Some of us like to stockpile games, therefore the aesthetics of game boxes may be important.

Now, when the PS Vita decides to get released, or even a release date outside Japan sometime, you would like to stockpile your Vita titles too, no?

The boxes were spotted at Sony’s booth at the Tokyo Games Show.

So, this is what the boxes will look like so that you can prepare accordingly, or you know, if you just wanted to know what the damn box looks like.

Yes, the first image is the Japanese Version of Uncharted: Golden Abyss. We brought you some Vita gameplay of it earlier.

So? What do you think?

However there is no news whether this will be in Japan Only, like these, or if this will come out in other regions as well. Also if the MGS HD Collection comes out in our region for Vita, we don’t know if it will contain Peace Walker because the Japanese version of the HD collection seems to lack it.

But, don’t worry. This is all still coming out on PS3 and Xbox 360 in November. Therefore, if we don’t get it, it won’t be a big loss. Still, it would be great to play MGS 2 and MGS3 on the go.

Hideo Kojima also revealed he was working on a new, original title for both PS Vita and PS3. But then noted that “it will take a while” for us to hear more.”

If you own a PS3 and are a James Bond fan (and this comes to South Africa), then this is definitely for you.

The GoldenEye 007: Reloaded Double O Edition comes with:

• The Game GoldenEye 007
• A PlayStation Move Controller
• A Navigational Controller
• A PlayStation Eye Camera
• A Sharp Shooter Peripheral (Move Gun)

…but wait, there’s more! (said in the generic salesman’s voice)

The PS3 version also includes an exclusive downloadable character

Who you might ask?

The Answer:

HUGO DRAX

The notorious villain from the 1979 film Moonraker. (The one with the space shuttles in it)

He will be playable in split-screen and online Classic Conflict multiplayer modes while wielding his…

Moonraker Laser Pistol.

“Working closely with Sony, we’ve created a great bundle that arms fans with all the vital secret agent equipment right off the shelf,” said David Oxford, Executive Vice President at Activision Publishing. “We can’t wait for gamers to pick up the PlayStation Move and Sharp Shooter to experience a James Bond video game like never before.”

This still to be priced bundle releases on the 1st of November 2011. News regarding a South African release was/is still unclear at the time of going to press. (we will let you know as soon as possible)

Since the PS Vita was first announced there has been much speculation regarding the specifications of the handheld that Sony originally claimed had the same power as the Ps3 — these rumours have been killed off, though. Then, there were reports claiming that the RAM had been scaled down from 512MB to 256MB, as well as reports stating that features had been dropped to keep the Vita affordable.

From the sheer volume of speculation and news above, you can see that no one was 100% certain regarding the  Vita’s specifications.

However, as the PS Vita nears its release date MCV has made the specs available.

The PS Vita will be able to run for approximately five hours if you’re just watching video and will be able offer about nine hours of music playback when in stand-by mode. But,  according to Andriasang, the 3-5 hour figure is with the Bluetooth and Wi-Fi turned off. It isn’t actually that bad, considering an iPhone can only last 50 minutes playing a 3D game.

Once the battery is completely dried up, it will take 2 hours and 40 minutes to charge.

Here is the full list of specifications:

• Model number: PCH-1000 series
• CPU: ARM Cortex-A9 core (4 core)
• GPU: SGX543MP4+
• Main memory: 512MB
• VRAM: 128MB
• External Dimensions: Approx. 182.0 x 18.6 x 83.5mm (width x height x
  depth) (tentative, excludes largest projection)
• Weight Approx: 279g (3G/Wi-Fi model), 260g (Wi-Fi model)
• Screen: 5 inches (16:9), 960 x 544, Approx. 16 million colors, OLED, Multi touch screen (capacitive type)
• Rear touch pad: Multi touch pad (capacitive type)
• Cameras: Front camera, Rear camera; Frame rate: 120fps@320×240(QVGA), 60fps@640×480(VGA); Resolution: Up to 640×480(VGA)
• Sound: Built-in stereo speakers, built-in microphone
• Sensors: Six-axis motion sensing system (three-axis gyroscope, three-axis accelerometer), Threeaxis electronic compass
• Location: Built-in GPS (3G/Wi-Fi model only), Wi-Fi location service support
• Keys/Switches: PS button, power button, directional buttons (Up/Down/Right/Left), action buttons (Triangle, Circle, Cross, Square), shoulder buttons (Right/Left), right stick, left stick, START button, SELECT button, volume buttons (+/-)
• Wireless communications: Mobile network connectivity (3G/Wi-Fi model only), 3G modem (data communication): HSDPA/HSUPA *specification for Japanese region, IEEE 802.11b/g/n (n = 1×1)(Wi-Fi) (Infrastructure mode/Ad-hoc mode), Bluetooth 2.1+EDR ?A2DP/AVRCP/HSP?
• Slots/Ports: PlayStationVita card slot, memory card slot, SIM card slot (3G/Wi-Fi model only), multi-use port (for USB data communication, DC IN, Audio [Stereo Out / Mono In], Serial data communication), headset jack (Stereo mini jack) (for Audio [Stereo Out / Mono In]), accessory port
• Power: Built-In Lithium-ion Battery: DC3.7V 2200mA, AC adaptor: DC 5V
• Operating environment temperature: 5??35?
• Supported AV content format: Music – MP3 MPEG-1/2 Audio Layer 3, MP4 (MPEG-4 AAC), WAVE (Linear PCM). Videos – MPEG-4 Simple Profile (AAC), H.264/MPEG-4 AVC High/Main/Baseline Profile (AAC). Photos – JPEG (Exif 2.2.1), TIFF, BMP, GIF, PNG

You think you love the Fallout series? Well I don’t. If you do, and think that you are the ultimate fan, then you just got pwnd by this guy who made a working Pip-Boy 3000.

It all looks pretty amazing at first, but the bathos is that it can’t actually be worn. Hopefully he will work on slimming it all down so that it can be worn, because it is pretty cool.

“A most intriguing title good chap” is what most of you are saying right now. However, the story behind the title is even better, and it’ll result in the ultimate troll being formed.

Enter, and be amazed at, the colourful people at an amazingly named place in the world of America. This story sees a Cumming mom form part of the most subtly harmful anti-used game propaganda, ever.

The story goes as follows: A mother of two small children, from Georgia, has promised to only buy new games until the end of time, after she found a “hand-drawn pornographic picture” inserted in the case of a used game bought at GameStop. While that’s all good and well, an over-sensitive United States blew the story out of proportion when the game was bought in a town called “Cumming”. Title makes sense now, doesn’t it?

In Cumming, WSB-TV did a live report where they spoke to distressed mother Traci Turner (of Cumming, Ga.), who bought a used copy of Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games at the Cumming GameStop. When her son opened the case he discover a phallus drawn on the inside cover. Outrageous. Reports also indicate that his life was forever changed. Not.

Normally this type of case is investigated by the Seinfeld Library Detective, but WSB opted to send its Senior Dick Reporter to the Cumming GameStop to rub them up them for some answers to this incredibly difficult-to-figure-out controversy. The Cumming GameStop said that they’re sorry. Twice.

However, the Cumming mom says, “sorry’s not good enough!” Instead, she would rather “spend a few more dollars so she can avoid this happening again!”

Screw online passes EA, Activision, Sony, etc. Cumming has just created the ultimate anti-used games troll.

It was inevitable. Especially after Star Wars one was announced

Microsoft has unveiled the Modern Warfare 3 edition Xbox 360.

The 320GB console will come bundled with two custom wireless controllers, a headset, a copy of Modern Warfare 3 and custom sounds for when the console is turned on. In addition, a one month subscription to Xbox Live Gold is also included, as well as exclusive avatar items.

Here’s Microsoft’s Major Nelson trying to make it look awesome:

Expect it around Modern Warfare 3′s release date on the 8th of November 2011. Currently this is not listed on any local trade sites, so the price is still unclear, however previous rumours have noted that it will make its way to South Africa.

No more flashy trailers, no more bull, no more generic patriotism, or save the world crap. Just some gameplay, and multiplayer gameplay at that.

