So how does Runescape snag top honors? One need only look at the remainder of the list to understand that a special cross-section of the populace is using Yahoo! to search the web. Half of the list reads like the front of a supermarket tabloid, with Angelina Jolie, Lohan, Alba, Miley Cyrus, and this year's number 1 search - Britney Spears. Number 2 on the list is the WWE. Of the whole list, the only two that really make sense are Barack Obama and Naruto, two characters I never thought I'd have to mention in the same sentence.

What does this say about Runescape players? I'm not going to speculate, as there are a lot more of them than there are of me.

Top 10 Searches for 2008 [Yahoo! - Thanks Alan]

Just when you thought things couldn't get any better than this, a fight broke out.

As you can see, James got really into character, carrying Marilyn Monroe to safety while the battle raged on. While perhaps not the most accurate Lara Croft costume out there, I could certainly see her taking on wild panthers much more readily than Angelina Jolie.

WWE Diva Halloween Costume Contest [WWE via MTV Multiplayer]

Connecticut Court Dismisses WWE Claims Against Jakks, THQ [Gamasutra]

GoNintendo was dubious at first that Rhodes deliberately put the Triforce on his boots. But the grappler makes it pretty damn clear in the latest issue of WWE Magazine:

"It's the Tri-Force from The Legend of Zelda," Rhodes confirmed. "You know how some people have a book they re-read every year? Well I re-play The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past for Super Nintendo every year. In the game, the Tri-Force symbolized power, wisdom and courage. I thought I could apply those qualities to my life."

In 1992 I actually refereed a pro rasslin' match in North Carolina. It's a long-ass story how I ended up doing that. But on the card was this clown who went by Mean Mark. Mean had Scripture printed on the ass of his trunks, which, if I was the Lord, I'd kind of grimace and nod at the sentiment but not really feel complimented, you know? Now 16 years later a value set inspired by a video game gets better treatment on a nationwide stage.

As for me, I replay Red Dead Revolver about halfway every year. It teaches me that revenge is a great and awesome goal but gets real boring after about the fourth time.

WWE wrestler Cody Rhodes Pays Tribute to Zelda via his Ring Attire [GoNintendo]

THQ president and CEO Brian Farrell said that most of its struggles were due to a crowded and competitive market for kids' games, as well as key franchises — Juiced, Stuntman and Conan that ultimately "were simply not competitive."

"Insufficient game quality led to inadequate sellthrough, resulting in markdowns at retail," Farrell said.

Farrell said the company spent heavily to promote Juiced and Stuntman, and had to take a loss when those titles fail to perform. What growth THQ did see, Farrell credited to Frontlines: Fuel of War, MX vs. ATV Untamed and WWE SmackDown vs. Raw 2008, all of which exceeded expectations.

Farrell also said the kids' market, in which THQ has several franchises, was the most competitive in years, and that the company's currently struggling to compete with music games and Nintendo first-party titles.

Nonetheless, THQ appears to have placed its faith in the Wii, concentrating much of its upcoming original IP there. Although Saints Row 2 and Red Faction Guerrilla are still the "anchors" of its lineup, Darksiders, De Blob, Deadly Creatures, Big Beach Sports and All Star Cheer look likely to be slated for Wii along with other unannounced projects, though the company did not announce specific platforms.

New installments in existing franchises for fiscal 2009 include WWE SmackDown vs. Raw 2009, Disney/Pixar's Wall-E film tie-in, and its previously-revealed Nickelodeon portfolio. The company will publish a game based on DreamWorks' Animation's unannounced 2010 fall film, and has slated WWE: Legends of Wrestlemania for 2009.

Notably, the company seems to have an eye on the free-to-play, microtransactions-driven online gaming market in Asia, highlighting the co-publishing agreement it's signed with Shanda Interactive to bring Company of Heroes Online to China in 2009.

THQ is more confident about the year to come, with three new initiatives in place: "We are rolling out a stronger slate of products. We have put in place and are executing against initiatives to improve our product quality and competitiveness. We are also realigning our cost structure to generate significant operating leverage in fiscal 2009. We believe these initiatives will restore profitable growth and improve value for shareholders," said Farrell.

"We faced a number of challenges, but I believe we have the right strategy to overcome these challenges and achieve significant growth."

Microsoft has apparently planned to do right by the boy with the help of the World Wrestling Entertainment, gifting Kieran a free 360 game and getting mother and son backstage passes to an upcoming WWE event where the boy will receive an authentic piledriver. Exciting! Hopefully, Kieran will reclaim his old signatures and these dream-crushing maniacs obsessed with cleanliness will be stopped before they strike again.

Carlton Boy Meets Wrestling Heroes [Nottingham Evening Post - thanks, LanceJr!]

Love it.

John Cena T-shirt [WWE]

Solve me those issues and will talk. SmackDown vs. Raw 2008 for the 360 has the looks...but can it move it? Michael Fahey

WWE Smackdown vs Raw 2008, Wii demonstration video [Wii QJ]

According to the German THQ site, there will no longer be a PlayStation 3 SKU of THQ's WWE Smackdown vs. Raw 2007. Despite being announced in May for the PS3, the game appears to have been shelved for the time being. Or has it? A site admin for the German THQ site had this to say:

WWE SmackDown! vs. Raw 2007 will not be published for the PS3: the title is still coming for PlayStation 2, PSP, and Xbox 360. The background is that the PS3 version became substantially delayed and would be finished much later, so the development team would rather concentrate their resources on the three other platforms. Future games in the SmackDown! series will appear, however, for PlayStation 3. Still if something should change in the present planning, it will be announced here.

Okay, I'm with you. That's me paraphrasing a Babelfish translation of a message board post from the German Web site of THQ. Not exactly what I'd call a definitive source, but it still smells a lil' fishy.

True, there is no PlayStation 3 tab (no graphic even exists for such a tab) at the game's official page, but THQ's other announced PS3 game, Frontlines: Fuels of War has no Web site presence at all. And THQ has no PlayStation 3 section on their site. Plus, IGN just published a preview for the PS3 version of the game this past Friday, a day after the "announcement".

Would I be surprised that the PS3 version is substantially delayed? Nope. Would I be surprised that it would lead THQ to cancel the game outright? Maybe. Will I wait for an official announcement before proclaiming the PS3 sky is falling? Yesch. Michael McWhertor

Thanks to David and SF for the heads up.

Thanks to Metafuture for scoring this once-in-a-lifetime footage of a historic E3 media event. Florian Eckhardt

Wait for it! Wait for it! Snake! FLORIAN ECKHARDT

If you came to E3 wanting to see the clothes of burly men who wear tights, or if you've had enough of looking at women in skimpy outfits and want instead to be able to view the skimpy outfits without being distracted by the women, then you're in luck. THQ, the publishers of the upcoming WWE Smackdown! vs. Raw 2007, have some of the actual outfits worn by actual professional wrestlers on display, including Mankind's face mask and several small pieces of cloth whimsically referred to as WWE divas' "outfits." Several displays are filled with the goods and locked behind glass so that nobody can sniff them.

Come on, you know someone would.

Smackdown vs. Raw [Official Site]

The real lesson here is that almost anything can be made more tolerable when you are listening to Boots Randolph's "Yakety Sax"! This inflammatory video from YouTube is definitive proof.

(Thanks, Sho Nuff!)

Smackdown vs. Raw 2006 on PSP : Load Time Hell! [YouTube]