Wedbush Morgan Securities' 2009 industry report includes a list of the top thirty brands of 2008. The report notes that of the companies whose brands appear on the list, Nintendo, EA, and Activision were the only three with more than one brand to generate over $100 million at retail in the US last year.

And boy, did they. The top brand of the year, Guitar Hero -- perhaps you've heard of it -- was responsible for $992 million in US sales in 2008. The next two brands, Mario Bros. and Rock Band, generated $761 million and $662 million, respectively.

One company is notably absent from the top brands list: "Most strikingly," the report reads, "Sony had no top 30 brands for the third year in a row." Microsoft had two brands on the list (Gears of War and Fable) and Nintendo had four (Mario Bros., Wii Fit, Wii Play, and Pokémon). See the list of brands after the break.

Last Friday's New York Times "Wedding/Celebrations" section announced the nuptials of Ms. Amy Gilbert (who is studying for her Ph.D. in molecular medicine in London) and Joshua Atkins, the "lead game designer for Fable III." Would this be be first tandem wedding and game announcement? Although Fable III doesn't officially exist, Atkins has been with Lionhead since Fable and is listed as a part of the design team at Microsoft Game Studios in the Fable II manual.

This isn't the first time Fable III has been unofficially mentioned: British talk show host Jonathan Ross tweeted in March that he was approached to do voice work for the game. Of course, we've contacted Microsoft for confirmation of Fable III's development. We absolutely can't wait until the company pulls "we don't comment on rumor and speculation" on this one.

PS: From all of us at Joystiq: Congratulations to the happy couple!

Update: Microsoft's official statement: "We have nothing to announce regarding future Lionhead Studios projects."

[Via Kotaku]

"We've never seen anything like it," Bowerstone physician Bloodlettin' Sam said. "It defies the small amount of science we've been able to discern."

Everyone, it seems, is at a loss for words over the unprecedentedly fruitful loins of Albionian hero "Evan1357," who, together with beloved wife Sadie the Farmer, has sired 537 children. Child Protection Services officials have been hesitant to investigate the hero ("he's just so handsome, all we want to do is marry him," they said in their defense), while Mrs. the Farmer's spirits were remarkably high, all things considered.

"People ask me how I manage to push so many human beings out of my body. The secret is to simply OOOHHHH NOOOO IIIIT'S HAPPENINIIIING AGAAAAIIN," said Mrs. the Farmer, proud mother of 537 538 children.

It's a morning just like any other, save for one joyous difference. You stumble out of bed, groggy and mildly alarmed by the monstrous shape your hair assumed during the night. A sip of coffee does little to bring your brain out of its fatigue nebula, with a glance at the calendar reminding you that ... wait a minute. It's May! The new Fable II downloadable add-on, "See the Future," is supposed to be out this month!

You quickly don your Bananas in Pajamas dressing gown and rush into the living room, shouting, "Wake up! Wake up you piece of slumbering silicon!" at the Xbox 360. Oh, you simply can't wait to download the new content, which marks the return of Murgo the Trader and the beginning of a new quest to lift a trio of curses placed on mysterious items. What wondrous new wares await you? What new breed will you choose for your post-potion pet? What good (or evil?) will you get up to with new costumes (including a Hobbe outfit!), hairstyles and "psycho Jester make-up?"

Oh, but you're getting carried away. There's still the 560 ($7) charge to pay before you can chase after the "Ghosts of the Snowglobe," save "The Cursed Knight" from his fate or bludgeon everything to a pulp in "The Colosseum." Of course, there are some free items offered to Fable II players (like "Welley's soldier helmet"), but only the premium pack offers ... oh. It's not online today.

You suddenly remember that Joystiq failed to mention what day in May the DLC would arrive. Those incompetent, unreliable bastards.

