip every scene featuring Marumaro.
Blue Dragon: Awakened Shadow is scheduled for release in Spring 2010.
Capcom posts strong Q2 2009 earnings, despite 'soft' overseas sales
by Richard Mitchell { 9 days ago }
Capcom credits strong sales of Monster Hunter Tri in Japan, as well as continued sales of Resident Evil 5, Monster Hunter Freedom Unite and Ace Attorney: Investigations to its recent financial success. However, the company stated that overseas sales remained "soft" for the period thanks to the delay of Dark Void and the weak performance of Bionic Commando and Monster Hunter Freedom Unite. Joystiq readers will recall that Capcom leveled complaints at the same games in its first quarter report earlier this year. It's worth noting that overseas sales still amounted to ¥11.739 billion ($128 million), which accounted for 57-percent of the home video games division sales.
We suppose Capcom might consider that "soft," but the suits can't be too broken up about it.
Source -- Capcom | Favorable Financial Results for the 6 months ended September 30, 2009
Source -- Capcom | Consolidated Financial Results for the 2nd Quarter of the FY2009
Nintendo half-year results show profits down in '09; still making boffo bucks
by Alexander Sliwinski { 9 days ago }
The Wii has now sold 56.14 million units globally, while the DS has reached 113.48 million in unit sales. There's been a general slowdown of software sales, however, as the House of Mario has had fewer high-profile releases so far this year -- we count only: Wii Sports Resort. Although investors may see the profit decline as a bad thing, it's not like Nintendo's plump plumber is going to be forced to cut back on those hearty meals any time soon.
Source -- Nintendo financial report [PDF]
Source -- Nintendo profits slide (MCV)
First DJ Hero DLC mix pack today; David Guetta pack dated Nov. 24
by Griffin McElroy { 9 days ago } 
and $5.99, respectively (and not sold separately):
- "All Of Me" by 50 Cent featuring Mary J. Blige vs. "Radio Ga Ga" by Queen
- "DARE" by Gorillaz vs. "Can't Truss It" Performed by Public Enemy
Bayonetta's nonstop-climax action starts January 5
by JC Fletcher { 9 days ago }
In the meantime, you can check out some of the humiliating (and potentially NSFW) extra costumes that are available in the game. Amazingly, the default costume, which is composed entirely of magical human hair, is the most practical and restrained outfit of the lot.
Gallery: Bayonetta
EA details Battlefield: Bad Company 2 Limited Edition, same price as normal
by Alexander Sliwinski { 9 days ago }
The four BFBC2 unlocks are:
- Improved Vehicle Armor - Pretty self explanatory.
- Supreme Vehicle Firepower - Additional weapon mounts for the driver.
- Vehicle Motion Sensor - Locate enemy units in proximity to vehicle.
- Tracer Dart Pistol - Attaches to any vehicle "to track, lock on, and fire rockets onto moving targets even beyond line of sight"
Hands-on: BioShock 2
by Randy Nelson { 9 days ago } 
Having already taken a brief tour of Rapture through the eyes of a Big Daddy a few months back, we were okay with the fact that BioShock 2 looked and seemed to play very much like the original game -- only this time encased in a huge pressurized diving suit. Now that we've played through a full area of the game, our initial assessment more or less holds up, but that's not to say there aren't several noteworthy -- and even surprising -- changes and additions to expect when the game arrives next spring.
Warning: We've done our best to keep what you're about to read as spoiler-free as possible, but the extremely sensitive should tread cautiously beyond this point.
Warning: We've done our best to keep what you're about to read as spoiler-free as possible, but the extremely sensitive should tread cautiously beyond this point.
Gallery: BioShock 2 (10-29-09)
Zombie Tycoon reanimates PSP minis movement today
by James Ransom-Wiley { 9 days ago }
"Let's be clear, Zombie Tycoon isn't a port from a phone game, it's a whole new strategy game designed specifically for PSP," executive producer Martin Brouard proclaimed on the European PlayStation Blog. "This unique tale of intrigue and betrayal spans over 10 challenging levels, allowing you to attack humans AND the places they call home."
Zombie Tycoon isn't priced like a phone game, either. At $7.99 (£3.99/€4.99), this particular mini is on par with previous minis' costs, which have been the topic of much discussion. Perhaps you'll form a value judgment of your own after checking out the Zombie Tycoon trailer posted after the break.