Activision has released an official multiplayer gameplay trailer as well as screenshots. Following the release of the trailer, exactly three tonnes of details have been released. Move your eyes a few spaces down, and have a look. There’s a lot, and we’re totally cool if you’re not interested in reading it.

But, we do suggest that you scroll to the bottom and read the last point. It’ll definitely excite you. It’s something we all want: it starts with a D and ends with SERVERS.

For those that are ‘TL;DR” there is an interview where you can get some of the information listed in painstaking detail below.

The Details:

ALL-NEW STRIKE PACKAGES: Killstreaks have been redesigned to reward different play styles and skill levels through unique Strike Packages. Completing game mode objectives now counts towards your Pointstreak progression. For the first time ever, kills are not the only way to earn Pointstreaks. This also allows Pointstreaks to cater to more unique play-styles:

Assault Strike Package – Pointstreaks within this package chain and are designed for more direct damage (Predator, helicopter, etc), just like in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2. Your streak resets on death.
Support Strike Package – Pointstreaks within this package do not chain. However, streaks do not reset on death. Streaks are more support oriented (UAV, Counter UAV, SAM turret, etc)
Specialist Strike Package – Pointstreaks designed for the expert players. Rewards come in the form of additional perks. A player activates additional Perks as they progress in a Pointsreak. These perks last until death.

Strike Packages include (not limited to):

Assault:
Streak count resets on death
5 kills: I.M.S.
9 kills: Strafe Run
9 kills: AH-6 Overwatch
10 kills: Assault Drone
15 kills: Juggernaut

Support:
Streak count does not reset on death
5 kills: Ballistic Vest
5 kills: Airdrop Trap
10 kills: Recon Drone
14 kills: Stealth Bomber
18 kills: Juggernaut Recon

Specialist:
Unlock one additional Perk at 2, 4, and 6 kill intervals for up to 3 additional Perks beyond the 3 Perks each player already has assigned to their custom load out at the beginning of a match

Death Streaks make their return in Modern Warfare 3 and include (but not limited to):

4 – Juiced (run faster)
5 – Revenge (last person to kill you is visible on radar)
5 – Hollow Points (increased bullet damage for 1 kill)
6 – Dead Man’s Hand (player falls into last stand with C4)

NEW WEAPON PROGRESSIVE RANKING SYSTEM: MW3 evolves your gun progression
Modern Warfare 3 features more than 40 of the most high-speed weapons that are either in-use or being field-tested by special forces:
Primary: Assault: SMG, LMG, Sniper Rifles, Shotguns and Riot Shield
Secondary: Machine Pistols, Handguns and Launchers
New weapon progression is designed to improve specific weapon leveling unlocks (attachments, reticules, and camos) and Weapon Proficiencies
Weapon Proficiency allows players to specialize their weapons with new attributes (some unique to weapon classes)

Proficiencies (not a comprehensive list):
Kick – Reduced recoil when firing
Attachments – Two attachments on Primary weapon
Focus – Reduced flinch when hit
Stability – Reduced sway when ADS

Attachments (not a comprehensive list):
Red Dot Sight
Silencer
Holographic sight
Dual Scope (Close Range/Long Range Optics)

NEW PERKS
Recon – Explosive damage paints the target on the mini map
Blind Eye – Undetectable by air support/sentries
Assassin – Undetectable by UAV, portable radar, thermal, heartbeat
Quickdraw – Faster aiming
Stalker – Move faster while aiming
Marksman – Identify targets at longer range

NEW GAME MODES
Fan favorite game modes make their return (Free-for-All, Team Death, Match, Domination, etc.), and a series of new modes make their introduction to the Modern Warfare series:
Kill Confirmed – Collect dog tags from killed players. Prevent the other team from collecting yours
Team Defender – Grab the flag and protect the flag carrier to increase your team’s score

NEW GAME MODES FOR PRIVATE MATCH
Infection – The infected kills enemies to recruit them for the infected team.
Drop Zone – Hold the Drop Zone for Team Points and Care Packages.
Team Juggernaut – With the support of a juggernaut, kill players on the opposing team. The first team to reach the score limit wins.
Juggernaut – Kill the Juggernaut to become the new Juggernaut
Gun Game – Be the first to dominate with every gun
One in the Chamber – Gain ammo by eliminating enemies. Be the last to survive.

CUSTOMIZABLE GAME MODES FOR PRIVATE MATCH
Private matches have been significantly enhanced to allow players to create new, customizable game modes in addition to the new modes for private matches (listed above) and share newly created games modes with friends.
Through ELITE, subscribers can vote on favourite new modes and those modes could make their way into public playlists.

MULTIPLAYER MAPS: 16 Maps – including the maps shown at Call of Duty XP:
Resistance
Dome
Underground
Village
Arkaden

DEDICATED SERVERS:
Modern Warfare 3 will support dedicated servers on Day 1. Players will be able to: browse, filter, favorite, and join Call of Duty: MW3 dedicated servers of their choice
Players will be able to setup their own server and administer their MW3 dedicated servers with direct control over features such as game rules, setup and ban lists.

SPECIAL OPS (CO-OPERATIVE GAMEPLAY):
Having made its introduction in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2, Special Ops makes its return in Modern Warfare 3 with a bevy of additions that innovate as a stand-alone mode, but also serves as an effective springboard into multiplayer action.

Survival Mode: – Making its first appearance in MW3, Survival Mode is the New Special Ops mode in which players face wave upon wave of attacking enemies. Acquaint yourself with all 16 MP maps by playing through them on Survival Mode – a great way for players to prepare for online multiplayer.
Mission Mode: Mission Mode makes its return, allowing players to team up with a friend locally or online for 16 new time-trial and objective-based missions.
Ranking/Progression System: An independent rank progression system within the Special Ops based on the rank progression players encounter in multiplayer.

The Important Bit:

DEDICATED SERVERS:
Modern Warfare 3 will support dedicated servers on Day 1. Players will be able to: browse, filter, favorite, and join Call of Duty: MW3 dedicated servers of their choice
Players will be able to setup their own server and administer their MW3 dedicated servers with direct control over features such as game rules, setup and ban lists.

Deep Silver has done exactly what you would expect from reading the title. They have released the Dead Island Launch Trailer.

The trailer above features both action sequences and cutscenes from the game.

Dead Island is out on September the 6th in the US and September the 9th in the UK for PC, PS3, and Xbox 360.

We can expect to get it on the 9th.

At E3 2011 Halo 4 made is debut with the above trailer.

Well since then details have still been scarce, but speaking at the Penny Arcade Expo this week end Frank O’Connor did reveal that after Halo 4 there will be a Halo 5 and 6 because Halo 4 is the first part of the Reclaimer Trilogy.

“This trilogy is a direct continuation to the events in Halo 3. It will deal with the fate of John and the fate of Cortana.”

For those of us who don’t know (the majority) as CVG put’s it:

A ‘Reclaimer’, according to sites that love Halo more than life, is someone who’s in charge of activating a Halo super-weapon. Speculate over that if you will.

O’Connor also promised that players are “definitely going to have the opportunity to dive deeper into John’s (Master Chief’s) mind in this trilogy,” hinting at a heavier focus on narrative this time around.

There are 3 videos below. The first is a developer dairy in which Halo 4′s executive producer (who has a kick ass name), Kiki Wolfkill says that “one of the most exciting parts of Halo 4 is really this team that we’ve brought together”.

Despite the departure of Bungie, Wolfkill adds: “It’s a team that brings a lot of talent and a lot of past accomplishments and I think we all came together and we were so excited about things that we set out do, it’s been a challenge to not be able to talk about it.”

The second is the video containing the Halo 4 concept art.

…and finally the third introduces us to the development team going outside to record ‘explosions.’

Over the past few years we haven’t heard much about our PlayStation 2 legend, badass guy, Max Payne, except the occasional info that leaks through the cracks at Rockstar.

The only news we heard was that he was in Brazil in the sunlight and then he got delayed a few times.

Then Rockstar “sort of released” some screenshots and then released ten more.

