Republished from Gizmodo.
Crack open a pint of ice cream and grab the tissues. We have some very bad news. Super Mario, you know, that guy who has saved the world/Princess on multiple occasions while facing ridiculous odds? He’s a plumber in Europe. Yeah, and that’s the picture is his van. His van! Sure, Superior Bathrooms by SuperMario “takes bathroom projects to new heights,” but it sinks our hearts to new lows.
The last time we were this disappointed, we woke up to find hair in all our weird places. And every day since then things have just gotten worse. Superior Bathrooms by SuperMario [SuperMario Broke Our Heart via technabob]
Rockstar’s “Lazlow” (one of the game’s DJs) made another appearance on the Opie and Anthony show this morning. This time he claimed that the Xbox 360′s DLC is being worked on at the moment and could see the light of day as early as this summer. Not much was said about PS3 DLC other than he hoped to see it happen in the future. Our guess is that Microsoft will release the DLC whenever it works best with their general plan of attack—be that as soon as Rockstar finishes the content or months later—since paying $50 million and ruling a platform probably affords you such luxuries. O&A talk GTA IV [Loot Ninja via Maxconsole]
WARNING: DO NOT STEP BEYOND THE WAIST HIGH FENCE WHILE MARIO KART IS IN MOTION. Luke can have his Mario Kart Wii and his fancy wireless motion controls from the future. I’ll enjoy the classic, SNES version and a humble motion simulator by Force Dynamics. Constructed from various flavours of steel, this simulator features 500lbs of peak thrust, five channels of surround sound and one wicked disclaimer: The [unit]can move suddenly, and severely injure someone who is within the working envelope. A waist high fence located at least 4 feet away from the machine is strongly suggested.
OK, technically the disclaimer is for a more premium unit. But I had a need to post that bit about the “waist high fence.” For your safety. [via UberGizmo]
Those who preordered their copy of Grand Theft Auto IV at Blockbuster received a more…domestic celebration of the world’s most controversial game—a picture frame. We’d call it a GTA IV picture frame, but the only thing GTA IV about it is the print placed inside. The frame’s exterior is a very standard, black-painted wooden design you’d see at any department store.
Oh, it’s super lame today. But in a few more months, that frame will make a sweet, sweet regift. Thanks to Gizmodo’s Jason Chen for sending this in!
Microsoft, apparently having some difficulty infiltrating Asian markets, has reduced prices of the Xbox 360 in many areas. The biggest price reduction (20 per cent to $400) happened in Singapore, though Taiwan’s price drop wasn’t far behind (17 per cent to $370). Hong Kong and Korea both received smaller price reductions as well.
I’m not positive that increasing Xbox sales in Asia is as predictable as the rest of the world where the drop price, grow sales technique reigns supreme. But, you know, it probably won’t hurt.
Microsoft Cuts Xbox 360 Prices in Four Asian Markets [Bloomberg via Gamasutra] [image]
Early test reports are finding that Grand Theft Auto IV is only running at 630P on the PlayStation 3—falling short of hi def—while the game runs at 720P on the Xbox 360. Clearly, the PlayStation version must look worse, right? It’s not that simple. But the basic explanation is easy enough to understand.
Koei’s Fatal Intertia didn’t revolutionise racing on the Xbox 360 as we know it—in fact, it was received as pretty mediocre. But now the full game—formerly offered as a normal Xbox 360 retail release—will be coming to PSN for download. (Originally, the game had been planned for PS3 but the team had issues during production.) Redubbed Fatal Inertia EX, the game adds eight new training tracks to ease the intense learning curve. Coming in late May for $US29.99, downloadable releases could be an inexpensive method to bring games that potentially underperformed on the 360 to the PS3. Here’s hoping we see PSN ganking more full, downloadable titles at budget prices.
Exclusive: ‘Fatal Inertia EX’ Arrives Via PlayStation Network Next Month [MTV Multiplayer]
It’s hard to find fault in any Xterra owner who takes it upon themselves to paint their rear hatch with the controls of a Game Boy…if they do it right. We’d love to be the types not make fun of people who try really hard at something and kind of miss on the execution, but we’re just not that secure. So spot the big screw-up in the comments!
Oh, and that said, this car, spotted on the street by one intrepid photographer, is more than a little fantastic. And it’s not likely to be replaced by various forms of emulation any time soon, which is a plus. gamer 4 [deviantART]
This is by no means the most scientific of measurements, but GTA IV for both Xbox 360 and PS3 is currently being outsold on Amazon by Wii Fit, Mario Kart Wii and the Wii Wheel. Things to keep in mind: the Nintendo games are each single platform (effectively doubling their sales) and Wii Fit pre-orders may be more common than GTA IV pre-orders this close to GTA IV’s launch (at this point, gamers may be more likely to just go to the store to get their Liberty City fix). Still, we didn’t expect Wii Fit’s pre-sale numbers to come out on top today on Amazon. At all. Bestsellers in Video Games [Amazon]
