via Eurogamer


The bloody countdown timer on the Sony Japan site is for a fresh Siren game on PS3.

Japanese magazine Famitsu (translated by Kotaku) unearthed the game's title as Siren New Translation, and said it would be a reworking of Forbidden Siren from 2003.

Apparently those in Japan can expect the game as early as July, with a demo due out on 24th April.

Unfortunately Sony Europe offered no comment on the game's Western whereabouts.

Forbidden Siren was dreamt up by the director of Silent Hill, Keiichiro Toyama, and was wonderfully bonkers if a little tricky to get into. It went a little unnoticed, bizarrely, but both it and its sequel are worth looking into. ...

via Computer and Video Games


THQ has unveiled more about its upcoming Wii game, De Blob, via fourteen brand new screenshots.

It all looks a bit bonkers. In case you haven't been following, you take control of de Blob, who must restore colour to the colourless world he finds himself in.

In order to do this, you must roll around the world and leave streaks of goo over the grey terrain.

Unfortunately, the screenshots don't do the game justice, looking a bit lifeless and dull. Which, to be fair though, is exactly how the world is supposed to feel.

Instead, we recommend taking a look at the video on our De blob game page for a more accurate look at how the game will play. Aren't we nice?


Screenshots ...

via Computer and Video Games


Proving there's more to him than Elite (and Wallace and Gromit games), David Braben's company Frontier Developments has just released eight new screenshots from LostWinds. We want.

It frankly looks gorgeous. And not just for a WiiWare title, but against anything on Nintendo's console. Note to developers - look at this and Mario Galaxy when lamenting about the power under the hood of Wii.

LostWinds is scheduled for release later on in the year. Players take control of a boy named Toku and the wind spirit Enril, who must foil an evil elemental spirit.

To do so, the player must use the power of the wind, no doubt by gesturing with the Wii Remote to get around puzzles and platforms that are in the character's way.

In a recent interview, Braben told us that: "We believe that the content of LostWinds rivals many disc based games, and we have much more of the story yet to tell". Based on what we've seen, we hope he gets the opportunity to do so.


Screenshots ...

via Computer and Video Games


Sega has released eight new screenshots from Samba de Amigo, due out some time this year.

First released for Dreamcast, Samba originally came with a set of maracas that players used to take part in a fun rhythm-action game fronted by a monkey.

The Wii version is more of the same, except the maracas have been substituted by the Wii Remote and Nunchuk.

Suffice to say then, that screenshots are hardly the best way of conveying how the game will perform. Still, they look crisp and colourful, which perfectly captures the spirit of the original title.


Screenshots ...

via Eurogamer



Image from Kotaku

A new Metal Gear Solid-branded bluetooth headset is being released at the same time as the fourth instalment in the series.

According to Kotaku, it'll cost USD 60 - so GBP 120 over here, most likely. It has a 30-foot range and talktime of up to eight hours, plus an auto-off function to conserve battery life. You also get a carry case.

The headset will work with bluetooth-enabled mobiles plus of course all other PS3 titles supporting voice chat. It's out on June 12th, just like Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots. ...

via IGN


Codemasters today announced that Emergency Mayhem has shipped to U.S. retailers nationwide. Coming exclusively to the Wii, Emergency Mayhem puts players at the helm of three emergency services in a frantic race against time to hold together Crisis City, a mad metropolis that's falling apart at the seams.

Combining chaotic arcade driving with a huge range of mini-game challenges, players race against the clock in one of three emergency vehicles - a fire-truck, ambulance or police patrol car to reach different incident scenes.

Typically in Crisis City, incidents requiring attention are of a decidedly slapstick nature and Emergency Mayhem takes advantage of the Wii Remote in a huge variety of mini games that come into play once players reach an emergency scene. Pump the Wii Remote to practice CPR, point it to direct water from a powerful hose, mimic a wrench to bring bursting water-hydrants under control, or position a trampoline to save people leaping from burning buildings.

With an entire city to explore, three branches of the emergency services to control and over 30 types of emergency to deal with, players have a huge challenge to complete. Players can also share the mayhem with a fantastic multiplayer mode featuring mini-game challenges for up to four players. Compete in a tournament or battle against the clock in Survival mode as friends and family compete to be the best.

Get ready to bring some order to Crisis City with Emergency Mayhem, now shipping exclusively on Wii. For the latest movie and monkey-adorned wallpapers, visit www.codemasters.com/emergency. ...

via Computer and Video Games


Man the lifeboats! It's out in just two weeks and you're about to drown in a tsunami of Grand Theft Auto IV print, television and billboard advertising.