Now Rockstar has officially released an amazing 2 screenshots!

Rockstar says that it’ll begin dishing out more news on the game, being made by its Vancouver studio, in the “next few months.”

Yeah we too are loving the decision to give him his hair back. In the early screens he was bald.

Remember we posted articles on both rounds of the official FemShep voting?

After Round one everybody agreed that Rebecca Black shouldn’t be the new FemShep and decided to vote the blond in, but were unhappy with here hair colour.

Then we had Round 2, which had us choose between the same stock FemShep that won round 1, but with different hair colours. That was an answer to our prayers.

Well your winner is to the right (and below).

Salute Commander Shepard! (even though she looks 16)

Bioware’s new concept artist, Patryk Olejniczak, has already made a wallpaper of the FemShep winner “just for you.”

Sigh…I must admit I preferred the light brown/red headed FemShep. Many a flame war may begin (please don’t start one here CaViE – Dean), riots may start, cities will fall, planets will be destroyed and some might actually even be upset.

However…

Thing is, we can make our own FemShep in-game so this doesn’t really matter. For those who can’t stand to have thier box art tainted with the new FemShep, guess what?

It wont be. She will only feature on the collectors edition.

Personally I just realised I don’t care because I have no problem with her and use the male Shepard anyway. Besides we don’t find her bad. (CaViE excluded, but we don’t care what he thinks)

Please feel free to RAGE disagree or agree with the newly elected FemShep in the comments below.

…and it looks likely to miss Christmas.

OMX UK reports that the title, previously listed for release in “holiday 2011,” has now been pushed back by MS in order to achieve its “full potential.”

“Microsoft and LucasArts have elected to move the launch of Kinect Star Wars beyond holiday 2011 to ensure the full potential of this title is realized,” a spokesperson told us.

“This move applies to both the Kinect Star Wars stand-alone game and the Kinect Star Wars Limited Edition Console. We will communicate additional timing information at a later date.”

It is uncertain when the new release date will be announced.However we can clearly say a 2011 release date is out of the picture (duh). A 2012 release date is looking very likely, however when in 2012? Stay tuned to find out in coming months.

For the first time ever Bioware is to feature FemShep on the Mass Effects Box art. (technically)
Now it seemed as if the default FemShep would not suffice and that a new official FemShep would be chosen for Mass Effect 3. Bioware let us (the fans) vote for the FemShep we liked on Facebook by liking the picture of the protagonist we desired to be the official FemShep.

The majority of us thought the blond FemShep was awesome due to her hairstyle, but we didn’t like the colour of her hair. We wanted to see her with black or red hair. Well, it seems Boware actually listens to their fans because now we can vote for that exact FemShep, but with different hair colours. Here are the contestants. Go and vote for the one you like by liking their picture on Facebook and let us know in the comments below.

The Blond:

The Red Head:

The One With Dark Hair:

The Dirty Blond/ Light Brown/ Light Red Head:

Vote here! Go go go go go go!

Personally I must admit I am torn between the red head, the one with dark hair and te dirty blond/light brown/ light red head. The redhead is wing on facebook at the moment.

The Gamescom 2011 trailer for Ridge Racer Unbounded has been released by Namco Bandai and it resembles a ridge racer game not.

The video reveals that gamers will be able to ‘create’ cities to a certain extent, which brings about the possibilities of editing and destroying them. However it is not clear in the trailer.

What do you think? Drop us a comment below.

Ashraf Haziq is a Malaysian student that was injured during the anarchy in London recently. He was helped to his feet and then  got mugged and ended up having his PSP stolen. The whole incident was caught on video.

The video above in which Haziq, 20, has goods taken from his backpack after being helped by youths has caused outcry. In the video Haziq has a broken jaw and was sitting at the side of the road bleeding.

Speaking on a site set up to “do something nice” for Haziq, SCEE marketing director Alan Duncan, said the firm would “like to give Ashraf a new PSP and games,” and asked to be put in touch with Haziq or the hospital at which he’s being treated.

A response has been made to Duncan, saying his details will be forthcoming.

“If we can find out how to get it to him we’ll replace the PSP,” added a SCE UK rep.

Namco Bandai has also told vg247 that they will send a package of games to Haziq in support of SCEE.

Haziq was caught up in widespread rioting in London on Monday night that was blamed on GTA and then not blamed on GTA. The riots are the worst disturbances of their kind in recent years, even a Sony distribution centre was burned down.

First of all before we get down to business here are some details on the upcoming Vita version of the spectacular ModNation Racers:

• All PS3 user creations will be available on day one for the vita.
• Create a track in only seconds by drawing it with your finger.
• With the power of the back touch you can raise terrain with a simple touch. Likewise the front touch screen allows you to lower terrain in a simple yet powerful manner.
• The fun of ModNation kart racing remains intact with the advantage of dual analogue sticks.

Now a post on the US PlayStation Blog has requested the public to name the upcoming PlayStation Vita version of ModNation Racers.

Now what do you think it should be called? Drop a comment on the US PlayStation Blog Post and also let us know in the comments down below.

I took most offence when I heard from a friend on Facebook that a Nandos was burnt down in London and I thought that would be the worst of it.

Then after reading that according to the London Evening Standard newspaper, the city’s continuing—and spreading—riots have  been inspired by Grand Theft Auto, I could only perform a face palm.

The paper originally carried the blurb: “Children as young as ten, inspired by video game, among the looters”, along with a ‘Lawless London’ headline.

However, the sub-head later switched to: “Children as young as ten hunted by Police”, with reference to Grand Theft Auto was also removed from the main story.

The change followed pressure from CVG’s WRONG campaign, as well as pressure from other games media and outraged fans on Twitter.

Both editions you can see above are marked ‘West End Final’. According to the source the Standard traditionally prints two evening editions: West End Final and Late Night Final.

MCV reports that some editions of the paper DO still carry the GTA headline and some do not. The only logical reason could be that a decision was made to change it after the first print run.

It is great to see that sense prevailed. Also it is good to see that the pressure from video game media and fans actually had an effect.

From the reports yesterday it is suggested that a single police officer made the GTA link. One officer. Only one.

The constable was quoted advising London citizens: “Go home, get a takeaway and watch anything that happens on TV… These are bad people who did this. Kids out of control. When I was young it was all Pacman and board games. Now they’re playing Grand Theft Auto and want to live it for themselves.”

Not a single other person or entity decided to support these claims. We really wonder why?

The WTF moment of June 2011 was when Activision CEO, Bobby Kotick, was spotted in a trailer for the upcoming Brad Pitt movie titled Moneyball.

Finally, we now know why Kotick is in the film and the reason is not surprising at all.

Kotick is friends with the films director, Bennett Miiler.

Speaking with Reuters, Kotick said it all started one night over supper when he was talking to Miller about directing a short film for the The Call Of Duty Endowment.

“We were having dinner and Bennett was talking about Moneyball and he asked me a little bit about an owner’s psychology and what an owner would be like,” he said. “I started reading the script and I said, ‘I really think the words don’t capture how an owner would react to this part of the conversation’. I also loved Michael Lewis’ book Moneyball.

“We were having this back and forth and Bennett said ‘why don’t you do it? It would make the role very authentic.’ And I said, ‘I will, but only if you made my Call of Duty endowment movie.’

“I don’t get a credit and you’ll never see me acting again.”

If you really must see it, then the video below contains Koticks part in the film.
Also if you really must see Moneyball (quite the appropriate title for Kotick to cameo in) it is out on the 23rd September 2011.

You definitely heard, or read, that award wining ex-porn star, Sash Grey, will be voicing Viola DeWynter, who along with her twin sister Kiki, are the masterminds behind the ‘Syndicate’s’ financial empire.

Sasha Grey

Read our preview here and enjoy the (rather large once you click on it 2475 × 3075 to be exact) poster below:

The PlayStation 3 exclusive, Twisted Metal, was set for an October 4th release date. However that has changed and Eat Sleep Play co-founder David Jaffe tells us why.

