The meeting, which we're told will start at 10 a.m., will be headed by John Riccitiello and available to all Electronic Arts employees via internal webcast. Employees of the publisher will be allowed to ask questions of Riccitiello following the presentation.

Employees are being encouraged to watch the presentation with team members to spur discussion about what is talked about. Meanwhile, Black Box employees are being asked to be in the studio today to "clear the air and communicate with you openly about what's going on at Black Box."

"At that time, we'll send out further communications and be holding sessions to help separate truth from rumour and share important news about our studio with you."

Stay tuned and feel free to commiserate in the comments.

Update: The layoffs at Black Box studio did indeed happen today, though the company-wide Town Hall meeting is actually scheduled for Feb. 4, not today.

It's official, everybody's favorite RTS that isn't really an RTS is hitting North America on September 18. The innovative strategy game will sell for $50, or you can pay an extra $10 for the Collector's Edition.

I played a bit of the game when it was in beta and I quite enjoyed it, though I think it would be a lot more fun if you were playing with a group of friends. That's mostly because in the game you take control of one type of unit and then have to rely on your team mates to provide support and such. I often played artillery and after hammering the enemy from a distance for most of the game found myself royally screwed when they came hunting for me and my team mates were nowhere to be found.

Hit the jump for the official press release.

SIERRA ENTERTAINMENT'S WORLD IN CONFLICT GOES GOLD

Highly Anticipated Action-Strategy Game from Massive Entertainment to Hit North American Retail Stores September 18

LOS ANGELES (August 10, 2007) - Sierra Entertainment, a division of Vivendi Games, is pleased to announce that development of World in Conflict™ is complete and the game has "Gone Gold." The upcoming action-strategy PC game was created by Massive Entertainment, a Sierra Entertainment internal studio, and will be available for personal computer at North American retail outlets on September 18 in both Standard and Collector's Edition versions for a suggested retail price of $49.99 and $59.99 respectively.

"Sierra Entertainment would like to congratulate Massive Entertainment for creating one of the premiere PC games of 2007, one that pushes the strategy genre to the next-generation, blurring the lines between strategy, action and first-person-shooter," said Martin Tremblay, president of worldwide studios, Sierra Entertainment. "World in Conflict delivers on the promise of modern PC gaming, providing amazing graphics featuring DX10 effects, groundbreaking multiplayer for individuals and clans, and fresh single player gameplay that will keep strategy fans engaged while also bringing a much broader group of gamers to the genre."

World in Conflict asks the terrifying question, what if the Cold War didn't end? The award-winning game represents the next-generation of strategy titles, pitting Cold War-era superpowers against one another with completely destructible 3D battlefields and blistering visuals using DX10 technology. World in Conflict features an innovative gameplay mechanism that removes traditional resource-gathering and base-building in favor of non-stop combat, tactical decisions and FPS-like intense action. The game also features a deep single-player campaign that showcases Hollywood-quality storytelling of the Cold War gone hot.

Features in World in Conflict include:
• Action-Focused Gameplay: World in Conflict focuses on tactical combat to create a game that is fast and hard-hitting - much like an FPS - by removing traditional base-building and resource gathering in favor of instant warfare and by doing so, creating a new category of PC games: Action-Strategy
• Dramatic Single-Player Campaign: World in Conflict's single player mode will offer a deep and emotional storyline created by renowned author and cold war authority, Larry Bond; players will strap on the combat boots of a young field commander featuring Hollywood voice-over talent and a thrilling personal journey through World War III
• Accessibility: World in Conflict's FPS-like control scheme and 360-degree camera make its action-strategy gameplay exciting for hardcore strategy fans as well as accessible to fans of other genres - strategy fans will love World in Conflict. For gamers who have never played strategy before, World in Conflict is the game to try
• Deep Multiplayer With "Next-Gen" Features: World in Conflict will support up to 16 players for head-to-head and team-based battles in Domination, Tug-of-War and Assault modes; online play will feature built-in Voice-over IP (VoIP), support for clan management, competitive ladders, online tournaments, chat rooms, friends lists and more
• Real World Super-Powered Warfare: Unleash the authentic military arsenals of the great superpowers including tanks, planes, trucks, troops and helicopters from the USA, Soviet Union and NATO; as well as massive tactical attacks such as carpet bombings, long-range artillery, napalm and nuclear weapons
• Player Roles - Innovative in the strategy genre, players will choose to engage the enemy as Infantry, Armor, Support, or Air specialists; multiplayer teams will need to master each role and their cooperative elements for maximum effectiveness
• Bleeding-Edge Graphics - The latest version of Massive's proprietary Masstech engine uses DX10 technology, with advanced lighting, particle and physics effects, and allows for a full 360-degree range of camera control
• Complete Destructibility - As the battle rages, the world environment pays the price as every object - houses, trees and more - crumble under the force of war
• Scalability: While pushing the bleeding edge, Massive's proprietary Masstech engine also scales down to accommodate a wide range of PC specifications - if you've played a modern PC game within the last two years, you'll be able to play World in Conflict

