Playing the game based on Terminator and Titanic director James Cameron's next big thing, Avatar, in full 3D sure sounded like a neat idea. After all, the movie itself is being shot to take advantage of the growing number of digital 3D cinemas popping up across the globe. Leave it to Ubisoft prez Yves Guillemot to get us all un-jazzed by revealing to GamesIndustry.biz that the game will only be playable in 3D on certain HDTVs.

According to Guillemot, the technology used to 3D-ify Ubi's Avatar game has been designed only for "a specific TV" and glasses that work with it. He goes on to say that the display is already available in the US. Could these TVs and these glasses be what he's referring to?

So ... no new TV, no Avatar 3D. Bummer. Though Guillemot has confirmed that the game will be playable in one less "D" on that nice, big old style HDTV you just spent your economic stimulus check on.

A new study by Frank N. Magid Associates shows that 18% of HDTV purchasers in the last year bought one because of their Xbox 360 or PS3. GameDaily reports the study found that 5.5 million households purchased an HDTV for the first time in the last year and that 25% of households now have at least one HDTV set in the home.

Sony could come out a big winner if this trend continues, with the high-def movie format war locked up and the only console with HD movie playback built-in. Then again, we can only imagine the continuing Nintendo profit madness if there ever ended up being a Wii: Blu-ray edition.

If you haven't made the transition into the exciting world of high definition television, then it's time to get your act together. It's the aughts, people -- they're practically handing the things out with deluxe car washes at the Stop N' Go. However, If you're holding out for a nice deal before making your first step into the realm of HD, we humbly direct your attention to Sony's website, where they are currently offering a free PS3 with the purchase of a selection of SXRD and BRAVIA HDTV models.

Not so fast, buckaroo. Unsurprisingly, there are some stipulations to the deal. To get the offer, you must first apply and be approved for a Sony Visa, then use said Visa to buy one of the TV's on Sony Rewards. Deals like these are always less attractive when plastic gets involved, but we're of the mind that if you're going to drop a few Benjamins on a new TV, then a free PS3 is a welcome bargain. This deal ends on New Years Eve, though, so the time to apply is ... yesterday.

(Via Engadget)

Gamers with HDTVs are often aspect ratio nerds. And a few Halo 3 co-op HDTV players have begun complaining about wasted space in the left and right margins of 16:9 (A.K.A. 1.77:1) screens. The issue is about dividing screen space in single-console games with less than four players. As-is, Halo 3 leaves black margins on the sides of the screen.

Looking for the perfect gift for the man who has everything, but still wants the world to know that he's a clumsy bastard? Allow us to introduce the Wii shield, a big, dumb piece of plastic that protects LCDs from 30" to 46" from flying Wiimotes. We assume it would protect from other things too (God knows we're totally throwing a TiVo remote if Blake loses tonight) but we're a gaming site, so let's just roll with it.

Ready to buy one? Well, you can't, and not just because we'll punch you in the face if you try. Taiwanese manufacturer LCDArm isn't selling them yet, thought they promise Gearlog that they're on the way, much to the delight of sweaty-palmed gamers with cash (and dignity) to burn.

[Thanks, Brigham]

Canada's MarketNews Daily has the scoop on a Frank Magid Associates report which says only 47 percent of this year's HDTV buyers have any intention of watching high-definition TV programming on their new sets, down from 63 percent last year. According to the article, many HDTV buyers are "perfectly content using their HD set simply for DVD and video game playback."

Why aren't many people watching TV on their HDTVs? Confusion about subscription models and network support is partly to blame -- 40 percent of survey respondents could only name one HD-capable TV network. This is in stark contrast to console makers who are taking pains to tout the superiority of their box's high-def capabilities.

Despite the lack of interest in high-def TV programming, 46 percent of respondents who are planning on buying a TV in the next year reported being at least "somewhat likely" to go the HD route. Which is to say it looks like HD adoption is finally poised to take off. Maybe someone should tell Nintendo.

It turns out that desire for higher-definition visuals is much higher than Nintendo expected. Those Wii component cables that showed up on Nintendo's official online store have completely sold out. In addition, GameStop's online listing has been pushed back from December 5 to the 15th. If you're impatient, however, you can purportedly still purchase MadCatz's "HD Premium" component cables for $60 as of December 1.

Has Nintendo underestimated the expedience at which consumers have adopted HD (or, at least, ED)? A 480p screen isn't a head-turner, but it certainly beats standard definition. Looks like the House that Mario Built might have to add more detail into the plumber's mustache sooner than they expected.

Our pals at Engadget know cables and hacks. And those are two great tastes that taste great together; Engadget shows how to make an Xbox 360 VGA cable out of a lowly composite part.

Unlike the PS2 and GameCube, the Xbox 360 cables include every pin -- even the ones not used by the cable-specific video connection. Because these pins already connect to the console, it's just a matter of wiring a VGA socket to the previously-unused terminals.

Total cost? $7. Get out the soldering iron, and save your money for games.

See also: PSA: Use the right cables for your TV

As Wired and IGN have discovered, the Wii looks significantly better using component cables with an HDTV versus its bundled composite connection. 480p is a big step up from 480i. Gamers haven't had the same problem with the Xbox 360 or PS3 because it ships with cables that support high-definition signals, but the basic issue is the same.

