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  Dust Off Your Balance Board For Mario & Sonic At The Winter Olympics

  Sega and Nintendo have now officially announced Mario & Sonic at The Olympic Winter Games, detailing some of the events and features we can expect in the frigid follow-up to last year’s summer outing. While we knew it was coming before we knew it was coming, now it’s officially coming, as if Sega and Nintendo…

  By Mike Fahey Published February 12, 2009
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  Guitar Hero Standalone Controllers Hit This Week

  Finally. Starting Sunday Guitar Hero World Tour players will be able to purchase individual guitar controllers and drum kit controllers in stores in North America. While the quite lengthy press release goes into all kinds of details we already knew about the drum, the guitar and the songs you can use to play them with,…

  By Brian Crecente Published February 12, 2009
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  Eatin’ With The In-Laws (No, They’re Not Trying To Kill Me)

  To: Crecente From: Ashcraft RE: Check Back from a day off — went to the in-laws and ate blowfish cooked in a variety of ways. Blowfish, when not prepared properly is lethal. To prepare or sell it, you must get a license and getting one is quite an ordeal. Some times you see trucks with…

  By Brian Ashcraft Published February 12, 2009
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  Fashion Label Goes Pouty For Pac-Man

  French fashion label Lanvin are trying something a little different with their latest advertising spread. Gone are the leafy sunsets and industrial playgrounds we normally see in such ads, and in comes…Lego. And Pac-Man. Maybe they’re trying to appeal to the the neatly dovetailing demographics of ageing game nerd and continental fashionistas. Maybe not. Maybe…

  By Luke Plunkett Published February 12, 2009
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  What Sells More, Dragon Ball Or Soul Calibur?

  ‘Tis the season for financial results. In keeping with the trend, Bandai Namco released theirs tonight, and amidst all the bean-counting, also revealed some sales figures for their tentpole franchises. The company as a whole (remember, Bandai Namco do arcade machines, toys and cartoons) ended the quarter with a net income of ¥9,019,000,000 (USD$100 million),…

  By Luke Plunkett Published February 12, 2009
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  Fashion Model Promotes Mario & Luigi RPG 3 In Japan

  That’s the formerly ubiquitous fashion model Yuri Ebihara — who after dominating Japanese print in TV ads has since gone M.I.A. of late. Well, there she is! Playing Mario & Luigi RPG 3. This is not the first time Ebihara, nicknamed “Ebi-chan,” has done game ads. Previously, she appeared in a SEGA ad. There was…

  By Brian Ashcraft Published February 12, 2009
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  Upcoming Tecmo PS3 Exclusive Started As PC Title

  Last fall, Tecmo first announced upcoming Gears-cover-style third person shooter Quantum Theory. It’s not exactly the type of game you’d think coming from the Dead or Alive developer. In a recent interview, Quantum Theory designer Keisuke Kikuchi revealed that the PS3 exclusive was originally a PC game: “Initially the game concept was built around this…

  By Brian Ashcraft Published February 12, 2009
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  Monster Hunter Titles Ship 3 Million

  Capcom’s Monster Hunter continues to post monster sales. Monster Hunter Freedom 2G and budget title Monster Hunter Freedom 2G PSP the Best have shipped 3 million units combined in Japan. In related Monster Hunter news, March 11 is the 5th anniversary of the first Monster Hunter game. The series has sold over 8.5 million copies…

  By Brian Ashcraft Published February 12, 2009
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  The European Union Thinks Games Are Great For Kids

  Well, this makes a pleasant change from the usual “games will KILL BABIES” argument. The European Union have got together and decided that video games are actually rather good for the kids. Spearheaded by Dutch lawmaker Toine Manders, the report found that “Videogames are in most cases not dangerous and can even contribute to the…

  By Luke Plunkett Published February 12, 2009
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  Be Scary! Win F.E.A.R. 2

  Reader Chris sends this, scaring the crap outta us all. “If i dont win (which i’m sure i wont) at least i’ll still get a cheap laugh or two,” writes Chris. “And thats what it’s really all about… isn’t it?” We’re giving away a copy of multi-plat horror shooter FEAR 2: Project Origin. Here’s the…

