In response to a rash of Wii-related injuries – to humans, dogs and furnishings – Nintendo has decided to update its web site to include additional safety tips for gamers using the unique console and its remote.

If you didn’t realize the Wii isn’t a typical gaming console, the words of wisdom on the Nintendo site should give you a clue. The site includes such gems as “Wear the wrist strap,” “Hold the Wii Remote firmly and do not let go,” and “Give yourself plenty of room.”

It’s hard to fathom Nintendo has to do this, but it seems as if out-of-shape gamers are having a genuinely difficult time keeping their Wiis in check as they play some of the more physically demanding games using the remote.

Go figure!

Nods to Crunch Gear.

Related:
Wii Kicking Butt, Taking Names
Video Predicts Wii Win In Next-Gen War
Wii Injury Reports Pouring In
Find more…

Comments >>

As those creative folks over at Binary Picture Show get ready to
release issue No. 7 of Gaming News with Lady Mainframe, they’ve picked
up a new sponsor for their efforts – Igniq.com.

That’s right! We’ve signed on to help spread the word about the gaming
news show with a twist.

It’s not necessarily typical for one news outlet to partner up with
another, but we at Igniq were so impressed with the dedication the
beautiful people at Binary Picture Show displayed to their craft
during an earlier interview, we jumped at the chance to help spread
the word about their efforts.

The show delivers the kind of gaming news we’re all interested in and
it does so it like no one else. Using Machinima techniques, Lady
Mainframe walks gamers through some of the hottest news going in the
video game world today.

Binary Picture Show itself has been around for about three years. The
team behind the effort has been working with Machinima for years, as
well. The experience shows with episodes are fast-paced and chock full
of great gaming information.

Issue 7 rolls out on Sunday and we’re proud to be a little part of it!

Related:
Lady Mainframe Delivers Gaming News
Find more…

Comments >>

As those creative folks over at Binary Picture Show get ready to
release issue No. 7 of Gaming News with Lady Mainframe, they’ve picked
up a new sponsor for their efforts – Igniq.com.

That’s right! We’ve signed on to help spread the word about the gaming
news show with a twist.

It’s not necessarily typical for one news outlet to partner up with
another, but we at Igniq were so impressed with the dedication the
beautiful people at Binary Picture Show displayed to their craft
during an earlier interview, we jumped at the chance to help spread
the word about their efforts.

The show delivers the kind of gaming news we’re all interested in and
it does so it like no one else. Using Machinima techniques, Lady
Mainframe walks gamers through some of the hottest news going in the
video game world today.

Binary Picture Show itself has been around for about three years. The
team behind the effort has been working with Machinima for years, as
well. The experience shows with episodes are fast-paced and chock full
of great gaming information.

Issue 7 rolls out on Sunday and we’re proud to be a little part of it!

Related:
Lady Mainframe Delivers Gaming News
Find more…

Comments >>

It’s got to be absolutely heart breaking to fork over the cash necessary for a PlayStation 3, a few Blu-ray disks and games and then get home and find out the high-def experience promised just can’t be delivered on your TV set.

This, it seems, has been the case for some buyers of Sony’s uber gaming machine. The new PS3 doesn’t work well with older high definition TV sets that only have 1080i inputs for high-def signals.

Sony’s not been very forthcoming on whether it can or will solve the issue either. In a statement earlier this week, Sony said, “Those televisions will currently only play some PS3 titles at 480p resolution. PS3 games render images at either 720p or 1080p for High Definition and you need 720p input on the TV to play select games that do not support 1080p. This is an issue on the side of the individual television sets, which do not accept 720p input, so when a game outputs an HD signal only at 720p, these select TVs have to display the game at 480p instead.”

At that point it appeared as if Sony was going to wash its hands of the issue and blame it totally on the TV sets – buyers be damned. Now, it looks possible that Sony is trying to fix the issue with a firmware update. A report in Daily Tech has Dave Karraker, Sony’s PR head, saying the company is “looking into the issue and haven’t stated any actions that will be taken regarding it.”

