Forget #1. Just pretend it's not there, and we'll all get on with our lives. Besides, it's not the top spot we're interested in. It's second and third place. Look at Burnout Paradise go! And here I was thinking it would, thanks to January and some demo-related whining, slide into the abyss. Glad to see it hasn't.

1) Mario & Sonic At The Olympics (Wii)
2) Burnout Paradise (360)
3) Burnout Paradise (PS3)
4) Wii Play (Wii)
5) Brain Training (DS)
6) Call of Duty 4 (360)
7) More Brain Training (DS)
8) New Super Mario Bros (DS)
9) Call of Duty 4 (PS3)
10) Link's Crossbow Training (Wii)

[charts courtsy of ChartTrack]

Buzztime Entertainment are suing Sony over their Buzz! series of trivia games. They don't like the PS2 series' name, and they don't like the PS2 series' tagline "It's time to get buzzing", either. As a company that makes trivia games - which use multi-colored controllers - for pubs and restaurants (as well as home versions), they feel that Buzz!'s use of multi-colored controllers in a trivia game for home consoles is cutting it a little fine to their own turf. So they not only want legal fees and damages, they want the US Patent and Trademark Office to not register pending US trademarks for the series, and want all copies currently on the market recalled. Recalled and destroyed. Best of luck with that!

Sony Buzz-ed with trademark suit [GameSpot]

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Japanese shops go balls to the wall for their erotic game displays. They are so not screwing around! In the past, we've seen this (NSFW). Now, we bring you the TOTALLY NOT SAFE FOR WORK in-store display for Japanese erotic game Nonstop Chikan Tokkyuu ("Nonstop Molester Limited Express Train"). That, dear readers, after the jump!

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The DS is, arguably, the posterchild for expanding the demographics of gamers. Yet for all its success in baiting old folks and lady folks into playing games, is the system's innovation innovating for some and not others? That's what PaRappa creator Masaya Matsuura is thinking, telling Gamasutra:

We have to keep increasing the chance to make more unique titles, but for us it's getting much more difficult because the game market -- especially in Japan -- is still very conservative.

Many people know that the DS has very unique titles, like Brain Training, or something like that, but it's not for younger-aged market. It's kind of older people, like me.

Pro wrestler Christian Cage (aka Jason Reso) isn't quite ready to trade in his spandex tights just yet, but has taken up a gaming column over at GameTap. The majority of his first column is about how much he likes games or what he's going to write about. For example:

In future columns what I'd like to do is throw in some thoughts on my wrestling career, maybe some road stories or whatever I've got going on that's interesting, but my focus will be playing a game every month and reviewing it. Doesn't sound all that hard, right? For me it is. You see, I'm the type of gamer that plays a game and gets addicted to that game and plays absolutely nothing else but that game for months at a time. This will actually help me with my problem. I'm not lying — I have a serious problem. You want proof? Gears of War is still sitting unopened in its original packaging on a shelf in my game room (gasp!). There was a time I played Top Spin 2 for eight months straight. It got so bad, friends were planning to break into my house and steal it from my console just so I would play something else...but I'll get back to that. Like I was saying, this will give me the chance to play a variety of games and give you my feedback—but until then I think I'll just ramble.

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Hey, it's Jamzy! And Jamzy has a new fanboyriffic haircut! Sure, he's done this before - some may be so cynical as to say it's his shtick - but this time, he's outdone himself. No more game logos in random spots, this time he's gone all-out, wrapping a giant Xbox motif across the back of his noggin in celebration of all things Xbox Live. Fantastic. Only downside? "The short hair with these lines is shitty in the cold". Jamzy watchers be warned, though - he promises a new design in March, so this is a strictly limited offer.

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Teaching DDR [Joystiq]

Wouldn't it have been great if the first piece of proper Mass Effect merch, the $US 90 statue of Commander Shephard (generic manbits version), could have shipped in December, as promised? Well it didn't. It's been delayed. Couldn't let the game one-up it in the delay stakes, you see. While you kick your heels and wait for your chance to spend $US 90 on an immovable action figure, why don't you pass the time with these shots of the figure, both of the final sculpt and finished version.

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Earlier, we brought word that there could very well be a Super Smash Bros. Brawl shortage in Japan. Japanese blog Ota Road points out that early this week, it's been possible to reserve the game at two large Sofmap shops in Den-Den Town. Many online sites, however, have ceased taking reservations. Though, whispers persist that SSBB will be hard to come by at launch. Still, seeing how the game is dropping midweek, and the 31st isn't a holiday in Japan, I'm not so worried about picking up the game here in Japan. You?

