via Eurogamer


Ryan Payton, an associate producer at Kojima Productions, has claimed he was misquoted with regard to Metal Gear Solid 4 sales.

As reported last year, a Reuters article claimed Payton said the game needed to sell more than a million copies on launch day because of high production costs.

Now he's set the record straight on the Bionic Commando podcast, stating, "I wish I could send a message out to the whole world cause I hear about this all the time. It was a story from Reuters, so it was literally sent to every news source around the globe. If you notice, in the news story, I have lots of quotes in there with quotation marks, but that part of the story isn't in quotation marks.


Not that MGS4 should struggle to sell a million, of course, but day one could be a stretch. The game is due out this "quarter", and in the meantime you can read all about it and see it in action via the gamepage. ...

via Games Industry


The story in Spain and Germany for the most recent software sales charts is once again firmly focused on the continuing success of Nintendo, with five of the six top three positions in both countries playing on a Wii or DS.

In Germany Brain Training continued to sell well in first place, followed by Wii Play and Pokemon Diamond, according to information from Media-Control GfK International for the week ending February 3.

PC shooter Crysis was fourth, with Super Mario Galaxy and Call of Duty 4 in fifth and sixth.

Burnout Paradise, Eye Training, New Super Mario Bros and World of Warcraft finished off the top ten list, giving Nintendo six of the best-selling games last week.

In Spain Wii Play topped the list, although Burnout Paradise for the PlayStation 3 - one of three titles for that platform - sold well in second, pushing various Brain and Training titles down to take up the third to sixth places.

Mario Party 8, Pro Evolution Soccer 2008, WWE Smackdown! vs Raw 2008 and Assassin's Creed were the rest of the entries at the chart's summit.


The full charts are as follows:

Germany

1. More Brain Training (DS)
2. Wii Play (Wii)
3. Pokemon Diamond (DS)
4. Crysis (PC)
5. Super Mario Galaxy (Wii)
6. Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare (PC)
7. Burnout Paradise (PS3)
8. Eye Training (DS)
9. New Super Mario Bros (DS)
10. World of Warcraft (PC)

Spain

1. Wii Play (Wii)
2. Burnout Paradise (PS3)
3. More Brain Training (DS)
4. Big Brain Academy (Wii)
5. Brain Training (DS)
6. Link's Crossbow Training (Wii)
7. Mario Party 8 (Wii)
8. Pro Evolution Soccer 2008 (PS3) 9. WWE Smackdown! vs Raw 2008 (PSP)
10. Assassin's Creed (PS3) ...

The latest Japanesse console hardware figures are in with a change in positions as follows:


Nintendo Wii: 94,473
Playstation Portable: 72,528
Nintendo DS Lite: 67,472
Playstation 3: 41,796
Playstation 2: 12,115
Xbox 360: 6,060

Nintendo Wii swaps places with the DS lite, whose now behind the PSP by roughly 6,000 units. Playstation 3 gets an increase from last weeks' reading too while the PS2 and Xbox 360 stay about the same. ...

via Computer and Video Games


The Entertainment Software Rating Board says that the percentage of Mature-rated games released halved from 2005 to 2007.

In a winter newsletter, Patricia Vance, president of the Entertainment Software Rating Board (ESRB), said that the amount of Mature-rated titles is declining each year despite the fact that more and more games are being released.

...

via IGN


The Entertainment Software Association (ESA) today applauded the Malaysian Ministry of Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs' (MDTCA) raid this week of an illegal pirate game duplication lab in the southern Malaysian city of Johor Bahru, resulting in the arrest of seven individuals and confiscation of thousands of pirated computer and video games. The ESA's local anti-piracy representative, MFACT, provided support for the MDTCA's action.

"Our industry stands ready to vigorously defend our rights and actively pursue and prosecute thieves like these that steal our industry's products," said Michael Gallagher, CEO of ESA, the U.S. trade association representing computer and video game publishers. "We commend the MDTCA and the enforcement team headed up by Fahmi Kassim for their swift and effective action against this pirate operation."

MDCTA seized more than 110,000 pirated computer and video games, 46 DVD-R burners, as well as thousands of other infringing items. The 46 burners seized are, according to estimates, able to duplicate 2.4 million pirate discs per year. Among the game titles taken by MDTCA were pirate copies of FIFA Soccer 08, EA Sports Rugby 08, NBA Live 08, Tiger Woods PGA Tour 08.