If that issue wasn’t enough to convince PS3 buyers with old TVs to upgrade, there’s another issue now being reported. This time it’s with the Blu-ray. Arstechnica is saying the PS3 isn’t downscaling to 720p correctly if a TV can’t display 1080i or 1080p.

“Alas, if you don’t have a set that does 1080i or 1080p, you’re going to be forced into 480p which is far less impressive,” wrote Ben Kuchera.

There’s no word on whether there’s a solution for this problem beyond buying a new TV set. Looks like that might be the quickest fix in both cases.

Related:
Sony Talking Smack About PS3
PS3 Patches To Fix Broken Games
PS3 Japanese Sellouts Prove Nothing
Find more…

Comments >>

Emergence Day has come and gone, but that doesn’t mean Gears of War mania has slowed down. Gears of War has sold more than a million copies since its debut earlier this month and boasts the No. 1 spot on Xbox Live. And, if that weren’t enough, the hard-hitting video game is even making waves in the music world.

“Mad World,” the song from the Gears of War commercial, was listed in the No. 1 spot on iTunes over the weekend, per GearHeadsOfWar.com. It had slipped to the No. 12 spot by Monday, but still, that’s pretty impressive.

The song’s by Michael Andrews, performed by Gary Jules. It’s originally from the “Donnie Darko” movie soundtrack, but I’m doubting anyone will remember that after the commercial.

Gears of War music in general is making a big splash. The Megadeath Gears of War song is even available for free download.

Microsoft might not have been able to pull off a Halo 3 debut in time for the next-gen war to kick off, but Gears of War seems to be doing the trick turning gamers’ attention in the direction of the Xbox 360.

Related:
Gears Of War Featured On ‘Lady Mainframe’
Epic: No PC version of Gears of War in the works
Xbox 360 ‘Gears’ Up For PS3 Launch
Find more…

Comments >>

Emergence Day has come and gone, but that doesn’t mean Gears of War mania has slowed down. Gears of War has sold more than a million copies since its debut earlier this month and boasts the No. 1 spot on Xbox Live. And, if that weren’t enough, the hard-hitting video game is even making waves in the music world.

“Mad World,” the song from the Gears of War commercial, was listed in the No. 1 spot on iTunes over the weekend, per GearHeadsOfWar.com. It had slipped to the No. 12 spot by Monday, but still, that’s pretty impressive.

The song’s by Michael Andrews, performed by Gary Jules. It’s originally from the “Donnie Darko” movie soundtrack, but I’m doubting anyone will remember that after the commercial.

Gears of War music in general is making a big splash. The Megadeath Gears of War song is even available for free download.

Microsoft might not have been able to pull off a Halo 3 debut in time for the next-gen war to kick off, but Gears of War seems to be doing the trick turning gamers’ attention in the direction of the Xbox 360.

Related:
Gears Of War Featured On ‘Lady Mainframe’
Epic: No PC version of Gears of War in the works
Xbox 360 ‘Gears’ Up For PS3 Launch
Find more…

Comments >>

In yet another blow to the anti-gaming faction that just doesn’t seem to understand how the U.S. Constitution works, U.S. District Judge James Brady has struck down Louisiana’s ridiculous attempt to keep video games out of the hands of minors.

Brady’s ruling comes on the heels of the Seventh Circuit of the U.S. Court of Appeals’ decision that the Illinois anti-game law was also unconstitutional.

Lawmakers in states across America have been lining up to challenge video games. State after state has dumped thousands and thousands of dollars down the toilet in what can only be described as an insane attempt to garner votes by “protecting the children.”

Rather than seek real (and legal) solutions to the problems they perceive, the anti-game faction has insisted on floating bills that are destined to fail. Every law that has been struck down has placed restrictions on and penalties for the sale of “explicit” games to minors. The efforts all attempt to take the rights of censorship out of parents’ hands and place them smack in the realm of government.

The repeated headlines make me give pause. Why are we electing people to office that insist on tossing our tax dollars into the garbage, while trying to tell us how to raise our children?

