More rumors regarding the long-awaiting, promised in-game XMB for the PlayStation 3. A member of the Max Console forums has posted a handful of images and videos what is reportedly the XMB working during BioShock, as well as trophies for the game. We've embedded one of the videos after the break. While certainly more convincing than some of the mockups we've seen (think: MS paint), we still remain skeptical.

Though it often seems that the internet has the attention span of a Pixie-Stix-maddened toddler at a Pokemon zoo, it makes up for it with a long memory. Take, for instance, yesterday's denial from Nintendo of a new DS model rumored to be on the horizon last week. Oh, Nintendo? Oh really?

Internet, we direct your attention to January 25, 2006 when a Big N spokesperson denied having any knowledge of a new DS one day before announcing the DS Lite. So, Nintendo, we hope you'll forgive us if we're more inclined to just wait for E3 than to believe the lie factory you call a mouth.

...That was a little harsh, wasn't it? Sorry, we just really want to buy the DS again.

Pit's feature role in Super Smash Bros. Brawl could be a precursor to the Kid Icarus franchise's triumphant resurrection, or at least IGN seems to think so. On their latest Nintendo Voice Chat podcast, Matt Casamassina and the gang discuss Reggie's recent comments about a holiday blockbuster to be announced at E3, and speculate that it could be the new Kid Icarus that they "know" is in the works.

Now, how Casassamassassassina and crew can be so absolutely sure that Kid Icarus is Wii-bound is beyond us. We'll personally apply a liberal amount of skeptical sauce to this story, although it's also worth mentioning that the IGN team actually hopes Nintendo's E3 reveal isn't the Kid Icarus game they magically already know about. We'll be content either way, thanks.

[Via Wii Fanboy]

The Rockstar-published L.A. Noire has been off our radars for a while, and possibly for good reason. Though the title was originally being developed by Team Bondi exclusively for PS3 -- and with full funding from Sony Computer Entertainment America -- rumor diva Surfer Girl believes that Sony may be no longer funding the film noir-esque title.

According to Surfer Girl, the potential decision to cease all funding may have come from Team Bondi's inability to meet deadlines. If the funding has in fact been stopped, there would be nothing stopping a release of the title on Xbox 360 as well -- if the title ever actually gets released. SCEA was the only source of funding for the game's development, meaning rough times could be ahead for the team if this rumor is true.

Surfer Girl also supplies a few more (possible) details about the title. The soundtrack is comprised largely of jazz music, and is comparable to GTA in terms of quantity. The developer hopes to fill the 1940s Los Angeles with a variety of NPCs, each entirely unique and featuring unique personalities and knowledge. The game's core mechanic comes from detective work, of which reactions are reportedly mixed. It all sounds very interesting, to be sure. We wonder if it'll ever see the light of day.

Over at the ScoreHero forums, user laconic has apparently cracked open a .bin file from the Rock Band "(Arguably) Punk 02" song pack, and discovered a song list for the game, including a large number of tracks that have yet to be revealed.

Unannounced tracks include "Zero" by The Smashing Pumpkins, "Pinball Wizard" by The Who, "Smells like Teen Spirit" by Nirvana, and "(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction" by The Rolling Stones. Songs in the cracked file were reportedly listed without artist names, but we're assuming each is based on the original artists' version (as opposed to, say, Britney Spears' cover of "[I Can't Get No] Satisfaction"). A song called "Still Alive" is also listed, which we can only hope is in fact Jonathan Coulton's song from Portal.

If true, it's a pretty sweet list of songs being added to the game. Of course, until Harmonix tells us officially, we'll keep this list next to the skeptical sauce; wouldn't want to get our hopes up if "Pinball Wizard" doesn't ever make it. Check out the list of possible new songs after the break.

It was a tad controversial when Ace Combat 6: Fires of Liberation was announced as an Xbox 360 exclusive. After all, Namco Bandai's Ace Combat series had cut its teeth on Sony's consoles for years. Now, however, the title might return to familiar territory, as UK-based PSM3 Magazine is reporting on the development of Ace Combat 6 on PS3.

