Luke Plunkett

360 To Get Special Resident Evil 5 Console

Ars Technica have a 360 mole, who’s previously been fairly solid, so we’ll run with this: Capcom and Microsoft have teamed up to offer a special edition Resident Evil 5 Xbox 360. And that console will come as part of a larger bundle, a bundle that includes: * Red 360 * Red control pad *…

PAL PlayStation Store Update: On The Precipice Of Punctuality

Sorry, PAL land. Still no Street Fighter HD. But on the bright side, you do finally get the first episode of the Penny Arcade game, which surely counts for something! Also made available is a demo for FEAR 2, along with a bunch of PSP games and even some PS1 games. Strange, strange PS1 games.…

Flight Simulator Series May Live On

Microsoft’s Flight Simulator series has been running since 1982. Hell of a long time. But news yesterday of the sacking of the game’s development team cast the future of the series in serious doubt. Chin up, Flight Sim fans! While the most recent group behind the series are no more, the series itself may well…

Here, The Full Guitar Hero: Metallica Tracklist

We don’t need ESRB leaks. Metallica themselves have gone one better and released the full, complete tracklist for the upcoming Guitar Hero: Metallica on the band’s website. And it’s a good one. You’ll find most of the band’s older classics represented (“One”, “Master of Puppets”, “For Whom The Bell Tolls”, etc), and should also find…

More Microsoft Layoffs Hit Game Testers, Games For Windows Group

Sorry. More Microsoft layoff news. Seems in addition to the Flight Sim and Gamerscore sackings, Microsoft have also laid off a number of testers, as well as members of the Games for Windows team. According to Venturebeat, around 30% of Microsoft’s video game testers have been shown the door, so if your next Microsoft Games…

Don’t Expect A Mass Effect 2 Unveiling At GDC

Mass Effect 2 is going to be at GDC! It’s going to be the topic of a dry, academic discussion, but still…Mass Effect 2! We’ll learn all sorts of things from this discussion, right? Nope. EA reps have told VG247: This GDC event is an academic panel, but there won’t be any concrete information provided…

Skate 2 DLC Tailor-Made For The Cashed-Up, Lazy Consumer

What is this, 2006? We thought the days of EA releasing cynical, lazy pieces of downloadable content were behind us. Silly us! This is, after all, EA we’re talking about. And as the publisher behind such classic pieces of DLC as “pay to unlock stuff you can get for free in the game” and “pay…

Sony Europe Boss: No Cuts For Us

Sony are swinging the axe. Jobs must go. And while “headcount reductions” are in store for the games division, Sony Europe boss David Reeves reckons it won’t affect his part of the PlayStation Kingdom. Speaking with GI.biz, a Sony spokesperson has said Reeves feels that the restructuring processes Sony will undertake will be mostly confined…

Intel Are, Yes, Sacking A Bunch Of People

In keeping with today’s theme, Intel – manufacturers of processors that are probably in the machine you’re reading this on and maybe also in a machine you game on – announced some job cuts. The company are to close four of their manufacturing plants: two in Malaysia, one in the Philippines and one in the…

Peggle…On iPhone!

Ah, Peggle. You either love it, or you’ve never played it. While the game’s just fine on PC, it’s always seemed more suitable for on-the-go gaming, much like Tetris was on the GameBoy. So it’s awesome to hear that developers PopCap will be bringing the game to the iPhone and iPod Touch “in the first…

Far Cry 2 Sells Well, But Is Prince Of Persia Really A Slow Starter?

Ubisoft released some sales figures today as part of their financial results reporting. Listed are the to-date numbers for Far Cry 2, Prince of Persia, Raving Rabbids TV Party & Shaun White Snowboarding. Shaun White enjoyed a surprisingly strong debut, selling 2.3 million copies worldwide and becoming the second-highest-selling sports title in the US behind…

EVE Online Banker Robs From The Rich, Gives To Himself

EVE Online has banks. Run by EVE Online players. And EVE Online players are as susceptible to embezzling over 80 billion ISK (the game’s currency) then doing a runner as any of us. Having found himself in the position of investments manager for the in-game bank Dynasty Banking, player Xabier had massive amounts of in-game…

Forbes Writer Stands By Calling Rock Band A “Shameless Knockoff” Of Guitar Hero

Earlier this week, Forbes writer Peter C. Beller made a tit of himself when he swallowed some Activision PR and reprinted it in his article on Bobby Kotick. Today, surprisingly, he stands by it. To recap, in the original piece, Beller called Rock Band a “shameless knockoff” of Guitar Hero, seemingly oblivious of the fact…

“Bulk Of” Microsoft’s 1400 Job Cuts To Strike Entertainment Division

According to sources speaking with ZDNet’s resident Microsoft blogger, Mary-Jo Foley, “the bulk of [Microsoft’s] immediate 1,400-person cuts” are going to fall on the Entertainment & Devices Group. Which includes the Xbox team. We were told the same thing earlier today, and when contacted Microsoft PR issued the following statement: “This is a company-wide action,…

Gamerscore Blog Team Let Go As Part Of Microsoft Layoffs

Sorry to keep hitting you with these bad news stories. Maybe things will get happier next week. But today, things are bleak, with news now that Microsoft’s Gamerscore blog team have been laid off. We heard last week that the blog had been shut down, but there was always the chance that was simply part…

Presenting A New, Different Street Fighter Movie Poster

The Street Fighter movie poster we’ve seen so far? Bit rubbish. This is the “international” version. Does the addition of some hot Vega claw = improvement? Other changes: gone is the confusing montage-on-white motif of the US poster, replaced by one that looks more like the poster to a movie about martial arts. Also helps…

Flight Simulator Devs Grounded By Microsoft Job Cuts

Microsoft are slashing jobs. 5000 of them. While most of those won’t affect gaming divisions, some of them are, with sweeping cuts announced for the company’s Flight Simulator development studio. According to sources speaking with Gamasutra, “a large portion” of the staff at ACES Studio – based in Redmond, and wholly owned by Microsoft –…

Fancy Lucasarts Coffee Table Book, Now Partially Free

I asked for the Lucasarts history book for Christmas. My family and loved ones betrayed me, and bought me underpants and video games instead. Oh well. Now I can read some for free! Gamasutra have a chapter of the book up, and while it involves neither Guybrush Threepwood, Purple Tentacle or Grand Admiral Thrawn, it’s…

Battlefield Heroes Beta Is Back On The Menu, Boys

Late last year, EA shut down the Battlefield Heroes beta, claiming they had a little house-cleaning to do before it could be re-opened. Well, cleaning’s done, because the beta is about to come back. If you’re interested in testing the game out – and really, it does look like a lot of fun – you…

World In Conflict Bundle Coming To The PC In March

Ubisoft are the proud new owners of Massive Entertainment, the developers behind World in Conflict. And Ubisoft have just announced a release date for World in Conflict: Soviet Assault. Good news, as the release of the expansion was up in the air following the demise of former publishers Sierra. Well, good news for PC owners.…