If government officials want to take over parental rights, I’m willing to bet there are thousands of parents out there that would just love to send the legislators in states such as California, Louisiana, Illinois (and on and on) bills for clothing, food, child care and housing.

I wonder if that would make them stop the insanity?

Related:
Video Game Industry 2, Illinois 0
Louisiana Passes Jack Thompson’s Law
Anti-Video Game Law Remains Blocked
Jack Thompson On Another Witch Hunt
California Judge Strikes Video Game Law
Find more…

Comments >>

In yet another blow to the anti-gaming faction that just doesn’t seem to understand how the U.S. Constitution works, U.S. District Judge James Brady has struck down Louisiana’s ridiculous attempt to keep video games out of the hands of minors.

Brady’s ruling comes on the heels of the Seventh Circuit of the U.S. Court of Appeals’ decision that the Illinois anti-game law was also unconstitutional.

Lawmakers in states across America have been lining up to challenge video games. State after state has dumped thousands and thousands of dollars down the toilet in what can only be described as an insane attempt to garner votes by “protecting the children.”

Rather than seek real (and legal) solutions to the problems they perceive, the anti-game faction has insisted on floating bills that are destined to fail. Every law that has been struck down has placed restrictions on and penalties for the sale of “explicit” games to minors. The efforts all attempt to take the rights of censorship out of parents’ hands and place them smack in the realm of government.

The repeated headlines make me give pause. Why are we electing people to office that insist on tossing our tax dollars into the garbage, while trying to tell us how to raise our children?

If government officials want to take over parental rights, I’m willing to bet there are thousands of parents out there that would just love to send the legislators in states such as California, Louisiana, Illinois (and on and on) bills for clothing, food, child care and housing.

I wonder if that would make them stop the insanity?

Related:
Video Game Industry 2, Illinois 0
Louisiana Passes Jack Thompson’s Law
Anti-Video Game Law Remains Blocked
Jack Thompson On Another Witch Hunt
California Judge Strikes Video Game Law
Find more…

Comments >>

If you haven’t managed to get your hands on a Wii just yet, don’t worry. There are more are on the way – a lot more.

Nintendo of America’s president, Reggie Fils-Aime, is promising gamers the company is in a position to easily hit its 4 million consoles by year’s end promise. In fact, it’s even possible they could go over the mark.

“We will sell everything we make so now it’s simply a manufacturing thing,” he said.

This will no doubt be good news to those who are trying to get their hands on a console by Christmas time or shortly thereafter. However, some U.S. retailers have reportedly been sitting on shipments, according to Kotaku. Whether this will continue through the holiday season or not remains to be seen.

A confirmation of the target number comes right on the heels of Nintendo reporting a whopping 600,000 consoles sold to date.

Related:
Wii Safety Tips Updated
Wii Kicking Butt, Taking Names
Wii Sort Of Delivers As Expected
Find more…

Comments >>

With more than favorable results from its North American debut already under its belt, Nintendo is turning its sights to Europe where the Wii will launch is just over a week.

Shipments of the Wii consoles have made their way to the continent well in time for the Dec. 8 release, according to Game Daily.

Nintendo wouldn’t go into figures of how many consoles are poised for the launch or how many preorders had been taken. However, company officials are saying they will try to meet the demand.

“We’re launching a great product and we knew that demand would be high,” said Nintendo of Europe’s marketing director, Laurent Fischer. “Obviously, we’re doing everything we can to make sure that everyone who wants one, gets one.”

With the company on track to meet its 4 million unit promise by the end of the year, it sounds like there’s not only sincerity in those words, but also action.

Related:
Wii Shipments On Track For 4 Million
Wii Kicking Butt, Taking Names
Video Predicts Wii Win In Next-Gen War
Find more…

Comments >>

Sony’s working to improve the PlayStation 3 and fix little bugs that rolled out with the console. To prove it, the company’s released an updated to the firmware already.

The PS3 system software version 1.11 update includes such improvements as text input, video and audio settings, network features and more, according to The Game Feed.

