via gizmodo



Most of you won't be familiar with this Famicom-styled voice recorder since the US got a differently styled NES controller, but for people who grew up in Asia in the '80s this will feel right at home. The voice recorder features a volume slider, a place to shove two AAA batteries, and a couple of buttons that aren't labeled well.

If you're into getting all retro when you conduct your interview with the Prime Minister of Japan, this is the way to go.

Buy at Play Asia ...

via gizmodo



Most of you won't be familiar with this Famicom-styled voice recorder since the US got a differently styled NES controller, but for people who grew up in Asia in the '80s this will feel right at home. The voice recorder features a volume slider, a place to shove two AAA batteries, and a couple of buttons that aren't labeled well.

If you're into getting all retro when you conduct your interview with the Prime Minister of Japan, this is the way to go.

Buy at Play Asia ...

via gizmodo



Most of you won't be familiar with this Famicom-styled voice recorder since the US got a differently styled NES controller, but for people who grew up in Asia in the '80s this will feel right at home. The voice recorder features a volume slider, a place to shove two AAA batteries, and a couple of buttons that aren't labeled well.

If you're into getting all retro when you conduct your interview with the Prime Minister of Japan, this is the way to go.

Buy at Play Asia ...

via gizmodo

Here's the petition to open up the PSX's RSX under Linux. This is why you should sign it: You see, when Sony announced that it was going to allow people to install Linux on their PS3s without going through backdoors, everyone rejoiced at all the possibilities of playing back DivX and using it as a DVR under Linux. But if you've gone through the process of installing Yellow Dog Linux onto your PS3, you'll note that something's missing. Namely, hardware support.

You see, right now the Linux on PS3s have no access to the RSX (the graphics processor), which means playing back DivX or using any kind of meaningful graphical app is out of the question. Not to mention emulation (SNES, NES) gaming or real gaming under Linux. So go over and sign that petition so we can actually use Linux for something useful.

More Info ...

via joystiq

Look out Microsoft, your text input device isn't the only console keyboard peripheral in the planning stages. Our friends at Wii Fanboy got a pic from page 18 of Game Informer's May 2007 issue (that's the one with the GTA IV exclusive) that mentions, "Nintendo's development team says that it is considering adding a keyboard peripheral to the system in order to make online surfing easier." We agree, browsing the web on the Wii can be a chore, but we're not really looking forward to a clumsy keyboard hanging around our svelte Wii. All right, all right, they haven't "officially announced anything at this time," so we'll wait to see what the boys in Kyoto cook up. How about some DS touchscreen keyboard action? ...

via gamespot

Aussie gamers hoping the recently announced PlayStation Portable price drop for Europe would apply down under needn't hold their breath, with a Sony Computer Entertainment Australia (SCEA) spokesperson today confirming there are currently no plans to lower the price of the handheld unit.

The SCEA spokesperson told GameSpot AU that whilst a PSP drop wasn't imminent for Australia, the company was "evaluating local market conditions" for a possible future price reduction. "We will make an announcement when a decision has been made," the spokesperson said. In Australia, the PSP Base Pack retails for A$349.95 ($291).

Sony last night confirmed it was reducing the price of the PSP for UK and European gamers. From May 4, the handheld's core price will drop to £129.99 (from £149.99) in the UK, and to 169 euros for the rest of Europe. The price of US PSPs dropped $30 to $169.99 in early April. ...

via gibiz

Following the news that Sony is to cut the price of PSP in Europe, analysts have told GamesIndustry.biz that they don't see the handheld as being in direct competition with the Nintendo DS.

"I don't think Sony will "beat" the DS, nor do I think that they aspire to do so. Nintendo has something different to offer with its touch screen and deep library of first party titles, and Sony is not in a position to compete with that offering," said Wedbush Morgan's Michael Pachter.

"Rather, the DS is like a souped-up GBA, while the PSP is like a miniature PS2. Games for the two devices are different, and the gaming experience is quite different. I think that the only people who care about the DS-PSP sales battle are the media."

Pachter's comments were echoed by IDC's Billy Pidgeon, who told GI.biz, "I don't see the PSP as competing with the DS so much as bringing in the core console demographic to handhelds, and the PSP has convergent value as a multimedia player that appeals to that group.

"Still, the DS Lite's value pricing will cause retailers to keep pushing Sony to bring PSP price down further, and strong DS hardware and software sales will reduce shelf space for PSP at retail," he added.

As announced yesterday, SCEE has cut the price of PSP to GBP 130 / EUR 170. Earlier this month, SCEA cut the US price of PSP by USD 30.

"The price reduction will be good for retailers as PSP were not moving quickly enough at USD 199," observed Pidgeon.

According to Pachter, there is likely to be more than one factor involved in Sony's decision to slash the price.

"I truly believe that Sony manages pricing based upon two things - cost of production and sales volumes. They will continue to lower price as they gain economies of scale, but it's not likely that the company will price below its marginal cost of production to move a few more units," he said.

"In the case of the PS2, they are making a profit because demand is still strong at the current price point. In the case of the PSP, their manufacturing costs have probably dropped to below the USD 169 level. With VAT and other incremental costs, they are pricing close to parity in the US, UK and Europe."

Pachter pointed out that Sony has the dominant share of US software sales, securing around 40 per cent of the market during March across all three of the company's platforms.

"Yes, it's true that the PS3 is behind, but I believe that Sony will persevere once it begins to market the device and once the game lineup catches up," he continued.

"That should begin to happen at holiday, and if HD monitor adoption picks up, I think that Blu-ray will become a factor in the battle."

According to Pidgeon, the move to cut the price of PSP won't necessarily boost sales of Sony's next-gen console. "Stronger PSP sales will help Sony move PS3's down the line," he offered, "But I think a larger installed base of PS3 will have a more important impact on increasing PSP penetration." ...

via gibiz



Nintendo has returned to the top of the All Formats charts after four years with Pokemon Ranger taking the coveted number one spot.

Pokemon Ranger is the sixth title in the series to hit number one, and becomes the first Nintendo developed title to climb to the top since Pokemon Ruby four years ago.

Last week's number one, TMNT: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, has been pushed back to number two, just ahead of Wii Play which leaps up the charts from number 24 to number three.

This week's highest new entry is Harvest Moon DS at number 4. Ubisoft's budget release of Rayman 2: The Great Escape is at number five while Dr. Kawashima's Brain Training climbs up the top ten to number six.

Electronic Arts' Tiger Woods PGA Tour 07 is at number seven, with another Ubisoft PC title, Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time, at number eight.

Former number one Command & Conquer 3: Tiberium Wars is at number nine this week with Codemasters' Brian Lara International Cricket 2007 at number ten.

Nintendo has a total of seven DS games in the top forty, including Hotel Dusk: Room 215 at number 22 and Cooking Mama which enters the charts at number 35. ...

via engadget

Ah, the sequence of events is nearly complete. First, we get the Xbox 360 axe rockin' on the console itself, and then comes the inevitable hacks to get it rollin' on Windows, and without further adu, we present the ability to melt those plastic frets on OS X. Thanks to an impressive development from TattieBogle (v0.5), a USB driver which purportedly "allows the use of wired Xbox 360 controllers via USB" on your OS X-based machine is finally available. Apparently, it actually works fairly well to boot, so if you've been pouting over your Mac not being able to enjoy the same face melting Guitar Hero II niceties as the other guys, be sure to hit the read link and get your download on. ...