http://cache.kotaku.com/assets/base/img/thumbs140x140/kotaku.com.png http://kotaku.com/tag/valleywag http://kotaku.com/tag/valleywag

If you can get past the skin-soft silicon, the over-sexualized mouth, the transparent nightie and uncomfortably-separated thighs, Douglas Hines latest invention could offer some interesting insight into the way games interact with people. More »
]]> http://kotaku.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=5447309&view=rss&microfeed=true

Word hit today through the grapevine that "massive" layoffs had hit at Electronic Arts. Initially we heard as much as 20 percent of the staff has been let go, but a quick check with Electronic Arts confirms that it was actually 6 percent, or about 600 positions. "EA is continuing to make progress against our business plan, but we have the constant imperative to keep our costs in line as we grow our revenues and improve our margins," Electronic Arts spokesperson Mariam Sughayer told me. "Decisions that impact people's jobs are always extremely tough but all of the people affected will be treated fairly and respectfully." "We have begun a cost reduction initiative which will include eliminating approximately six percent of our existing workforce - or approximately 600 positions. We will also reduce hiring and close some open positions that we had previously planned to fill this fiscal year." More »
]]> http://kotaku.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=5071439&view=rss&microfeed=true

Let's file this one under "Too Soon." Seen at the "Invaders!" booth, tucked away in Hall Four of the Games Convention being held in Leipzig, Germany right now, was this non-interactive installation featuring the classic Taito space faring aliens laying waste to the Twin Towers. It was projected on a massive screen in the vicinity of lots of classic Space Invaders goods, as the game is celebrating its 30th anniversary this year. It was... it was weird. This hits three years after the first and last game to take on the World Trade Center hit Brooklyn. Honestly, we're not quite sure what's going on here quite yet, as we didn't know the German translation for "What the fuck?" We do know, however, that the 8-bit tower jumpers and the negative score applied to each WTC tower to indicate damage aren't going to sit well with, we're thinking, everyone we know who doesn't hate freedom. Update: It is an art exhibit, according the the French-American artist. More »
]]> http://kotaku.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=5039398&view=rss&microfeed=true

News of the rumored layoffs at LucasArts that we broke yesterday afternoon were confirmed today by the developer, which maintained that they remain committed to their internal studio. More »
]]> http://kotaku.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=5013987&view=rss&microfeed=true

We've heard from multiple sources today that LucasArts has laid off approximately 50-100 of its employees, including a handful of higher profile names like VP of Product Development Peter Hirschmann. The move comes just a few days after the publisher and developer released LEGO Indiana Jones: The Original Adventures on multiple platforms and four months after the departure of LucasArts president Jim Ward. More »
]]> http://kotaku.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=5013710&view=rss&microfeed=true

By: Brian Crecente and Leigh Alexander More »
]]> http://kotaku.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=5007647&view=rss&microfeed=true

Ten-year Electronic Arts chief creative officer William "Bing" Gordon is leaving the company to join California venture capital firm Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byer, the firm announced today. More »
]]> http://kotaku.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=384935&view=rss&microfeed=true

Take-Two Interactive tonight disclosed an email they sent out to their employees about a change in their severance plan which was triggered, it appears, by Electronic Arts offer to buy them out. More »
]]> http://kotaku.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=365458&view=rss&microfeed=true

The Take-Two Board of Directors has released a long (long) response explaining why they have rejected EA's acquisition proposal. In short, they think EA's undervaluing Take-Two's worth. Included with the press release are several pieces of correspondence between the two companies regarding this proposed acquisition. Hit the jump for the full text from the Take-Two investor relations site: More »
]]> http://kotaku.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=360147&view=rss&microfeed=true

I just got off the phone with Electronic Arts CEO John Riccitiello who called to talk about the back-and-forth going on right now between Take-Two and EA over Riccitiello's multi-billion dollar offer for the company. More »
]]> http://kotaku.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=360138&view=rss&microfeed=true

Electronic Arts just called me to let me know that they are making a bid to acquire Take-Two Interactive in an all-cash merger of about $2 billion. More »
]]> http://kotaku.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=360123&view=rss&microfeed=true

Monday's feature took a broad, anecdotal look at ten different analysts, explaining a little about who the analysts are and what they do. For your enjoyment and discussion, we present to you today all of the predictions made by the analysts and our verdict on each of them. More »
]]> http://kotaku.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=358091&view=rss&microfeed=true

News of Microsoft's democratization of indie game development was overshadowed this week by an increasing discontent among established indie developers that the company was halving the royalties paid to them for future Xbox Live Arcade projects, several well-informed sources told Kotaku. More »
]]> http://kotaku.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=359668&view=rss&microfeed=true

We've all seen their work. "Analysts predict PS3 price drop by September." "New DS to be released by Nintendo." "Wii will be the top selling console of 2007." Analysts seem to descend from their mountaintops once a month to tell us the future of the video game industry. So what secret rituals do these soothsayers conduct to get their predictions? And, more importantly, how often are these predictions right? More »
]]> http://kotaku.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=356982&view=rss&microfeed=true

LucasArts president Jim Ward surprised the developer on Monday with news that he was leaving the company he's been with for nearly ten years. More »
]]> http://kotaku.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=351775&view=rss&microfeed=true

It would seem that the ghost of Ion Storm hasn't quite faded into the night, as two of its more prominent employees, John "Suck It Down" Romero, also formerly of id, and Mike Wilson, now at Gamecock, are engaged in a nasty war of words. Romero posted on his personal blog this week that Wilson was up to his usual "jackass stunts" and recalled his former co-worker's time at Gathering of Developers/GodGames "where he pretty much just partied all the time and after the whole thing got reined in by Take 2 he went underground for a while, waiting for his next victim/investor so he could go hogwild all over again." More »
]]> http://kotaku.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=346816&view=rss&microfeed=true

