Filed under: Nintendo DS, Video

We love the notion of the bullshot. Since the term was first coined by Penny Arcade, we’ve been seeing the phenomenon absolutely everywhere. Well, tonight we’re here to tell you something potentially obvious but nonetheless critical — the bullshot phenomenon doesn’t apply exclusively to screenshots. It can be applied to videos as well.

Case in point, the new “debut” trailer for TrackMania DS. certain, the trailer doesn’t precisely purport to be a direct feed video from the DS screen. But within the super-shiny, high-resolution cars racing out of the DS’ GBA slot and the disembodied stylus creating a dynamically winding track, the line amoung marketing and outright lying is a little too fune for our tastes. Now we just wish we had a term for that specific phenomenon. Vide-lie? Fabrica-trailer? Prevarica-deo? We’re stumped.

Continue reading Today’s least representative video: TrackMania DS trailer

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Orginal post by Kyle Orland

Filed under: Culture

that lovely Valentine’s card came flew into our mailbox today. Who is it from? See whether you can figure it out for yourself (answer after the break). Check out the highlights for today:

Joystiquery
Off the Grid reviews Ghoulash
Joystiq impressions: Lego Indiana Jones
Joyswag: Win a Cobalt Black DS with Advance Wars or Prof. Layton
X3F Week in Review: February 8, 2008 – February 14, 2008

News
Try on Patapon: demo comes to PSN today
Dead Rising, Dawn of the Dead similarities spark legal filings
Microsoft acknowledges Xbox 360 shortages in US
Disney announces Pure, plans to “redefine” off-road racing
World in clash console delay extends to Fall ’08
No classification for Dark Sector in Australia
Xbox 360 failure rate at 16%, warranty provider reports
Nintendo announces North American Smash Bros. Brawl tournaments
‘Aliens: Colonial Marines’ is title of Gearbox, Sega FPS
Bored with Halo 3? Introducing X3F Community Content
GameTap severs ties with Derek Smart’s Galactic Command
In-game messaging for PS3 spotted on official site
EA responds to BioWare/KOTOR MMO rumor
Nokia announces user-generated mini-games for new N-Gage
Sony execs talk backward compatibility, PS3 comeback
PSN Thursday: Demo MLB 08 twofer, Patapon
January NPD: PS3 and PS2 top 360, everyone down for the month
Far Cry movie trailer is predictably terrible
Champions Online = the latest superhero MMO from Cryptic

Rumors & Speculation
Rumor: cracked Rock Band DLC reveals future songs
Analyst: Next-next-gen coming in 2010
Xboy: Ziff-Davis survey hints at Microsoft handheld

Culture & Community
A rather ‘large’ Smash Bros Brawl glitch
Wii hacked for homebrew, with Pong proof of concept
Team Fortress 2 Valentine’s Day cards

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Orginal post by Ross Miller

Filed under: PC, Sony PlayStation 3, Microsoft Xbox 360, MMO

Hidden away in plain sight at the top of Game Informer’s latest cover (yup, the same one showing off Gearbox’s Aliens: Colonial Marines) is a small reference to “Champions Online” – the latest MMO from the folks at Cryptic Studios. We know what you’re thinking. “Crypic Studios … where do I know that name?” Cryptic isn’t just the name behind the popular (and recently sold) City of Heroes and City of Villains MMOs, but it was additionally recently attached to Microsoft’s now confirmed-to-be-canceled Marvel Universe Online MMO. The subject matter of Champions Online? You guessed it: superheroes.

Whether Champions Online is stitched together from remnants of the canceled 360-exclusive Marvel MMO or made from a brand-new cape, Game Informer does say the new title will target consoles (plural) and PCs. In which case Cryptic will be competing directly with their previous tight-clad creation on the PC side (awkward) and – with NCsoft looking to announce their first PS3-bound console title later that year – the console space should prove quite competitive as well. Excelsior!

