Skip to Content

AOL Games

UK Bayonetta pre-order bonuses revealed

We're not sure why publishers decided that purchasing a game should be more difficult, but the recent trend of retailer exclusive pre-order goodies seems to be here to stay. Case in point: the various pre-order bonuses for Bayonetta in the UK. Those who pre-order at Play.com will receive the Bayonetta Climax Edition, pictured above on the left. Meanwhile, HMV pre-orders get a "Manga's Leading Ladies" DVD, which features "full episodes, trailers and exclusive clips" of something. Perhaps the coolest bonus, though, belongs to game.co.uk, which offers a replica of one of Bayonetta's guns, Scarborough Fair.

All three are being offered for £39.99, so the only decision you really have to make is which bonus you like the best. Well, that and whether or not you ever want to invite a pretty girl into your home.

Eco-Box: a greener way to protect games

If you've bought a new 360 game recently, you may have already noticed this curiously Trivial Pursuit-inspired packaging being employed for titles like Left 4 Dead 2 and Modern Warfare 2. According to the Viva Group, the company that designed the packaging, the new "Eco-Box" is not only better for the environment (using 20 percent less plastic and creating 31 percent less CO2 emissions) but has "no real difference in quality or performance" when compared with standard packaging.

We, on the other hand, worry that the cheaper, flimsier feel of the cases (which will come to the Wii and possibly PS3) will turn people off. After all, If we have to choose between our grandkids drowning in a melted glacier someday or holding sturdy game packaging right now, we're going to go with the packaging every single time.

Assassin's Creed 2 getting double dose of DLC starting January 2010


Ubisoft has announced -- rather cryptically -- that Assassin's Creed 2 will receive two batches of downloadable content over the coming months. The first, entitled "Battle for Forli," will launch in January, 2010, followed by "Bonfire of the Vanities" in February. You're advised to have either a PlayStation 3 or Xbox 360 (fairly important components for playing the base game, we might add), along with at least 1GB of free space for each download.

Ubisoft has promised to divulge more information later this month. If we were to don our speculation hats in the meantime -- if only to cover up our Robert Langdon hair -- we'd say that "Battle of Forli" will continue the story of Caterina Sforza, who made a brief and undignified cameo in the game as a boat tutorial. The second DLC, "Bonfire of the Vanities," will likely concern the mass burning of sinful objects in Florence. Remind us to toss some of those evil feathers on the bonfire.

Dante's Inferno demo on PSN Dec. 10, XBLM Dec. 24

There are plenty of beloved Christmas Eve traditions observed across the globe. Whether it's roasting chestnuts or watching the Christmas Story marathon, everyone's got a different way of marking the arrival of St. Nick. EA's hoping that the 360 owners among you will start a brand new, equally-sentimental tradition as it releases a demo of Dante's Inferno for XBLM on Dec. 24. The sample includes the entire first level of Dante's demonic journey into hell and goes great with eggnog.

Those preferring PSN will get the demo on Dec. 10, a date which has the dual benefit of (1) being two weeks earlier and (2) not making the baby Jesus cry.

Red Dead Redemption coming April 27, trailer coming right now

Honestly, we blame the rest of the video game industry for our susceptibility to Rockstar trailers. If everybody were putting together ads that were half as stylish and cool as this new Red Dead Redemption trailer, we'd likely be immune at this point. As it stands, this introduction to lead character John Marston leaves us with the gnawing feeling that our lives will be utterly incomplete without its shootouts and horseback chases.

Luckily, the trailer makes our longing finite with the new official release date of April 27 or, as you'll probably come to think of it after watching the clip, "not nearly soon enough."

Left 4 Dead 2 sold 2 million at retail in 2 weeks

Valve apparently threw Boomer bile all over Left 4 Dead 2, because hordes of consumers gobbled up two million retail copies globally since its release a couple weeks ago. Valve won't release the Steam digital distribution sales data, so that's not included in the retail count. According to the developer, sales are currently double that of the original, with "Black Friday" helping to push copies into the hands of players (who now have their hands full with two Tanks, a Spitter, a Hunter, and a Jockey coming in for the kill).

Valve also noted that information about L4D2's first batch of downloadable content would be coming very soon.