Thanks to the international chaps at NeoGAF who've yet again come up with the goods, below you can find a collection of the most impressive GTA IV adverts from across the world.

From Los Angeles billboards to gigantic painted building murals in New York and Italy, it looks like it'll be almost impossible to miss.

Unfortunately though, Rockstar tells CVG that it has "no plans" to erect any New York-style Niko-painted buildings in London. Maybe they expect we'll all be buying it anyway and they don't have to?

If you do happen to spot a cool GTA IV ad on the street, or the side of a bus, snap it and send it in.


Photographs here ...

via IGN


The award-winning multiplayer experience evolves with three new maps and expanded Forge options now available on Xbox Live Marketplace

After launching in Sept. 2007, millions of fans the world over still log onto Xbox Live every day to experience the award-winning action of Halo 3 multiplayer. That experience expanded first in December with the release of the Heroic Map Pack, and today Microsoft and Bungie release the next evolution with the Legendary Map Pack.

Available for 800 Microsoft Points exclusively on Xbox Live Marketplace, this second major downloadable content offering includes three new multiplayer maps, as well as a bevy of new Forge options.

Avalanche and Blackout revive two fan-favorite maps from previous Halo games, while Ghost Town welcomes desolate jungle combat to the experience. And now, using new options in the Forge, players can create more detailed challenges and map variants than ever, while also utilizing a variety of visual effects to create new, unique screenshots and saved films.

Avalanche is a throwback all the way to Halo: Combat Evolved. This snowy battlefield was inspired by the original Sidewinder, but the massive, vehicle-oriented objective map adds a twist to its classic predecessor with all new interiors, dramatically reshaped exteriors and brand new vehicle variants. Admire the view from above, as Avalanche also marks the arrival of the Hornet to Halo 3 multiplayer.

In keeping with the theme of "fan-favorites," Blackout will fill the void left by fans of Halo 2's Lockout. Although fully re-visualized, this map adheres very faithfully to the tightly wound perfection of the original, but eschews Forerunner architecture in favor of industrial human design. Blackout is perfect for fans of small battleground Slayer matches.

The Legendary Map Pack also packs a brand new punch, in addition to the two classics, with Ghost Town -- a battle-scarred maze of narrow passages and dangerous ruins. Collapsed ceilings and shell-battered buildings provide both valuable cover and deadly traps, as catwalks and stairways take the fight from claustrophobic ground combat to dizzying rooftop battles. Ghost Town is a mid-sized map ideal for Team Slayer games and smaller, objective types.

As an added bonus, for a limited time only, gamers who purchase the Legendary Map Pack will receive a four month subscription to "Bungie PRO" via Xbox Live. Bungie PRO greatly expands the Halo 3 experience by increasing the maximum number of file share storage slots from six to twenty-four while also increasing the total file storage size to 250MB. This will allow players to upload and share more films, maps, screenshots and game-types than ever before.

After downloading the new maps, gamers can register on Xbox Live for the "Halo 3 Legendary Map Pack Play & Win Sweepstakes" for their chance to win great prizes including a Halo 3 Edition console, Halo ActionClix: Scarab Vehicle Pack, a complete set of Halo 3 Series 1 Action Figures from McFarlane Toys, nearly one million MS Points and much more. Visit www.xbox.com/legendaryplaywin for more details.

The maps of the Legendary Map Pack are available in matchmaking today to those who have purchased the download. Additionally, fans that have yet to purchase the Heroic Map Pack, which released in December, can now download it for free on Xbox Live Marketplace. ...

via Eurogamer


Rising Star has announced plans to release Rune Factory: A Fantasy Harvest Moon this September in Europe.

Rune Factory, you may recall from, er, all that copy we didn't write about it when it came out in Japan and the US last August, is a Harvest Moon game with an action-RPG twist.

That twist is that, in addition to being a standard-issue Harvest Moon farming type, toiling in the fields and so on, you're also an amnesiac swordsman with a murky past you're trying to uncover.

This you do by taking Mayor Godwin's instruction to go out and duff up local beasties, hoping, according to the delicately appointed press release description, that the deepest of the caves' secrets "holds the key to unlocking your past".

For some reason, there's also Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection support for swapping emails, screenshots and messages with other players.

And with Rune Factory due out here in September, presumably we can expect the recently released Rune Factory 2 in about 2028. ...