Gearbox: The Wii U Will Get The Best-Looking Version Of Aliens: Colonial Marines 
Microsoft Responds To Reports Of Xbox Live Account 'Jacking' 
GAME Australia Lays Off 281 Employees, Closes 60 Stores 
How Diablo III's Always-On Internet Requirement Makes It A Better Game GAME: No Buyers Yet, Crisis To Drag On For Another Month 
Have Your Say On Video Game Pricing Waaaay back in 2006, Agere Systems sued Sony. Said that the PSP (and some other Sony devices) infringed on their patent for a “wireless local area network apparatus”. A key difference in this and other cases we see like this is that Agere aren’t patent trolls: they’re a proper tech company, and the judge found in Agere’s favour, stating that Sony’s infrigements were “wilful”. Meaning Sony knew full well that they were infringing on someone else’s patents, but went ahead and infringed on them anyway. For their troubles, the Japanese mega-company must now pay Agere a cool $US18.5 million.
You know Human Tetris, right? A funny segment on a Japanese variety show gets made into an internationally-syndicated television series, wears out its welcome, the world moves on. HYPERCUBE, an experimental game by Canadian experimental games troupe Kokoromi, is based on a similar premise. Only, it’s not a joke, and it looks really, really cool. The object of the game is as follows:
The US’ Natural Resources Defence Council have released a report detailing how much money it costs the average American to run a gaming console. And, by extension, how much money gamers could save by taking those consoles and throwing them in the closet/garbage. Were you to decomission a 360, for example, you’d save yourself $11 a year. $11! Binning a PS3 would save you $15, while packing the Wii away – provided you haven’t already done so – will save you…$3 a year. Best keep it around then, in case Gran comes over and wants a swing at that “computer bowling”.
Well, shit. There goes my free time. This has somehow evaded my notice up til now – most likely because the words “iPhone” and “game” are enough to set my eyeballs a’ rollin’ – but it appears that EA are bringing SimCity to the iPhone. And not just any version, but a version of SimCity 3000 (or at least one that looks like it); probably the best of the bunch. It’ll be the same basic deal, only with touch controls, extending to the use of two-finger dragging for things like establishing zones. EA say it should hit the App Store sometime in December, for the “yeah, I’ll finally buy an iPhone game” price of $US10.
SimCity for the iPhone may ruin my life (in a good way) [VentureBeat]
Microsoft Europe have today announced that the Xbox 360 – long (and still) the underdog in the European theatre of console conflict – has now sold seven million units across the continent. That’s up from five million in June, showing anyone who couldn’t figure it out for themselves that when you cut the price of a console twice in six months, lots more people will buy it. Those with an interest in PR exuberance, you’ll love the accompanying quote from MS Europe’s David Gosen, who was positively beaming when he said:
Everlast, as you may be aware, are kind of a big deal in the world of boxing goods. They make, among other things, boxing gloves. Gloves like these ones, which are unique amongst their range by being designed less for punching men in the mouth with, and more for helping you swing your Wii Remote around like an idiot. Priced at $US30, they include straps for the peripherals and holes so you can still use the buttons. Hopefully they’re not as padded as real ones; we want people punching themselves in the face while regretting their purchase to really learn from the mistake.
A Video Gamer’s Substitute for the Heavy Bag and the Ring [NY Times, via Go Nintendo]
The NXE didn’t just hit in the US and Europe. It hit the world over. How’s the rest of the world taking things? Well, if Jamzy’s any indication, the rest of the world is doing just fine, thank you very much. As you can see by our favourite Japanese Xbox 360 fanboy’s eerily life-like avatar.
If you can’t beat ‘em…fix whatever it was they were complaining about so you don’t get your arse sued. That about sums up this move by Activision, which has seen the mega-publisher avoid a lawsuit with THQ over the box art to racer Baja 1000. While the original art was almost a direct rip-off of THQ’s Baja game – and was likely to see Activision have to face some kind of punishment – the game’s cover has since been changed. And, ironically, in the process been improved. Everybody wins. Especially this game, which without this lawsuit would have come and gone without a single one of you noticing it’s passage.
Case: THQ v. Activision – SETTLED [Patent Arcade, via Joystiq]
Capcom have gone a little remake mad. Bionic Commando Rearmed, Mega Man 9, they’re falling over themselves trying to put out new versions of old games. And now, they want your help. An innocent-looking post on the Capcom blog asks “what games do YOU think Capcom should revisit?”. Know that when a company PR man asks that question on a company PR blog, it’s not for the purposes of idle chit-chat. They really want to know. I would suggest you all head over and let your voice be heard, but instead, I’ll ask you not to, so as you don’t drown out the next sentence.