SSBB Pre-orders [Ota Raod]

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Chin up, contest losers! Bandai has decided to console all the contest finalists with prizes. That means that every finalist not only gets internet fame, but also a freebie. Don't expect this for future contests! Here's how it will work: All finalists will get a copy of Culdcept Saga. The top six finalists will get a signed poster (Sorry, no unsigned ones). The top finalists will get the signed posters and the signed CD. But since, we're really mean, you'll need to jump through an extra hoop to get your stuff. So, here's how you claim your loot: Count up ALL the votes for each finalist and send them to kotakucontestATkotaku.com. Don't forget to include your name and address and which finalist you are. Failure to do this by midnight tomorrow night will result in ME getting your FREE STUFF. Congrats everyone, hugs!

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Sure, it's not the game. It's not even the whole manual. But there's a fever amongst you for all things Super Smash Bros Brawl, and you'll take anything and everything you can get. Like this! Sent through by someone who works at the Seattle printing press that's handling production of the game's Norteamericano manual, this is the raw run-off of some of the manual's pages. Nothing on there that'll really rock your world, but hey, if you lean close enough to the screen I'm sure you can conjure up that new-manual smell.

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While neighboring Japan farts in the Xbox 360's general direction, Korea is a bit more welcoming. 360 Live Attack is a Xbox 360-centric progam on Korean TV network MBC Game, which typically shows things like reruns of Korean Starcraft matches. The show has a news portion that shows clips from new 360 games. There's apparently also a segment where the show's host logs on to Live and talks to fellow players with the Xbox Vision webcom chat. Any sort of Xbox 360 success in Korea shouldn't be a surprise: The 360 does have a lot in comment with PC gaming. What's more, Xbox 360 kiosks always use SAMSUNG monitors. So, there ya go!

Xbox Centric Show [Siliconera]

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An article over at the Courier Mail (no, not that one) has an update on the current state of Brisbane-based studio Auran. Both Tantalus CEO Tom Crago and Auran co-founder Graham Edelsten share words with the newspaper.

It was only a few months ago that Auran Developments, which managed the company, went into administration, resulting in a downsizing of Auran's healthy 85 employees to a skeletal 15.

According to the article, Auran hasn't thrown it's multi-million dollar MMO Fury to the sharks just yet (as evidenced by the release of the Age of the Chosen expansion late last year), and is looking to sell the underlying tech it used to create the game.

Graham Edelsten also had this to say about the Oz industry:

Mr Edelsten says Auran will stick to less ambitious projects, saying until the investment dollars match those of their overseas counterparts it is too risky to take on the giants.

Game still on for Auran [Courier Mail, via Sumea]

Cops are smart. Well, some of them are. The police in UK's West Yorkshire seem pretty bright and have figured way to track down the owners of a stolen Wii: The console's Miis. The Wii was stolen by a 32-year-old man arrested earlier this month. It contains 16 Miis with names that include Seb, Pheebes, Nicks and Evie. Says Officer Neil Johnson:

The Nintendo Wii looks new and is thought to have been stolen before January 1. It may have been a Christmas present. If anyone has devised these characters listed and the Wii has gone missing, then please contact us urgently.

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Like Mike said, Nintendo have, via their financial reports, announced some release dates for the coming year. Scrolling down the list of first-party games due in the Japanese market sees familiar titles like Metroid Prime 3, Mario Kart Wii, Battallion Wars 2 and...oh. Animal Crossing! Yes, the mythical, maybe-MMO Animal Crossing. What's encouraging about this news is that Nintendo are at least trying to get it out this year, so we should be seeing/hearing something about the game soon. What's not encouraging is that the game only appears on Japan's schedule, not Europe's or America's.

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Civ Rev is the upcoming version of Civlization that, from all accounts, may actually manage to successfully transplant the Civ experience from PC to console. And if you own a 360, PS3 or DS, that may still happen! If you own a Wii, though, sorry. Your versions been delayed. Indefinitely.

Development for the Wii version of Sid Meier's Civilization Revolution is currently on hold. We are focusing our attention on creating the best possible Civilization experience for the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 and Nintendo DS platforms.

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Update: EB Games Australia has commented on the rumour.

Microsoft has gotten back to us regarding the rumour we posted earlier today that suggests EB Games Australia may have $10 million worth of busted 360s that it can't sell, and the manufacturer is unwilling to compensate it for.

You might be a bit disappointed by the reply:

We’re not going to comment on this.

Should Microsoft pick up the bill for the damage its apparently poor QA has wrought, or has EB Games dug itself a massive hole for issuing the recall itself mid-last year? Let us know.

Earlier, we brought news of a minor Super Smash Bros. Brawl bug. The screen goes black and displays an error message that the game cannot be booted. However, the bug doesn't actually effect the game and can be ignored. Another retail-minded site Game no Urabanashi confirms this rumour, point out that the error message occurs when the game is first started up. Game no Urabanashi doesn't see the bug as a huge problem, but does point out that it could be an issue if not all customers are aware of it. The Nintendo flier that stores will apparently be giving out has popped up online. This looks like pretty good confirmation, but we're still going to call this a rumour until we're able to verify for ourselves when SSBB drops this Thursday in Japan.

