Latest Videogame News

• Halo: What's The Big Deal?
  Neocrisis - Halo was Xbox's staple game in the early days. It was the driving force behind the success of the Xbox. Halo 2 solidified the Xbox's spot among the top game consoles, beating out the Playstation 2 in sales across the USA. Halo 3, being the newest release, and the supposed last installment of the Halo series, has enjoyed a ridiculous amount of success. According to Wikipedia, "Halo 3 grossed $300(US) million in its first week. More than one million people played Halo 3 on Xbox Live in the first twenty hours. As of January 3, 2008, Halo 3 has sold 8.1 million copies, and was the best-selling video game of 2007 in the US."
  
  
• E3 08: What to Look For From Microsoft
  E3 has always held a special place in the hearts of video game enthusiasts. Game announcements, hardware unveils and much more are always in the back of your mind when watching each of the three press conferences, wondering what the companies have up their sleeves.
  
  Over the next couple of days, Console Monster is going to examine the three things to look for from Microsoft, Sony and Nintendo's press conferences.
  
  First up is Microsoft
  
  
• 911 Call Describes Killing Over Stolen Xbox 360
  WHIO-TV in Dayton, Ohio has posted a video which includes portions of a 911 call in which a man reports that his roommate shot a man who was stealing his Xbox 360 and then hid his body in the basement.
  
  The 911 caller told a police dispatcher that 30-year-old Mark Burwell shot and killed 24-year-old Johnny Robert Hyde, Jr. as Hyde was in the process of pilfering Burwell's 360.
  
  Burwell, who is being held on a quarter-million dollars bail, has pleaded not guilty.
  
  
• David Hayter Critical of Some MGS Moments
  "Event's guest of honor speaks openly about his starring role."
  
  Solid Snake voice actor David Hayter was surprisingly candid at Anime Expo's centerpiece guest-of-honor panel, where he admitted to being frustrated at times with Metal Gear Solid series director Hideo Kojima's over-the-top scriptwriting and direction. He specifically called out the suicide scene highlighted in Metal Gear Solid 4 trailers, saying that Snake, a man who's killed thousands, shouldn't flinch at pulling the trigger on himself. "I didn't agree with that at all, and I begged them to change it, but I think it's still in the final game," he said. "I didn't buy it at all. I think it's weak for Snake to be killing other people and then not be able to kill himself when it's time. If he knows it's time, then it's time."
  
  
• Capcom: No trophy support for Devil May Cry 4
  A poster on Capcom Unity's forums has received an answer to the question of whether Devil May Cry 4 and Super Puzzle Fighter II Turbo HD Remix will be getting the trophy treatment and it is no. Capcom feels that DMC4 already has "its own little trophylike system" and the Puzzle Fighter team has moved on to other projects.
  
  
• Crysis Performance Improvements
  Madshrimpsn has an article about "Cuban Ultima Doom Sword's CustomCrysisConfig," a modification that provides the seemingly contradiction of improved performance and improved visuals in Crysis. They offer benchmark results that indeed show impressive frame rate gains and they point the way to FileFront as where to download the mod.
  
  
• Xbox may make a move on Wii
  timesonline writes "Nintendo's bestselling Wii may soon have a rival. Speculation is rife about a new motion-sensitive controller for the Microsoft Xbox 360. Like the Wii, this would enable gamers to control on-screen characters by moving their body rather than pressing buttons. More than 24m Wiis have been sold worldwide since its launch in 2006. So popular have games such as Wii tennis and boxing become that there has been a surge in injuries caused by overexertion or by players accidentally striking bystanders. An announcement about the Xbox is expected on www.e3expo.com - the website of E3, the Los Angeles gaming trade show. You heard it here first."
  
  
• Top 12 Games Of Summer
  Need a good reason to stay out of the sun this summer? We've got a dozen.
  
  
• Super Smash Bros. Rumble for the DS Homebrew
  Quote from MWGAMER.com
  
  "It has happend folks hell has froze over. Because today Super Smash Bros for the Nintendo DS is real! well sort of. A man known only as Fuzzy has made a remake of the popular game. As a homebrew title, the homebrew has a sweet GUI screen. Only Mario is availbile at the moment but the game plays well and has the abilty to be a great title. So Fuzzy keep up the good work."
  
  Head over to mwgamer.com to view the video
  
  
• Top 10 Games to revive for the PlayStation 3
  PSU writes:
  
  The game industry seems to be turning to remakes of old classics such as Alone in the Dark and Bionic Commando or relying on producing blockbuster sequels like Resident Evil 5 and Killzone 2 in order to push this generation forward. PSU has decided to put together a list of archived titles, remembered and forgotten, that should be brought back from the dead, to live again on the PlayStation console. A list of titles that once graced our beloved platforms with unique ideas, interesting characters, and just all around fun gameplay. Whether it's a new set of paint, updated audio, or the sake of reliving the franchise, here are the Top 10 Games to revive for the PlayStation 3.
  
