via Eurogamer


Microsoft believes working with the DS will help it design shorter and more casual games that are perfectly suited to Live Arcade.

The comments were made by Microsoft Game Studios boss Phil Spencer, who told Develop his decision to let Rare make Viva Piñata for DS was beneficial all round.

"Rare has a history in making handheld games and titles for Nintendo platforms. When we acquired the studio that expertise was there and the team was there. At Microsoft we had a discussion - do we want to build on that expertise? We decided yes," said Spencer.

"Not so much because we need to support Nintendo - its platform will do fine without us - but because it is important for us to build that experience as a publisher and game developer and understand what it means to build lightweight, maybe shorter session experiences, and maintain that design innovation."

Spencer believes these "shorter, arcade experiences" are a crucial part of what MSGS can offer. He will still work on monster projects like Halo, but he sees sense in also giving us something we can pick-up and play in bite-sized chunks.

Live Arcade does this already, and because of it he says it shares lots of similarities with handhelds. And, looking to the future, it is an area it can only get stronger in the more it learns about it.

If only all decisions seemed as straightfoward - we're still not convinced this festive red knit sweater compliments our trousers. ...

via Eurogamer


With Need For Speed: ProStreet set to bobble tankerishly round the final bend into retail next Friday on PS3, Xbox 360, PS2, PC and DS, Electronic Arts has got in there early with some premium downloadable content on Xbox Live.

But why isn't this stuff on the disc? Aha, it is. These bundles are designed to unlock things you can't be bothered to purchase by progressing through the Career mode. Cheats, then. And cheaters never prosper - in fact they spend 400 Microsoft points a pop on three bundles or 800 for the "Ultimate" bundle.

The Tuner Car Bundle features the Nissan 350Z (Z33), Ford Focus ST, Volkswagen R32, Audi S3, Lancer Evolution IX and Subaru Impreza WRX STI; the Sport Car Bundle consists of the Audi S4, Audi TT 3.2 Quattro, Lotus Elise, BMW M3 E46, Porsche Cayman S and BMW Z4 M Coupe; and the Muscle Car Bundle consists of, er, we're not sure actually. But we assume it's not exactly the same as the Tuner Car Bundle, despite what it says on Xbox Live at the moment.

Anyway, if you want all of that so much that you need the three sets, then you can go for an Ultimate Performance Bundle, which features all of the above. Or you could just play the game, which seems like a better option. Or not at all, depending on if it's any good - watch out for our review soon to find out! ...

via Eurogamer


Double Fine's Tim Schafer says he's keen to do an Xbox Live Arcade game, but hasn't got the time at the moment what with all the developing and that.

"We talk about making Xbox Live Arcade games all the time," he said during an IGDA Leadership Forum Q&A. "Who doesn't want to make Xbox Live Arcade games?"

Gamasutra reports that he elaborated thus: "It's like when you see a Great Dane taking a giant s*** and then you see a poodle taking a little Tootsie Roll s***. The poodle is so cute, but at the end of the day you're still picking up s***." Yes.

"Seriously though, we'd love to make Xbox Live Arcade games, but we're really busy now."

That's probably because Schafer and friends are working on Brutal Legend for PS3 and Xbox 360 - an action adventure in which you take on the role of Eddie Riggs, a roadie for a band who ends up fighting demons who've enslaved humanity. Sort of like Army of Darkness, but with guitars.

When he's not doing that, Schafer - who's credits include games like Full Throttle and Eurogamer fave Psychonauts - admits that he likes to unwind with, er, games. "I'm really into playing [Zelda] Phantom Hourglass on my DS," he said. "I have a longer commute now and I love playing it on the train." Good man. ...

via Computer and Video Games


Nintendo has enforced a size limit of 40MB for any original game that is to appear on the Wii Ware (known here as Wii Software) download service.

