There may not be many people willing to pay over $1,000 for an Xperia Play, but it turns out there's at least a few willing to go nuts when there's some Minecraft involved. That limited edition model pictured above will be given away to a few lucky winners at the upcoming Gamescon conference in Germany, but Minecraft developer Mojang has decided to let one loose on eBay beforehand, where the bidding has already topped a grand with a full six days left. Adding a bit of extra incentive for those with deep pockets, Mojang says that it will also donate all the proceeds from the auction to an as yet unnamed charity.

http://www.engadget.com/2011/08/15/m...-play-on-ebay/
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As sales slump and its last great exclusive goes multiplatform, retailers confirm plans to phase out Microsoft's console.


The Xbox 360's life appears to be coming to an end in Japan, with hardware sales falling, retailers beginning to turn their back on the console, and the system's last high-profile Japanese exclusive headed to PlayStation 3.

In June, Microsoft announced that Japanese Xbox 360 sales had finally passed 1.5 million units since the system's release in 2005, but that should not be taken as a sign that its fortunes are improving. Media Create data for the year to date puts Xbox 360 hardware sales at just 72,721 units, a drop of 46.7 per cent on the same period last year. Sales of its rival, Sony's PlayStation 3, have also fallen year on year, but only by 17.1 per cent, to 735,637 units.

The slump in sales has, we understand, caused many Japanese videogame retailers to contemplate dropping the Xbox 360 altogether. Geo, the nation's largest specialist retailer, is drastically scaling back its Xbox 360 business, and staff at electronics retailer Yamada Denki in Ikebukuro, Tokyo, confirmed that the company is removing hardware and software from the majority of its stores nationwide, and is selling off its remaining stock at a heavy discount. It will still sell the console and games, but only in selected stores where the system continues to be sufficiently popular.

In Tokyo's smaller, specialist stores, Xbox 360 consoles and games are beginning to appear in bargain bins, or "wagon sales". Games can be had for as little as ¥100 (79p), with one store selling the Halo: Reach hardware bundle for ¥9,980 (£79.30).

Perhaps the biggest indicator of the Xbox 360's struggles in Japan is the fate of The Idolmaster. Namco Bandai's pop-star management game, first released in arcades in 2005, was an Xbox 360 exclusive, its 2007 release reportedly causing a rush of new Xbox Live signups and a sharp increase in sales of Microsoft Points.

While PSP and DS releases followed, it was Microsoft's last high-profile console exclusive, and a sequel was released in February. It sold 34,621 copies in the week of its release, entering the Japanese all-formats chart at number ten, but the following week, it did not even make the top 40. The 2009 PSP release sold around 122,000 copies in its first week, and was in the top 40 for five weeks in total.

As such it was no surprise when, late last month, Namco Bandai announced that it would be porting Idolmaster 2 to PlayStation 3, with the Xbox 360 version's DLC included.

With mobile games increasingly popular in Japan - the sector's rise driven by mobile social networks like Gree and Mobage - cross-platform connectivity is becoming increasingly important as companies seek to protect their traditional sources of revenue.

Sony is becoming increasingly aware of this, with the upcoming Monster Hunter HD, the first game released for PS3 as part of the PSP Remaster series, allowing a single save file to be shared between PS3 and PSP. Microsoft, of course, has no portable console. With PSP still selling in huge numbers in Japan, and Vita set for release before the end of the year, it's little surprise that publisher eyes are drawn towards Sony: after all, cross-platform play means selling two games instead of one.

Kinect has done much to extend the 360's life in the west, sales of 8 million units in its first 60 days seeing it awarded a Guinness World Record, named the fastest-selling consumer electronics device of all time. In Japan, it was outsold on launch by PlayStation Move - no great surprise given PS3's far larger installed base - with one retailer saying shortly after launch that, far from helping sell the console to a wider audience, it was only being bought by existing Xbox 360 owners.

While the console's gradual disappearance from store shelves does not prevent gamers making their purchases online - indeed, it is our understanding that Amazon now handles a substantial proportion of Japanese Xbox 360 software sales - it does complicate things for Microsoft.