HDTVs look great with HD sources, but when playing analog signals, they look even worse than the analog TVs they replace. That's one of the dirty secrets of the HD upgrade; 480i games and broadcasts look weak. If gaming on a TV with component inputs, those cables are a must; they even make Xbox, PS2, and GameCube titles clearer. (And for fully HD consoles, cables that carry digital signals -- like HDMI -- are best.)

Wii buyers with 480p-or-better TVs, be sure to budget those cables into your console purchase.

[Update 1: PS3 users with HDTVs, you're going to have the same issue. Somehow we forgot that the component or HDMI cables cost extra. Thanks to all the readers who pointed our the error.]

Read: Hil's Blargh! - Composite Cables - The Wii Killer
Read: Wii Component Cables!

[Via Digg]

Everyone is hearing a lot about 1080p resolution these days. Sony is promoting the resolution as a primary feature in the PlayStation 3 and Microsoft recently added the functionality to the Xbox 360. All of these big resolution numbers are nice and all, but is 1080p really all that it's cracked up to be?

According to the Imaging Science Foundation -- a professional organization that trains TV calibration techniques to technicians -- the three most important factors of a television's image quality are contrast ratio, color saturation, and color accuracy. Resolution ranks fourth and we're surprised that other important factors such as response time didn't rank above resolution. Tests done at CNET confirm the relative non-importance of 1080p over 720p; they state they find only minor differences in the two HD resolutions -- and only in very specific scenarios.

If professionals who spend much of their time reviewing HDTV sets have difficulties telling the difference between 720p and 1080p, will the general public have any reason to spend the extra dough on a 1080p set? Even if a person could notice the difference, would they care if they can see individual nose hairs when they are when being shot at in Resistance: Fall of Man or Gears of War? With the near zero difference the additional pixels make, Microsoft and Sony are sure spending a lot of money -- and driving up development costs -- for a feature few will truly appreciate.

See Also:
The future of high-definition gaming

The Red Steel ad is today's most watched YouTube game video. We go to number two on the countdown to find this European PS3 ad, touting high-definition pitchers, or at least that's what it sounds like to these American ears. Oh, she's saying "pictures."

Accents aside -- we know our accents sound like gears grinding in a failed transmission, stop saying so -- the ad doesn't seem too special. At least it doesn't have any dolls, and instead features lots of non-sequitur explosions. See the video after the break.

Last week's Xbox 360 Fall Dashboard update added support for the Windows Media Video (WMV) video codec. The feature was a welcomed gain for non-Media Center users who have been limited to photo and music sharing between their Windows PCs and Xbox 360s -- and to anyone who's longed to watch video files on 360 via a thumb drive or CD/DVD.

Unfortunately, licensing fees and digital rights concerns have limited the patch to WMV-support only. Being Microsoft's proprietary format, WMV is neither popular or oft-used, taking a backseat to preferred codecs like DivX and XviD. And so, we're still left scrambling for a solution to getting our video content onto Xbox 360.

Both models of the Japanese PlayStation 3 will be packaged with only composite (red, white, and yellow) cables, according to a report from uber-popular gaming magazine Famitsu. We've talked to death about its lack of an HDMI cable, component cable inputs are available even on standard definition screens to enhance the image, as are S-video inputs.

Those with PS2 component cables will be happy to know that they work with the PS3. A quick search on GameStop reveals a third-party PS2 component cable for only $14.99. While $15 is relatively little money to the consumer, it would likely cost Sony even less to pack in a cable of its own, or at least create a six-prong composite/component hybrid, similar to the Xbox 360.

Let's throw this one to the masses: are those who intend to buy a PlayStation 3 discouraged by this news?

[Thanks, The Dude]

[Update 1: clarified source, currently affected regions.]

Clearly, the parallels to be drawn between high-definition home entertainment and in-your-face dance showdowns are too numerous to list, but Microsoft chooses to highlight some of the more obvious ones in their commercial for the Xbox 360 HD-DVD drive (embedded in the post, natch). Depicting a rhythmically isolated DVD guy facing off against six HD-DVD dancers, it's a technology comparison competely devoid of technology and filled to the brim with bodies gyrating in largely unimaginable ways.

With the upscaled DVD dancers apparently disqualified from the event, HD-DVD soundly trounces plain 'ole DVD, its vibrant victory converted into a catchy and hilariously non-sensical "six times the resolution, six times the wow." Yes, really. Just how much is that, exactly? The answer is, quite sadly, after the break.

[via NeoGAF]

Opposable Thumbs highlights a little publicized PlayStation 3 detail that could bug universal remote users hoping to incorporate the console's Blu-ray player into their tidy home theatre setups: PS3 lacks an IR port.

It's a small gripe at best, but one wonders why Sony made the curious decision to deviate from the infrared standard (the remote uses Bluetooth). Or maybe it's obvious: save money (albeit pennies) by cutting the IR port out of manufacturing costs, plus earn money by forcing consumers to buy the only PS3-compatible remote, yours. Then again, maybe this is simply Sony's bold attempt to phase out infrared; maybe it's part of the "next-gen begins when we say so" act. After all, third-party remotes will come, including a device that supports both infrared and Bluetooth (aka the "true-universal" remote). Now there's an idea ...