Writing on the PlayStation Blog, he said:

“A lot of dedicated, supportive, passionate Twisted Metal fans have been waiting for the return of Calypso’s demented contest for a long time but the truth is: we’re just not ready yet.

“It sucks bad when games miss their announced launch dates. We’re gamers too and we know how annoying it is. It’s disappointing and frustrating and it really takes the wind out of your sails if you’re a fan that has been looking forward to playing a title for a long time.

“Thing is, you gotta trust me when I tell you that – with this extra time for tuning and polish – the game is going to be so much better than it already is… There’s a great, classic industry saying by legendary Nintendo designer – and personal hero – Shigeru Miyamoto that goes a little something like this: ‘A late game is only late until it ships. A bad game is bad until the end of time.

“We plan to ship the best Twisted Metal ever made… Most importantly, we plan on treating you – the kind folks who play our game (and pay our bills) – like the VIPs that you are. You only deserve our best and we appreciate your understanding as we take a little more time to guarantee that our best is what we deliver.”

Well that line ‘A late game is only late until it ships. A bad game is bad until the end of time’ really hits home. We think it is a good move and are not complaining, but hope that the game will be perfect now that it is only releasing in 2012.

So whilst I was kicking in some extra hours at the eGamer office doing the odd jobs due to my leave of absence I finally got around to doing my articles for the day and (assuming it is Tuesday when you read this) I came across a video on Kotaku. Now it was a simple video. In the video Ellen McLain, the woman that does the voice of GlaDOS in Valve’s Portal series, and her Husband John Patrick Lowrie, who is the man behind Team Fortress 2′s Sniper and Half-Life 2′s Odessa Cubbage, were  performing the ending theme from Portal 2 titled “Want You Gone.” Now in the video Mr Lowrie demonstrated some epic banjo skills. Yep he played it on a Banjo.

So after being put in “the mood”, so to say, I decided to go to YouTube and watch “Still Alive”, “Want You Gone” and the turret song from Portal 2. Then I thought why don’t I be a nice person and share that experience with you good folks the readers and well, from there the feature was born.

Now because of this one video we now have a new monthly feature on eGamer. Yes, every month we will post the Musical Interlude feature that will feature Music from a memorable game or series. We hope you enjoy it.

Now if you haven’t played Portal or Portal 2 by now you must be living under some rock in the former Czechoslovakia. So if you do live under a rock in Czechoslovakia I advise you stop right here because they may be a few spoilers further on.

“Still Alive” The Portal Ending Theme And World Wide Hit

Now The Composer Himself Singing “Still Alive”

This is a video of the man, Jonathan Coulton, that composed both Portal ending themes singing the World Renowned Hit “Still Alive” whilst playing it on Acoustic like a real man. There are some lolz in it (Cake jokes obviously) and it actually sounds pretty good on acoustic with Jonathan Coulton doing the vocals.

Portal 2′s Turret Song

In Italian and a beautiful way to end the game, no? Skip to 1:28 to jump right into the song.

Here are the lyrics and a translation:

Italian

Cara bella, cara mia bella!
Mia bambina, o ciel! [pun: Chell = It. "Ciel" = Sky"]
Ché la stimo…
Ché la stimo.
O cara mia, addio!

La mia bambina cara,
perché non passi lontana?
Sì, lontana da Scïenza, [personified]
cara, cara mia bambina?
Ah, mia bella!
Ah, mia cara!
Ah, mia cara!
Ah, mia bambina!
O cara, cara mia…

English

Dear beautiful, my beautiful darling!
My child, oh Chell! [pun: "oh heavens!"]
For I hold her in esteem…
For I hold her in esteem.
Farewell to my dear!

My dear girl,
why do you not walk away?
Yes, away from Science,
my dear, my dear girl?
Ah, my beautiful!
Ah, my dear!
Ah, my dear!
Ah, my child!
Oh dear, my dear…

And Finally Portal 2′s Ending Theme “Want You Gone”

On that note we wrap up our first ever Musical Interlude feature. We hope you enjoyed it as much as we did composing it. Suggestions can be made for the next game’s music to be featured in the comments section below.
We really enjoyed doing this feature and think that it is a nice way to just take a break and relax. Also having it all in one place is nice as well. We look forward to seeing you next month. Take care.

The Inspiration for Article

Thank this video for inspiring us.

So you may have heard / read that there is a Driver gaming coming out in exactly one month. Yeah you probably heard that Driver: San Francisco is heading to PC, PS3 and Xbox 360, but do you care? Maybe this video will do something amazing and make you still not really care.
Criticism in comments below please.

I must say that it reminds me a lot of Need For Speed: Most Wanted and Burnout. Those at the office who have played BLUR say it is almost a carbon copy. I haven’t played BLUR so I cannot comment.

Maybe these will increase your interest:

We covered the story details in text. Now why not view the cinematic trailer.

While we are at it here is some gameplay footage.

Yeah the interface looks crappy with floating heads.

Driver: San Francisco will release on the 30th-6th September in the US and the 2nd of September in the UK. We can expect a release date in South Africa sometime around those dates, most probably the Friday closest to the UK release date.

Oh the horror!

It appears that the Xbox 360 version of the amazing RPG, The Witcher 2: Assassins of Kings — which was originally scheduled for release later this year (2011) — has now been delayed right into 2012.

The developers have said that the two reasons for the delay are:

1.) To give the team “more time expanding and polishing certain elements of the gameplay”.

2.) Namco Bandai is suing them.

I can hear you saying/thinking “but we haven’t heard of this lawsuit or read about this on eGamer?”

Truth is, you didn’t.

That’s why I shall enlighten you.

Namco Bandai is suing Optimus SA, the parent company of the maker of The Witcher 2: Assassins of Kings, over the rights to distribute that version of the game in Europe.

Namco is also suing CD Projekt RED for removing DRM from the PC version without permission.

That’s according to a report from Giant Bomb, who says Namco was surprised to learn that THQ had the distribution rights for the 360 Witcher 2 in Europe. Namco assumed its agreement with CD Projekt RED and parent company Optimus SA to publish the PC game there carried over to other versions.

The complaint involves European distribution only. As a consequence of the lawsuit, Namco Bandai is withholding roughly $1.75 million US in payments due CD Projekt.

So that is the old news which in effect caused the new news, being the delay of the console version till 2012.

Harrison Krix, aka Volpin, is an extremely talented craftsman. We will go as far as saying that he is a master craftsman.

He has done work regarding Portal and Fallout 3 before, but this mass effect N7 Rifle is really a thing of beauty. Appreciate the gallery below.

To truly appreciate this marvellous work of art and to learn how to make your own please visit Volpin’s website, where you can view the entire production process from start to finish. It really is amazing.

When Microsoft released the “slim” Xbox 360 it was all sleek, shiny and pretty, which made the huge white (well they were white) headset and media remote look like crappy toys. Now Microsoft has finally released a sleek and shiny headset and media remote to match your sleek and shiny 360.

Both these products will be available for purchase worldwide from the beginning of November 2011. The wireless headset will carrying an estimated retail price of $59.99 in the US and the remote $19.99. That is about R401 and R134 respectively.

Here is the official product description:

Xbox 360 Wireless Headset: Taking wireless communications to the next level with a sleek appearance that evokes the Xbox 360 console design, noise cancellation, and Bluetooth 3.0 technology.The device is compatible with Bluetooth devices such as mobile phones and PCs in addition to being able to connect to Xbox 360 through the console’s standard radio frequencies. Easily switch from Xbox to Bluetooth mode to answer calls with the flip of a switch. Blue and green LED rings of light visually show which mode the device is in. The device comes with three sizes of ear gels and an ear loop to ensure a comfortable fit during extended gaming periods. The device allows up to eight hours of talk time and up to 300 hours of standby on a single charge. When it’s time to charge up, the included micro USB charging cable connects quickly and easily to the Xbox 360 USB ports.

