via Computer and Video Games


Casual games developer The Game Factory has revealed that it will be publishing a game based on the Rubik's Cube later on this year.

Rubik's World is being developed by Dutch developer Two Tribes (Worms Open Warfare 2) for both DS and Wii. According to the publisher, it's for anyone who's ever wondered what the inside of a Rubik's Cube looks like.

We have, but we always thought it was a few bits of plastic. Apparently not. Using TARDIS-like technology, the cubes contain entire 3D worlds, each made up of unique and original puzzles. Who would have thought it?

Players will be able to construct 3D shapes and objects, navigate through mazes and even create their own soundtracks.

The DS version will be supported with an online community that players can wirelessly connect to, and the Wii version can support up to four people and will feature an online message board. Presumably because casual gamers have never heard of GamesFAQs.

Expect Rubik's World sometime this autumn. ...

via Computer and Video Games


Capcom has released some of the nice screenshots of Street Fighter IV, which we think look great. Don't take our word for it though: have a look yourself.

We recognise they're not perfect - in particular Ryu's feet appear to belong to the Incredible Hulk and Chun Li still looks like a bloke - but the sheer style of them has us sold.

The backgrounds also look good and the lighting is quite impressive. In one shot, a setting sun in one shot casts rays over Ryu and Sagat.

If you haven't already seen them, we'd recommend checking out the videos on our Street Fighter IV game page. We want a release date now please, Capcom.


Screenshots ...

Nintendo has dated the Namco Bandai balance board game for Wii called Family Ski.

It's due out here on 13th June, although there is no word on what it will cost or what the deal will be if you don't already own a balance board. At present the board is only available with Wii Fit for GBP 69.99.

Family Ski takes advantage of Nintendo's three-pronged-entertainment-fork - the Wiimote, nunchuk and Wii Board - to deliver what it calls "a thrilling true-life ski experience".

This has you crouching and leaning to turn while pushing-off and accelerating using the motion-sensing hand controls.

There's a Ski School to help you get to grips with it all, and you will soon find yourself progressing from Rabbit Road up to courses like the terrifying Lion Peak. There are competitions to enter when you get really good.

You also get the option of using a pre-set skier or importing your Mii and dressing it up in ski wear.

Then, once you get bored of sliding around, you can do some common piste activities like finding lost children and delivering food to people, like some kind of two-legged St. Bernard. Smashing idea. There's a Ski Quiz, too.

You can take photos of yourself on the slopes and then post the pictures on the Wii Message Board, too. ...

via Computer and Video Games


Fancy a headache? Course you do. Sony's mind-melting puzzler, Echochrome, is out on the US PSN today for your self-harming pleasure.

In case you've not been following it, Echochrome is an innovative little title which sees you rotating simple 3D environments to create paths for a little walking make to traverse.

It uses a clever optical illusion mechanic, where obstacles like holes or gaps in the path disappear when you can't see them. It hurts just trying to explain it... just download the currently-available demo.

Unfortunately for UK gamers, that might not be for another week or so, as Sony UK is yet to announce a UK date for the quirky little title.

There are two versions being release, one for PS3 on the PS Store, and one for PSP on the PC Store for PSP - each version with its own 56 levels and both costing $9.99. ...

via Computer and Video Games


A mysterious timer clock has appeared on the official site for Grand Theft Auto 2. Yes, that's right; the ten-year-old game.

The clock on the official site seems to be counting neither up or down (the minutes don't change) but the date 'May 22' is clearly displayed underneath.

Could the long-rumoured Xbox Live Arcade and PSN versions of Grand Theft Auto 1 & 2 be just around the corner then? We can't think of anything else it could be relating to - the game's quite old, after all.

Rockstar's UK office was unfortunately unavailable to comment when we picked up the phone (they're probably playing Cops 'n Crooks), but we'll let you know when the time ticks away. ...

via Engadget


Sony in Australia has told Gizmodo that PlayTV - the PS3's USB TV tuner and video-recording add-on - will launch there in Q4 2008.

The device's launch will probably be bit more complicated than a standard game launch, but you would still expect relative parity among PAL regions, and this has prompted speculation in some quarters that we'll be waiting a while for PlayTV too. Here, for example.

This wasn't helped recently by Sony's refusal to clarify reports of a 31st July date and the absence so far of a more detailed estimate than sometime in 2008.

When we spoke to SCEE this week, a spokesperson offered some hope: "We have not yet announced a release date or pricing for PlayTV in the UK, but will have more information shortly," we were told.

That could mean we will see an announcement during next week's PlayStation Day event in London, when SCE president Kaz Hirai and European boss David Reeves will deliver a press conference expected to detail plans for the rest of 2008.

PlayTV, announced last year, allows PS3 owners to record TV programmes on the PS3 hard disk and watch another TV channel at the same time.

Pricing has yet to be announced for the add-on - a USB block in the shape of a sunglasses case - but the most important detail for prospective buyers is whether or not you can record TV while you play games, and Sony is currently trying to achieve this without impacting gameplay.

Check out our PlayTV preview for more on that issue - including comments from Sony's Cambridge studio developers - as well as details on how it's implemented. ...

via Games Industry


GTA IV producer Leslie Benzies has estimated that the game cost Rockstar approximately USD 100 million to create.

In an interview with the Times Online, Benzies also said that more than 1000 people worked on the title for a period of over a three and a half years.

If the figure is correct, GTA IV's development costs would make it the most expensive game ever made - topping the USD 70 million+ development budget for Sega's Shenmue for the Dreamcast.

GTA IV, however, has already sold over 600,000 copies on the first day in the UK alone and analysts have predicted that the game could gross more than USD 400 million in its first week.

Benzies also noted that much of the beating Rockstar has taken over the past three years - by the government and the press - comes from people who haven't played the game.

Why do people object to a game they haven't even played?

"You kill prostitutes," he told the Times Online. "That's usually the objection."

"There is a big fear factor here. It's the coming of the railways. It's Elvis shaking his hips. It's cars going over 25 miles an hour and making people explode." ...

via Eurtogamer


Capcom has announced the new version of Lost Planet is coming to Xbox 360 and PC on June 6th.

Lost Planet: Extreme Condition Colonies Edition bundles the original game with new content and a cross-platform play option. There are new online modes, maps, weapons and models.

New modes for the single player campaign include Score Attack, where you're awarded points for destroying enemies and objects, and Trial Battle, where you take on every boss of the game, one after the other.

In new online mode Akrid Hunter you get the chance to play as Akrid, while VS Annihilator involves attacking your opponents' base while defending your own. There are new playable characters and new weapons including a hand gun, flame launcher, rocket pod and laser lance.

Lost Planet: Extreme Condition Colonies Edition will cost USD 29.99 in America. A European price has yet to be announced, but a spokesperson told Eurogamer it will be "in line with other platinum releases". ...

via Games Industry


With the chart-topping Wii Fit already proving a sell-out across the UK, Nintendo UK has moved to reassure consumers, telling GamesIndustry.biz that "stock is coming in all the time on a weekly basis."

Fears over the availability of the anticipated peripheral-based product were sparked a fortnight ago , when it emerged that major retailers has stopped taking pre-orders - having already exhausted the first wave of units.

The update comes as Wii Fit entered the UK charts at number one this week, becoming the sixth fastest-selling UK debut ever. According to sales monitor Chart-Track, the GBP 69.99 title "was bought by roughly one in 10 Wii console owners over its first two days of release." ...