The biggest aspect of the update revolves around PlayStation Network services, which gamers can now use. In fact, a bunch of network fixes are included such as the ability to download and save music and video files and download PlayStation 3 format software and network titles.

A full listing of the updates can be found here.

Expect a lot more updates to be coming around the bend as Sony works to fix the backward compatibility issues on old PS and PS2 titles.

Related:
PS3 Owners Might Need New TVs
Sony Talking Smack About PS3
PS3 Patches To Fix Broken Games
Find more…

Comments >>

Sony’s working to improve the PlayStation 3 and fix little bugs that rolled out with the console. To prove it, the company’s released an updated to the firmware already.

The PS3 system software version 1.11 update includes such improvements as text input, video and audio settings, network features and more, according to The Game Feed.

The biggest aspect of the update revolves around PlayStation Network services, which gamers can now use. In fact, a bunch of network fixes are included such as the ability to download and save music and video files and download PlayStation 3 format software and network titles.

A full listing of the updates can be found here.

Expect a lot more updates to be coming around the bend as Sony works to fix the backward compatibility issues on old PS and PS2 titles.

Related:
PS3 Owners Might Need New TVs
Sony Talking Smack About PS3
PS3 Patches To Fix Broken Games
Find more…

Comments >>

Video gaming diva Lady Mainframe is at it again with Issue No. 7 hitting the Internet today as promised.

Issue 7, sponsored by our own Igniq.com, includes a good look at some of the hottest gaming news going today with the Lady herself serving as host. Created using Machinima techniques, the show offers a unique, and rather slick look at some of the biggest stories in the gaming world.

Covered in this issue are such games as “Gears of War,” and “Untold Legends Dark Kingdom.” Lady Mainframe also delves into the next-gen console frenzy, which went into full swing this past week. There’s even an interview with Michael Blank, producer of Fight Night Round 3, where he gives up some tips on playing in “Get in the Ring Mode.”

And, if that wasn’t enough, there’s even something in this issue about breasts.

Issue 7 is looking great. I, personally, can’t wait to see what the folks at Binary Picture Show have cooking for the next run.

Check out the show here.

Related:
Lady Mainframe Gets A New Sponsor
Lady Mainframe Delivers Gaming News
Find more…

Comments >>

Video gaming diva Lady Mainframe is at it again with Issue No. 7 hitting the Internet today as promised.

Issue 7, sponsored by our own Igniq.com, includes a good look at some of the hottest gaming news going today with the Lady herself serving as host. Created using Machinima techniques, the show offers a unique, and rather slick look at some of the biggest stories in the gaming world.

Covered in this issue are such games as “Gears of War,” and “Untold Legends Dark Kingdom.” Lady Mainframe also delves into the next-gen console frenzy, which went into full swing this past week. There’s even an interview with Michael Blank, producer of Fight Night Round 3, where he gives up some tips on playing in “Get in the Ring Mode.”

And, if that wasn’t enough, there’s even something in this issue about breasts.

Issue 7 is looking great. I, personally, can’t wait to see what the folks at Binary Picture Show have cooking for the next run.

Check out the show here.

Related:
Lady Mainframe Gets A New Sponsor
Lady Mainframe Delivers Gaming News
Find more…

Comments >>

It’s hard to believe a video game based on a movie that’s over 20 years old would be a big hit, but “Scarface” wasn’t an ordinary movie.

Neither is the video game, it seems.

According to a media release issued by Sierra Entertainment, Scarface: The World Is Yours video game has sold more than 1 million copies to date. It’s also racked up some other major accolades along the way.

“We are very appreciative of the outstanding retail and gaming community support in North America, Europe and Australia,” said Pascal Brochier, president, global retail, Vivendi Games. “This support pushed the game to #1 in North America while exceeding our expectations in Europe and beyond.”

During the month of October, Scarface earned the honors of being the No. 1 Game in America and also topped the charts as the No. 1 console game in the country, the No. 1 PlayStation 2 game and on and on.

