via Kotaku


As Xbox Live limps into the third week of 2008 still experiencing slow-downs, and occasional outages, salvation has come in the form of a legal excuse not to explain why the service remains so dodgy.

According to Larry "Major Nelson" Hryb, he is no longer allowed to update us because Microsoft now faces a class action lawsuit over the outages. Hryb apologized, but said any future updates will need to come from "the lawyer."

That means no more Twitter updates like "LIVE is looking pretty good now....how is it for you guys-n-girls?" or "I want to thank you all for (mostly) being so understanding during the tough LIVE time. Some of you did decide to cuss at me...but ok.".

The response by gamers over on his Microsoft site is getting quite hostile, hostile toward Larry Hryb and each other and the guys behind the suit. It's unfortunate that this has happened, because the only thing worse than having issues with a very popular service, is not being able to talk about when a fix is coming.

How about you all, are you still experiencing any Xbox Live issues? ...

via Kotaku




Go Nintendo reader Andy works at Target, and loves him some Nintendo. So he's the kind of guy to pay attention to things like changes in the way Target catalogue their Wii SKUs. Changes like the one he noticed the other day when scanning a Wii console through the register. Where previously the product would be displayed as "Wii Console", it's now coming up as "Wii White". Why emphasise the colour? No reason. Oh, unless you're about to release other colours, and need to differentiate between them. That might be a reason. ...

via Eurogamer


Nintendo is no closer to narrowing down a European date for DS game Apollo Justice: Ace Attorney.

But it has confirmed the US release for 12th February, which is useful for those who like importing their games.

It would seem that Phoenix Wright will no longer be the star of the Ace Attorney series - looks like Capcom will be introducing a whole new cast of characters instead.

Last we heard, Apollo Justice was due to arrive here in March. But we're still waiting on Phoenix Wright: Trials and Tribulations, which is lurking mysteriously in "2008".

You can always torture yourselves and read our Trials and Tribulations review, where John Walker tells you how good it is and how he wishes he was new to the series because then he would get to see it with fresh eyes. It's quite moving actually.

Alternatively you could run around in circles and never stop. ...

via Eurogamer


Nintendo is no closer to narrowing down a European date for DS game Apollo Justice: Ace Attorney.

But it has confirmed the US release for 12th February, which is useful for those who like importing their games.

It would seem that Phoenix Wright will no longer be the star of the Ace Attorney series - looks like Capcom will be introducing a whole new cast of characters instead.

Last we heard, Apollo Justice was due to arrive here in March. But we're still waiting on Phoenix Wright: Trials and Tribulations, which is lurking mysteriously in "2008".

You can always torture yourselves and read our Trials and Tribulations review, where John Walker tells you how good it is and how he wishes he was new to the series because then he would get to see it with fresh eyes. It's quite moving actually.

Alternatively you could run around in circles and never stop. ...

via Eurogamer


US attorney Jack Thompson has criticised Buzz! The Schools Quiz, claiming teachers should concentrate on traditional teaching methods instead.

His comments were aired in British newspapers The Telegraph and The Daily Mail, both of which questioned Sony's motives in selling the PS2 title to schools, presumably in much the same way an impartial observer would question the newspapers' decision to make a non-existent row the focus of their stories.


Educational psychologist Jane Healy agreed: "If you watch kids on a computer, most of them are just hitting keys or moving the mouse as fast as they can. It reminds me of rats running in a maze," she said, demonstrating an impressive understanding of how Buzz works.

Buzz! The Schools Quiz features around 5000 questions based on the Key Stage 2 Curriculum and is available in both shops and schools.

It's a self-funded project by Buzz! developer Relentless, and has proved both successful and popular in schools around the country - as we heard in an interview last Friday.

Sounds all right to us. But what about you at the back there with your hand up and your snotty nose, what do you think? ...

via Computer and Video Games


Third-party software company, StreamMyGame, has launched a free application that "enables you to play any PC game via a PlayStation 3 running Linux."

Sounds shit-your-pants awesome, so what's the catch? The clue is in the name of the company. Linux Player isn't a dream-making format converter, it's a video and audio streaming app.

As StreamMyGame explains: "The free StreamMyGame Server enables PC games to be played remotely by converting the game's video and audio into a Game Stream and sending it over a home network to a second computer where you can view and play the game with the free StreamMyGame Player."

Yes, that includes the latest PC games like Crysis, with resolutions up to 3200 x 2400 (more than your eyes can see, we reckon).

It's a universal trick too. "The second computer can be a PC, laptop, PS3 or Linux device," it says in the announcement - essentially extending your high-end PC gaming to any room in the house with a PS3 or PC. We wonder if the controls all work the same.

It's all streaming over a home network (not the internet), so there's no worry about lag or a loss of picture quality. "The game can be played on the second computer without any lag and the second computer does not need to have the game installed."

But internet-compatible plans are in place. "StreamMyGame will extend its services in March 2008 to enable games to be played remotely over broadband networks that have sufficient capacity such as Verizon's FiOS, Comcast's Wideband and British Telecom's FTTP."

Those are probably some super-fast services we've not heard of yet, because we're sure our 8Mb connection wouldn't be able to take the strain.

Find out more at the StreamMyGames website. ...

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Alright people, the wait is finally over. Dark_Alex has finally released the highly anticipated custom firmware 3.80 M33 for the Playstation Portable. The full readme and changelog from 3.71 M33-4 is shown below as follows:



Download and leave feedback via comments
via darkalex ...

via Computer and Video Games


Pandemic has updated the official Mercenaries 2: World in Flames website with a small child's handful of new screens.

Mercs 2 missed its scheduled 2007 release and is now set to be released sometime this year across PS3, 360 and PC.


Screenshots here ...

via Computer and Video Games


One minute, 39 seconds of brand new Rainbow Six: Vegas 2 action is ready for viewing in our video player.

The new trailer, the third movie from the sequel to be released to date, focuses on a hostage rescue mission, Team Rainbow on operations in a grandeur theatre. Check it out.

Previous movies can be seen here and here.

Sin City itself has been expanded for Vegas 2, as has the weapon roster available to players with 11 new guns to splatter terrorists with. Team Rainbow's gone shopping too and bought itself new camouflage, clothing and gear "for the ultimate customizations".

On the multiplayer side, one of the biggest new features is the addition of 'jump in' to co-op. What this means, if you haven't already guessed, is that your mate can jump into your single-player game at any moment and turn it into co-op.

As for the storyline, Vegas 2 doesn't begin straight after Vegas. In fact, it doesn't begin after Vegas at all. It starts in 2005, a full five years before the events of the first game.

"Our story defines a whole new conflict that will have a profound effect on the events of Rainbow Six: Vegas and its sequel," explains Game Designer Philippe Therien.

Of course, most of the story takes place in Vegas again, so Michael Walter and Jung Park will be returning to back you up. But because Logan's busy getting ambushed across the border there's a new team leader. Step forward... you. No, don't look behind you, we mean you...


See the new trailer here ...