Remaining Wallace & Gromit episodes hit XBLA all at once on Nov. 4
by Alexander Sliwinski { 9 days ago }
The remainder of Telltale's Wallace & Gromit's Grand Adventures episodes will make it onto Xbox Live Arcade all in one go on November 4 which, coincidentally, is the 20th anniversary of the dynamic duo's first animated short, A Grand Day Out. The already-released Fright of the Bumblebees, will now be joined by The Last Resort (which was a no-show in September), Muzzled! and The Bogey Man, each going for 800
($10). The mathletes out there have already figured this out, but that puts the entire season at $40 – a deal if it were a retail package. Also on November 4, Telltale Games' website will begin taking orders for the "full season DVD" on PC, which includes all four episodes, image galleries, a "making of" video and more. With three titles dropping on one day, I'm not sure we'd call this "episodic" in the traditional sense.
Gallery: Wallace & Gromit's Grand Adventures
DSi LL coming to Europe in Q1 2010 as 'DSi XL'
by JC Fletcher { 9 days ago }
The Japanese DSi LL will be available in Wine Red, Dark Brown (above), and Natural White, and will come preloaded with Easy Meikyo Kokugo Dictionary, Brain Age Express: Arts & Letters and Brain Age Express: Math. There is no word yet about the color variation or preloaded software selection for the European version.
Impressions: Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time (the trailer)
by Kevin Kelly { 9 days ago }
The only hitch is that it's a videogame adaptation, and those just never seem to turn out very well. It certainly doesn't help that Ben Kingsley, the one who starred in the ill-fated and ill-conceived film version of BloodRayne, has returned in another villainous role. Still, we have to admit that what we saw (reminder: just a trailer) looks to be an exciting jaunt through swashbuckling adventure.
Read on for the highlights -- and take your time. The movie that doesn't come out until May 2010.
New movie-themed Elite bundles for the UK
by Richard Mitchell { 9 days ago }
VideoGamer.com is reporting that a supplement in this week's issue of MCV is advertising two new Xbox 360 Elite bundles. Both bundles are themed around recent movie releases, specifically Star Trek and Transformers 2. The Star Trek bundle comes with an extra controller, a copy of J.J. Abrams' Star Trek stored on a USB drive -- shaped like the Star Fleet logo -- as well as 800 with which to buy "Star Trek PDLC." Let's just hope you don't have to waste those points on Star Trek D-A-C. A Transformers 2 bundle is in the works as well, featuring an extra controller, a copy of the movie on a Bumblebee-shaped USB drive and the Transformers 2 game.
Release date, pricing, and the size of the included hard drive (120GB or "Super Elite" 250GB) are not specified in the ad. However, as MCV is a UK magazine, it's possible these are only destined for that region. We'd be hard-pressed to tell potential buyers which one bundle is the better but, but we will say that only one of them goes where no one has gone before. And the other one is Transformers.
with which to buy "Star Trek PDLC." Let's just hope you don't have to waste those points on Star Trek D-A-C. A Transformers 2 bundle is in the works as well, featuring an extra controller, a copy of the movie on a Bumblebee-shaped USB drive and the Transformers 2 game.Release date, pricing, and the size of the included hard drive (120GB or "Super Elite" 250GB) are not specified in the ad. However, as MCV is a UK magazine, it's possible these are only destined for that region. We'd be hard-pressed to tell potential buyers which one bundle is the better but, but we will say that only one of them goes where no one has gone before. And the other one is Transformers.
Jay-Z is a gamer; likes Madden and, uh, you know, stuff like Madden
by Ben Gilbert { 9 days ago }
"Immediately, of course, with the success of Guitar Hero, you know, [DJ Hero] piqued my interest, and then on top of that it was something from the hip-hop culture. So, anytime you can, you know, I can expand the genre and introduce it to new audiences and widen it -- you know, the reach of what hip-hop can do -- you know, I'm interested in that," Jay-Z explains in the video interview (embedded after the break).
As far as Jay-Z's gaming roots, that's another story altogether. "I was really a gamer," Jay-Z urges. "Like, ask any of the guys. Like, I used to -- Madden and all these type of games," Jay-Z awkwardly cobbles together, "I was, like, really a problem. Like, those were my things -- for awhile." Presumably, until, you know, he got all that other stuff that impresses us, right? It's okay, Mr. Z -- you don't have to impress us with your gaming prowess, too. It's not like we have the numbers of "the guys" to fact check your claims anyway.