Based on reviews and sales, I’d have to say if you didn’t get enough Tony in the movie, the game is the place to turn.

Related:
12 Scarface Screenshots
Godfather game, 6 screenshots posted
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Comments >>

As Nintendo spread the good news that its Wii console would meet or beat shipment expectations, rumors are circulating that Sony won’t even come close to expectations.

Rather than an anticipated 2 million consoles by year’s end, it’s now being forecast that Sony will only pull off between 500,000 to 800,000 units.

Those figures come from Electronic Arts’ Larry Probst, which also let spill the 200,000 launch number figure.

Whether Probst is hitting the nail on the head or not remains to be seen, but he’s likely a more reliable source than Sony officials themselves who tend to talk big and deliver little.

Related:
Wii Shipments On Track For 4 Million
PS3 Gets Firmware Update
Sony Talking Smack About PS3
Find more…

Comments >>

As Nintendo spread the good news that its Wii console would meet or beat shipment expectations, rumors are circulating that Sony won’t even come close to expectations.

Rather than an anticipated 2 million consoles by year’s end, it’s now being forecast that Sony will only pull off between 500,000 to 800,000 units.

Those figures come from Electronic Arts’ Larry Probst, which also let spill the 200,000 launch number figure.

Whether Probst is hitting the nail on the head or not remains to be seen, but he’s likely a more reliable source than Sony officials themselves who tend to talk big and deliver little.

Related:
Wii Shipments On Track For 4 Million
PS3 Gets Firmware Update
Sony Talking Smack About PS3
Find more…

Comments >>

EMI Music UK and Sony have struck a deal to allow PlayStation Portable owners to download music videos onto their handheld consoles.

According to GamesIndustryBiz, the move is meant to help bolster interest in the PSP in the face of UMD decline.

“The quick downturn of the UMD market has left many of the big believers of the format disappointed, including us,” said Bela Molnar of HiFi Entertainment, which will offer the EMI content on its online store. “We knew that the PSP market is huge, but it needed a different platform to provide content to users.”

The entire EMI Music UK video library will be open to those who use psp-playlist.com. Videos can be downloaded directly to a memory stick.

This sounds like a very good move to offer PSP users something more, but will it be enough to keep interest away from Nintendo’s market dominating handhelds?

Related:
PSP Hacks and Mods List
Sony Says PSP UMD Is Misunderstood
PSP UMDs Snubbed By Target
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Comments >>

Don’t let the anti-video game faction know it, but it seems video gaming can actually be hazardous to one’s health. At least that seems to be the case if the video gaming involves a Wii console and a formerly sedentary person.

The two aren’t mixing very well.

Reports are coming from all over America about people getting injured as a result of playing a number of different games on the console; games that thanks to the nifty remote require movement.

Gamers partaking in getting off the couch and playing Wii like Wii was meant to be played are reporting sore backs, pained shoulders and even “Wii elbow.”

There are even reports of accidentally tossed remotes hitting people and in one case
a dog!

For its part, Nintendo has been warning gamers to take it easy while enjoying some games such as tennis, bowling and boxing. The company has put warnings on the games at the beginning and there are even flashing messages after every 15 minutes or so that advise players to take a break.

Perrin Kaplan, a Nintendo spokeswoman, has been quoted as saying, “It was not meant to be a Jenny Craig supplement. If people are finding themselves sore, they may need to exercise more.”

That’s good advice, no doubt.

And, well, frankly the Wii is sounding better and better. What a great way to get gaming kids (and adults) off the couch and moving around. Nintendo’s console might be the cure for obesity! I wonder if they could market it that way?

Nods to Waxy.org.

Related:
Wii Gets Its TurboGrafx Titles
Wii Shipments Equal Millions
Video Predicts Wii Win In Next-Gen War
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Comments >>

Amazon.com’s $100 Xbox 360 sale was great for shoppers, but not necessarily the site. It seems the promotion had so many people interested, the traffic crashed the site – the entire site.

