via Computer and Video Games


Still sitting on the Xbox fence? Awesome internet deals mean you can get your hands on an Xbox 360 Arcade system this week for £149.99 - that's less than a Wii (if you can find one).

The deal's currently being offered by the GameStation website and it's considering the inevitable demand it's probably not going to be there for long.

RRP for the Xbox 360 Arcade bundles is £199.99.

The Arcade comes with a chrome-less Core console (if that's what you call it these days), a memory unit, wireless controller and five Xbox Live Arcade games including Pac-Man and Boom Boom Rocket.

It's a good deal, but we're off before we sound too much like a GameStation advert (and to sell all the cheap Arcades on eBay). ...

via Eurogamer


Namco Bandai has released six downloadable aeroplanes for downloading on Xbox Live Marketplace download place. Each of them costs 200 Microsoft Points, except the one that costs 400 Microsoft Points, and the other one which is free. So, several of them cost 200 Microsoft Points. Get off my back.

What are the planes then? They are the Mirage2000-5 Scarface Emblem (free), the F-22A Raptor Mobius (200), the F-15E Strike Eagle Cipher (200), I have never been so bored in my entire life, the F-15E Strike Eagle Pixy (200), the A-10A ThunderBoltII Xmas (200) and the F-117A Night Hawk - The Idolmaster Yuhiko (400). Interestingly, the Mobius one is in the press release but not on Major Nelson's DLC update. Actually, that's not interesting.

So, download them, if you want. The game's jolly good, apparently. "Ace Combat 6 can be our wingman any time," said Rob Fahey, evidently having an off day. Is it "the eternal struggle", too, Rob? Perhaps it's a mixed bag? Doesn't know how to use semi-colons either, by the look of it. It's okay - he doesn't know where I live. ...

via Computer and Video Games


One minute we know very little about Ubisoft's 360 version of first-person slasher Dark Messiah, the next we can actually play the thing on Xbox Live.

Yep, the single and multiplayer demo of Dark Messiah: Elements, which we're really hoping has been given a decent transfer to console, is now up for sampling on Xbox Live Marketplace.

The 360 version has a new lock-on feature and tweaked level design and game statistics. There's also three previously unreleased levels with new objectives, gameplay, and rewards.

We've not idea how big it is (because we're too busy messing around with toy helicopters to download it) but let us know if its any good in the comments below, would you please? ...

This week for Japanesse hardware sales see a massive increase from last week's reading for the first four consoles in the list shown below:


Nintendo DS Lite: 222,132
Playstation Portable: 184,610
Wii: 170,558
Playstation 3: 63,720
Playstation 2: 18,025
Xbox 360: 8,561
Game Boy Advance SP: 103
Gamecube 32
Game Boy Micro: 28
Nintendo DS Original: 12
Game Boy Advance: 9 ...

via Games Industry


Nintendo of America's president Reggie Fils-Aime says that the demand for the Wii and DS is complicating the company's future business planning.

"All of that becomes a much tougher exercise until we have supply and demand curves that intersect," he told Reuters.

Nintendo sold 1.5 million DS handhelds in November, and some retailers are concerned about inventory during the holiday season.

As for the Wii, Nintendo hasn't been able to meet demand since last year's launch, leading some retailers to bundle the consoles with games and accessories for a higher price - a practice Nintendo wants to discourage.

"Retailers have already been given feedback that we are not big fans of that. We think it masks some of the price advantage we have versus our competition and, frankly, the consumer should decide what they want," Nintendo of America's president said.

When asked if the company would threaten such retailers with fewer Wii shipments, Fils-Aime said only that retailers did not need to be reminded of the strength Nintendo has right now.

The company said it is finding it difficult to plan for upcoming games without being able to accurately forecast the number of Wiis that will be sold in the coming months.

"We at Nintendo America are focused on getting to the point when any consumer can walk into any of our retailers and find a Wii. Then we can plan, on an ongoing basis, the rest of the business," Fils-Aime said. ...

via Games Industry


Sales of game software in the UK will reach 78 million units by the end of the year, as retail enjoys another year of rapid growth.

According to data from Chart Track, last week generated sales of GBP 87.9 million, with the UK seeing a record-breaking third quarter as revenues rose 36 per cent from GBP 233.5 million in 2006 to GBP 332.6 million.

The number of units sold was up 16.6 per cent for the weeks 1 to 50, and 25.3 per cent by value.


Software units for the third quarter were up 33 per cent from GBP 8.52 million to 11.33 million, with console revenues up 45 per cent from GBP 180.95 to GBP 263.20 million.

The console market now accounts for 79 per cent of software revenues and 75 per cent of total software units. ...

via Eurogamer


Hudson and Microsoft are keeping someone in the office over Christmas to push a big red button marked "Bomb-Up Pack 3", which is to say that there will be some downloadable content for Bomberman Live released on Boxing Day.

Hudson's announcement doesn't actually specify whether or not the pack will be released in Europe (the text comes from Hudson in the US), but it better be. Or there'll be trouble. Probably.

The aforementioned Bomb-Up Pack 3 will cost 250 Microsoft Points (GBP 2.13 / EUR 2.91) and includes ten new characters, two new levels and a new game mode - with a pair of new leaderboards to track weekly and all-time stats for it.

The new game mode is called "Friendly Fire", and replaces all the hard blocks in the arena with holes, so explosive trails stretch across the screen regardless of whether they're positioned along thoroughfares or not. Players will also be equipped with the Power Bomb power-up to increase the devastation as they race each other for the most kills.

Elsewhere the two new levels are called Cavity Land and Robot Factory, so make of that what you will, and the ten new characters include one called Shinobi Bomb and, er, Bomb2-D2. For shame, Hudson. ...

via Computer and Video Games


When it comes to videogames, we know what we like; shooting rocket launchers at people (usually in the face). But you're a less sadistic gamer, clearly, and that's why you're here to see the first images of a chess game.

Wii Chess is another first-party title your granddad will love. It's the same as the board game - no crazyness involved, but as well as taking on the computer on several difficulty levels, you're also about to take the one-move-every-twenty-minutes battle online and challenge other granddads around the world.

Below are the first screens of the game in... erm... action, if you can call it that, and you can see first gameplay footage on Nintendo's official site. Don't forget to take your walking stick with you.


Screenshots
Trailer ...

via Games Industry


Microsoft expects to sell more Xbox 360 consoles in Japan in 2008 than it did in 2007, but Europe will be the key battleground.

The company told Reuters that recent and upcoming games from popular Japanese designers should help boost sales in Japan where the Xbox 360 lags behind both the PS3 and Wii.

"We will sell more consoles next year than this year," said Jeff Bell, head of global marketing for Microsoft's games business.

Bell said that the Xbox 360 was strong in Britain and gaining market share in France and Germany, but that sales of the PS3 had been lifted there by recent price cuts.

"Europe for us is still the swing," Bell said in an interview with Reuters. "The biggest challenge is that Sony as a brand has had greater staying power than in other areas. Not just PlayStation 3, but Sony as a brand."

Commenting on the potential benefit to Microsoft of Wii shortages, Bell pointed out that third-party publishers have not enjoyed success on Nintendo's console so far.

"Clearly, we have a competitor where they win and no one else wins. That is not sustainable, it has never been sustainable." ...