If you couldn't tell, Halo Fever is in full force right now. The game may not be perfect (sorry Eurogamer) but it certainly has its selling points and I think Microsoft's boast that they want to dethrone Spider-Man 3's mammoth opening weekend with a mammoth Halo 3 launch day aren't that outlandish.

We've sent our very own Fahey over to New York City to check in on the Halo-mania going on later on tonight. Remember at the stroke of midnight you can pick up a copy of the last in the Halo trilogy... unless you picked it up at one of the many places that seemed to have sold the game early. Once you play through the entire game I'd love to hear your thoughts on it.

In the meantime sit back and check out these pictures from New Zealand, the first place in the world where Halo 3 launched. Nicole Sinclair and Ryan Marsden, both 19, were the first two in the world to pick the game up from a retailer.... who didn't break embargo.

New Zealand Microsoft also celebrated the launch by freezing 50 prize discs in a one ton block of ice. Gamers have until 6 a.m. to melt the ice with water guns and get the prizes.

We woke up this morning thinking it would be another normal day, not realizing that according to Microsoft PR, it's Halo 3 Day. Woo hoo! Their latest announcements have some interesting tidbits on the Halo 3 megalaunch. So we're going to play a game. The press release lists the "facts," and we translate them into more digestible content.

- An unprecedented number - more than 10,000 retailers in the United States alone - will be opening their doors at midnight on September 25
(50-90% are 24-hour Wal-marts who offer poor healthcare benefits while promoting an outsourced workforce)

- Major regional events will be held in select locations including New York City, Seattle, Los Angeles and Miami...score free merchandise and get a chance to play "Halo 3" with local celebrities in on-site
(the celebrities will not sleep with you)

- Pontiac is teaming up with Microsoft to provide 1,000 lucky winners a copy of "Halo 3" before it's available in stores with their "First to Own" promotion.
(1,000 winners may be subject to applicable taxes and fabled "super wedgies")

(Other highlights include Microsoft not knowing what to do after Halo 3 hits stores)

OK, even though I find it necessary to cut a little bit through the Halo 3 hype, I'm glad that Microsoft is making the launch as exciting as possible for fans. You know what they say: Crack open the Mountain Dews...

Well, some form of it. There's a Microsoft Island now in Second Life that is devoted to Visual Studio ( Microsoft's flagship software development product for computer programmers.). The teaser video shows what most of the studio looks like, the rest will be revealed tomorrow, May 10, at 6pm Second Life time. It's unclear what Microsoft is planning to do while in Second Life, but it's got a whole lot of room to put Xbox Elites in (in a weird PS3 "Home" kind of way). Even computer programmers need a little down time. Kim Phu

Microsoft Flies a Blimp Into Second Life [3pointd]

At the PLAYSTATION 3 launch event in Paris, Microsoft found an opportunity to do a little guerilla marketing by sending French gamers queueing up for a PS3 a kind reminder via boat. You can check the video here, but don't forget to view the... splendor of the midnight launch event over at Jeux-France. They have loads of shots of the, um, festivities. Michael McWhertor

La PlayStation 3 sort en Europe... [Jeux-France]

Citing "customer safety" as the reason for nixing 12:01 AM sales of the PLAYSTATION 3 for this week's launch, UK specialty retailer GAME says they'll instead open stores at 7 AM to meet early adopters' needs. However, to make up for a lack of one nights sleep, GAME will be giving the first 150 gamers in line a tasty English breakfast, including something called "bacon butties." The hell?!

What I really hope GAME (and HMV and Virgin) are ensuring is that people don't set up camp outside the store, armed with DSes, PSPs and wallets stuffed with hundreds of pounds, fit to be mugged. Michael McWhertor

GAME cancels PS3 midnight opening on police advice [MCV]

In anticipation of the PS3's UK launch, police are fearing mugged fanboys, stolen consoles and everything short of the ground opening from under the doomed European gamers, swallowing up their soon-to-be-melted-by-molten-lava PAL PS3s. Authorities told GameIndustry.biz:

If the launches do go ahead, we have to negate the issues as far as we can, but we can't remove the risk factors for people coming to or going away from the store.

The police seriously pulled out the old, "If the launches do go ahead" verbage?

Then they added:

Plus, the Boogie Man comes out at night.

Ahh, the truth at last. Apparently Sony and their retailers are meeting authorities "half-way" to keep customers safe. Lines are moving inside, and Sony is pissing off European fans with poor PS2 emulation to give them "that killer instinct" needed to ride the subway home after midnight.

Please disregard my use of quotations through most of this article. Mark Wilson

Police Explain Concern over PS3 Launch [via maxconsole]

In the course of reporting on the PlayStation 3 launch in Europe as "Europe at War", Uk Resistance uncovered a very interesting sign posted at the Bluewater Centre branch of popular UK video game store GAME. With the PS3 launch looming on the horizon, someone at the store posted a sign comparing the PS3 favorably against the Xbox 360.

