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Have Your Say On Video Game Pricing 
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Dragon's Dogma: The Kotaku Review More WACKY Sony lifestyle pics! Or advertisements. Or something. These two girls are touching each other. On the seat next to them is a PSP, which next to women touching each other just isn’t getting a look-in. Poor thing. If only it’s battery had lasted longer, the girl on the right might still be enjoying a quick bout of Monster Hunter Freedom 2 instead of seriously considering exploring her sexuality in a public place. WHAT’S THIS THE PROMOTIONAL IMAGE FOR? [UK:R]
Best. Item. Ever. Over in Korea, Cooking Mama comes with oven mitts. Yes, oven mitts! Because right after playing Cooking Mama, you just might feel like cooking. Hell, I already have Cooking Mama and can’t read Korean, but I would so pick them up for those mitts alone. Cooking Mama in Korea [GameBrink via DS Fanboy]
Things the PLAYSTATION 3 has been called: A computer, a hub and a multi-media center. And that’s just by Sony! Previous Sony Computer Entertainment president Ken Kutaragi himself called the PS3 a “super computer.” New SCE honcho Kaz Hirai is here to set the record straight: I’d like to clearly say, “The PS3 is a game machine.” It’s nothing more than that.
He also points out that the PS, the PS2 and the PSP are game machines as well. Oh. Okay. Hirai Interview [Game Watch]
Once upon a time Devil May Cry 4 was pegged as PS3 exclusive. Then it wasn’t, making the cross-platform jump to PC and Xbox 360. Still, the two console versions must be a little different, right? Nope! DMC4 producer says Hiroyuki Kobayashi points out: The actual contents are exactly the same, but having said that, the feel of the controller may cause a slight difference.
So there you go. The version aren’t just the same, they are “exactly the same.” Which you buy will depend on which controller you prefer. So, what’ll it be: SIXAXIS or 360 controller? Kobayashi Interview [Eurogamer]
What is it with Brain Training? Nintendo spend all this money advertising the sequel and people are buying more of the original. And not just this week, loads of times. Nutty. That peculiarity aside, Australia still loves BioShock, and while the PC version slipped a pinch the 360 one is still at #1.
1) Bioshock (360) 2) Singstar 90s (Software) 3) Brain Training 4) Singstar 90s (Bundle) 5) Bioshock (PC) 6) Pokemon DIamond 7) Mario Party 8 8) Pokemon Pearl 9) AFL 2007 10) World of Warcraft
[charts courtesy of GfK]
If you’re both playing BioShock (likely) and connected to Xbox Live (again, likely), you’d probably already have been prompted to download an update for the game. Wondering what’s inside? No, no plasmids, just a few fixes for an autosave bug, AI problems with splicers using health stations and a music bug on the menu screen. Oh, and something else. It’s screwing up a lot of people’s games. We’ve received a tonne of emails from readers complaining about the game now freezing constantly, and sometimes locking up completely. 2K say they’re working on a fix, but until then, you can get around this by clearing your 360′s cache. To do this, just hold both bumper buttons while the game’s booting, and don’t let go until you see the 2K logo. That should do it.
What’s the Xbox 360 game Japan is looking forward to? Less Halo 3, more Ace Combat 6: Fires of Liberation. Just check out the above pre-order display that shows AC6 all big and other games all regular. The Namco series has a big following in The Land of the Rising Sun, and since the latest entry is a 360 exclusive, Ace Combat 6 might shift a few consoles for Microsoft! At the Sofmap in Osaka’s Den-Den Town, shoppers would stop dead in their tracks to watch the Ace Combat 6 trailer and move on once it was finished. Even old bald men gave the demo a whirl. That, dear reader, after the jump!
With the 80GB model of the PS3, Americans were invited to feel some of Europe’s pain. Gone was the promise of near-universal PS2 backwards compatability, replaced with a software-based emulation system where many games work, many games work with issues and some games do not work. At all. I say some of Europe’s pain, though, because half the hassle of it all is in checking the PAL BC list on SCEE’s torturous BC site to see if your games work. See, the site does not contain a search function. The newly-launched US search site does, allowing you to enter the name of your PS2 games into a small text field, conduct a search and be provided with a prompt answer. Awfully clever, that, and definitely ground-breaking technology. I bet SCEE are kicking themselves they didn’t think of it. SCEA PS3 BC Search Site [SCEA PS3 Support]
Lair’s not doing so good on the reviews circuit. In fact it’s stinking up the place, critics almost unanimous in their disdain for what’s basically a Rogue Squadron game without a Hoth level. This should be a concern for Sony, but really, it’s not, outgoing SCEA PR head Dave “Screw you, Jerktown” Karraker saying: At the end of the day, I’ll be interested in the consumers’ response, because the consumer awareness for this title was so huge. I’ve spoken to any number of people who really like it, and there’s other people that find it a challenge. What really matters is whether or not the consumers are having a good experience, because they’ll tell us on the [PlayStation]blog.
Interesting approach, but unless a game’s got a trusted IP or word of mouth behind it, it’s going nowhere without positive reviews. This is new IP with rubbish reviews. Don’t fancy its chances. Sony Brushes Off Lair Critics [Next-Gen]
Nintendo weekly hardware sales continue to drop as either supply remains constrained or, less likely, a nation of millions realises they’ve grown quite tired of housekeeping diaries and scribbling kanji on their touchscreens. Week over week, hardware numbers were down across the board with the exception of the PLAYSTATION 3. The PS3 avoided a dip with a little help from solid sales of Koei’s Bladestorm: The Hundred Years’ War. For the week of August 27th to September 2nd, the hardware wars suffered the following casualties.
Nintendo DS Lite – 94,339 Wii – 39,371 PSP – 22,196 PLAYSTATION 3 – 18,068 PlayStation 2 – 14,280 Xbox 360 – 1,635 Game Boy micro – 263 Game Boy Advance SP – 195