For a game that's been delayed repeatedly, this seems, well, pretty shitty. If this is true, why is Nintendo, known for its impeccable quality, willing to ship its biggest title with a bug? Then again, Paper Mario had a bug and the DS Lite had hinge cracks, so. One thing you can bet, Nintendo would've never shipped Wii Fit with a bug. No way in hell.

SSBB Bug [Game no Urabanashi Thanks, Muu!]

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The Japanese version of Super Smash Bros. Brawl's intro movie has made its way online, a clip sure to induce tears of joy and fanboy frothing. It might also contain one or two minor spoilers, as one potential character return is revealed, as is a heretofore undiscussed stage. Megaton surprises they are not, but for those hoping to remain Brawl virginal, a "move along" is suggested. Still, I would think that the teaming up of Pikachu and Samus as shown in the trailer will make have hearts aflutter.

Seems the first standalone Rock Band peripherals have begun slipping silently, like blister-packed ninjas, into the retail channel. Now available in stores across the US are extra mics for the game, which contain not one, but two surprises. First: they're $US 50. No, thanks. I'd recommend SingStar mics, they're cheaper and better. Second: the packaging looks (we say looks because it's awful small) like it says it's for PS3, 360 and the Wii. Wii, huh? That's certainly new.

Official Rock Band premium microphone turns up, still can't save embarrassment [Engadget]

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To: Ash
From: Crecente
Re: Dying 24-7, Thinking About It 24-7

I know I've mentioned this before, but when I was six or so, I was told I had a really good chance of dying, 50 percent to be specific, during an operation. They even gave me my last rights. That's the sort of thing that changes the way you think about everything. I remember clearly, days before leaving for the hospital, walking to elementary school and trying to imagine what it would be like to not exist. It was fall, in Maryland, the sidewalks were covered with dead leaves and as I walked, the leaves crunching under my feet, I closed my eyes and pictured space. Then I tried to remove everything, the planets, the stars... myself. It really scared the crap out of me.

I, of course, survived, but it really got me interested in religion, all religions, at a very, very young age. After that I become enthralled with philosophy and physics. I read, voraciously, and still do. But it wasn't until I read Slaughterhouse Five, of all things, and a short story by Jorge Louis Borges that I found some sort of inner peace on the subject.

In Slaughterhouse the protagonist is captured by aliens who see in four dimension, the fourth being time. They go through life as if it is a magazine they've already read. They can flip back and forth whenever they want. To them their entire existence has already happened, so death isn't just coming, it's there, right next to their birth and the time they first kissed a girl. In the Borges short story, I've forgotten the name of it but I believe it was in the Garden of Forking Paths, a soldier is lead to a firing squad to be killed. He is desperate to finish writing a story he's been working on. He's so desperate that when the guns fire time slows to a near stop and he has an eternity to finish writing his story as the bullets continue to fly toward him.

That's how I view life, an amalgam of those two ideas. Life isn't just what we are doing now, and what we've done. It is, I like to think, a beautiful painting or book, one which we will always be able to enjoy. I like to spend an awful lot of time lingering around the bit where I met my wife.

What you missed:
Jack Thompson Defends Mass Effect
Woolworths Drops HD-DVD, Praises PS3
Three Vibe Hands-On With Rez HD
80GB PS3 Not Dying, But Being Reborn Bigger?
Ink Meets Flesh: A Gaming Tattoo Primer
The Top Five LEGO Video Games
Mercenaries 2 Still Pretty
New Mario Kart Wii Details
GameSpot Names New Editor In Chief

Nintendo's recent financial reports didn't contain much in the way of surprise game announcements, as leaks are not the company's style. Documents did re-confirm, however, that the former GameCube platformer known simply as Kirby is still on track for a 2008 release in Japan. Shown at E3 2005, the game's continued development had doubt cast upon it by the UK's Official Nintendo Magazine, but it appears that HAL Laboratory is still hard at work on the next console Kirby.

Kirby enthusiasts will also take comfort in that the third Nintendo DS game, Hoshi no Kirby: Ultra Super Deluxe, is similarly tentatively scheduled for a 2008 release. The remake of the SNES classic Kirby Super Star will hopefully make it before the end of the year.

Both dates are, of course, subject to change, as is that bad-arse attitude of the pink, shoe-wearing sphere.