[Via Eurogamer]

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Orginal post by Christopher Grant

Filed under: Portable, Microsoft Xbox 360, Business

A recent Ziff-Davis survey – distributed amongst subscribers to their 1UP, EGM, and Games for Windows Magazine varietys – asked “If Microsoft came out with a portable gaming device (similar to PSP, Nintendo DS/Lite, etc.), how likely are you to purchase the device?” Answers are comprised of the typical survey stuff, Very Likely to Not at All Likely with a Don’t Know thrown in for the more indecisive gamers out there.

While rumblings concerning the long-rumored Xboy have been plenty scarce of late, Shane Kim did address it during a Q&A at the D.I.C.E. seminar held earlier that month. As reported by Gamasutra, he said, “Never say never … Launching a portable device is like launching a Zune, launching another Xbox 360… we have a ways to go [to compete effectively in the music space]… Zune is not just about the device, it’s about the service as well.”

Considering that he certain didn’t seem eager to say “enn oh” the view that Redmond is soliciting consumer interest in such a device is far from surprising. However, whether they’re still at the whole “Does anyone want that thing?” phase, it would be quite some duration before any of us got our mitts on an honest-ta-gawd Xboy.

View Poll

[Thanks, Matt & Jonas]

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Orginal post by Christopher Grant

Filed under: Culture

With any luck, we won’t be writing too many more posts announcing trailers for Uwe Boll’s game-to-movie crapfests but, until that day comes, we feel it’s our duty to bring that excrement to your attention (if only to be summarily panned in the comments). Here you are, cinéastes: Far Cry, An Uwe Boll Joint. Now look what you’ve done Ubisoft. Just when we were ready to be excited about that franchise again, you’ve licensed the property to the one man capable of making the name suitable to turn our stomachs. Find out for yourself after the break.

[Thanks, EternityInBlack]

Continue reading Far Cry movie trailer is predictably terrible

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Orginal post by Christopher Grant

Filed under: Business

After the ridiculous flurry of green arrows we saw in our December NPD numbers post, it’s a little disheartening to see all these red arrows. certain, every month can’t have a Consumermas in it (we know, we’ve asked) so consider that when comparing that month’s console sales to the same period last year. Though NPD’s sales of $1.18 billion for January are actually down 6% from last year, when considered on a weekly basis (as our pals at GameDaily BIZ wisely point out, NPD tracked five weeks in January of ’07, and only four for January ’08) sales were actually up 18%. See, not so depressing.

Breaking down those console sales, most notable is the Xbox 360′s nosedive thanks in no small part to those retail shortages they preemptively helpfully pointed out that dawn. Meanwhile the PlayStation 3 seems to have really benefitted from the Blu-ray format’s massive coup – and the CES press-storm that surrounded it – in early January. (Okay, and we imagine being on store shelves doesn’t hurt.) The other figures are rather self-explanatory, though we’d like to without out the elderly PS2 for a gentle pat on the back. Now, really, these red arrows are killing us … moving on to software sales after the break.

– Wii: 274K 1.08m (80%)
– PS3: 269K 528K (66%)
- PS2: 264K 836K (76%)
– DS Lite: 251K 2.22m (90%)
– PSP: 230K 830K (78%)
– Xbox 360: 230K 1.03m (82%)

Continue reading January NPD: PS3 and PS2 top 360, everyone down for the month

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Orginal post by Christopher Grant

Filed under: Culture

Whaddyaknow? We weren’t the only ones to get floating pink hearts in our eyes thinking of Team Fortress 2 on Valentine’s Day. It’s not abundant that Valve dropped a major update for the shooter on us today, but Alexandria Neonakis has whipped up five incredible Valentine’s Day cards for your special someone (and whether they’d appreciate a TF2 Valentine, they’re a keeper!). We’ve covered her other amazing Valentine’s before, so you’ve got a nice selection to choose from whether shooting cartoons in the face isn’t their view of romantic.

[Thanks, Kunikos]

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Orginal post by Christopher Grant