Eds Note: We were contacted by a LucasArts staffer who was part of the Force Unleashed team, stating these layoffs mentioned in the original Joystiq post were not recent and that there have been no additional layoffs since what we reported earlier this month.

LucasArts Cuts Hit [Joystiq via CVG]

We've been doing this for over eight years — we have more experience in this field than any other company — and by now we've made offers to just about every Hollywood name you can think of... When it comes to Damon, we've [made] several game offers to him over the years and have consistently found that he's not interested in working in the field.

Just three days after confirming she had split with her rocker-fiancée Benji Madden, Sophie Monk was spotted having brunch with video game designer Jason Rubin!

Game Designer Jason Rubin Makes The Tabloids [MTV Multiplayer]

...

Apparently, Phil Harrison is joining forces with ex-EA exec and current Atari honcho David Gardner to make the beleaguered company less crappy. Previously, Gardner said:

My goal is to help rebuild that passion around the company. First, with the employees and then very quickly to spread it virally on the internet to millions of new customers. I have a personal challenge to create a world-class company that is European in flavor but reaches global markets.

This will take some time of course, but here we have fantastic gaming DNA formed at the birth of the industry, access to creative talent and a company with the working capital to make the necessary investments to realize this vision.

I was told plans for the PSP version were up in the air and the summer slot is specifically for the PlayStation 3 version. Don't take this conversation as confirmation that the PSP version got the axe, its fate has not been sealed.

What's more, website Hobby Blog points out, some 2channel users are starting to compare FFXIII to vaporware like Gran Turismo for the PSP. We haven't heard any rumblings, suggesting that Square Enix was going to release the game as late as 2010 — though, it could happen! Though, pinning fears and tears on the Trader's Web prediction is a little silly at this point. As KBC analyst Hiroshi Kamide tells Kotaku:

No news good or bad from the company really, but I expect the shares to start rallying again nearer the time DQIX is to be released.

[Thanks, Muu for the tip!]

(If this is true, there might be spoilers.)

Passing through India en route to Azad, King Sharaman and his son, the Prince of Persia, defeat the powerful Maharajah of India with the promise of honor and glory. After looting the city and capturing a giant hourglass full of sand, a mysterious dagger, and the Maharajah's daughter Farah along with other treasures, they continue to Azad. A dying Vizier, who had betrayed the Maharajah and aided King Sharaman in return for a share of the spoils, demands to have the dagger, as he was promised his choice of the Maharajah's treasures. But Sharaman refuses to take the

dagger from his son, who captured it first. So the Vizier, who wishes to harness the power of the sands in the hourglass for himself, making him an immortal god and giving him control over time itself, tricks the Prince into opening the hourglass. When the Prince uses the dagger to unleash the Sands of Time from the hourglass, the Sands destroy the kingdom and turn all living beings into hideous sand creatures. Only the Prince, the Vizier, and Princess Farah, the kidnapped daughter of the Maharajah, remain unchanged due to their possessions; the Prince's dagger, the Vizier's staff, and Farah's medallion.

Passing through AN EXPLODING India en route to Azad, King Sharaman and his son, the Prince of Persia, defeat the powerful Maharajah of India with A FERRARI SCAGLIETTI AND A CASE OF C-4 WITH the promise of honor and glory. After looting the city WITH C-4 and capturing a giant hourglass full of DETONATING sand, a mysterious EXPLODING dagger, and the Maharajah's STRIPPER daughter Farah along with other EXPLODING treasures, they continue to Azad. A dying Vizier INJURED WHEN THE FERRARI FLIPPED OVER AND EXPLODED, who had betrayed the Maharajah and aided King Sharaman in return for a share of the spoils AND SPORTS CARS, demands to have the dagger AND A FERRARI F430, as he was promised his choice of the Maharajah's treasures AND SPORTS CARS. But Sharaman refuses to take the dagger from his son, who captured it first FROM AN EXPLOSION. So the Vizier, who wishes to harness the EXPLODING power of the sands in the hourglass for himself, making him an immortal god and giving him control over time itself WITH DYNAMITE, tricks the Prince into opening the hourglass, MAKING IT BLOW UP. When the Prince uses the dagger to unleash the Sands of Time from the hourglass, CAUSING THE THE FERRARI F430 TO FLIP OVER AND, WELL, YOU KNOW, the Sands destroy the kingdom and turn all living beings into hideous sand creatures. Only the Prince, the Vizier, and POLE-DANCING Princess Farah, the kidnapped STRIPPER daughter of the Maharajah, remain unchanged due to their possessions; the Prince's dagger, the Vizier's staff, and Farah's medallion AND EXPLOSIONS.

Quite simply, they are lying bastards and they know it.

The Dallas Business Journal has posted a sound clip from the interview. The exchange goes:

Webster: Ideally, we'd like to spotlight some of the projects coming out in 2008: Ghostbusters, Rage, Borderlands, and maybe it's just hopeful on my part, Duke Forever. Of course, you don't have to tell me when it's coming out. I know how...

Miller: It might make this year. We can't make any sort of official announcement. We're pushing for this year. Frankly, I think we're going to miss it by just a by a few months, but it's definitely an internal push.

Webster: That's good to hear.

... as far as I'm aware there is no new version in the works. We regularly have our games rated so this may not mean it's actually going to be released but you can always keep your fingers crossed.

Sony terminated Aibo production at the end of FY2005 [and we] currently have no plans to revive this business in the future.

You know what I'll tell you. I will look like I'm full of shit if I tell you... I went to the bathroom, and the person next to me was Bill Gates. So, I had more than eye contact. Well, no contact. No, no, there wasn't any contact, right. But, you know, it's kind of a weird situation. You're kinda like, 'I know this guy.' There was no bodyguard or nothing there... That's a true story.