Gallery: Left 4 Dead 2

BioWare reveals Samara, Mass Effect 2's biotic bombshell

With Dragon Age: Origins out the door and making friends, BioWare has switched the Mass Effect 2 hype machine into full gear, inviting us to play the game and provide a peek at some of the new squad mates who'll be joining Commander Shepard on his/her most dangerous mission yet. The latest cast member to make a debut, Samara, should have absolutely no problem taking care of herself -- as well as anything (or anyone) that gets in her way.

Samara is an elite Asari warrior who controls some incredibly potent biotic powers. Forget simply tossing enemies around -- she manipulates dark energy in order to levitate herself, as evidenced in the above video. The footage also confirms that there are still five potential party members yet to be introduced before the game ships for PC and Xbox 360 on January 26 (not March 23 as originally noted by Randy, who's clearly met his recommended daily allowance of paste.)

Crackdown leaps into Games on Demand lineup

Games on Demand's latest additions are all about two types of orbs: agility and katamaris. The 6GB Crackdown is reasonably priced at $20, with the "Getting Busy Bonus Pack" DLC permanently reduced to 400 ($5). Those looking for a cheaper solution to obtaining Crackdown are advised to permanently borrow the copy their Spartan-obsessed buddies purchased for access to the Halo 3 beta years ago.

If you happen to live in Japan and are interested in collecting a single, incredibly huge sphere, Beautiful Katamari is now available. Helping the Prince keep his egomaniacal father happy will cost 2000 in Japan -- there's no word on a global release yet.

Lightning strikes the UK cover art of Final Fantasy XIII

The Final Fantasy series has been known to have some truly epic box art in the past, such as the man vs. machinery motif of the Final Fantasy VII cover, or the lovely, all-inclusive tableau featured on the front of the last entry in the core franchise. Imagine our surprise when we received the images above from Games Press -- it seems the cover for the UK version of Final Fantasy XIII will be considerably more simple than the box art of its predecessors.

We've posted larger versions of the two boxes in the gallery below. Check them out, but don't let those eyes of yours wander. Yes, we know her skirt is hiked to a precarious degree. We also know that the baby Jesus is watching your every action.

Fist of the North Star Musou hits Japan in March

Japanese gamers and eager importers will be able to start throwing hundreds of high-speed punches at giant thugs as soon as March 2010. In a video game, we mean. Specifically, in North Star Musou, the Dynasty Warriors spin-off based on the legendary, post-apocalyptic fighting manga, Fist of the North Star.

Also, unfortunately, the company released the price for the upcoming brawler. We say "unfortunately" because it's ¥8,190 ($94.27), which probably marks the end of quite a few import plans. Koei has yet to announce a localized version of the game, but we don't think the publisher would allow a Warriors game to go unreleased.

[Via Andriasang]

Matt Hazard: Blood Bath and Beyond dated for Jan. 6

D3Publisher's Matt Hazard: Blood Bath & Beyond now has a date with both Xbox Live and the PlayStation Network. It will arrive on January 6 and 7 on Microsoft and Sony's platforms, respectively. Playing on the same camp featured in the original retail Matt Hazard game -- which parodied other games and featured an aging video game star -- Blood Bath & Beyond is a 2D shooter in the same vein as many classics like Contra and Bionic Commando.

Alongside the release date, D3 has also revealed Dexter Dare, Matt Hazard's burnt out sidekick with a sordid history -- including a prolonged "Mana abuse problem" that we're probably supposed to find hilarious. Check out some new screens and Dexter Dare character art in the gallery below.

Ubisoft envisions a future of 3-D movies, games

Older readers out there might think that the 3D gaming revolution began with the advent of consoles like the PlayStation, N64 and the Sega Saturn, but the real 3D gaming revolution is just beginning, according to Ubisoft. 3D gaming doesn't refer to three dimensional graphics anymore; nowadays it means that the game jumps out of the screen and into your eye holes. Beginning with the game adaptation of James Cameron's Avatar, Ubisoft Montreal's Yannis Mallat tells the Financial Post that he sees the company becoming a "360-degree entertainment content provider."

As the wording suggests, Ubisoft's future won't necessarily be restricted to games. Mallat hopes that future game consoles will be able to render photorealistic graphics, enabling Ubisoft to create games and films using the same assets -- similar to what the company did with the Assassin's Creed: Lineage short films.

