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  Aion Aims For Fall Launch

  A letter to fans posted on the official website for the eagerly anticipated massively-multiplayer game Aion: The Tower of Eternity reveals plans for a fall 2009 release in North America and Europe. New Aion U.S. community manager Lani “Liv” Blazier answered some of the biggest questions North American and European fans had regarding the release…

  By Mike Fahey Published February 20, 2009
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  Disney Sends Spectrobes Wii-ward

  Spectrobes makes the leap from two small screens to one large one, as Disney Interactive Studios takes their original science fiction adventure series to the Nintendo Wii with Spectrobes: Origins. Planetary patrol officer Rallen returns the in the next evolution of the Spectrobes franchise, continuing his adventures from the first two titles on the DS…

  By Mike Fahey Published February 20, 2009
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  American McGee Has a Blank Canvas for Alice Sequel

  Deadly jumping jacks, a vivisected dormouse, and a suicidal Alice were the products of famed designer American McGee’s first trip through the looking glass. There’s no telling where his second will take us. “We’ve given him a blank canvas to go where he would like,” said David DeMartini, Electronic Arts Partners chief. “There is nothing…

  By Brian Crecente Published February 20, 2009
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  Alright, Tea Or Coffee?

  To: Crecente From: Bashcraft RE: Deadly Halo Sand Yeah, I know. It’s not exactly a fair question — I drink both. It’s like asking if people like Elvis of The Beatles. Still, I’m gonna ask you, do you drink tea or coffee? Luke was saying he drinks a lot of peppermint tea. (Yes, this is…

  By Brian Ashcraft Published February 20, 2009
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  Sony: Unique Controllers Are Great For Business

  Americans may not be fully up to speed on the details, but know that nearly half of all PlayStation 2 consoles sold have been sold in Europe. A big part of that popularity has been down to what’s now known as Sony’s “Party Starter” lineup: SingStar, Buzz! and EyeToy. These were all developed by first-party…

  By Luke Plunkett Published February 20, 2009
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  David Hayter Back On Metal Gear Movie?

  Yeah, David Hayter is the voice of Snake in Metal Gear Solid, but his day job is Hollywood script writer. You’d think, then, that he’d be a lock to write the Metal Gear Movie. But no. Originally, Hayter teamed up with cashed-up producer Avi Arad to pitch an idea for a Metal Gear movie to…

  By Luke Plunkett Published February 20, 2009
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  PlayStation Expands To Latin America

  Check off another region on the globe that Sony has infiltrated. The company is officially bringing the PlayStation to Latin America. The PLAYSTATION 3, the PSP, the PS2 and the PlayStation Network services will be available for 13 countries throughout Latin America thanks to a distribution deal with Sony Latin America. “Our commitment to expand…

  By Brian Ashcraft Published February 20, 2009
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  So, Why Did Ensemble Studios Close Up?

  Bruce Shelley is an industry legend. Helped Sid Meier make Civilization, created Age of Empires, then joined Ensemble. Now, though, Ensemble are gone. And Shelley is trying to explain why that happened. Taking the stage at this year’s DICE get-together in Vegas, Shelley’s address was devoted to pondering aloud how a studio that had only…

  By Luke Plunkett Published February 20, 2009
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  Jay Mohr Tells Jokes About The Game Industry

  Jay Mohr is a comedian. Comedians tell jokes. As host of the 12th annual Interactive Achievement Awards, Mohr did just that. We’ve cherry picked three of our favorites Mohr told about the gaming industry: Directed at LittleBigPlanet‘s Alex Evans about the DIY hit: “It’s like buying CD, plugging it in, and then having to go…

  By Brian Ashcraft Published February 20, 2009
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  PAL PlayStation Store Update: Enter A New Challenger

  This week, Europe and Australia finally got Super Street Fighter II HD. Shame, really, since with Street Fighter IV also with us this week, it misses much of the point. Also available for PAL owners this week, Noby Noby Boy. If you’ve ever wanted to know what it’d be like playing a game where you…

  By Luke Plunkett Published February 20, 2009
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  Gothic Lolita Shooter Goes Christmas