According to a piece in SeattlePI.com, the site crashed for about 15 minutes at the time the 1,000 $100 Xbox 360 units went on sale. Even with the site issues, the console sold out of 360s in 29 seconds.

What’s surprising about the whole thing is that Amazon sounds like it didn’t expect as much of a rush on the consoles. “We saw dramatically more traffic than what we anticipated,” Amazon spokesman Craig Berman said Friday.

With the next-gen video game console battle about as hot as it can get, it’s hard for me to fathom the folks at Amazon didn’t “anticipate” massive interest. They were selling 1,000 360s for $100, which is about two thirds off!

And while Amazon seems shocked with the results, they didn’t come as unexpected to one blogger. “When I was at Amazon, every year we in engineering would try to avoid spikes in traffic, especially around peak holiday loads, and every year marketing folks would want to run some promotion specifically designed to create a mad frenzy on the site,” wrote Greg Linden in his blog. “Usually, we convinced them to change the promotion, but apparently engineering lost (or was asleep at the switch) this year.”

Here’s hoping Amazon is prepared for the rush that will no doubt ensue to buy its Customer Vote winner this coming week.

Related:
Xbox 360 Winning Sales Battle
Xbox 360 For $100 A Go
Xbox 360 Will Win War Analyst Predicts
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Comments >>

The official numbers are in and Wii is shining as a result. Nintendo’s answer to the next-gen console race hit the 600,000-unit-sold mark within eight days of launch. Revenue fall in around $190 million.

To make the enormity of the figures hit home, the Xbox 360 sold about 300,000 units in its first week, per Digital Battle.

Wii is not the typical next-gen console, as pointed out in a pretty humorous video on YouTube. But, despite its cuteness, it is a serious contender on the market. The console’s cheaper than its competitors (by a lot in Sony’s case), gets gamers off the couch and is simply an all-around good value.

It seems shoppers agree.

Reggie Fils-Aime, Nintendo of America’s president, has been quoted as saying “We’ve shipped retailers several times the amount of hardware the other company was able to deliver for its launch around the same time – and we still sold out.”

Nintendo seems to have proven very well that different can be a very good thing. Some gamers are even saying this proves that Nintendo has won the next-gen race. That might be a little premature, however, considering Sony’s barely made it out of the gate.

Related:
Wii Gets Its TurboGrafx Titles
Wii Sort Of Delivers As Expected
Video Predicts Wii Win In Next-Gen War
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Comments >>

Anyone doubting the instant success of Gears of War hasn’t been paying attention to the numbers or the mods.

With more than a million copies on the market already, Gears of War is taking the 360 gaming world by storm. And, it’s creating a following that’s rock solid to boot.

That is, if you think having a willingness to mod your Xbox 360 console to match a game logo equates to rock solid loyalty. But, that’s exactly what some gamers are doing to celebrate the arrival of what’s being called one of the best 360 games going.

One gamer’s even completely redone his Xbox 360 to bear testament to his passion for Gears. The mod looks simply awesome, like it was professionally done.

You’ve got to seriously love a game to hack up your Xbox 360 to carry its logo.

Nods to Kotaku

Related:
Gears Of War Mania Continues
Gears Of War Featured On ‘Lady Mainframe’
Xbox 360 ‘Gears’ Up For PS3 Launch
Find more…

Comments >>

Anyone doubting the instant success of Gears of War hasn’t been paying attention to the numbers or the mods.

With more than a million copies on the market already, Gears of War is taking the 360 gaming world by storm. And, it’s creating a following that’s rock solid to boot.

That is, if you think having a willingness to mod your Xbox 360 console to match a game logo equates to rock solid loyalty. But, that’s exactly what some gamers are doing to celebrate the arrival of what’s being called one of the best 360 games going.

One gamer’s even completely redone his Xbox 360 to bear testament to his passion for Gears. The mod looks simply awesome, like it was professionally done.

You’ve got to seriously love a game to hack up your Xbox 360 to carry its logo.