Xbox 360 Media Remote: With the new Xbox 360 Media Remote, enthusiasts can control their Xbox 360 Dashboard, DVD and CD playback, and media playback through Xbox Live. The Xbox 360 Media Remote also controls volume and power on many popular brands of TVs. Great for Xbox Live applications like Netflix, Hulu Plus, and ESPN, the remote is comfortably and intuitively designed so that the entire family can enjoy. The Xbox 360 Media Remote features a high-polish top case and rubberized keys with solid, key-press feedback. The Xbox 360 Media Remote also includes 2 AAA batteries.

Dead Rising 2: Off The Record is the game that is a remake of Dead Rising 2, which retells the story from the perspective of Frank West, the hero of the original game.

To refresh your memory here.

Now the box art is here, yes here in this very article. You can probably see it already, however I am just letting you know that this is in fact the box art you came here to see. Amazingly the PS3 box art is exactly the same as the 360 box art.

Dead Rising 2: Off The Record will be out the 11th of October for PS3, Xbox 360 and PC.

This is the debut trailer for the Silent Hill HD Collection that was announced by Konami at E3 last month.

This is off-screen footage from Comic-Con, but it can be see clearly an the audio isn’t bad. Konami will probably make this trailer readily available soon enough. They did, however, release two screens which can be seen below.

The Silent Hill HD Collection will include Silent Hill 2 and 3 with trophy support and redone voice work. It will be out later this year exclusively for PlayStation 3.

So this past weekend saw the largest comic book and popular arts convention in the world, better known as Comic-Con, take place in San Diego.

At comic-con there are usually, but not limited to, comics( obviously), video games and video game news (otherwise we wouldn’t post on it), Hideo Kojima, Japanese people, Americans, fast food, etc.

However the soul reason for this article and why some attend Comic-Con is to see the cosplay girls and booth babes respectable working women of society and the industry.
Whoever thought of adding these respectable women of society and the industry to these events must surely be rolling in the profit by now.

The 2 videos below bring you the booth babes and cosplay girls the respectable working  women of society at Comic-con 2011. Enjoy.
Also, the guy/presenter/host in the video is super entertaining.

Usually the Male Commander Shepard is given all the box art glory, but it seems now that FemShep will too bask in that light with the upcoming Mass Effect 3.

Well on the cover of the collector edition anyway.

However what will she look like? That;s where you, yes you, come in to the equation.

BioWare is letting the Mass Effect fans pick from one of six female Commander Shepard options (as long as they have a Facebook account) where a vote will determine what she will officially look like in-game and presumably on the special edition’s box art. All six look like fans of eyeliner and all 6 don’t really look like the previous default FemShep.

“…and the contestants are!”

Number 1:

Number 2:

Number 3:

Number 4:

Number 5:

Number 6:

Which one do you like? Drop a comment below and like the picture of your favourite FemShep on the Mass Effect Facebook page because that’s how you vote. Even if your favourite FemShep doesn’t make it to become Mass Effect’s next official FemShep, then she will probably be a pre-set from which you can choose.

Personally I want to see number 5, but with red or black hair. Number 6 looks like Rebecca Black before she takes revenge on everyone who disliked ‘Friday’ on YouTube.

We know that there hasn’t been a decent rugby game out in ages. Therefore many of us are putting all our hopes on this 505 Title.
We showed you the first screens and press release and you read about the demo. Now we give you the first trailer.

Rugby World Cup 2011 will launch on the 26th of August 2011.

After Saturday this might be the only way to actually to see the Springboks win. How sad.

Warning: The top section of this article will read very much like a column. You have been warned. Also all non-native MGS gamers or interested people should read this.

I think I’m starting to see why all PS3 consoles except the 60GB are not backward compatible. It is so that developers can profit on HD remasters. Also the video above always reminds me why I love this series.

However I own a 60GB PS3 and I must say that when playing on an HD monitor or even an HDTV, PS2 games are sometimes unplayable graphically, due to some extreme stretching, or you have to use a smaller portion of the screen leaving you with a sea of darkness encompassing the majority of your oh-so-expensive and high quality screen. You might as well connect your PS3 to an old cardboard box type TV.

Strangely I played the original Metal Gear Solid on my 60GB and it looked fine (0bviously it was for the PS1 so graphics were PS1-ish, but still there was no stretch and this was on a 42″ screen.)

Now In my humble personal opinion I think these HD remakes are necessary, because I tried playing the all time classic Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater, but I just couldn’t, I really just couldn’t…

Also those who own PS3 consoles that lack backward compatibility would benefit from these HD remakes.

Forgive me I haven’t posted for a while due to a severe case of laziness and writer’s block and I just realised how much I miss this work. Now to the topic at hand.

Before E3 on the 2nd of June, 2011, Kojima Productions announced the Metal Gear Solid HD Collection, which would feature:

Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty

Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater

Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker

Yes that means that Peace Walker will be on console with dual analogue support.

Here is a video of Peace Walker gameplay on the PS3:

You may have noticed the original MGS is missing. This is because Metal Gear creator Hideo Kojima said that he will not just merely remaster the game in HD, because he would want to take more time with it and because it is very old. This is what he had to say:

“Obviously, we wanted to include it and make it a complete collection. However, as you know, Metal Gear Solid 1 was for the PSone. It has a very, very low polygon count,” says Kojima Productions’ creative producer.

“While at the time the game was something new and refreshing, just bringing it as is into HD probably wouldn’t have that much meaning to us. We’re doing two and three with a certain work flow where the goal is to take that game, preserve it and introduce it to a new generation. We can’t really take that approach with Metal Gear Solid 1 because it’s very dated at this point.”

“If we were going to do Metal Gear Solid 1 we’d want to take more time with it. Not just up-res the textures, not just make things look pretty and polished, but go back and tweak some of the gameplay, tweak the story to update things and do it properly. Not just a re-master but a re-imagining almost.

“We do want to do that sometime down the road but it will take more time. It’s not something we’re looking at doing right now.”

Personally I think he should just leave MGS 1 alone. It, as he said, is a classic that should be preserved as is for future generations. Try playing it even now with shitty graphics and all and MGS 1 still delivers. It really does.

For all of those wondering why the MGS remake Metal Gear Solid: The Twin Snakes isn’t going to be included? Well lets just say Nintendo owns the licenses.

The HD remastering will be done by Bluepoint Games, which is the same company that brought us the God of War Collection. Since then they have become quite a renowned studio in terms of HD conversions.

On July 15th 2011, on Twitter, Kojima said:

“Re-recording for “MGS HD (MGS3)” in progress today, and the voice actors from MGS are here from the morning”

There might be some new voice work, but as of now it is only confirmed for the Japanese version of Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake eater. News on new voice work for the Western versions has not surfaced yet.

The Metal Gear Solid HD collection will be out in November 2011. If you enjoyed the Metal Gear Series on older consoles then this will definitely be worth it.

Here is the official overview:

Accept the mission and play three great chapters in the Metal Gear franchise with the Metal Gear Solid HD Collection. Included are Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty, Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater and Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker. All three games are rendered in high-definition for the first time!

MGS 2: Players take the role of a one-man army determined to stop a deadly high-tech weapon from falling into the hands of a highly elite resistance group known as Dead Cell. Players must utilize their skills in stealth, weaponry, and counter-terrorism to fight off the competing powers. Progress through a twisting storyline and eventually face the gigantic war machine, Metal Gear Ray.

MGS 3: In the struggle to achieve world peace and world dominance in the Cold War period, rivalling governments are secretly developing weapons technology that could threaten the future existence of life. Destined to be the first, a race ensues to become the ultimate nation. A special elite tactical soldier is summoned to penetrate deep in the heart of enemy territory and obtain Intel about “Metal Gear”, a prototype weapon with nuclear capabilities. This is your mission and you must infiltrate alone. As “Naked Snake,” you must outsmart enemies with camouflage, close-quarters combat, stalking, interrogating, climbing, hunting and treating injuries in this critical chapter of the Metal Gear saga.

MGS Peace Walker: The era is the 1970s. Big Boss has stations his “Soldiers without Borders” in Columbia, South America, where he was approached by a visitor from Costa Rica, “a Nation without a Military.) In the wake of the Cuban Missile Crisis, a mysterious armed force seemed to be engaging in suspicious activities. Players take control of the famed Naked Snake at a critical junction in modern history. Advanced co-operative techniques allows multiple players to sneak into the fray and accomplish this mission together.

