This week, Tecmo turned down Square Enix's offer of a friendly takeover. Rather, the company is in talks to merge with Koei, making Tecmo-Koei a possibility — like Square Enix or Namco Bandai. Our question:

What do you think of game mergers and takeovers? Are they good for the industry or bad?

So I'm hideous about staying current with popular culture. Lots of times people will ask me if I've seen a movie, or if I watch the latest HBO Original drama that everyone's raving about. (I never saw Borat. I don't watch Entourage.) And I'd rather avoid the horrified expressions and fulminating evangelism, so I make a non-committal statement in the affirmative and then dodge my way out of the conversation.

But last week, I had to admit I've never played Halo 3. (Well, never played it in multiplayer. I played it a little in singleplayer mode.) I felt like I had no good reason for that, especially as a games blogger, but that was a choice made before I came to Kotaku. So that leads us to today's TUD:

Have you ever bought and not played a video game because of peer pressure?
and/or
Have you ever told someone you played a game even when you hadn't, for any reason?

I'm especially curious about the second one. And for the record, I do have Halo 3. I bought it late last year when I was too busy for gaming. I'm working on that one.

There are many different game genres. We don't want to know which is your favorite, but rather:

Question: Which game genre is easiest for you or which one do you excel at?

The Olympics have started! And we all oh so very excited!! So much so that Gawker Media is aggregating all the network's Olympic coverage in one place on sister sports blog Deadspin. That place is right here. ANWYAY, here's my question:

Do you think gaming should be an Olympic sport? And why?

バンダイナムコ、PS3/Xbox 360「ソウルキャリバーIV」
全世界での累計販売本数が200万本を突破 [Game Watch]

We don't normally break out the European element of our Live membership. I mean, I know what it is, but I don't want to get rapped on the knuckles by being too explicit with you. I will say to you as a percentage of that overall total, it's just less than a quarter. And I'll tell you also that a large part of that is in the UK, partly because of the language aspect, the fact is you need, on a community service like Live, enough people of a similar language orientation to get a community so that it starts to really blow out... Up until fairly recently we just haven't had enough on the service for non-English-speaking folks.

Cut Xbox LIVE and it bleeds, red, white, and blue. It really does. Honest.

Europe Makes Up "Less Than A Quarter" [CVG]

Just got back from E3. Well, no. I got back a few days ago, but I just recovered. And well, I'd like to know...

Question: What did you think of this year's E3?

Looks like some of you have already weighed in with your opinion in the comments of the original post, but for those who've spent a bit more time with part one of the planned epic adventure, tell us (dammit) what you think of the Too Human demo.

My saddest gaming experience was while playing Creatures, that experimental game where you had to take care of creatures equipped with a neural network which made them able to learn things.

One of my creatures got pregnant but was also very sick. Her health stats were dropping and I was hoping she would be able to lay her egg in time. She only had 3% life over when she finally did. Afterwards, she laid down next to the egg, closed her eyes, and died. Minutes later, the egg hatched, and a cute little creature came out. His mother's body still laid there. He crawled around it, uttering the same sounds the whole time. He then crept up against her and went to sleep.

I stopped playing the game then.

So, short of game adaptations for Bambi, Brian's Song, Field of Dreams or Terms of Endearment, can a game be a tearjerker? I know colleagues (*cough cough Leigh Alexander) who were extremely emotional after finishing Metal Gear Solid 4. Is such emotion a worthy goal of a product engineered to be fun? What games have made you cry? Any? Tell us, dammit, while I ... sniff ... wipe the dust out of my eyes here.

We haven't discussed any home console plans for the title yet, so platform discussions are a bit premature. All that's been anounced is arcade... There are a lot of licensing issues around the title given that those properties are held by different companies across the West and they vary by territory greatly. It was created as a Japan-only project but we're investigating.

That's sure nice of Capcom.

Quick Question on Capcom vs. Tatsunoko [Capcom via Siliconera]

Earlier in the week I asked if I should take a break from GTAIV and start MGS4. Being the impatient bastard I am, I went ahead and started Metal Gear Solid 4. It's a nice game! Quite enjoying it.

Question: Granted, MGS4 *is* of course a Metal Gear Solid game, but do you think the cutscenes are too long?

