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  Rock Band Takes A Gamble On Even More Country

  Harmonix, clearly knowing when to hold ’em and when to fold ’em, has gone all in—in terms of bringing exactly seven new country tinged tracks to Rock Band next week. Rock Band and Rock Band 2 owners with a taste for twang should count their money, then decide if new downloadable tunes from Alan Jackson,…

  By Michael McWhertor Published December 24, 2009
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  Guess What San Jose Mercury News’ GOTY Is?

  Street Fighter IV wowed the San Jose Mercury News enough this year to earn it’s Game of the Year award. No, there won’t be a parade — have you seen the streets in downtown San Jose? Mercury News writer Gieson Cacho put together a top 10 list the likes of which I’m more used to…

  By AJ Glasser Published December 24, 2009
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  Final Fantasy XIII Versus The Competition, By The Numbers

  Square Enix released Final Fantasy XIII last week, a release that, in its first four days, sold more than 1.5 million copies. But how did the competition fare with the Final Fantasy sales juggernaut vying for Japanese gamer’s yen? Quite well, especially if you consider the competition to be New Super Mario Bros. Wii, which…

  By Michael McWhertor Published December 24, 2009
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  Why Can’t This Ever Happen At The Airports I Use?

  This is quite possibly the only Army of Two: The 40th Day teaser that’s made me laugh. Probably because I’ve spent six hours in airports so far this holiday and have another four ahead of me to go home. I don’t even care that it’s a United Kingdom teaser instead of a North American one.…

  By AJ Glasser Published December 24, 2009
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  New Screens For Carrier Command Remake

  Bohemia Interactive, creators of Operation Flashpoint and ArmA, are working on a remake of the classic Carrier Command. Things had been pretty quiet on that front, but then we got these new screens.

  By Luke Plunkett Published December 24, 2009
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  Sony Add NBA, NHL Games To The PlayStation Network

  Continuing moves made earlier in the year, when MLB, UFC and wrestling content was made available on the PlayStation Store, Sony yesterday announced there are now NBA and NHL games ready for download as well. The NBA content is the more appealing of the two, Sony promising “select games” will be made available every week…

  By Luke Plunkett Published December 24, 2009
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  Mommy, Where Do Game Trailers Come From?

  As we’ll get into on Christmas day in a little more detail, video game trailers are big business these days. But did you ever stop and wonder where they actually come from? The Kartel did, so went and paid a visit to FAILSAFE Creative Group, an ominous-sounding company that specialises in the production of trailers…

  By Luke Plunkett Published December 24, 2009
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  Batman Was Great, But Remember, Batman Was Late

  Game delays are big news and bad news. But once a game comes out and proves to be good, game delays are often forgotten news. Batman: Arkham Asylum was delayed in 2009. Its lead creator recalled that forgotten moment. You would think that delaying a game is an awkward process. The game is closing in…

  By Stephen Totilo Published December 24, 2009
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  It’s White Knight Chronicles, Only This Time In English

  Level 5’s White Knight Chronicles, a previously Japan-only title, is to be released in the US early next year. Want to see what it looks like in English? Click to view

  By Luke Plunkett Published December 24, 2009
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  Sony Promoting Safe Online Play With Handy Website

  Game companies, whether they be console manufacturers or publishers, are always the victims of bad press when it comes to keeping kids safe from questionable content online. So it’s nice seeing one – Sony – doing something proactive about it. While every console has measures in place to restrict content for minors, Sony are going…

  By Luke Plunkett Published December 24, 2009
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  Doctor Advises No Games Before Sport

  A doctor working with the British Olympic Association has advised athletes to avoid playing games before sport, as it adversely affects their sleep patterns. Writing on his blog, Dr. Marco Cardinale has four suggestions for those who enjoy their games as much as their athletic activity: 1) If your are travelling to train and compete…

  By Luke Plunkett Published December 24, 2009
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  Colorado’s Gaming Graffiti Wall

  As seen on Seetwist’s flickr page via Albotas.

  By Brian Ashcraft Published December 24, 2009
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  Talk Amongst Yourselves

  Please comment here about video games. Objection? Confused about commenting on Kotaku? Read our FAQ.

  By Stephen Totilo Published December 24, 2009
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  What Do You Want From Santa?

  To: Kotakuland From: Bashcraft RE: Games For My Break Kotaku already asked the gaming folks what they want, so now I’ll ask you: What do you want from Santa? What you missed last night Robin Williams On The Wii The Twenty Best-Rated Games Of The Decade More Final Fantasy XIV Screens Than You Can Shake…

  By Brian Ashcraft Published December 24, 2009
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  Segata Sanshiro Toy Filmed For Your Pleasure

  Segata Sanshiro was SEGA’s mascot character for the ill-fated SEGA Saturn. The character was a parody of Sanshiro Sugata, the character from the Akira Kurosawa film. The mascot even got his own toys back in the day — one of which was recently uploaded to YouTube. The packaging has phrases like “Forever Hero! He became…

  By Brian Ashcraft Published December 24, 2009
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  Final Fantasy XIII’s Sazh Cosplay In Japan

  Sazh Katzroy. You know, the FFXIII dude with the afro, dual pistols and the chocobo chick living inside said afro. He’s also got an adorable kid, and now, a hardcore cosplayer. Snapped at the recent Jump Festa in Japan, this cosplayer didn’t stop at the costume, oh no, but sports a solid effort at the…

  By Brian Ashcraft Published December 24, 2009
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  NSFW: A Brief Peek At Heavy Rain’s Adult Content

  Adult games and games for adults are different. European developer Quantic Dream doesn’t just dream of making games for adults, it is. With upcoming PS3 title Heavy Rain, the developer aims to make the video game equivalent of something like an R rated film — adult characters, adult content. As mentioned previously, some of that…

  By Brian Ashcraft Published December 24, 2009
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  Non-Blurry Look At Final Fantasy XIV Customization

  Yesterday, Kotaku detailed the character customization for upcoming MMO Final Fantasy XIV. Today? Today brings non-blurry images and new screens.

  By Brian Ashcraft Published December 24, 2009
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  Christmas Eve In Japan — With 2D And Plastic Girlfriends

  For Japanese, Christmas dinner is usually chicken and cake. Booze is involved as well. And the more discerning individuals, spend their meals with those closest to them. Alone. These types of photos are very much a Japanese internet meme — people showing their Christmas meal and female characters with whom they are eating. They’re more…

  By Brian Ashcraft Published December 24, 2009
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  More Games Released In 2009 Than In 2008

  You’d think the one-two punch of a global economic crisis and a string of delays would mean 2009 saw less game releases than 2008, but no. Oh no. Instead, according to Electronic Entertainment Design and Research, the number of games released this year increased. In 2008, 1092 titles reached a retail shelf in the United…

  By Luke Plunkett Published December 24, 2009