The World in Conflict Collector's Edition will include limited edition extras for hardcore fans and Cold War enthusiasts, including an authentic piece of the Berlin Wall, a bonus DVD from The History Channel®, behind the scenes videos and special packaging. Additional pre-order bonuses for the Collector's Edition and Standard Edition versions of World in Conflict are now available at participating retailers across North America, including an additional bonus DVD from The History Channel® and other added content.

World in Conflict will be available at retail stores in North America on September 18 for the personal computer with a suggested retail price of $49.99 for Standard Edition and $59.99 for the Collector's Edition. For more information on World in Conflict or to find participating pre-order retailers, please visit www.worldinconflict.com.

Also, when the current "Zephyr" chips are replaced with new, smaller, cooler "Falcon" technology, that will be right on the box as well:

Shop smart. Don't do drugs. Yadda yadda yadda.

Wonderkins Photobucket shots [via joystiq]

I can't say enough nice things about the Sony press team. Due to my mom's 60th birthday I am traveling over the next week and wasn't going to be home to receive my Playstation 3 or, in turn, file my Playstation 3 review coverage. So the team made sure to track my movements and managed to get a PS3 debug out the door and to my mom's house in Texas on a Saturday.

I'm under embargo for the games and the debug only plays games, so no fancy crossmedia bar or Blu-ray, so for now all I can really show you is this sexy box PS3 stripshow. Hit the jump for the rest of the pics of the 21 pound box and its contents and check back later for a video showing how the cool touch-sensitive power and eject buttons work. Brian Crecente

Gamespot member Adolfobaja posts that Mexican magazine Atomix already got their greedy little hands on a retail Wii. And he posted the pictures to prove it. Cue the badada badada badada music and hit the jump for the rest of the show. Brian Crecente

Wii pictures from Inside the Box!! [Gamespot Adolfobaja]

For all you poor fools who lie awake at night, weeping into your chins, because Princess Peach could never love a hideous loser like yourself, there is yarny salvation in the form of this Mario block tissue box.

Anilineblack of Flickr captions:

My mom made a mario cube tissue box cover for my desk at my office. heh. Obviously, I have the coolest mom evar.

Special thanks to Ghostgirl for the boxy sniffletips. Eliza Gauger

Mario Tissue Box Cover [Flickr]

And here's the American box, me boychiks. "Wii Sports Included!" I'd be more excited about that pack-in if my experience with Wii Sports didn't indicate it was total filler fluff. Florian Eckhardt

Previously: Photos of the Japanese Wii Disc, Case and Packaging

More Here [Game Watch Impress]

Gabe and Tycho over at Penny Arcade received their Nintendo comped DS Lite in this wonderful box. A box so wonderful that it may be the only box in existence to be the protagonist in its own film.

I love the trumpet fanfare. I need to figure out how to program it into my belt buckle so it plays every time I whip off my pants. Florian Eckhardt

If you see someone carrying a box that looks like this out of a Gamestop on June 11th, he's the one you should mug. - Florian Eckhardt

US DS Lite Package Art