The ESA is the U.S. association dedicated to serving the business and public affairs needs of the companies publishing interactive games for video game consoles, handheld devices, personal computers, and the Internet. ESA members collectively account for more than 90 percent of the $9.5 billion in entertainment software sales in the U.S. in 2007, and billions more in export sales of entertainment software. For more information about the ESA, please visit www.theESA.com. ...

via Eurogamer


Bizarre Creations believes the divided reaction to The Club has been because some have misunderstood its concept.

Speaking to Videogaming247, community chief Ben Ward said its brand new ideal will "take time to resonate with certain people".


Interestingly Ben Ward went on to reveal that the developer had also made a concious effort to keep blood and guts to a minimum, in order not to overshadow the skill-based heart of the game.

But his comments also suggest it was done to pre-emptively fend off the accusatory gaze of the anti-videogame groups.

"Fundamentally the game is still about shooting lots of people. We've handled this in a similar way to Hollywood action movies - it's not gratuitous or sadistic in the way it does things. Primarily the game is a gameplay-driven skill-based title, and we are hoping that anti-videogame groups will see this shine through."

The Club is being released tomorrow on Xbox 360 and PS3, and will follow on PC on 22nd February.

We've already had a chance to get our hands on it and heaped considerable praise on its combo-shoulders for getting back to the 2D shoot-'em-up days of old. ...

via IGN


Fonfun announced today World Neverland 2in1 Portable: Olerud Kingdom & Republic of Pluto, a PSP combo pack that combines the first and second World Neverland games. The game will be released in Japan in April at 3,800 yen.

The two World Neverland games tell of the Kingdom of Olerud and the Republic of Pluto. You play as a citizen of these countries and, after joining up with a guild, experience life surrounded by AI-driven residents.

From what we can tell, Fonfun is just porting over the original PlayStation titles, with just a few presentation updates for the PSP. Still, this should be a good chance for newbies to experience the Neverland games, which are having an influence in the production of King Story for the Wii.


Screenshots here ...

via Computer and Video Games


Capello, famous for his hard-line approach to discipline, has given the England squad a number of new rules to abide by under his management.

According to the Daily Mail, they include:

• A ban on the 'PlayStation culture'
• A ban on visitors, including agents and friends, from the team hotel in Hertfordshire
• Players must eat at the same table
• They have to be on time for meals
• No walking around in shorts and flip-flops. They must wear England track suits
• instead and suits and ties to games
• No mobile phones in public areas

Last year Portsmouth manager Harry Redknapp said that 'Xbox culture' was damaging football, while West Ham goalkeeper Rob Green said that England's footballing failures were down to gaming. Maybe Green will get a call up to Capello's second England squad if the manager gets wind of his feelings on the matter.

Capello began his England tenure with a two-one victory over Switzerland at Wembley in a friendly match on Wednesday night, so we'll give him the benefit of the doubt for now. ...

via Eurogamer


Sky Diving is the GBP 3.49 downloadable game star of this week's PlayStation Store update on PS3, while PSP owners can download the WipEout Pulse Mirage Pack if they fork out GBP 3.49 on the PSP Store for PC.

The second-most exciting thing on the PS3 Store this week is a pair of free DLC updates for two of Sony's best-supported games - Folklore and MotorStorm. The former, Game Republic's charming little blend of hackandslash and spooky adventure, says hello to a new Folk called Malion.

Interestingly, said Folk was actually designed to meet the specifications outlined by the winner of a competition for PlayStation.com forumites. "The Malion (Spore Lion) runs circles around the enemy whilst creating an intoxicating spore cloud from its tail and thorny mane," Jeff Read had explained. "When the prey is dazed The Malion jumps in for the kill. The tail and claws are primary attacks, but this Folk is highly poisonous... wear protective gloves! The Malion fears fire."

This was enough to dazzle Game Republic, with dev-head Yoshiki Okamoto praising the high standard of entries. "Congratulations to Jeff, the runners-up and all the people who took the time and effort to design a new Folk," he said. "We hope you enjoyed being creative and that you continue designing."

And so do we, because it's a nice thing to hope for. As for the MotorStorm treat we mentioned, it's the enigmatically monikered "MotorStorm Chinese New Year". Let us know what that one's all about in your usual special place.

Also among the downloadable treats for PS3 owners are European demos for Conflict: Denied Ops and Turok, both of which are due out on PS3 and other formats tomorrow, 8th February.

And if you absolutely can't bear to put the pad down, then Lost Planet and PixelJunk Monsters trailers are also there.

But no Everyday Shooter. Or PAIN. Come on, Sony! ...