Jamie Durrant has been working for Lionhead Studios, stomping ground of Peter Molyneux and developer of the Fable franchise, for 11 years. In his time, he's worked on the Black & White series as well as both of the Fable games. As of last August though, Mr. Durrant has been out of work "sick" on half-pay, claiming sexual discrimination on the part of Microsoft. "I have been signed off sick since August with anxiety and depression," Durrant told us this morning.

The Surrey, UK resident is suing his employer, Microsoft (owner of Lionhead Studios), for £45,000/$66,000, money which will make up for "lost earnings and injury to feelings," according to the report on Telegraph.co.uk. A variety of names, laden with derogatory terms, were purportedly circulated in Durrant's tenure with the company as of late, referencing his sexual orientation: "'I'm Jim and I'm Gay," "Me and My Favourite Men," and "Ladies Are Bad," among others.

According to Durrant, when these abuses were reported to the Microsoft human resources department, the company did little to help him, apparently telling him they would circulate an email reminding employees of the company policy -- but they never followed through. When he inquired as to why it hadn't been sent a few weeks later, he was supposedly told that Microsoft would have to draft policy on the matter first. He told the Telegraph, "I was very surprised that Microsoft did not have any policies relating to this sexual orientation harassment." Less than a month ago we found out that the Microsoft Xbox Live team also have little-to-no policy written regarding sexual orientation discrimination.

When asked for more information, both Microsoft and Mr. Durrant have said they cannot comment on the still pending litigation. We'll have to wait until the London South Employment Tribunal hears his case "later this year" for more info.

The original Fable was a home wrecker, according to Lionhead guru Peter Molyneux. The developer with the buttery British voice tells Develop that the first Fable "just burnt people's lives" and "destroyed the team." He says the excessively long work hours ruined marriages, and that the studio just can't do that anymore.

Molyneux is happy to report that Fable II wasn't such a demon -- well, not until the "very, very end," when it consumed weekends (which is pretty standard). He states that, for the most part, the studio was empty on Sundays. We'd ask how he knows that, but we feel the answer involves him sadly sitting alone in the office over the weekends. Poor, poor Peter.

Because the world needs to know (and by "world" we mean the Joystiq reader base), this week's Xbox Live Deal of the Week is none other than Xbox Original title Fable.

Starting today, Monday, March 16, and lasting through late Sunday, March 22, Fable can be purchased from the XBLM for 800 ($10), which represents a 33% discount from its normal 1200 pricing. As with all Deal of the Week offers, this Fable discount is only available to Xbox Live gold subscribers. Live silver accounts are forever shunned for choosing a life of evil and moral corruption. Be gone silver members ... BE GONE FROM THESE LANDS!

[Via Major Nelson]

Before Peter Molyneux and Co. captured our GOTY hearts with Fable II, Lionhead introduced the world to Albion in Fable -- on the original Xbox. Next week -- billed as the figurative pot of gold for St. Paddy's Day -- the Xbox Originals release of Fable will be discounted to 800 ($10) on March 16, down one third the standard (Read: Overpriced) tag of 1200.

March 23's Deal of the Week isn't nearly exciting, discounting the Iowa Mission Pack for Battlestations Midway by 20%. Finally, to put an Irish kiss on the end of the month, the Deal of the Week beginning March 30 will be the XBLA title Alien Hominid HD, discounted by 50% to 400 ($5). Those are some quality price drops... Irish I had some more MS Points.

For this week's Fanswag offering, we are offering you the trip of a lifetime. Visit the beautiful and exotic Knothole Island in the land of Albion. Meet new friends, explore hidden places and discover new treasures. All you have to do is sit through one teeny, tiny, inconsequential timeshare proposal. Oh wait, no you don't. All you have to do is follow the directions below and you could win the brand new Knothole Island DLC for Fable II.

• To enter the giveaway, leave a comment on this post telling us about either your most evil or most benevolent moment in Fable II.
  