Destructoid has a great comparison gallery and where you can compare the PS2 and PSP screens with what they look like on PS3. For Xbox 360, just imagine they will be similar for sanity’s sake. Jump to the gallery right here. I really can’t wait to play Peace Walker on PS3 and feel nostalgic whilst playing MGS2 and MGS3. I wish Kojima would do a next gen remake of the original Metal Gear and Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake.

Amber McCollom, the Director of Entertainment and Trend Marketing for Nintendo of America, has said some GameCube titles will be playable on Wii U thanks to WiiWare.

This information comes from an interview McCollom had with Nintendo Gal.

“You know it’s interesting that you bring up backwards compatibility and Nintendo’s history usually goes back one system.”

“The Wii was compatible with GameCube and Wii U will be compatible with Wii and that’s pretty traditional in launches from Nintendo.”

“GameCube discs will not be compatible with Wii U, but a number of the games that were playable on GameCube can be downloaded from WiiWare.”

Now as a result of the above statement some confusion may arise because usually, games already released are re-released through Virtual Console, as WiiWare is usually reserved for original downloads.

So, either McCollom actually meant Virtual Console instead of WiiWare, or something extra is coming with Wii U – no one knows yet.

Nintendo is being contacted to provide some clarity on the matter.

Now look at that Cavie. An entire article without a single F-bomb. See, it is possible.

Iain McCaig, Respawn Entertainment’s concept artist, has said at a developer conference that the studio’s first game wont release until 2015. Yes you read that and the title correctly: 2015!

He made the announcement in a keynote speech at the event in Brighton.

“Thanks to the internet, you can take things and use them as you want, no matter what the law says about it. I think this means there will be a whole new way of using and sharing things.”

“I’m having the most fun working with Respawn Entertainment right now, and I hate that I can’t show you guys what I’m doing there until 2015.”

This comes just as they move into their new studio and teased a blurred image of the game they are developing on their newly launched website.

Respawn was founded by ex-Infinity Ward bosses Vince Zampella and Jason West after they were fired by Activision. The developer’s first game will be published by EA.

The Wii which is one of the best selling console on the market can do many things, but sometimes their are people in this world that wish more of their consoles. In this case the wish is to play pirated games.

Two men were recently arrested in Fukuoka, for violating Japanese trademark law and apparently selling modded Wiis.

According to Fukuoka police, between November 2009 and last month, 32-year-old Tomonori Sato and his 28-year-old brother apparently sold 500 modded Wiis for ¥15 million or US$190,000, which works out to about R 1 323 545. DAMN!

The police arrested them buying three modded Wiis for ¥90,000 or US$1,100—meaning that each modded Wii sold for R2 647. 55.

In Japan altering the internal programming violates Japanese copyright law, something that Japanese police do not fuck around with.

However as interesting as this article may be the comments left on source site, Kotaku, definitely  deserve a place here:

Michael Dukakis

Tue 19 Jul 2011 3:22 AM

They must have thought their chances of being caught were wiimote…

Ludikhris @Michael Dukakis

You win. Please collect your prize on the way out =P

promoted by Nava707

Black Knight Rebel @Michael Dukakis

Where have you been?

Inzoum @Michael Dukakis

That pun was kind of Wiik

Michael Dukakis @Inzoum

Wiigrettable even…

OneColdMonkey @Michael Dukakis

You think you’re wiily cute, don’t you.

promoted by miyagiCE

MiSoVeRuNdErEsTiMaTe… @Michael Dukakis

You sir have my utmost wiispect.

promoted by miyagiCE

bunksauce @Michael Dukakis

Bad puns make me wiip

promoted by miyagiCE

MazokuRanma @Michael Dukakis

This is getting Wiidiculous…

Almost makes you want to give up life, no? Still made me lol though.

Zynga, the developers of major Facebook games such as FarmVille and CityVille, has found itself in court accused of not just ripping off another company’s idea (Zuckerberg stlye) , but literally stealing the code for it.

SocialApps, the developer who has lodges the claim, says that it entered into an agreement with Zynga in 2009 to develop a farming game, based on its existing Facebook game myFarm.

SocialApps claim that they entered into a Letter of Agreement through which Zynga would get their hands on myFarm‘s source code, however it is claimed that as soon as Zynga received the code they cut off all communication with SocialApps. Then a few months later and viola  FarmVille was released, SocialApps are  accusing Zynga of using their code for the smash hit (and life killer of the masses [WoW is life killer of the gamers])  game and neither crediting them or paying them for their troubles.

Well considering some of the large sums we have seen asked for in other court cases involving gaming; SocialApps are wanting a modest  $100 000 in damages.

More importantly, though, it’s also after a cut of Zynga’s profits, believing every cent the company has made off FarmVille was down to myFarm’s code. To add peri-peri to the chicken and for good measure, it’s also alleged that the same code is used in other Zynga titles like FrontierVille, CityVille and FishVille.

We have to say it did take SocialApps a long time to take action. We will have to wait for more news.

Yes it’s times like these that make the Indian me very, very happy. We love free things or getting more than what we paid for.Usually we keep these things to ourself and profit, but since I don’t own an Xbox 360 (yet) I feel it is my duty to inform you all of this great opportunity. So it does pay off to be an early bird.

It is great not because of the content, but for the same price you get more than what you would get if you buy it off the shelf.
The remake of Halo titled Halo: Combat Evolved Anniversary is coming out on Xbox 360 on the 15th of November 2011.

Pre-order the remake from ‘selected retailers’ (which are yet to be named) and you’ll receive (in Microsoft’s words):

Master Chief Avatar Armour – Heroes never die, and to honour the 10th Anniversary of John 117, you will finally be able to transform your Xbox LIVE Avatar into the iconic hero by outfitting it with Master Chief’s signature MJOLNIR Powered Assault Armour.

Teh Avatar

“Grunt Funeral” Skull – An exclusive, game-modifying skull that changes the rules of the game for an explosively humorous experience, “Grunt Funeral” sends “Halo’s” most lowly and lovable enemy out in a blaze of glory. And plasma. And then more glory. Once the skull has been activated, every grunt’s methane tank will explode like a plasma grenade when killed. Watch out for the grunt chain reaction!

So the word is that no one can find these selected retailers. Maybe in a few days time if we check online the deal will be up. Xbox and Halo fans you better Pre-Order. That’s a suggestion, not an order!

Lead multiplayer designer Lars Gustavsson confirmed that the earthquakes seen in some of the impressive single player demo’s and in the video above are “technically possible” in Battlefield 3 multiplayer games.

In an interview with PSM3 magazine he said:

“We’re still looking into ambient destruction in multiplayer; it’s still too early to say really.”

“It’s technically possible to have earthquakes in multi-player using Frostbite 2. We feel like kids walking into sweet shops with Frostbite – it has so many features we never knew we needed, and we’re still figuring out how best to use them.

“It’s just the start for this engine. So far, the only limit to the things we can do with it are our own creative restraints.”

It is no secret that the Swedish developer wants to stick to the series fundamentals for Battlefield 3, saying it [DICE] has “no urge to innovate for the sake of innovation.”

He also addressed the issue that some fans might be concerned by the decision that DICE made to combine the Medic and Assault classes. Gustavsson argues it’s the right move:

“Our main thinking with the medic class is that we want more people in the game, playing, than sat in the spawn menu.”

“So, the more chances we give team mates to help with things like revives, the better.”

“We constantly evaluate where people are on the battlefield – and as we saw it in Bad Company 2, Medics were rarely equipped to be on the real frontline. It was the Assault class that people took to the front, so it seemed natural to combine the two.”

CD Projekt RED the team behind The Witcher 2: Assassins of Kings, which is an amazing game that makes Dragon Age 2 look even crappier than it actually is and that can be compared to Crysis in terms of graphics, said during their Spring Conference that they would announced the first person to send them save files with all 16 endings and that, that person would receive a special gift.