Nods to Kotaku

Related:
Gears Of War Mania Continues
Gears Of War Featured On ‘Lady Mainframe’
Xbox 360 ‘Gears’ Up For PS3 Launch
Find more…

Comments >>

The Xbox 360 is winning the next-gen sales battle – for now.

Digital Battle is reporting the console has been outselling its two competitors – the PlayStation 3 and the Wii – since their launch last week. The article aptly points out the release of Gears of War for the 360 and cheaper package prices have picked up the 360 sales numbers.

In an MSN article, Canadian retailers are reporting the sales of the 360 have been brisk since Wiis and PS3s cannot be found on the shelves.

“Sony dropped the ball and Nintendo didn’t do that much better,” a Canadian store manager was quoted as saying. “They over-promised and under delivered in terms of the quantity of Wii systems that were available. Sony on the other hand warned everyone that supplies would be severely limited. Microsoft was the big winner. They had lots of systems and they had them priced right with game bundles that gamers were interested in.”

The outcome of the big battle to date is not surprising. It’s a matter of demand versus supply. The 360 has the supply, and there’s most certainly a demand for video game consoles. Whether it will maintain its leading spot when Wii and PS3 shipments really start coming in will be interesting to see.

Related:
Xbox 360 Will Win War Analyst Predicts
Xbox 360 ‘Gears’ Up For PS3 Launch
Xbox 360 November Surprise?
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Comments >>

News that Blizzard’s highly anticipated World of Warcraft expansion Burning Crusade would be delayed was met with much dismay, but it seems the delay is giving the people behind the game more time to answer questions.

Blizzard’s recently updated the Burning Crusade FAQ page with a whole host of additional player posed questions and Blizzard’s answers. Most of the new questions posed and answered revolve around raids and the world in general.

For example, gamers wanted to know such things as: Will the release of The Burning Crusade bring about additional content for Azeroth? The answer is, “Absolutely–two new dungeons will be available, along with the new starting zones for both the Draenei and Blood Elves.”

There’s no official release date on the expansion as of yet beyond January 2007.

Check out the entire updated FAQ here.

Nods to Inside Mac Games

Related:
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WoW’s Burning Crusade Delayed
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‘South Park’ WoW Parody Is Scary Accurate

Comments >>

Microsoft’s big PS3 launch week surprise is panning out to be a headache for the company as the Xbox 360 TV and movie download service isn’t working quite as expected.

The much-heralded system promises gamers the ability to use their 360s to download high-def TV and movies and regular movies and programs, as well. The problem is, it’s not working very smoothly at launch.

“Technical issues have resulted in a very unpleasant experience,” Microsoft’s Larry Hryb has been quoted as saying.

Those problems include speed issues and videos not being delivered as promised. They’re being blamed on high traffic demands on the site.

The folks begin the system are working to correct the issues.

“We’ve made progress over the past 24 hours, and the team is dedicated to fixing the issues and continues to work as fast as they can around the clock to get the service running as seamlessly as you have come to expect,” wrote Hryb in the Major Nelson blog.

Users who are having problems are asked to visit the Live forums or call 1-800-4MYXBOX.

Despite the glitches, the Xbox download service is a stroke of brilliance that gives movie, TV and gaming fans alike another option for getting their entertainment delivered to them. Rather than having to buy a separate player, such as an add on HD-DVD player for their 360, console owners only have to pay out a few dollars to see a high-def show or movie.

It really does sound like this one will be worth the wait for the bugs to be worked out.

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Comments >>

For a long time now, video game followers have been expecting a major announcement out of Microsoft in the days leading up to the launch of the PlayStation 3 and the Wii. This anticipated move would be to the video game world what the Mark Foley October Surprise was to the American elections.

Speculators have long thought (and hoped) this surprise would be the announcement of Halo 3 for release on the day of Sony’s PS3 arrival in America. This doesn’t seem likely now, but other possibilities still loom.

Last week, it seemed Microsoft’s November surprise for Nintendo and Sony was the announcement of high-def movies and TV programs on Xbox Live Marketplace. But now, it seems, another prospect is on the horizon, as well – the $100 Xbox 360 bundle rumor for Amazon.