The full image — just after the jump — is huge, showing an even longer teasing progression from frosty, barely visible demon head to flaming red hellish visage coupled with an ominous "III." But we certainly don't think we're in for six more days of intolerable teasing, especially since the Blizzard Worldwide Invitational kicks off in Paris just hours from now.

Check back in with us later tonight, as the game announcing festivities kick off at 11 AM Paris Time. That's just eight hours or so from right now.

Thanks to everyone who sent this in. We think Chris was first. He gets a Kotaku No-Prize for his efforts.

Question: Do you have a favorite current gen console? If so, what?

Earlier we did a post on why first person and third person shooters are not popular in Japan. Many folks don't seem to get the appeal! Fair enough. Everyone is entitled to his or her opinion.

Question: What game genre leaves you cold?

Question
What is the longest you have gone without gaming?

Question: Do you having any game purchase regrets?

"It's about economics. We take market share and audience from other media - video game makers are challenging the Hollywood hegemony - so they're going to fight us. But I'm not going to fight them. I believe your Constitution protects us."

When interviewer Scott Alexander asked Houser about inequity in the way adult games are treated as compared with film and other media, Houser said:

"These are works of fiction. Playing a game that features violence is no different from choosing to see a violent movie. We're not trying to create a 'here's real life' sensation in a video game; it's "you're the star of a movie. We want to re-create the sensations you have watching movies. We're putting those in a video game."

When asked to isolate why Rockstar's games seem to provoke a swath of mainstream anger from certain circles, Houser said:

"We're trying to give gamers freedom. It boils down to critics not liking the fact that people can choose to do 'bad' things in a fantasy world - which to me is silly."

The full interview is print only, so to read the whole thing you'd have to look at a copy of June's Playboy. You know, for the article, of course.

Question: Which game do you want remade?

Now that is a hard question!

So here's a question I wanted to put to the gaming community here: How important is momentum to finishing or playing a game? I'm wondering if, in the timeline of developing, we've reached a tipping point. The 50-hour gaming experience is upon us. In sports simulations stretching an entire season, it can be even longer. How, if at all, can a developer create and sustain momentum in players to complete something that long? Because these campaigns are only going to get longer, not that it's necessarily a bad thing.

But for now, the question that we here can answer: Is there a period of time where, separated from gaming (a week's vacation, a borked machine, a ton of work or school obligations) you're just unable to get back into it?

I know Bash had a TUD on Friday, but I'm curious here, so Tell Us, Dammit! In the comments after the jump.

What game is TOO HARD for you?

With McWhertor playing through R-Type Command, that reminds me of a fit R-Type on the TurboGrafx 16 gave me as a lad. Man, that game was frustration city!

Alright, I'm totally calling you out video game industry, I want someone to come up with a mode for Call of Duty or Half-Life or some PC shooter that makes this happen. Get to it.

Check out the video on the jump.

Nintendo Channel is an interactive guide to what's new in the world of Nintendo - now available for easy download from the Wii Shop Channel. Watch trailers, mini-documentaries, product demonstrations, and gameplay videos. Browse the game guide pages to get information about your favorite games on Wii and Nintendo DS. You can even click to order games straight from your Wii, if you have the Internet Channel installed. Make sure your Wii is connected to the internet, and get started!

Chris Bradshaw? This is Ben Herman from SNK. I return from a four day weekend, where I go to Pittsburgh, get my daughter, bring her home. And what message do I receive on my machine? Thanks for being a little bit polite. Now I'll make it real simple. I dunno who you bought it from, I dunno what game it is, but you call me back, and... We don't do exchanges unless it was the card fighter game where we did a recall and we can help you there if it is defective. If it's any other game, I will explain it to you to take it back to your local retailer where you purchased it from. Calling your credit card company, fine. You didn't buy it from me personally or my company personally. But would love to hear what your complaint is, like to hear what your item is. As far as customer service, we have a very small sales office here. We don't pride ourselves in customer service. Or where you've sent an email or what you've done, I don't care at this point. Call me back at extension SOME NUMBERS, and I will do my best to resolve it.

Eds Note: Chris reminds us, "I returned the game to my retailer only to get another copy with the same defect, and I have the receipt to prove it."

Gilgamesh vs. SNK [Kikouken City]

How many hours do you game a day?

When I first came on, my concerns were the "American-ness" of the brand. Powerful brand, strong voice, red, white, and blue, out of California, an American voice: Andrew Anthony, you know, 'It's in the game.'

