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Confused about exactly which costumes you'd get from a Resident Evil 5 costume pack? Buy them all! And buy both DLC episodes while you're at it. Capcom just announced that it's bundling the two costume packs, as well as both the "Lost in Nightmares" and "Desperate Escape" episodes together as a single "Untold Stories Bundle."

It'll be available today on Xbox Live for 960 ($12) and tomorrow on PlayStation Network for $12.50. Individually, all that content would add up to $14, and would require up to four tedious menu navigations. Either way, it's still cheaper than buying the Gold Edition disc.

You don't know it yet, but today's going to be a very good day. The PSN has been flooded with new content, including the "Desperate Escape" Resident Evil 5 DLC, demos for Just Cause 2 and Patchwork Heroes, and about 8,000 Karaoke Revolution songs. Click past the jump to see all of this week's offerings!

Update: Entrance period is now closed. Congrats to Warholism, Anemos, Jon, Zable and Leon Durham. Check your emails!
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A new Resident Evil 5 DLC episode, "Desperate Escape," is out today on Xbox Live and tomorrow on PSN. To celebrate, Capcom has once again set up your friends at Joystiq with five "Chibi Majini" T-shirts (in red this time) and DLC codes for the new episode on your choice of PS3 or Xbox 360.

If you want a closer look at the adorably murderable majini on the shirt, you'll find one after the break. Otherwise, to enter for your chance to win:

• Leave a comment on this post telling us which Resident Evil character you would hope makes a cameo in "Desperate Escape"
• You must be 18 years or older and a resident of the US or Canada (excluding Quebec)
• Limit 1 entry per person
  
• This entry period ends at 2:00PM ET on Thursday, March 4
  
• We'll randomly select five winners at that time to each receive a red "Chibi Majini" T-shirt [ARV $20] and a "Desperate Escape" DLC code [ARV $5] -- please check your emails!
• For a list of complete rules, click here.

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What is Joyswag? Since we don't keep the games and merchandise we receive for review or promotional purposes, it becomes "Joyswag," which is passed along to our readers. For more info on our policy, click here.

Even without the PlayStation Motion Controller to back it up, Resident Evil 5 has struck gold for a second time. The PS3 version of Resident Evil 5: Gold Edition (Alternative Edition in Japan) hit the top of the Media Create sales chart in Japan following its February 18 release, selling 143,339 copies. God Eater continues to gobble up attention, taking the #2 spot with 64,192 units sold (while passing 500k units sold to date).

Another big PS3 game also debuted in the top ten this week: Heavy Rain, which fell in at #6, selling 26,775 copies. In a way, the Japanese version is the superior release, because the voice acting doesn't seem to have been performed by French people faking Japanese accents. See the full top ten after the break.

There's a neat throwback to the first time Jill Valentine and Chris Redfield went stomping around a creepy old mansion in "Lost in Nightmares," the new DLC episode for Resident Evil 5. By going to the front door of the mansion and attempting to open it a few times (remember what happened the first time you tried that?), you'll eventually get a "?" message and the camera will shift to Resident Evil's classic, isolated point of view.

More than anything, the Easter egg is a nostalgic reminder of the olden days of survival horror, before Chris Redfield had to juice up just to get out of bed in the morning.

If you downloaded the new Resident Evil 5 costume pack today expecting the "Heavy Metal" and "Business" costumes, then you might be a bit disappointed. And also a bit dressed in spiky shoulder pads. Instead of the two costumes advertised, the "Costume Pack 1" actually contains the "Fairy Tale" and "Warrior" outfits that were supposed to comprise the "Costume Pack 2" DLC. Surprise!

"This issue is known by Capcom," the publisher assures the inappropriately attired gamers affected by the issue, "and we are currently working with Microsoft for a solution." As for tomorrow's PS3 release of the costume pack, Capcom told Joystiq that it was "still verifying" which costumes will be included.

As expected, the first of two Resident Evil 5 expansion episodes, "Lost in Nightmares," has been released today on Xbox Live (tomorrow on PSN) for the unterrifying price of 400 ($5). An additional Costume Pack, also the first of two, has hit the Marketplace as well, for 180 ($2), and joins the free Extra Figures DLC that appeared on Monday.

Capcom has also confirmed that the second episode, "Desperate Escape," previously dated for March 3 and 4 on XBLM and PSN, respectively, will also launch at the 400 / $4.99 price point and be joined by Costume Pack 2 (180 / $1.99).

Finally, on March 9, Resident Evil 5: Gold Edition will hit retail, combining all of the aforementioned DLC (on the PS3 disc; through vouchers in Xbox 360 copies) with the original game for $50; a not-so discounted bundle for anyone who hasn't picked up the original RE5 (now $30), which was released last March. So, if you're not too interested in piloting air ships and wranglin' chocobos that week, Chris and Sheva have got your back. Will you have theirs? Hmm?

Shortcut: Purchase Lost in Nightmares, Costume Pack 1 and/or Resident Evil 5 (full game download) [via Xbox.com]

As promised, both Resident Evil 5 and Beautiful Katamari are now available via Xbox Live Games on Demand. Resident Evil 5 is available everywhere except Korea, while Beautiful Katamari is available everywhere except India. The North American price for Resident Evil 5 is $29.99, with Beautiful Katamari going for $19.99. As usual, prices vary by region, so be sure to check your local details before plunking down the e-money.