Of course, enjoying this "360-degree entertainment" will require a special television set. Still, Mallat is firmly behind the technology, saying that it does for images what Dolby did for sound. "No one wants to go back to mono," says Mallat. That's all well and good, but a huge number of gamers have yet to even upgrade to an HDTV at all, let alone one that can take advantage of 3D technology.

[Via VideoGamer]

'Pro plantiff' Erik Estavillo subpoenas Bill Gates in RROD suit

Erik Estavillo -- otherwise referred to as a "professional plantiff" by GamePolitics for his laundry list of legal claims -- has subpoenaed Microsoft's Bill Gates in his suit targeting the company for his run in with the Red Ring of Death. According to court documents filed in a U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, the subpoena demands Gates hand over paperwork that reveal the "true and relative number of actual Xbox 360 units that have been fixed by Microsoft over the past 3 years." Estavillo also seeks data pertaining to the number of broken Xbox 360 consoles and the amount of people banned from Xbox Live for "piracy" between November 28, 2008 and 2009.

While Estavillo is looking for answers to questions every journalist has been seeking, his track record of legal battles places him in eccentric territory. Estavillo is also suing Activision Blizzard claiming characters in World of Warcraft walk at an intentionally slow pace in order to bilk customers of more monthly fees. In the claim, he subpoenaed actress Winona Ryder and Depeche Mode member Martin Gore. Estavillo has also filed suit against Sony for being banned from online play, stemming from comments he supposedly made during matches of Resistance: Fall of Man; and Nintendo, for issuing firmware updates that disabled his Homebrew Channel.

PSA: Futureshop slashing prices on Dragon Age, Left 4 Dead 2, NFS: Shift

Hey Canadians! Yeah, you guys and gals huddled together attempting to maintain sustainable body heat. Just a friendly reminder that big-box retailer Futureshop is currently slashing prices on a slew of new video game titles. Dragon Age: Origins, Left 4 Dead 2, Brutal Legend and Need for Speed: Shift are all on sale for $39.99. Wait, what's this? NHL 10? Oh, Canada. You're so adorably predictable!

The online and in-store sale ends on December 3, so make sure to defrost your car, dust off your skates and hit the store ASAP. And before you ask: Yes, Rock Band 2's special edition is priced at $99 and does include a free mullet kit. We don't know what that is, but we know we want it. More Canadian deals can be found after the break.

Update:
Best Buy Canada is offering similar discounts.

Continued →

Prince of Persia dialogue writer wins UK Writer's Guild award

The 2008 reboot of the Prince of Persia franchise (which, apparently, is getting shut down) featured some of the most enjoyable snark and pith we've ever heard in a video game. Fortunately, Andy Walsh, the man responsible for the Prince and Elika's sharp-tongued exchanges, was recently recognized for his witty dialogue when he won the Writers' Guild of Great Britain Games Award last night in London.

Normally, this is where we'd drop in a quote from Walsh about how excited he was to receive the award, but it doesn't seem that anyone initiated the optional dialogue with him following the Writers' Guild awards ceremony. Too bad, something tells us we've missed out on the best part.

Featured Galleries

Encleverment Experiment (XBLA)

Encleverment Experiment (XBLA)

Espagaruda II

Espagaruda II

Mushihime-Sama Futari

Mushihime-Sama Futari

Avatar Apparel Color Options

Avatar Apparel Color Options

Bubble Bobble Neo (XBLA)

Bubble Bobble Neo (XBLA)

Halo Wars Historic Battle Map Pack DLC

Halo Wars Historic Battle Map Pack DLC

Bass Pro Shops: The Strike

Bass Pro Shops: The Strike

Ion Assault (XBLA)

Ion Assault (XBLA)

U-Wars

U-Wars

 


Team Joystiq

 
Chris Grant
Editor-in-Chief, Email
James Ransom-Wiley
Managing Editor, Email
Ludwig Kietzmann
Senior Editor, Email
Andrew Yoon
East Coast Editor, Email
Randy Nelson
West Coast Editor, Email
Justin McElroy
Reviews Editor, Email
Justin Glow
Developer, Email

X3F Fancast

New episodes every Monday evening.
Now playing:
Xbox 360 Fancast: Holiday greetings from Dropbear, for Monday, November 30.



Archive | RSS | iTunes

Joystiq Features




Autoblog

Daily Finance

Download Squad

Engadget

Massively

Asylum

WoW

Engadget HD

Big Download