via Eurogamer


The Orange Box on Xbox 360 is definitely amazing, but Team Fortress 2 players have also been complaining of amazing lag, so Valve has released an update that it reckons fixes it.

Chief amongst the TF2 enhancements in the new patch are reductions in network bandwidth usage, improvements to overall game performance, and adjustments to the search facility so ranked games are found with greater ease and results are set to favour preferred host conditions.

You should find yourself downloading it next time you fire up the game, thanks to Xbox Live's mum-when-you're-ill ability to know exactly what you need. ...

via Games Industry


Nintendo's The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass has entered the charts in Spain and Germany at number one on the first week of release.

In Germany the DS title just manages to outsell EA and Valve's The Orange Box package, which enters at number two.

As a publisher Nintendo has four of the top ten titles in the region, with both Dr Kawashima games continuing to sell well, along with Pokemon Diamond.

Over in Spain, Electronic Arts FIFA 08 is hogging the top ten, with the PlayStation 2 version at two, the PS3 version at four and the PSP title at nine.

The top ten best-selling games in Germany and Spain follow:

Germany
1. The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass (DS)
2. The Orange Box (PC)
3. FIFA 08 (PS2)
4. The Settlers (PC)
5. More Brain Training from Dr Kawashima (DS)
6. Naruto Ultimate Ninja 2 (PS2)
7. Dr Kawashima's Brain Training (DS)
8. Pokemon Diamond (DS)
9. FIFA 08 (PC)
10. World of Warcraft: The Burning Crusade (PC)

Spain
1. The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass (DS)
2. FIFA 08 (PS2)
3. Project Gotham Racing 4 (Xbox 360)
4. FIFA 08 (PS3)
5. WWE Smackdown! Vs. RAW 2007 (PS2)
6. More Brain Training from Dr Kawashima (DS)
7. My Sims (DS)
8. Dr Kawashima's Brain Training (DS)
9. FIFA 08 (PSP)
10. Pokemon Diamond (DS)

All data supplied by Media Control Gfk International. ...

via Computer and Video Games


Microsoft sends word that a demo of its family-edged Buzz! Rival Scene it? Lights, Camera, Action is now up for download on Xbox Live - though you'll have to play it without the fancy buzzer controllers.

The final game ships with four controllers for buzzing in your answers, so there's plenty of similarities between it and Sony's trivia series.

Having seen the game running over someone's shoulder (we were more interested in Halo 3 and the free bacon sarnies) it looks a bit deeper than just Trival Pursuit HD, but to be honest you're going to have to investigate it yourself. Because our internet's slow, and we can't be arsed.

The demo weighs in at 610MB. Have a look and let us know if it's worth downloading. ...

via Eurogamer


Keita Takahashi used his keynote at this weekend's GameCity festival to show off an early demo of his new PlayStation 3 game Nobi Nobi Boy.

He handed three controllers out to the audience, who then stretched Nobi Nobi's erm, body, to flick pigs, chickens, a dog and a small selection of other animals around a flat plane.

With no sound or detailed background it was left to Takahashi's ridiculously cute characters to hold the attention, which they did with ease, as the fawned-over designer himself stated; "It is impossible to explain what is funny about a pig riding on a boy."

Answering questions from the audience didn't reveal much more about the project either. What do you do, what's the point of the game? "I can't tell you yet". Is the game set in a zoo? "That's confidential". Can you eat humans? "That would be a good idea."

"What's funny about it is I haven't managed to explain it to anybody yet, not even my boss," he added.

So the three Nobi Nobi Boys bent, stretched and spun around the space, as little animals trotted about grinning. One or two were gobbled up, travelled through the belly and shat out the other end. The audience giggled, captivated by the mumbling, bare-footed Takahashi.

What inspired the creation of Nobi Nobi Boy? Oh you know, the same things that no doubt pushed CliffyB to make Gears of War - walking in the park, the dog lead stretching in and out, and collecting Miffy stickers.

Takahashi also took the opportunity to raise the point that videogames aren't that important compared to more significant global concerns - pollution, war, poverty, that sort of thing.

Other, less serious points raised by Takahashi in no particular order: he's growing a plant that will creep down to his neighbours apartment in an effort to let them know he lives above them, his Mac has been invaded by a beardy elf, his favourite sandals broke which he took to be a bad omen, and he is "sick" of Katamari Damacy.

Oh, he's also creating a playground in Nottingham. Honestly. ...

via Eurogamer


The Eye of Judgement can scan fake cards produced by colour printers, as those of you with fraudulent tendencies have found out.

It comes off the back of Sony incorporating numerous anti-piracy measures like special inks into its card creation, presumably so it could make lots of money from booster packs and additional decks sold in shops.

However, keen-eyed Kotaku decided to try a copy of a card using a bog-standard printer and found that it behaved exactly as its paid-for counterpart. Whoops.

Booster Packs currently retail for around GBP 2.49 and additional decks sell for GBP 9.99. We are waiting to hear back from Sony about how it will go about sorting this all out.

The Eye of Judgement was released here last Friday and comes bundled with the PlayStation Eye for GBP 59.99. You use the new hardware to scan your fancy cards into the game and battle your opponents for control of a grid.

And while the arrival of counterfeit cards may give cheaters a much more juicy selection of units, it won't fundamentally break the game. ...

via Games Industry


Sony has announced that it expects losses at its videogame unit to double for the year ended March 2008, from JPY 50 billion (303.5 million) to over JPY 100 billion (EUR 609 million).

According to a report by Reuters, a spokesperson for Sony said although the firm will see massive losses in the games department, the general electronics business will see an operating profit margin of five per cent by the end of the fiscal year, one per cent above targets.

Sony announced its financial results for the second quarter last Thursday, showing an overall revenue growth year-on-year of 12.3 per cent and an operating profit of JPY 90.5 billion (EUR 549.3 million). ...

via Computer and Video Games


Gears of War has put a chainsaw through the competition to run away with The Sonopress Xbox Game of the Year 2007 award.

We all WWII action of Call of Duty 3, open spanning worlds of The Elder Scrolls: Shivering Isles, strummed through Guitar Hero II and looked after a cute piñata, but its stamping on people's faces that we enjoyed the most.

And people say gamers are violent. Pah... ...

via Computer and Video Games


Rockstar has just picked up its second Games Radar Handheld Game of the Year award in as many years, this time for its second portable Grand Theft Auto, the excellent Vice City Stories.

The 80s spin-off pushes the PSP right to the wall of its technical capabilities, with the usual gigantic metropolis to explore, helicopters to pilot and a fantastic multiplayer mode. Oh yeah, and Phil Collins. ...

via Computer and Video Games


Yes gentleman, girls really do play games, and proving also that they like nothing more than a good pluck, The Bliss Girls' Choice Game of the Year 2007 in this year's Golden Joysticks has gone to... Guitar Hero II.

The axe-wielding rhythm action game has head banged its way to a gong, leaving other contenders Sims 2 Pets, Cooking Mama, Crackdown and Rayman Raving Rabbids crying into their pints. Sorry guys, but there can only be one winner. ...