According to a brief blurb in the magazine, Ace Combat 6 is scheduled for release later this year, and will feature online co-op. The blurb also mentions that the title will include its own custom controller (clearly referring to the Ace-Edge flight sticks that were released alongside the 360 version).

With no official word from Namco Bandai on the topic, we're hesitant to believe this one just yet, although breaking exclusivity agreements is certainly not unheard of in this industry.

[Via PS3 Fanboy]

Take-Two Interactive has seen its fair share of ups and downs, and with stocks on the slow rise following the announced release date of GTA IV, it's rumored that media conglomerate Viacom might be moving in to make a bid on the company, to the tune of $1.5 billion USD.

MCV reports that Viacom is looking to buy majority ownership of the publisher and developer, with a reputed bid of $23 USD per share; Take-Two's current stock value was at around $16 as of last night. At this premium, majority shareholders could be convinced to sell their stock, giving Viacom an opportunity to seize control of the company.

True or not, the value of Take-Two is expected to rise tremendously following the release of Grand Theft Auto IV, making these early months the best time for a company like Viacom to make a move.

Update: Reuters says that "a source familiar with the matter" has disputed reports of Viacom's offer. The plot thickens ...

Update: Microsoft has told us that the press materials were updated for an internal marketing request. The publisher "currently has no plans" to bring Conker: Live and Reloaded and Jade Empire to the Xbox Originals lineup.

Original post:

Hot on the heels of some new Xbox Originals releases comes word that more may be on the way. Specifically, Conker: Live & Reloaded and Jade Empire may soon be appearing as downloadable titles on Xbox 360.

According to 360sync, Microsoft has recently updated its press materials for both Conker and Jade Empire. Considering neither title is particularly new, and both are already supported by backwards compatibility, it seems logical that Microsoft may be updating assets in preparation for an Xbox Originals announcement.

Of course, it could also be coincidental. X3F reports that Microsoft also updated its press materials for Kameo and Perfect Dark Zero on the same day, suggesting that the updates might simply be part of an early spring cleaning, and nothing more.

[Via X3F]

The latest issue of EGM is imparting some spicy rumors upon us. Perhaps most shocking is word that Capcom may be passing the buck on Dead Rising 2, leaving the sequel in the hopefully-capable hands of a North American developer.

The rumor doesn't state which studio would be working on the Dead Rising followup, although it does suggest that the developer is based in Los Angeles -- ruling out our guess of Texas-based Gearbox Studios, who only recently announced a "really big" project in pre-production.

Of course, they wouldn't call it a rumor if it were necessarily true. We'd like to see Capcom remain involved with the Dead Rising franchise, but if it does in fact pass on to a western studio we can only hope it falls into the right hands.

Before the deluge of Super Smash Bros. Brawl information following the Japanese release, we were still all hoping to see Mega Man, Leon Kennedy, or maybe even Ryu appear in the game's sizable roster. Now that the dust has cleared, with no Capcom characters in sight, the only question left to ask is: why?

Kotaku has reportedly spoken with insider sources at Nintendo, who claim that the lost exclusivity of Resident Evil 4 caused Nintendo to reconsider the inclusion of Capcom characters in Brawl. RE4 was originally meant to be exclusive to the Gamecube, but concerns over sales led Capcom to release the title on PS2, and later on PC, with additional content.

While Nintendo has the right to be peeved about the broken exclusivity agreement, the addition of Capcom's franchises to the Brawl lineup could have only benefited Nintendo, and created more hype for the title (if that's even possible). While we're a bit unsure whether to buy into this rumor, if true then we can only hope that Capcom and Nintendo kiss and make up in time to offer some new characters as downloadable content (hey, we can dream, can't we?).