Guess what? It has happened.

A gamer from the Philippines known as Guipit has done it.

Let’s all give a round of applause to Guipit who is officially the first player in the world to see all 16 endings The Witcher 2.

As CD Projekt RED  promised, Guipit will be receiving a very unique, one-of-a-kind t-shirt as a reward for this impressive achievement.

CD Projekt RED had this to say:

Congratulations on your hard work and determination to pull it off. Kudos from the whole RED Team. All hail Guipit!

Them Asians are dedicated we have to acknowledge that.

See all 16 ending and all I get is a lousy T-shirt? Makes me lol. Well the T-Shirt was free so that makes it awesome in a way. Anyway here is the only image of the T-shirt. No bragging pictures from Guipit are out yet:

After about a year of silence we finally hear some news regarding the Mass Effect movie.

Gamefront reports that the production company behind Batman Begins, The Dark Knight, Where the Wild Things Are, and a number of other great movies, Legendary Pictures, has released their schedule for Comic Con.

On the schedule a Mass Effect: The Movie panel is scheduled for July 22, featuring scriptwriter Mark Protosevich and BioWare’s Casey Hudson.

Hudson, along with BioWare founders Ray Muzyka and Greg Zeschuk, will serve as executive producers on the project.

A Mass Effect: The Movie panel is scheduled for July 22, featuring scriptwriter Mark Protosevich and BioWare’s Casey Hudson.

Hudson, along with BioWare founders Ray Muzyka and Greg Zeschuk, serve as executive producers on the project.

The movie deal between EA and Legendary was announced  last year, but we haven’t heard much about it since then. Comic Con looks likely to be our first opportunity to get some real details regarding the movie. Hopefully a director will be revealed.

The San Diego Comic Con runs from July 21 to 24.

Ahans76, a PlayStation collector, infact he is THE PlayStation collector because he has done what no other PlayStation Collector has done before. He claims to now be in possession of every single North American PS2 game ever released.

He started when he aquired his PlayStation 2 On launch day back in 2000. He began his collection with Ridge Racer 5. In the beginning, it was more of a hobby and he never intending to get every game, but once he hit 400 and discovered he was halfway there, he decided to go all out.

If you’re wondering about the specifics of the collection, they are as follows:

• Every game is new and sealed.
• Every game is a first release. The only Platinum titles he has are those with extra content not found in the original release.
• He only claims to have every NTSC game from North America, so anything released only in Japan or PAL markets, he doesn’t have.

Here are some pictures. For the full interview (which is very long, but quite interesting) go here :

Where he got all the money to buy all these games? Well, we will never know.

Yesterday we brought you the rumour of Sony introducing a PSN Pass.

Well it turns out that those rumours are true.

Sony has confirmed that it will introduce a ‘PSN Pass’ system that gives new game buyers a single-use code for access to the game’s online components. The system is similar to the likes of the initiatives that EA and THQ games have already implemented.

Here is the full statement:

“We are always evaluating new programs for our online offering, and starting with Resistance 3 this September, we will be instituting a network pass program for PS3 games with online capabilities.

“This program will be game-specific. Games that are a part of this program will include a single-use registration code that grants the account holder redeeming the code full online access for that title.

“This is an important initiative as it allows us to accelerate our commitment to enhancing premium online services across our first party game portfolio.”

Again, this will be similar to EA’s online pass and the system THQ games use. Gamers who purchase new copies on Sony games will receive the once of code to play online and gamers who buy pre-owned will have to purchase a code. As for rentals well usually there is a trial online period before a code is required.

So since Resistance 3 will have a this PSN Pass it will most likely be the same with uncharted 3 and all other Sony published games.

Just have a look at the video above. Nothing we say now can explain this game. Just have a look here at all we have covered on it so far and draw your own opinions. You will definitely see that this game will be different and awesome. Just the trailer alone shows this.

Feel it, it is here and it looks quite promising. It should be because this Mod has been in development for a long time, longer time than many Call Of Duty Titles.

The Mod, which has been in development since 2009, is called Star Wars Mod: Galactic Warfare, and is the product of a team of German coders called BlackMonkeys.

Obviously since it is a mod for Modern Warfare, you’ll obviously need a PC copy of that game to get it running.

The Mod can be found right over here. Enjoy.

In the words of a comment on one of the YouTube videos:

dis is what happens wen those two beatuful games of cod4 and halo fucked and some super baby.

La polizia italiana ha arrestato tre persone ritenute esponenti di spicco del gruppo internazionale hacking Anonimo.

Yes you read that right. Italian Police have arrested three people thought to be leading members of the international hacking group Anonymous.

The Polizia grabbed the suspects in 32 raids across Italy. The Polizia claim the trio in custody, one of whom is a minor, includes “the promoter” and some top figures from the Italian Anonymous cell.

Interestingly enough another Anonymous suspect has been apprehended in the Swiss canton of Canton Ticino.

TechEye reports that in a statement, Italian State police said that Anonymous had caused “substantial damage to institutions and companies”, and that, “Some sites were unable to operate for some time.”

This follows the arrest of 32 Anonymous members in Turkey and 3 in Spain.

V for Vendetta will forever be ruined…sigh.

Ever thought about life in space?

I’m sure most of you, like me, are fascinated by the Mass Effect universe. Even older games such as Freelancer have lead us to build up a fascination with space, space travel and so forth. Now since we are gamers we would want to play games in space no? Well there seems to be a problem. Especially if we want to pay CoD or if you want to play DotA.

Well in accordance with the title you might be wondering what the truth about space is, right? So here you have it:

There Is Major LAG in Space.

So it seems that, that dream will take longer than downloading with a dial up modem because the internet speed in space is compared to…wait for it…a 56k dial up modem.

Canadian astronaut Chris Hadfield (pictured to the right. The guy above is from Black Ops), who is the first Canadian to walk in space and is in line to become the first Canadian commander of the International Space Station, was responding to an audience question during a Canada Day presentation at a historical airport hangar in Edmonton.

A young man wanted to know if any of the astronauts played online games during their spare time in space.

The answer. No.

Why?

the Internet connection aboard the International Space Station is simply too slow for games.

Hadfield said that the speed or major lack thereof is due to the space station’s orbital velocity of eight kilometres per second.

That is that. Guess we will have to wait a bit longer.

With the release of BioWare‘s Mass Effect 3 getting closer (not close enough dammit I need this game!)  Caveshen and I some of us are getting very edgy.

Recently we brought you two interviews from “the Doctors”, Ray Muzyka and Greg Zeschuk, detailing their thoughts and impressions of Mass Effect 3 as well as all other things BioWare.

We also told you about the series’ inspirations in art and design. Remember that? Well, that was actually part of an interview conducted over at BioWare recently, and now the unabridged details of that interview, including answers to various questions of note, have been released for your reading pleasure, down below.

The one revelation that definitely bears mention is the talk of Tali, whom as we all know, has been kept as a sort of cliffhanger for the third game, with Talimancers around the world eagerly anticipating, more so than the actual game even, the sight of Tali’s true face, finally revealed for their fapping gaming pleasure. Yes I did take most of this from the interview we posted yesterday. Sue me Caveshen.

Now this is where the new information is at. Part 2 of the interview is below. It goes about telling us about the art, sound and how Bioware and DICE are sharing, which means Mass Effect 3 is sharing with Battlefield 3

They are sharing “knowledge” regarding environments, sounds and weapons. Read more below in the interview.

Isn’t EA just one big happy family. Now here it is and for some screens see Part 1 over here.

Again welcome lead sound designer Rob Blake, and senior environment artists Don Arceta and Noel Lukasewich.

What’s all new for the sound of Mass Effect 3?

Rob Blake: We’re focusing on enhancing a lot of the combat sounds. We’ve been chatting to the guys over at DICE who did the Battlefield and the Medal of Honor stuff and we’ve been doing a lot of knowledge sharing and asset sharing with those guys.

We’re taking on board some of their environmental changes that they’ve done really well. The new Assault Rifle has different layers that change depending on what type of environment you’re in, for example. There are lots of interactions between sounds – you can hear the different decay as shots echo off walls.