This, in case you don't know, is a very small amount of space for a whole game. Storage space is an issue with Wii, and although Nintendo insists Wii doesn't have a storage problem, these are clearly measures taken to stop Wii Ware games from clogging up the system.

Another of Nintendo's restrictions is to the number of releases any one company can make on the service - no more than one a month, which is reasonable. If companies are banging out games that quickly they'd probably be not worth the their disc space.

And, according to IGN, most of the games are being made on a budget of under $100,000 [£48,700]which, in this day and age, is nothing. ...

via Computer and Video Games


Despite numerous denials, everyone from crazed forum users to industry analysts reckon Bioshock for PS3 is a dead certainty, and 2K has leapt out to crush yet more spiralling internet rumours.

"Please don't tell me you made an account just for this question", said a clearly frustrated representative on the official 2K Games forums as threads regarding the Bioshock PS3 rumour erupted once again.

They went on to bluntly add: "There will be no PS3 version of BioShock. It has been explained time and time again."

So, Bioshock on PS3. Not happening. At least, we think that's the message he was trying to get across. ...

via Computer and Video Games


It's being reported that the latest major PS3 firmware update, version 2.0, could be at the heart of a problem that's causing a number of PS3s to cease working.

A notably large number of PS3 owners have hit the official site to voice concerns of their PS3 functioning incorrectly since installing the update.

Complains range from a small as slowed menu navigation and slow PS Store download speeds to more critical errors such as games consistently crashing or even the PS3 completely losing the ability to read discs.

Others have also complained on the official forum that their PS3 keeps turning itself on due to the new Remote Start feature in FW 2.0 (which allows you to turn on your PS3 wirelessly via the internet for Remote Play via a PSP).

It's worth noting that the timing of the errors could be completely coincidental. It's not uncommon for users who experience errors soon after an update to point the finger of blame at the new firmware.

We've checked our updated PS3s - everything's working just fine (phew). Voice any issues you may have experienced in the comments below.

Sony was not available for comment at the time of writing but we'll keep trying. ...

via Computer and Video Games


Sony Computer Entertainment has unveiled pricing details for SingStar PS3's SingStore, where you, your girlfriend and your nan will be able to buy new tracks for GBP £0.99 each from the December 7 launch date.

At first SingStore will offer 44 new tracks over the vanilla game's 30, including songs from previous PS2 entries and new ones (like The Manic Street Preachers and Depeche Mode - no Snoop though).

Sony promises new content will be added to the SingStore regularly, starting as early as little over a week after release on December 17.

It also boasts that downloading of new tracks will take place entirely in the background, so you can keep making a prat of yourself on the mic while it downloads.

The game itself is being offered for the bargain price of £24.99, or £49.99 with two microphones. That's the missus' Christmas present sorted, then (or for yourself, going by the worrying number of you who seem to be excited in the comments). ...

via Eurogamer


Sony has confirmed to Eurogamer that all PlayStation 2 titles that support rumble and are compatible with PS3 will also rumble if you use the new DualShock 3 pad.

During last week's hands-on with the new controller, we noted that PS2 rumble seemed to be disabled. Since then, PS3 firmware 2.0 has quietly introduced support.

The news from Sony adds to anecdotal evidence from eager importers who reported success getting rumble out of games like Rez and Katamari Damacy.

PlayStation 3 games that already support the pad include MotorStorm, Resistance: Fall of Man and Ratchet & Clank: Tools of Destruction.

So, another reason to put one on your shopping list, although you might have to wait a while if you opt for an import - the demand, not to mention price, seems pretty high. The official European and US release date for DualShock 3 is spring 2008. ...

via Gizmodo




Artist Billy Chasen took an iPod, blew it apart, and encased it in resin. Big deal, right? Well, the cool thing about this is that the iPod still works. Yeah, despite being blown up and frozen in resin, he's still able to play music off of it. This would be the best desk stereo ever just hook it up to speakers, get a remote control working on it, and you've got one distinctive piece of functional art on your desk. Awesome.


More photographs here ...