With an Xbox 360 successor widely accepted to be released in 2014, the firm may struggle to convince Japanese retailers to stock and prominently display the console when they have a decade's worth of proof that higher returns are available elsewhere.

Microsoft clearly still holds the Japanese market in high regard - just last month it appointed Takashi Sensui as head of the newly formed Interactive Entertainment Business (IEB), leaving him to focus almost exclusively on Xbox 360. While reports at the time implied a lighter load for Sensui - his previous remit also covered Windows and Office software - perhaps the reshuffle was in recognition of the onerous task he faces to revive the console's ailing fortunes.

http://www.next-gen.biz/news/xbox-360-dead-japan ...

Very little has changed since last week on the UK PC sales chart. As is often the case, The Sims series win the numbers game, holding four spots on the top ten.
The Sims 3: Generations is at No.1, The Sims 3 at No.2 and The Sims: Medieval at No.4, with Football Manager 2011 nestled between them at No.3.

At No.5 is Portal 2, which is followed by World of Warcraft: Cataclysm, The Sims 3: Late Night and Fable 3.

StarCraft 2 makes it back into the top ten by moving from No.12 to No.9, while Civilization V sits at No.10.

GfK/Chart-Track PC Top 10 (week ending August 13):

• 01. The Sims 3: Generations (EA)
  02. The Sims 3 (EA)
  03. Football Manager 2011 (Sega)
  04. The Sims: Medieval (EA)
  05. Portal 2 (Valve)
  06. World of Warcraft: Cataclysm (Blizzard)
  07. The Sims 3: Late Night (EA)
  08. Fable 3 (Microsoft)
  09. StarCraft 2 (Blizzard)
  10. Civilization V (Take 2)
  
  http://www.computerandvideogames.com...-unchallenged/

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With a lack of new games recently it's no wonder there's very little chart movement lately. Once again, Dirt 3 takes No.1 on the official UK PlayStation 3 sales chart.
It's followed by a pair of non-movers in the form of LA Noire at No.2 and Call of Juarez: The Cartel at No.3, while InFamous 2 is at No.4, ahead of Sniper: Ghost Warrior at No.5.

Lego Pirates of the Caribbean comes in at No.6, Assassin's Creed Brotherhood is at No.7 and FIFA 11 at No.8. Red Dead Redemption returns to the top ten at No.9, followed by Tiger Woods PGA Tour 12: The Masters.

GfK/Chart-Track PS3 Top 10 (week ending August 13):

• 01. Dirt 3 (Codemasters)
  02. LA Noire (Take 2)
  03. Call of Juarez: The Cartel (Ubisoft)
  04. InFamous 2 (Sony)
  05. Sniper: Ghost Warrior (City Interactive)
  06. Lego Pirates of the Carribean (Disney)
  07. Assassin's Creed Brotherhood (Ubisoft)
  08. FIFA 11 (EA)
  09. Red Dead Redemption (Take 2)
  10. Tiger Woods PGA Tour 12: The Masters (EA)
  http://www.computerandvideogames.com...3-leads-again/

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Codemasters' Dirt 3 stays at No.1 on the official UK Xbox 360 sales chart for another week, with FIFA 11 coming up from No.4 to take second place.
Last week's runner up, Call of Juarez: The Cartel, moves down to No.3 ahead of Lego Pirates of the Caribbean, which climbs 16 spots from No.20 to No.4.

LA Noire is at No.5 and Zumba Fitness at No.6, while Battlefield: Bad Company 2 advances from No.10 to No.7.

Brink is up from No.23 to No.8, while Skate 3 and UFC Personal Trainer round off the top ten.

GfK/Chart-Track Xbox 360 Top 10 (week ending August 13):

• 01. Dirt 3 (Codemasters)
  02. FIFA 11 (EA)
  03. Call of Juarez: The Cartel (Ubisoft)
  04. Pirates of the Carribean (Disney)
  05. LA Noire (Take 2)
  06. Zumba Fitness (505 Games)
  07. Battlefield: Bad Company 2 (EA)
  08. Brink (Bethesda)
  09. Skate 3 (EA)
  10. UFC Fitness Trainer (EA)
  
  http://www.computerandvideogames.com...aintains-lead/

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Football Manager gaffer Miles Jacobson believes there' still "isn't really a DRM solution" and that "some DRM is evil".