  By Brian Ashcraft Published February 12, 2009
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  Imagine: 1 Million Imagine Sales

  It stings a little to report on this, but sometimes, we must bite our lips and bring the bad news, as well as the good: Ubisoft’s Imagine series has passed 1 million in sales. The popular series of titles, targeted at young girls, is most well-known for its DS titles, but it also appears on…

  By Luke Plunkett Published February 12, 2009
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  Get To Know Your Mike Fahey

  Geek we love? Mike Fahey. Tech site geeksugar has an intimate Q&A with Kotaku Associate Editor Michael Fahey. Perfect for budding Fahey stalkers! The interview’s wall-to-wall fun, tongue planted firmly in cheek — Fahey’s favorite place to plant it. Topics covered include how Fahey got into gaming, why it might not good for gamers to…

  By Brian Ashcraft Published February 12, 2009
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  Square Enix Trying To Buy Tomb Raider

  Square Enix have just announced that an agreement has been reached with the board of Eidos, by which Square will purchase the creaky old British publisher for £84 million (USD$120 million). That price represents, according to Square, a premium of 129% over Eidos’ current market value. Meaning that, yes, in other words, they’re paying more…

  By Luke Plunkett Published February 12, 2009
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  Square Enix Slashes Financial Forecast

  Square Enix has finally released its financials, including a revised forecasts for this financial year — ending March 31, 2009. Sales and income are expected to be down. According to Square Enix, the company’s new net sales forecast is 16.9 percent lower than previously thought. Net income is expected to be down 62.5 percent. What’s…

  By Brian Ashcraft Published February 12, 2009
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  Watchmen Brawler Invokes The Spirit Of Capcom

  Deadline are working on a Watchmen brawler, but this isn’t it. This game we’re talking about today is an old-fashioned side-scroller, it has old-fashioned sensibilities and, best of all, it’s free. Hosted on the website for the upcoming Watchmen film, the Watchmen arcade game is – despite its “1977” production date – a decidedly 80’s…

  By Luke Plunkett Published February 12, 2009
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  Dragon Quest IX Delayed

  It’s official. Square Enix has announced that upcoming DS title Dragon Quest IX has been pushed back. The game was slated for a March 28 release in Japan. The game is now scheduled to hit retailers on July 11. According to Square Enix, the delay is a result of bugs or “flaws,” it seems, still…

  By Brian Ashcraft Published February 12, 2009
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  More Japanese Women Read Erotic Game Mag Than Xbox 360 Mag

  Men and women in Japan read game magazines in Japan. Here’s some fascinating reader data from Japanese publisher Enterbrain about who reads what. This data was collected by Enterbrain via reader surveys last year. It covers four of its magazines: • Famitsu DS + Wii Female: 41.2 percent Male: 58.8 percent • Famitsu PSP +…

  By Brian Ashcraft Published February 12, 2009
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  Activision Predict 2009 Console Sales

  Step aside, analysts and amateur crystal ball-gazers! Continuing a trend set by Microsoft, Activision have decided to start throwing console guesstimates around, taking a swing this morning at guessing console sales for 2009. So just what does Activision boss Bobby Kotick see when he gazes into his crystal ball? All was revealed as part of…

  By Luke Plunkett Published February 12, 2009
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  You Can Dress As Bionic Commando, But Not Swing Like Him

  We previously brought word that Dead Rising: Chop ‘Til You Drop featured two new costumes for the Wii: Bionic Commando and bikini Frank West. Here’s something you should know about the Bionic Commando outfit: The BC outfit, modeled after character Nathan Spencer, does not allow Wii Dead Rising players to grapple. That’s right, it may…

  By Brian Ashcraft Published February 12, 2009
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  Video Game Marketing Now Crushing Cars For Kicks

  Our hats are off (yup, all of them) to Dawn of War II‘s marketing team today. Why? Forget developer diaries. They’re more interested in turning Warhammer 40K into a monster truck rally. We’ve told you before about THQ UK’s plans to build a replica Space Marine Rhino from Warhammer 40K. Well, those plans are done.…

  By Luke Plunkett Published February 12, 2009