Update: Slight factual error corrected; Capcom announced the PS2 version prior to the release of the Gamecube version. [Thanks, 2bit]

We're throwing this one in the "probably not" pile, right next to our jar of skeptical sauce. A month after the conclusion of CES, gadget site T3 is reporting that while in attendance they heard that Sony will be debuting a slimline version of the PlayStation 3 (a "PSThree" if you will). According to T3's "well-informed insider," the unit will be smaller and lighter than the current console (well, duh).

While we don't doubt that Sony will eventually give the PS3 a little nip and tuck, it's still far too early in the console's life-cycle to warrant such a drastic revision of the hardware – but we're not ruling out the possibility of a new SKU in the near future. The PSOne redesign appeared over four years after the first PlayStation was launched, and the slimline PS2 didn't appear until over three years after the original.

A redesigned PS3 probably wouldn't appear until late 2009 at the earliest, making the possibility of one showing up this fall slim to none. Now pass that skeptical sauce, please.

Could Hudson Soft be working on an update to the classic Duck Hunt for Nintendo Wii? That all depends on how much faith you put into shaky cam footage, and loosely-woven stories of dad's carelessness with company property.

The story goes that the boy's father works at Hudson Soft, and that the father left an unmarked disc on his desk, which the son soon discovered was an early build of New Duck Hunt for the Wii. The footage up on GameTrailers shows what looks like a 2.5D version of the original game, complete with NES sound effects, the original music, and that damn dog.

We have a hard time believing this to be true, especially since the video's off-camera star could have basically guaranteed his father's termination the moment he uploaded this to the internets. Check out the blurry, shaky, job-threatening footage after the break.

Update: Apparently the video's not DestinRL's, but rather one he found somewhere else on the internet. News updated accordingly.

[Thanks, Peter; via Product Reviews Net]

Are England's gamers Chunneling their way to Wii ownership? They are according to British tabloid The Daily Mirror, which reports that the English are desperate enough for their Wii's to travel to another country for them.

According to the Mirror, the French city of Calais has seen British shoppers lining up outside of its electronics stores to snag the oft-coveted console. The Channel Tunnel train arrives in France near the coastal city, where many shops have instituted a "one oui Wii per customer" policy. Despite the shortages seen in the States and in England, the Nintendo Wii can still be readily found in France. Good news for the English. And how nice for the French, too!

The internet has been all a-titter recently over the rumor that Sega might be getting back into the console manufacturing business. The source of this rumor is an updated trademark application for "Dreamcast," which overlaps with the current trademark filing for the title, set to expire in December 2009.

At best, this rumor is a stretch. Renewing trademarks is a common practice for companies, and any overlap between previous filings and updates can be attributed to the indeterminable amount of time between filing and proper registration of those trademarks.

To either confirm or deny the speculation, GameDaily contacted Sega for an official response, and while PR rep Charlie Scibetta was unsure of why the trademark was updated, he did state that Sega has no intentions of re-entering the console business. According to Scibetta, Sega's quite content with their current platform-agnostic status, and it would be unwise to shift their business strategy during a period of "outstanding growth." Sadly, it seems like this rumor might be little more than smoke and mirrors. Of course, we're always happy to be proven wrong.

Last week, Shane Bettenhausen caused an internet uproar, an e-debacle if you will, when he hinted that an anticipated Microsoft first-party title would soon be canceled. The title turned out to be Marvel Universe Online, and while it hasn't been officially canceled, it sounds like production is at a standstill. The second, less sexy part of the rumor: A top Microsoft exec is on the way out. The 1UP team tossed out another hint about the possibly-soon-to-be-departed on this week's episode of the 1UP Yours podcast.

Towards the end of the show while the topic was being discussed, host Garnett Lee asked guest host N'Gai Croal, "Do you watch any Nickelodeon like Something Possible?". If you're not as adept with afternoon TV trivia as we are, allow us to drop some knowledge: He's talking about Kim Possible. And that points squarely at Microsoft Games Studios boss Shane Kim. We have no substantiation for the rumor save for 1UP's own credibility, but that's nothing to sneeze at. We'll keep you posted.