The Steam DRM that Football Manager uses, however, is not evil and benefits the player in a lot of ways, according to the Sports Interactive studio director.

When we asked Jacobson about his thoughts on DRM and whether it was the right approach to combating piracy, he pointed out that the issue is far muddier than that:

"I don't think there is a right approach to how you handle piracy. I don't think there ever will be a right approach to how you handle piracy, but then I don't think piracy is right either."

When we suggested that DRM might be a lesser of two evils, then, he again said there were factors that made the whole issue far from being black and white.

"It depends which system you're using really," he replied. "Some DRM is evil, some isn't. I don't think that Steam is evil DRM, I think it's a really good helpful platform that gives a lot of benefits to the customer.

"But there still isn't really a DRM solution that works, there isn't one that stops people copying games. It's a difficult position for any developer to be in," he continued.

"Basically I would like nothing more than to not have to put any DRM onto my titles ever and to allow people to freely make copies and back-ups of discs to their heart's content.

"Unfortunately there are dishonest people in the world who would take advantage, who would sell copied versions of the game, who would give those copies of the game away to their mates who haven't bought it and I do believe that people who make games should be paid for work that they're doing.

"In a perfect world there'd be no DRM. We don't live in a perfect world," he concluded.

Ubisoft would probably disagree with Jacobson. The publisher hailed DRM as a success back in July, pointing to a "clear reduction in piracy". But then, a lot of gamers would disagree with Ubisoft when it comes to DRM.

http://www.computerandvideogames.com...-manager-boss/ ...

Yeah, it's another article on security, but this time we finally get a complete picture. Tom's Hardware looks at WPA/WPA2 brute-force cracking with CPUs, GPUs, and Amazon's Nvidia Tesla-based EC2 cloud servers. Verdict? WPA/WPA2 is pretty damn secure. Now to wait for a side-channel attack. Sigh

http://mobile.slashdot.org/story/11/...-and-the-Cloud

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Nintendo has released new digital titles for the 3DS and DSi. Here's what the latest update includes...
This week's big game is a remastered 3D version of Urban Champion. Here's what Nintendo's official description has to say about it:

"Force your opponents into submission and down open manholes, by blocking, punching and dodging your way through. Watch out for the angry neighbours, however, as they will try and drop flower pots right onto your head."

Here's the full update list:

• 3D Classics Urban Champion: Nintendo 3DS - €5
• My Asian Farm: Nintendo 3DS, Nintendo DSi - €2/200 Points
• Moto eXtreme: Nintendo 3DS, Nintendo DSi - €8/800 Points
• Flight Control: Nintendo Wii - 500 Points

Last week's update included classic top-down shooter Xevious.http://www.computerandvideogames.com/315378/3ds-eu-eshop-update-urban-champion/ ...

Noel Gallagher has said "brutal TV and brutal video games" were a contributing factor to the recent UK riots.

"I can't understand where their energy for these riots is coming from," the former Oasis mastermind told Yahoo Entertainment. "We live in this age of violence - and I don't care what other people say: Brutal TV and brutal video games are a reason for this pointless violence as well.

"The people are immune to violence, they are used to it," he added. "And if they get caught they aren't punished the right way. The prisons are already full? Then build new ones.

"It's crazy. It's just violence for the sake of violence. The people who are at these riots aren't poor. These are kids with f***ing mobile phones and all sorts of sh**. The police and government have to take drastic measures."

In 2008, Gallagher linked violent games to a rise in knife crime among Britain's youth.

Last week, the Evening Standard newspaper suggested Grand Theft Auto inspired youngsters to join the London riots and looting, before later issuing a reprint binning the game blame reference altogether.http://www.computerandvideogames.com/315399/brutal-games-a-reason-for-uk-riots-claims-noel-gallagher/ ...