This rumor is only that at this point, but it is coming from fairly reliable sources. A major price drop, even for a day, a few days or a short while leading into the holiday season, could be a massive coup for Microsoft’s console. Dropping the price to well below that of the Wii would very likely help Microsoft rack up the sales, and it would make Sony’s PS3 seem even more expensive than it is.

Considering the fact the real money is in the games and services and not the consoles themselves, this is a possibility we’ll be watching for.

If Microsoft does drop the console price to $100 for however long, you can bet Nintendo and Sony will take notice.

Related:
PS3, Wii Countdown Has Begun
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Blu-Ray, HD-DVD Could Both Lose
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Comments >>

PlayStation 3’s official American debut this week has been a story of ups, downs and shootouts. The frenzy for the console has been described as the bloodiest yet by some. Others made it out of line without incident, only to go home to find out their brand new PS3 didn’t work. And, there’s been some outrageous pricing on eBay for the have nots to get their PS3s from the haves – for an even larger chunk of change than retail pricing.

But, there’s some good news on the horizon.

“We are getting a second shipment next week, probably around the middle of next week,” Sony’s Matt Levitan has been quoted as saying. “We’ll know by Monday or Tuesday when they will be available.

“We are flying in shipments from Japan and China, and will probably ship them directly to retail.”

Several more shipments are expected before the end of the year.

How many will be involved in these shipments is unclear, but the news does mean the pipeline’s open, and by all reports Sony is responding very well to consumer complaints about broken machines.

While the chances of getting your hands on a PS3 before next year are somewhat akin to winning the lottery unless you want to fork over eBay prices, word of a steady stream of shipments is no doubt good for those who are itching to get their hands on one.

Related:
PS3 Smash’ing’ Success
PS3s On eBay For Thousands
PS3 Patches To Fix Broken Games
Find more…

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PlayStation 3’s official American debut this week has been a story of ups, downs and shootouts. The frenzy for the console has been described as the bloodiest yet by some. Others made it out of line without incident, only to go home to find out their brand new PS3 didn’t work. And, there’s been some outrageous pricing on eBay for the have nots to get their PS3s from the haves – for an even larger chunk of change than retail pricing.

But, there’s some good news on the horizon.

“We are getting a second shipment next week, probably around the middle of next week,” Sony’s Matt Levitan has been quoted as saying. “We’ll know by Monday or Tuesday when they will be available.

“We are flying in shipments from Japan and China, and will probably ship them directly to retail.”

Several more shipments are expected before the end of the year.

How many will be involved in these shipments is unclear, but the news does mean the pipeline’s open, and by all reports Sony is responding very well to consumer complaints about broken machines.

While the chances of getting your hands on a PS3 before next year are somewhat akin to winning the lottery unless you want to fork over eBay prices, word of a steady stream of shipments is no doubt good for those who are itching to get their hands on one.

Related:
PS3 Smash’ing’ Success
PS3s On eBay For Thousands
PS3 Patches To Fix Broken Games
Find more…

Comments >>

With the launch of the PlayStation 3 and Wii just days apart, the guys at SmashOurStuff.com have been busy.

Two lines to wait in. Two consoles to smash. Both went off without a hitch.

Their latest target was a Wii right out of the box. In a hail of sledgehammer smacks, the brand new Wii was pummeled into an early grave in front of a line of people who had waited up all night to get their hands on one.

The crowd reaction was a bit more kind to the destruction of the Wii than spectators were to the previous destruction of the PS3 by the same people.

There’s no doubt the guys at SmashMyStuff have been busy with two console debuts in a week and all. Still, it would have been nice if even for the rush cut they’d come up with a different theme song.

Dressing as Mario and Luigi was a nice touch though.

Check out the video here.

Videos with finishing touches are expected soon for both the PS3 and the Wii smashes.

Related:
PS3 Smash’ing’ Success
PS3 Locator Service Ready To Go
PS3, Wii Smashes Locked And Loaded
Find more…

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