  Here’s more reason for ghoulish smiles. At this year’s arcade show AOU, the sequel for Lolita maniac shooter DeathSmiles has been unveiled today. It’s all Christmasy. Last month, we broke the news that DeathSmiles was getting a sequel. DeathSmiles was released in Japanese arcades in 2008 and is getting an Xbox 360 port this Spring.…

  By Brian Ashcraft Published February 20, 2009
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  Okami Creator Says Western Developers Are Superior

  Capcom’s Jun Takeuchi spoke today about the “rise” of Western gaming. But former Capcom man Atsushi Inaba, well, he goes a little further, saying that, overall, “Western developers are superior to those in Japan”. Chatting with Develop, Inaba says: To be honest, I think that western developers are superior to those in Japan overall. So…

  By Luke Plunkett Published February 20, 2009
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  Suggestive Star Ocean 4 Screenshots

  Star Ocean producer Yoshinori Yamagishi really wants to make erotic games. Square Enix has already nixed that idea, but that doesn’t seem to have stopped Yamagishi from spicing up Star Ocean. Below is a batch of Star Ocean: The Last Hope screenshots. Granted, they are taken out of context, and the game has been given…

  By Brian Ashcraft Published February 20, 2009
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  Noby Noby Boy T-Shirts: Classy

  You may remember Panic from their line of Katamari Damacy t-shirts. They were great. Now that Katamari creator Keita Takahashi has a new game out, Panic are doing shirts for it too. There are 8 shirts available, and Panic tell us they’ll be ready to ship in around three weeks (though you can order them…

  By Luke Plunkett Published February 20, 2009
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  LittleBigPlanet Dominates Interactive Achievement Awards

  The 12th annual Interactive Achievement Awards wrapped up late Thursday night in Las Vegas. Hosted by comedian Jay Mohr, the awards recognized the best of the game industry in 2008. The winners were selected by 300 members of the industry by secret ballot. This year, PS3 exclusive LittleBigPlanet dominated, snagging eight awards. Here they are…

  By Brian Ashcraft Published February 20, 2009
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  Japan Gets Cute Little Resistance 2, DualShock 3 Bundle

  We’ve a soft spot for Resistance 2 and Japan. Why? Because the game’s marketing there was vastly superior, and also because it’s led Sony Japan to come up with adorable little bundles like this. To be released on March 12 for ¥8980 (USD$95), the little box will include a copy of Resistance 2 along with…

  By Luke Plunkett Published February 20, 2009
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  PSN Accounts Top Two Million In Japan

  As of February 20, Sony Computer Entertainment have announced that the number of PlayStation Network accounts has surpassed 2 million. The PSN was launched in Japan in November 2006 when the PS3 launched. Every month, 700,000 accounts access the PSN domestically and 35 million pieces of content are downloaded in The Land of the Rising…

  By Brian Ashcraft Published February 20, 2009
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  Microsoft Would Like You To Believe This Model Is A Halo Fan

  Well done, Microsoft UK. Here we were, thinking that, come 2009, gaming – yes, even 360 gaming – was for everyone, when you go and shove a set of Halo Wars-covered tits in our face. It’s not that we’re complaining. After all, yes, Microsoft, they are a lovely pair. But, just like the Gears of…

  By Luke Plunkett Published February 20, 2009
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  Want Beyond Good & Evil For Free? Buy Some Cheese

  True story. If Canadians pick up select packets of Cheese Heads brand mozzarella cheese, they’ll not only get a bag of delicious cheese, they’ll also get a copy of Beyond Good & Evil. Really. What’s more, it’s not a download key, not a mail-away deal. The disc – for the PC version – is right…

  By Luke Plunkett Published February 20, 2009
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  Thanks To Erotic Game Design, Rapper Kanye West Got Into Hip Hop

  Kanye West. Rapper, producer, fashion designer, former erotic game designer. When 31-year-old rapper Kanye West was in 7th grade, he created his first hip-hop beat. It was made for a video game he was designing — a game populated with a giant penis hero and vagina ghosts. West explains to DETAILS: First beat I did,…

  By Brian Ashcraft Published February 20, 2009