Today's NPD sales numbers reveal that Bungie's Halo 3 was the best selling game in the United States in 2007, with a whopping 4.82 million copies sold. Nipping at Master Chief's heels was Nintendo's own Wii Play. It sold through a staggering 4.12 million units to the masses. More »
]]> http://kotaku.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=346135&view=rss&microfeed=true

Nintendo of America seems to be getting their new Bay Area office up to staff. Today the company announced that they appointed two sales and marketing execs to their Redwood City offices. More »
]]> http://kotaku.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=344517&view=rss&microfeed=true

Responding to rumors we broke earlier today that College Hoops 2K9 has been canceled due to a breakdown in negotiations with the license holders for collegiate basketball, 2K Sports parent company Take-Two had this to say to Kotaku: More »
]]> http://kotaku.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=344534&view=rss&microfeed=true

I've had a pet project I've been working on for years, three of them if my memory is right. It started as a simple idea: You can judge a lot from a person's desk. I bet you could judge just as much from their home entertainment system. So I decided it would be fun to try and track down some pictures from the work desks and home gaming set-ups of the people who work in and cover the video game industry. Simple right? Not so much. More »
]]> http://kotaku.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=343590&view=rss&microfeed=true

The Santa Monica E3 is dead, long live the Los Angeles E3... again? Not quite. More »
]]> http://kotaku.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=334841&view=rss&microfeed=true

In many ways, many, many ways eBay is an albatross around the necks' of gamers. This is most evident around the holidays when the demand for consoles and games goes through the roof. More »
]]> http://kotaku.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=334661&view=rss&microfeed=true

When you're Kotaku Editor Brian Crecente, everyone wants to be you. Men. Women. Vidal Sassoon models. Everyone. More »
]]> http://kotaku.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=332650&view=rss&microfeed=true

For those who enjoy reading press releases, we've got *gasp* a press release! Make that the full release about the non-BC 40GB PLAYSTATION 3 that is slated for North America. It's out November 2nd. Alright, who's buying? More »
]]> http://kotaku.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=312267&view=rss&microfeed=true

And just in time for Christmas! Bet you didn't see that coming. The 40GB PLAYSTATION 3 will go on sale November 2nd, which is before the console drops in Japan (November 11th), but after Europe (October 10th). No word whether America will be getting the Ceramic White version that will go on sale in both Japan and Korea. The 40GB version will retail for US $400, while the 80GB version will get a hundred price cut from $600 to $500. The 40GB PLAYSTATION 3 will not be able to play PS2 games — unlike previous versions of the consoles, which either featured BC or gimped BC. Addressing this issue, Sony Computer Entertainment of American honcho Jack Tretton remarked: More »
]]> http://kotaku.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=312243&view=rss&microfeed=true

Yesterday, EA CEO John Riccitiello, EA Games Label President Frank Gibeau and a few other top EA folks traveled down to Pandemic Studios to say hi to the recently acquired company and welcome them into the EA family. More »
]]> http://kotaku.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=311470&view=rss&microfeed=true

A conference call about the buy-out is kicking off in just minutes. I'll be liveblogging it here on the jump. Stay tuned. More »
]]> http://kotaku.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=309944&view=rss&microfeed=true

Click to view More »
]]> http://kotaku.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=307656&view=rss&microfeed=true

Dave Karraker, the senior director of corporate communications has just announced he will be leaving Sony Computer Entertainment of America for Skyy Spirits. His last day at SCEA will be this Friday, his first at Skyy Spirits will be Oct. 1. More »
]]> http://kotaku.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=296662&view=rss&microfeed=true

Former Take-Two CEO Ryan Brant was sentenced to five years of probation for his role in stock-option backdating, after agreeing to cooperate with prosecutors, Bloomberg reports. More »
]]> http://kotaku.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=284883&view=rss&microfeed=true

Hearst today announced that they have finalized a two-year deal to buy UGO Networks outright. While the details of the deal were not released, Forbes estimates the deal to "be in the neighborhood of $100 million." More »
]]> http://kotaku.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=282035&view=rss&microfeed=true

Microsoft just confirmed the news we exclusively broke two hours ago: Peter Moore resigned from Microsoft. More »
]]> http://kotaku.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=279437&view=rss&microfeed=true

Wow, just when I thought I had time to breathe along comes an amazing, and fairly well sourced rumor. More »
]]> http://kotaku.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=279366&view=rss&microfeed=true

By: Brian Crecente More »
]]> http://kotaku.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=273397&view=rss&microfeed=true

The father of the Playstation officially stepped down today, ending an era that saw the launch of three consoles and Sony's entry into the gaming market. More »
]]> http://kotaku.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=270299&view=rss&microfeed=true

Boy, it's been a day of job transitions, hasn't it? More »
]]> http://kotaku.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=266668&view=rss&microfeed=true

About 90 percent of the Nintendo of America Sales and Marketing staff, including Beth Llewelyn, Perrin Kaplan and George Harrison, have decided to quit the company rather than move to either San Francisco or New York, Game Informer is reporting. More »
]]> http://kotaku.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=266629&view=rss&microfeed=true

Click to view More »
]]> http://kotaku.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=266292&view=rss&microfeed=true

By: Brian Crecente and Michael McWhertor More »
]]> http://kotaku.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=264459&view=rss&microfeed=true

It looks like Microsoft may be buying up Nintendo...'s land, their empty unused land. Sorry, I had to do that. More »
]]> http://kotaku.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=263675&view=rss&microfeed=true