The sign carries the title "To 3 or Not to 3? This is the answer..." and lists several 'facts' that make the Sony system seem more appealing. They pull out the old price argument of course, saying that the PS3 comes with HD movie support and online is free, so it is actually cheaper than the 360. They fail to point out that you still need to buy a headset as well as at least component cables, but somehow I don't think accuracy was a goal when this ad was written up.

They also mention that the PS3 is fully backwards compatible with all PS1 and PS2 games. Oh really?

GamesIndustry.biz reports that the sign was completely unauthorized and has since been removed from the store. Hit the link below for a larger version of the sign and UK Resistance's full coverage of Europe at War. Michael Fahey

EUROPE AT WAR: BLUEWATER GAME RESORTS TO 'THE OLD SUM TOTAL' TRICK [UK:Resistance via GamesIndustry.biz]

According to the Three Speech blog, folks in the UK—not just those in Ireland—looking for a 20GB flavored PlayStation 3 during the "launch window" will be out of luck. Apparently, Sony has listened to retailers who say that demand for the 60GB version will outstrip the lesser model.

So, UK, make sure you walk up to the counter with nothing less than 599 Euros on launch day (whenever that may be) or you'll leave empty handed. This is living, I suppose! Michael McWhertor

NO 20GB VERSION IN THE UK AT LAUNCH [Three Speech]
Sony Screws Ireland On PS3 Pricing [Kotaku]

At 11pm on Burning Crusade launch night, my girlfriend and I pull into the parking lot of the GameStop in Alpharetta Georgia to find at least 30 other people were already in one line, with another line going on inside the store. Seeing a few familiar faces I offer a cheery greeting.

"Is this the line for Hello Kitty Island Adventures?"

Apparently it is, and one gentleman asks me if my name might be Butters, which is a reference to the South Park episode Make Love, Not Warcraft in case you hadn't seen it. Everyone in this growing line has, or at the very least has seen lines repeated over and over again through general, guild, and even trade channels. Even though the episode was technically making fun of WoW players, we've still embraced it as part of the game's heritage, right up there with Leroy Jenkins and "More DOTs!"

So what's the deal with the two lines anyway?

There aren't any GameStop employees outside at the moment, but a helpful line stander explains that in order to get the expansion you first go in and pay, at which point they write a number on your receipt. After that you come outside and wait for the clock to strike midnight. Fair enough. The girlfriend and I go inside, wait in line for five minutes or so, pay for our two copies of the expansion (one Collector's, one regular), and then head outside into the dark drizzly night to wait it out with the rest of Azeroth's finest.

It's one of the most diverse gaming crowds I have ever seen. People of all races, ages, and walks of life, all chattering away to one another as if they'd known each other for years. People whom, if they met in other circumstances, wouldn't spare each other a second glance are chatting away about the new races, jewel crafting, leveling, starting areas, etc.

By 11:40 the line had swelled, with upwards of a hundred people waiting in line at a store I wasn't sure a hundred people even knew existed, with another line of about twenty still waiting to put their money down in order to expedite the pickup process. The GameStop manager periodically comes out to shout at the back of the longer line, "If you are in this line and haven't gotten a numbered receipt, then you ain't getting Warcraft!"

My receipt has the number eleven scrawled at the top, so my girlfriend and I stick towards the front of the line, making several chatting buddies as we wait. There are refreshments present, but people seem to be ignoring the generic soda and doughnuts, just like they ignored the costume contest GameStop promoted despite the promise of a $35 gift certificate for the most dressed up. The now massive crowd is focused on getting their hands on the expansion and getting home as soon as humanly possible to get it installed. Quite honestly, so am I.

Midnight is almost tangible, shaking people out of conversations and forcing their focus to the front of the line. Here and there people call out impatiently to get things started. "They'd better get us in their soon, they're forming a raid back there." At 12:02 the first person leaves with their expansion in hand...but our line hasn't moved. Huh? GameStop has two lines formed. One for people who have paid, and one for the people who haven't. The plan was to get folks to pay and then send them to the other line so they can just come in, get their game, and leave. Unfortunately the line to pay was still a couple dozen deep once midnight hit, so the employees decided to give them their product as they paid for it, making the whole standing in line thing moot as the people who showed up late got theirs first.

They were not prepared.

On top of that, I realize that all the number on my receipt is a marker for the bag they have prepared for me inside, and not a place in line. I start to explain to my girlfriend that we need to go to the end of the line when our new chat buddies stop me. "Don't worry about it. Everyone is getting a copy, so it's no big deal." So yeah, if you saw a very tall man cut in front of the line for the BC launch at the Alpharetta GameStop, that was me and I feel terrible about it, but not as terrible as I would have felt had I made my girlfriend go to the back of that line.

After watching a few more latecomers leave with their booty, we finally get our booties inside the store, where there is a slight delay as the GameStop employees tried to figure out their own numbering system. Once we get our bag we are in our car and gone, leaving over a hundred people in our wake. The girlfriend is dying to get home to start leveling her 60 warrior once more, and me? I just want to go home like a responsible adult and get some sleep before work in the morning. The Burning Crusade can wait!