You love it because it's very clear what it's about. It's a brand that resonates with 14 to 34 year-old males very strongly. And yet, in today's world, particularly in Europe, there's an anti-Americanism that sits higher than it's been for a long time, based on the war, the administration, George W. himself, and you worry about that.

Questions: Are you going to buy GTA IV on the 29th? If so, are you buying the Xbox 360 or the PS3 version?

Me? Since I live in Japan, I'll be importing. Though, I still have decided which one I'm going to order...

[Pic]

But I'm gonna do it anyway because we're big boys and girls and can confess our secrets, and besides, only a complete imbecile would create a commenter account in his full legal name. So it's time to spill the beans. The TUD Giraffe demands:

What game — any console, any title, any era — are you most ashamed of playing?

I'll admit mine here: I got "Playboy: The Mansion" from GameFly about three years ago, just because, hey, it was anonymous and no one would know, and I was lonely. What a crap game. The Sims with boobs, and little else. I think I got a U.S. senator to pose nude for one of my editions though, and got it on with her on top of a pinball machine. Oh Lord, now I'm thinking about Elizabeth Dole ... make it stop ...

So tell us, dammit! In the comments.

It's one of the weird gaming neuroses I have, and I'm wondering if I'm alone. So, just to start a conversation: What are your gaming hangups or compulsions?

Like, a few years back I told friends that I feel a weird obligation to a well written game character to not get him killed for stupid reasons. Or run out his ammo blowing up a pawn-class enemy. Or even jumping when I mean to kick someone. And when it happens repeatedly, I just start over. I 100 percented GTA:SA with zero wastes, and Vice City with just one, even though a million wouldn't have counted toward my score.

Earlier this week, Bashcraft talked about the inability to finish a game, but I think this plumbs a lot deeper. Do you take pictures of your face to work from when you create yourself in a sports title? Are you OCD about keeping your hard drives clean of game data for titles you haven't played in 3 months? Do you have one gamesave, and one gamesave only? Have you actually obeyed traffic lights in any driving game? Do you walk your character around a world or city and talk to people, even if you've heard the conversations a thousand times and just want to get to the next mission, because it seems, well ... right?

For the record, I do all of the above.

Games you'd like to forget so you could discover them fresh all over again [reddit]

What home consoles do you own? And why?

As to the situation of the U.S. dollar's weakness in the medium to long term, we already have a strategy to deal with it... We will lower our production costs as possible as we can and we will choose production sites to cope with the industry's weakness, and in the short term, we will try to accept more orders.

Do you finish every game you buy?

So reader person, what about you?

What was the first game you ever beat/finished/completed?

Question: How'd you find Kotaku?

Me? At one time, I was a Kotaku reader. Found the site through Gizmodo. Like, back in 2004 or early 2005. You know, when the site was pretty much just Crecente. Good times!

[Pic]

At this time, there are no plans for this game to be released for any Nintendo platforms in North America.

No Nazis [NY Times Thanks, Burton!]

Eds Note: We contacted the game's designer, Luc Bernard. He pointed out that Nintendo of America has yet to see the game and offered these insights into where it currently stands regarding release:

Well from what I was told, Nintendo Europe is also scared of it, but again I don't think they are trying to block the game, I think they are just scared that it has bad taste

that is why however I would like to say, that I don't think the game will be banned, once I have time to talk to Nintendo myself and show them the game they will change their mind.

ALten8 talks to them for me, however I will try and find a way to talk to Nintendo USA myself. I mean I doubt they would want to ban a educational game that is non violent, where to profits are going to help stop another genocide, this isn't just about the war this game, it's to try and teach children something so they don't end up racist.

I seriously don't think Nintendo will ban the game once I get to show it to them, I think also the reason they were shocked is because alten8 deals with Nintendo Europe and well they haven't even talked to Nintendo Europe yet about it since well they are scared that it pisses them off. I am currently developing the game no matter what people say, and I will let alot of people test the game before I even consider it finished, it needs to be PERFECT or I won't release it.

on another note Eternity's Child will be finished this month :) so soon up for release

Breaking the Silence - New SOCOM: U.S. Navy SEALs Confrontation Screens! [PlayStation.Blog]

Much of the product that comes out of Japan isn't really suitable or appropriate culturally for the Western market, and Sega has become the first of the Japanese gaming companies to recognize that the global market has various tastes and isn't necessarily just one great big Japanese market.