What came up between your team and the guys at DICE?

We’re doing a lot of knowledge sharing which has been really useful, and we love the Battlefield games. We’re big fans of the audio so we’re definitely trying to build on the work that they’ve done, but at the same time they’re very different games.

Their focus is just the guns but we have spaceships, biotics and tech powers and all this extra stuff that we have to deal with. But one of the things I wanted from them was their environmental interactions, so that when you go into different areas things change quite drastically. They also have a sophisticated ducking system – when you fire your gun it will lower the volume of other people’s guns.

When a gun’s sound differs between indoor and outdoor locations, do you build all-new sounds or simply tweak one existing gunshot effect in-engine?

Both, actually. We do a lot of real-time reverberation effects with convolution reverb – that’s samples of interior and exterior spaces and lay that on top of our sounds. But we’re actually changing out some of the sounds too, so for example, with the new Assault Rifle effect, you can hear the bullet still disappearing off into the distance. When you’re inside a room, you don’t hear that because the bullet doesn’t go as far. Again, this is something Battlefield did well so we’re doing a lot of work like that.

How do you think the music will change with the arrival of your new composer? (Clint Mansell, who worked on Black Swan and movies like Requiem for a Dream)

We work with a lot of composers. Over the whole Mass Effect franchise we’ve worked with about eight different composers. It’s always outsourced but we work very closely with them and they’re always following our original vision – that retro futurism style we’ve built for Mass Effect.

Mass Effect is this mix of old and new in a lot of ways so we spend a lot of time with new, cutting edge synthesis mixed with old, modular analogue synthesis, trying to create really unusual and interesting sounds. Our big thing has always been an orchestral sort of feel but with some elements replaced with 70s and 80s synths.

So there are those two very specific technical things but composers often think more emotively so we work very closely with the writers to find out what the feel for each level and each narrative moment is; and how the player is supposed to be feeling when experiencing things.

What’s the best location you’ve built for the game?

Noel Lukasewich: I’d have to say Don’s Earth is pretty awesome. It showed us a lot of what we wanted to do, sort of paved the way for a lot of our new stuff.

Don Arceta: Yeah, but eventually they’re all going to have that same level of detail as that Earth level. We’re still building the game, so there are some awesome environments right now but the scope of the levels is really big. We have this awesome Earth vista and there’s just going to be tons of things going on out there. I think the thing that’s going to make the levels awesome is just what happens in them.

Mass Effect is basically a world without denim – there are few things recognisable from the present. How do you make Earth feel like Earth?

NL: Well, we’ve had conversations about what to push and what to keep. We don’t want to have the streets paved with plastic and that kind of crazy stuff but do we keep the concrete? Do we keep the road signs?

DA: It’s hard finding that balance because Mass Effect is all big curves and arching structures, and you don’t want famous landmarks to just stick out like a sore thumb in that sci-fi universe. That’s the kind of the balance artists are looking for – making it fit but still feel like Earth. Just putting Venetian blinds on the windows makes it more familiar to the player that this is Earth. You wouldn’t ever see that on an Asari planet.

What sort of interaction is there between the gameplay guys and your team?

DA: It’s a lot of back and forth. We let the designers know exactly what’s important to us on the art side – maybe the way the sun hits inside a room or something that we just don’t want to lose – and design will work with us exactly how to keep that.

We have a lot more integrated cover, so you don’t walk into a room and immediately know there’s going to be a combat there. It’s about making these spaces feel natural and not forced. It shouldn’t ever feel forced, by gameplay or art – it really should be this perfect marriage.

NL: Yeah, you don’t want to walk through a room and go, “okay nothing’s going to happen here. There’s no cover for me here,” and then you walk around the next corner and you just see a sea of these chest-high things – you basically see the fight ahead.

That’s something few cover-based shooters get right.

DA: Yeah, you play a game like Gears of War and they just have sandbags everywhere, and we really don’t want to do that. We really want to get away from arbitrary things placed just for the sake of gameplay.

BioWare tend to build spaces that often feel like they exist only to have a fight in, not to live and work in. How important is it to fix that?

NL: Absolutely important. All the departments are involved now – we’ll have writers and combat designers in and we’ll really talk about the history of the places.

DL: We’re really pushing the variety within the levels, so you’re not walking into the same room just decorated differently. We’re really trying to push each room as a functional space. A hallway has a function for people working there, and we’re just trying to really make sense of it in the game.

NL: I’m doing something right now where I’ve built the environment as an undamaged structure, and then I start smashing bits up. We try to design the architecture first before we blow it up, rather than just having a box and cramming destroyed bits in it. We’re really thinking about how someone from the future designed this building, and whether it functions well. Then we blow it up!

The creator of Metal Gear and Veteran of the Gaming Industry, Hideo Kojima, has made his thoughts on the video games industry public knowledge.

As we know with experience many of the things the esteemed Kojima-sama says do not usually happen. Some also struggle to make sense of what he says. Still non the less it is interesting to view the thoughts of a man of his rank in the Industry.

Here you have it:

“In this day and age, the video game business is a major entertainment industry that surpasses movies in terms of revenue. But when I started out, it was a completely different story. Back then, the game industry was a place for people with broken dreams to gather because they couldn’t land the jobs that they really wanted. Today, the industry has matured into a wonderful place where some of the most talented people in their field can take advantage of cutting-edge technology and world-class budgets to thrill and awe the entire world. In the near future I believe we’ll see the term ‘video game’ itself vanish as our industry evolves and eventually absorbs the movie and music industry to create a larger, all-encompassing form of digital entertainment.”
- Hideo Kojima

What do you make of Kojima’s words?

On eGamer we have covered many an-alcohol-related gaming peripheral such as WoW tankards, another large WoW tankard, some free beer that we missed out on and…well nothing else.

However, now there is something else.

Ask yourself – Do you

1. like Neon Genesis Evangelion? (animé and/or game)
   
2. like alcohol?
3. Drink Alcohol?
4. like pretty things?
5. have money to spare?

If you answered yes to all of the above or just 1, 4 and 5 then this is for you. If you answered no to 2  and/or 3 and 5 then you will still enjoy looking at what follows.

Behold!

These are bottles of “Evangelion Sparkling”. They are limited to only 333 numbered bottles. Produced by France’s Monts-Maleret, each 750ml bottle is priced at ¥50,000 or US$622. In Rands, using the exchange rates from the internet for the date 31/06/2011, a bottle would set you back R4 242.02.

Look at how pretty those bottles are:

Jason West and Vincent Zampella have respawned and move on with their lives after Activision.  Although the lawsuits are still on, West and Zampella have recently launched Respawn Entertainment’s official website.

On the website they teased an image of their soon to be announced game, however someone put Vasaline all over the said image.

We have however heard from sources inside the EA HQ that the game will be a futuristic shooter.

Apart from the above, nothing more has been given away. On the page with the blurry picture, the following is noted:

"Respawn is developing a multi-platform product based on new video game IP and funded through its publishing deal with Electronic Arts, one of the top publishers in the industry."

On the front page with an unidentified image it is written:

"Yes, we are working on a game. No, we haven't revealed it yet. Yes, at some point we will."

At the moment only time will provide solid answers regarding the above images and the game Respawn is working on. You can and it is encouraged that you speculate on the website.

On the website Respawn also released some literal behind the scenes information.  They released images of their new studio and some narrative which describes how hard it was at the beginning.

They explain how to begin with the newly formed group of developers had to all sit in a circle on cheap-o chairs with their laptops on their knees. In one picture, you can even see some guy sleeping on the floor.

We need not pity them any more because they are now a fully fledged studio. They even have a Bobby Kotick dart board (see the green alien on the wall)

We are able to share a few pictures, but we encourage you to see the rest (there are more awesome screens there) on the website right over here.

It is nice to see what the studio is looking like now and it will definitely attract some more developers to add to the group of 40 that Activision claim were poached by EA. They really have transformed a dump into a really nice looking studio. You really should check out their website.