I am a terrible liar. Michael Fahey

Kotakuite and gifted artist Jeff C. created this kick ass piece for an Illustrator class at his school. The assignment was to do something that you've never done before, and then make art based on the experience. Jeff decided to attend the Wii launch and design a piece based on the both the PS3 and Wii launches in general. My absolute favorite part is the the guys in the sleeping bags getting pelted with eggs. Nice touch. Looks like poor Mario and Luigi got there a bit late though, I hope there's a system left for them.

Click on the image for a bigger version. Flynn De Marco

Our friends across the pond can't get a PlayStation 3 until March '07, at the earliest, but at least they can secure their own PlayStation Network ID. Make it snappy. My first choice was already taken by the time I purchased a PS3, so don't sleep. You don't want to be saddled with something like clownpenis.fart. Or maybe you do. Michael McWhertor

PlayStation Account Registration

Getting a Wii in Britain ain't gonna be easy, but Nintendo UK is trying damn had to get the consoles out there. Says a company spokesperson:

We are pulling out all the stops to replenish stock in the run up to Christmas.

That means "regular multiple deliveries," continues the spokesperson. "In the hope that we can supply Wii to everyone who wants one this Christmas." Remember: Nintendo doesn't only want you to get a Wii, it wants your money. Brian Ashcraft

Nintendo UK Trying Hard [Games Industry]

Gadzooks! Reader James stumbled a heap of Wiis earlier today. He writes:

This morning while heading to work I decided against my normal route, choosing instead to brave the chilly air and take a more long winded scenic stroll. This route to work happened to take me past one of the larger department stores in Switzerland, Manor. Proudly displayed in the entrance way were 2 Wii kiosks and a shed load of Wiis.

Not a shed load, James. A shit load. All those people wanting Wiis, go to Switzerland. Like, now. Brian Ashcraft

On Sale Today [James' Site]

If you are like me, with the Wii launching around America, you were probably wondering one thing: What about Guam?

Good things we have readers in Guam! Good thing we have readers!

Reader Joel sends us the word. About fifty folks pre-ordered, the line never got very long and a baby appeared. That, and he provided us with a look at a GameStop in Guam (which looks like a regular old GameStop). Happy to know! Brian Ashcraft

Guam Gets Wii [Flickr]

In this time of Playstation 3 violence and line-waiting, gamers should come together. 360, PS3, Wii, we're all just in it for the games, so why not go out and do a random act of kindness, like reader Jimmy Canuck.

JC decided to deliver cups of hot chocolate to his local line-waiters.

Reports have been coming in all day about problems with violence in the line-up's for the PS3. One look at Kotaku and you'll see everything you need to - four injured with BB guns in Kentucky, rioting outside of a Wal-Mart in Wisconsin, rioting inside of a Wal-Mart in California - and we've still got a day to go. Despite all of this, I had to pop into my local Best Buy this morning and saw about a dozen fanboys and one nice grandma huddled under plastic tarps and tents to keep themselves out of the freezing rain. So I drove across the parking lot to Tim Horton's and brought them all back hot chocolate.

I thought about writing "Buy a Wii instead" on the bottoms of all the cups, but by the time I thought of it they were already full of delicious chocolately goodness.

It's an easy thing to do, especially if there aren't too many line campers in your area - so on your way home from work today stop by your local PS3 line-up and do something nice.. After all, these people might be trampled to death at any moment.

If you do something kind (no, jumping someone with a PS3, beating their face into a pulp and taking their console isn't kind) email us you're story so we can post it.

A Random Act of Kindness Today for the PS3 Folks [Jimmy Canuck]

Via game site GamerAndy comes this unconfirmed report that the display PLAYSTATION 3s in demo kiosks at Wal-Mart are mock-ups, and the footage running in the store is off an a third party disc player. The tipster writes:

The displays weren't actual PS3s—the video on the screens was actually coming from a DVD player (upscaling, I presume—as it was HD). If Sony can't spare a single PS3 for an in-store display, how many will Wal-Mart actually be getting? They couldn't answer. The photo of the entire display shows the remotes sitting on the shelf to the left of the "PS3", and, under close scrutiny, shows no apparent cables coming from the "PS3", but, again, the glare may make some apprehensive to this idea... A 23in Bravia LCD remote on the right hand side, with a black non-descript DVD player remote next to it. That's proof enough for me.

With camera phone quality that crap, I don't know what the hell I'm looking at. Though, I don't know how this rumor could be harmful for Sony. All available consoles should be out on the shelves for customers to buy, not look at behind glass. Brian Ashcraft

No PS3s At Wal-Mart Kiosk [GamerAndy]

This Best Buy in Southern California's Orange Country is not permitting patrons to camp out overnight for the PS3 launch and only allowing lines to form at 5:00am. Kotakuite Eric says:

Part of me wants to show up there at 5 am just to see how long the line will be. That said, the much bigger part of me wants to sleep at 5 am....

Eric, turn up at exactly 5:00am, watch all hell break loose, go home ten minutes later and slumber. Brian Ashcraft