• Only one comment per person, per calendar day (eastern time). Posters of multiple comments in the same calendar day will be disqualified. We'll accept entries until 5:00PM eastern Friday, January 16th, 2009. You must be at least 18 years old to enter. This giveaway is open only to residents of the U.S. and Canada (excluding Quebec).
• On Friday, we'll pick one winner via a random drawing.
• One winner will receive a redemption code for the Fable II Knothole Island DLC, worth $10.
  
• Complete giveaway rules can be found here.

Hmm, how to convey this without spoiling a crucial element of Fable 2 ...

So, you know when that event occurs? The one involving the guy who wants to do the thing? Right, so, when he pulls out the thing and performs the act, you were undoubtedly upset about the change in status of that thing. Which you had but then didn't. If your hero chose the thing (but not the other things), you would then have been left unable to find certain ... things.

You know what? Just go read this thing about Fable 2's Knothole Island DLC. Beware: This golden trail leads into spoiler territory.

Look, no one is going to enjoy tomorrow's Knothole harvest if it's infested with bugs. So, Lionhead has dusted the crops, so to speak, and removed those icky pests from Fable 2 (read: automatic title update released). While the seeds were planted back in October, and some in-house sampling has been going on for the past month, it's only now that we all can enjoy the fruits of Lionhead's labour:

Title update patch notes

• The Ritual/Monk's Quest -- "fixed the issue with the Abbott becoming unresponsive if you leave Oakfield before he finishes talking. This will fix the problem if you've already hit it, too."
• Rescuing Charlie/Rescue My Baby -- "after rescuing Charlie, you can now interact with objects."
• Guild Cave chest -- "resolves any issues with previous inability to retrieve items unlocked from Limited Collector's Edition, website or Chicken Kickin' game. If you've already hit this bug you should now get your items."
• The Spire (Part 2) -- "no more issues with ship captain being unresponsive."
• The Hero of Skill (Pirate King) -- "you'll no longer get stuck during Hero of Skill quest."
• T.O.B.Y./Trouble In Bloodstone -- "you'll no longer get stuck during T.O.B.Y. quests."
• Your child "will no longer be chosen as an assassination target."
  
• Furniture Shop in Albion (Bowerstone) "will now always have something for sale."
• Additional unspecified fixes

In addition, the "Tales of Albion" companion site has been updated with Knothole lore.

[Image Credit: Linda N.]

Those who have uncovered every treasure, bludgeoned every bandit and cracked every wisecracking gargoyle in Albion will be pleased to note that Fable 2's Knothole Island add-on (800), initially delayed due to technical issues, is now scheduled to arrive on Xbox Live Marketplace next Tuesday, January 13th. The downloadable detour will add an isle's worth of quests, items and specialty shops for you to uncover and / or fart at.

Lionhead's community blog notes that January 13th will also bring a free title update which fans -- and Oakfield's abbot -- have been eagerly awaiting. You can look forward to new items, clothing and leaderboards being patched in along with the, uh, patch.

Lionhead has informed Eurogamer that the Fable II DLC entitled "Knothole Island" will be arriving on Xbox Live Marketplace on December 22. Set to debut the same day, Lionhead will also release a patch for Fable II that will allow players that have the DLC to play co-op with those who don't. Naturally, access to the DLC will be blocked during such co-op sessions, so don't go thinking you can play it for free if a friend buys it. The DLC will also include some free goodies, including Assassin's Gloves, a weight loss potion, Knight's Boots, a book (yay?), among other things. The Knothole Island DLC, as previously announced, will cost 800 Microsoft Points.

Lionhead has released a handful of new images from its upcoming Fable 2 premium DLC, Knothole Island. In addition to two more shots of the snowy tundra environment, the screenshots offer a free-floating (if they're not going to stop using it, why should we?) glimpse of the new leather-clad biker outfit. It's about as macho as we expected it to be.

There's been no update on the release date for the 800/US$10 DLC, which was previously announced as coming in "mid-December."