It's worth pointing out that this week also marks the release of the Resident Evil 5: Gold Edition DLC. In other words, you could actually own the entirety of the Gold Edition in a purely digital format (you know, if that's your thing). Strangely absent from Marketplace are the promised Resident Evil Avatar items, though we imagine those will be coming along shortly. Unless they're zombie outfits, in which case it may be a while before they shamble online.

Shortcut: Download Resident Evil 5 to your Xbox 360 (via Xbox.com)
Shortcut: Download Beautiful Katamari to your Xbox 360 (via Xbox.com)

Capcom isn't exactly known for its generous support of DLC. But with the impending release of the very first Resident Evil 5: Gold Edition DLC this week, Capcom is giving everyone a free surprise on the Xbox Live Marketplace. Available for download now, the "Extra Figures" pack will add figures like Barry and Rebecca to your in-game statue collection ... "all for the affordable price of a free download!"

We've learned from plenty of schoolyard beatings that the only thing worse than being caught playing with action figures ... is being caught playing with action figures that aren't even real. We'll be doing this discreetly.

Download: Resident Evil 5: Extra Figures

[Thanks, Cj! Via Hell Descent]

Following yesterday's Famitsu news detailing the heroic pair's inclusion in Resident Evil 5: Alternative Edition's Mercenaries Reunion mode, Capcom has confirmed that Barry Burton and Rebecca Chambers will be included as playable characters in Resident Evil 5: Gold Edition. Sadly, our unbearably nerdy request for the more classic versions of these two characters was not honored, as both seem to be updates of their GameCube incarnations: Barry from REmake and Rebecca from Resident Evil Zero.

The latest issue of Famitsu reveals (via IGN) that two of the series' classic characters are coming to Mercenaries Reunion in Resident Evil 5: Alternative Edition: Barry Burton and Rebecca Chambers. Both characters made their first appearance in the original Resident Evil game, but haven't exactly been strangers to the series ever since.

Rebecca co-starred in Resident Evil Zero, while Barry enjoyed an extended role in REmake and was Leon's sidekick in Resident Evil Gaiden, the Game Boy Color game. Barry also played a pivotal role in Resident Evil 3: Nemesis.

Frankly, we're all for bringing these two back, but only if we get oddly apologetic Rebecca and soft-spoken Barry.

After announcing Excella Gionne as a playable character in the Mercenaries Reunion mode in Resident Evil 5: Gold Edition, Capcom has now released a video of Excella in action. Even in motion (perhaps especially in motion), it all seems just a tad silly. There's something incongruous about a woman in an evening gown and heels bringing the pain to swarms of zombies. She certainly never showed off her zombie-slaying abilities in the game proper. Still, that's probably beside the point.

Capcom also released a video of Josh Stone in the Mercenaries Reunion mode. He seems a little more at home, cheesy catchphrases included. See him in action after the break. Resident Evil 5: Gold Edition DLC lands on PSN and XBLM in February, with a retail release set for March.

With a rapidly approaching "Spring" release date and only one game with confirmed support for the device, Sony has made the presumably wise decision to delay the release of the as-yet-unnamed PlayStation Motion Controller until "Fall 2010" in order to "offer an exciting and varied line-up of software titles that will deliver the new entertainment experience to PS3 users." The single game with confirmed support: Resident Evil 5: Alternative Edition, shown off at last year's Tokyo Game Show with Motion Controller support on PS3 (here it is on video). RE5: Alternative Edition is coming to North America as "Gold Edition" in both retail and DLC formats, beginning in February.

We asked Capcom US how the delay of the Motion Controller would affect the release of Alternative/Gold Edition and here's what the publisher told us:

Capcom has not announced any compatibility between Sony's motion controller and Resident Evil 5 in North America. The release of this product will be unaffected by the delay in our territory and is still on track for a March 9 release with the individual pieces of downloadable content released prior.

Of course, that doesn't answer if the already demoed Motion Controller support will still be a component of the Japanese "Alternative Edition" release, whether that support will be patched into any or all of the retail and DLC releases upon the arrival of the Motion Controller in the Fall, or whether Capcom's just giving up on the idea entirely. We're following up and will let you know if Capcom's sharing anything beyond the above statement.

Of all the characters we can imagine playing in the new Mercenaries Reunion mode in the upcoming Resident Evil 5: Gold Edition, Excella Gionne is probably at the bottom of the list. Well, Ashley -- Leon's little tag-along in Resident Evil 4 -- might rank lower. While the press release assures us that Excella's "mercilessness contrasts with her beauty" and that she has a "strong fighting instinct backed up by superior martial art skills," it seems just a little suspect. She's a CEO, not a warrior. Can you imagine Steve Ballmer and Howard Stringer teaming up to fight their way through the zombie apocalypse?

Actually, that sounds completely awesome. Why don't you check out some screens of Excella -- and some new screens of the "Desperate Escape" episode -- while Joystiq Publishing works up a development document for Ball and String in Zombie Town.

The Gold Edition DLC will be available February 17, followed by a retail release in March.

After numerous trailers for the upcoming Resident Evil 5: Gold Edition's zany costumes, Capcom has finally released a trailer focusing on both of the extra DLC story chapters. "Lost in Nightmares" takes place before the events of Resident Evil 5 and includes a mansion inspired by the setting of the very first RE game. "Desperate Escape" takes place during the end of Resident Evil 5, as Jill and Josh race to save Chris and Sheva from the endgame's exploding volcano.

With Jill serving as the "main character" for the additional content, the Gold Edition expansion looks like a genuine sequel, a la Resident Evil 3: Nemesis. Most importantly, we're glad to see Jill's masterful unlocking skills put to good use in this trailer. The first batch of RE5 DLC will be available on February 17.