  
• Valve: EA is Not Evil
  "It is funny that you read the stories about EA being this evil empire or whatever; our experience has been completely the opposite. We see the folks as being very similar in terms of their mind set as we are and they are very adult, or progressive if you would like, about how they interfaced with us and how they can help and where their value is and their relationship."
  
  
• New Gears of War 2 Scans
  7 scans that reveal more about Gears of War 2.
  
  
• Halo: Combat Evolved - v1.0.7 Hotfix Patch Available Now
  WorthPlaying reports: Microsoft has released a new patch for Gearbox/Bungie's first person shooter Halo: Combat Evolved. This upgrade brings your Halo retail to 1.0.7.0615 and addresses the exploit currently being abused to make Halo servers unresponsive.
  
  
• The Top 10 Boss Battles of Last Generation
  Thunderbolt writes: "Sometimes they're like a reward, sometimes they're more like a punishment, but most games feature boss encounters, to some degree, and often they incorporate the most spectacular and memorable parts of said game. Here is a rundown of what we think are ten of the very finest bosses to feature in games on the PS2, GameCube and Xbox:
  
  10. Crimson Helm ? Okami
  
  Following the template Zelda has all but perfected over the last couple of decades, Okami is abundant with bosses waiting at the end of dungeons to challenge you and test your Celestial Brush proficiency. Far from the toughest, but arguably the finest of the bunch is this monstrous beast. Coated in flames, heavily armoured and wielding a pair of swords each sizeable enough to eviscerate heroine Amaterasu, this brute's bark may be worse than his bite but he's still the most brilliantly-designed and enjoyable boss encounter in a game full of them."
  
  
• New Mortal Kombat vs DC Universe screenshots
  Eurogamer.pt published new Mortal Kombat vs DC Universe screenshots. Check them out.
  
  
• Rainbow Six Vegas 2 Gift Pack PC Download
  Ubisoft have released three free maps for Rainbow Six Vegas and you can download it for PC versions here.
  
  
• Game Releases for the Week of July 6, 2008
  Highlights this week include Nancy Drew: The Phantom of Venice (PC) Sid Meier's Civilization Revolution (Xbox 360/PS3/Nintendo DS), Unreal Tournament III (Xbox 360), and Final Fantasy Fables: Chocobo's Dungeon (Nintendo Wii).
  
  Check out the full list of new video game releases (USA) for the week of July 6, 2008 on Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, Nintendo Wii, Sony PS2, PSP, Nintendo DS, and PC!
  
  
• Why LoTRO is Better Than AoC
  MMOCrunch: "What!? That might be what your thinking at this very moment, but allow me to explain. When I first started playing LoTRO I knew exactly what I was getting into. A MMORPG that was basically a clone of WoW but in the Lord of the Rings universe. I expected many quests, I knew it had a very weak PvP system and that most of the game play was based on questing and raids. That was ok with me. Being a huge LoRT fan I was looking forward to meeting many of the characters from the books, exploring the lands and partaking in the LoTR lore. I was not disappointed. For the first few months I immensely enjoyed the game, up until I finished the main storyline and had to wait for future updates. At this point I started to look else where for my MMORPG fix. Which brings me to AoC."
  
  
• PSP beats Wii and DS in Japan for June
  The game hardware sales data for the June period in Japan (aka the five weeks to June 29) has been released, and Sony's PSP managed to outsell both the Wii and Nintendo DS, with sales of 274,131 units according to Famitsu publisher Enterbrain.
  
  The market research firm said that Nintendo's lead with Wii is fading, as its lead on the PlayStation 3 narrowed to 1.7-to-1 in June, down significantly from its 6-to-1 lead in May. However, the PS3 did see the launch of Konami blockbuster Metal Gear Solid 4 in June, which had a lot to do with the buzz.
  
  Wii managed sales of 235,990 units, PS3 managed 139,494, DS managed 195,714, and as usual, Microsoft's Xbox 360 trailed by a long margin with just 10,964 units.
  
  
• Perverts Rejoice: Princess Maker 5 disturbs its way onto the PSP
  Destructoid writes: "According to a listing found by PSPHyper on Japanese retail website Rakuten, Princess Maker 5 Portable is set to release in Japan on September 25. Princess Maker 5 Portable is the PSP rendition of the original Princess Maker 5 that hit the PS2 in Japan last year. It may be safe to assume that this PSP title will probably not hit outside of the country after the very understandable issues with the localization of Princess Maker 2.
  
  Princess Maker 5 for the PS2 was a noted adjustment in the series, as it allowed players to finally be able to schedule their women on a weekly timeline, instead of that pesky monthly one. It also featured better options on telling the budding princess what to think and do. If you're a bit lost, don't feel bad. The game really snags on our societal norms. The point of the entire series is to usher a young girl into womanhood by controlling her every behavior. In this regard, it is a bit of a simulator and strategy game.
  
  If there is one thing I have always wanted to do with my new PSP, it's teach a girl how to be a woman. Seriously, what the hell? Judging from the selection of artwork also available from Rakuten, there might be more to this title than meets the eye, and frankly, that scares me."