The recently settled class action lawsuit against Rockstar Games and publisher Take-Two Interactive has born cash fruit for those who have had their sensibilities offended by the type of salacious content seen above. Now's your chance to cash in, as the attorneys involved already have, reaping a $US 1 million payment (minus $US 45,000 in costs) as part of the agreement. Your profit? Up to $US 35, should you have the receipt in hand, or as little as $US 5 if your willing to take the time to file. The pay-outs are as follows.

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Just a quick one to all the Dominions 3 fans out there, myself included. There's a new patch out for Illwinter's super sexy strategy game, bringing the title to version 3.14. New features include:

-A new late ear nation called Bogarus!

-Bakemono got a new scout.

-New random events.

-Spell AI: Touch of madness and Berserkers avoids casters and archers to some extent.

-Spell AI: No longer casts LoS on armorless units.

-Modding: Increased maximum nbr of descriptions.

-Modding: Max number of nations and nametypes increased.

-Modding: New monster commands: #darkpower, #firepower, #coldpower, #stormpower, #fallpower, #winterpower, #summerpower, #springpower, #darkvision, #onebattlespell, #patrolbonus.

-Modding: New item commands: #newitem, #descr, #weapon, #armor, #type, #name, #copyspr.

-Modding: New spell command: #nextspell.

Dominions 3: The Awakening - Downloads [Official site, via Blue's News]

Crisis Core Pre-orders Can Net You Geeky Goodies. If you're willing to drop the cash on a copy of the PSP entry in the "Compilation of Final Fantasy VII", you could walk away with some attractive plastic. This Shin-Ra Electric Power Company UMD case is yours for the stuffing, should you pre-order Crisis Core from Amazon, GameStop or EBGames. Surely limited in the tens of thousands, so act early.

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We have it on good authority that the PC version of the new Turok FPS may be delayed until mid-2008.

Currently we don't know the reasons for the potential delay, but it does explain why its release date was missing from the Funtastic schedule I received a few days ago.

We'll let you know when there's official word, but for now, eager gamers will have to turn to the PS3 or Xbox 360 next month to get their fill of the ever-so-manly Turok.

We recently got a look at the top five selling Wii games in Japan, courtesy of publisher Enterbrain, but Nintendo themselves have released a more expansive list of the first party-published, platinum-plus titles worldwide, giving us a status update on just how well Nintendogs is selling. While the Nintendo DS dog-raising sim boasts an impressive 17.79 million copies sold globally, it's been bested by Wii Sports which, as of the new year, is at 17.85 million copies. Both have probably been helped by their respective hardware bundles, which are factored into totals, but we suspect Wii Sports got the biggest boost of the two.

Solid numbers for new-ish games like Metroid Prime 3, Link's Crossbow Training and Wii Fit pad the top ten, a list equally filled with mini-game comps as it is traditional games. For worldwide Nintendo DS software numbers, make the jump.

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Update 1: Microsoft has responded to our request for a comment.

Update 2: EB Games Australia has commented on the rumour.

Over the weekend, a Kotaku AU reader sent through a chat log containing an enlightening conversation with "an associate of mine who holds a high position within the EB organisation". According to the log, Microsoft is refusing to take responsibility for its defective consoles, leaving it up to the games retailer to make the best of a crappy situation.

Obviously we're trying to verify the facts, but for now, there's no reason not to let you guys know of the potentially nasty relationship that may exist between EB Australia and Microsoft.

The transcript had the following preface:

An associate of mine who holds a high position within the EB organisation (Who wishes to remain incognito) has requested that I send in a paste [of] this chat log that details a stand-off between EB Australia and Microsoft regarding faulty XBoxes.

It gets better, after the jump.

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What better way to show you're a survivor of the casualty-heavy Console Wars of the eighties than with this commemorative medal featuring the clear winner of the 8-bit home console conflict, the NES. Sporting an NES controller and signature cross-pad backdrop, the "Console War I" medal from Supermandolini is the "first in a series of limited edition 'pin' medals" that the jeweler has planned.

Cost to you? Just €18.00 (about $US 26) plus shipping from, I believe, Greece. Expect to be chatted up and admonished by real veterans when you wear it!

Console Wars I [Supermandolini]

Now that EA Chicago has closed its doors and former general manager of the studio, Kudo Tsunoda, has moved on to Microsoft, what will become of the destruction-filled Marvel fighting game the team had planned? Nothing, according to GameTap, as the parties involved have "jointly agreed to discontinue development of the Marvel titles under the EA Games Label." That means that the ill-conceived Marvel Nemesis: Rise of the Imperfects will be the only game to shoulder the burden of the EA-Marvel crossover deal.

Shown only in trailer form, the EA Chicago fighter looked to bring Marvel mainstays Spider-Man, Dr. Doom, Captain America and the Hulk together for a next-gen fisticuffs-fest that saw the characters battling amid crowds of bystanders, toppling buildings and generally wreaking havoc. Marvel's other multi-character title, Marvel Universe Online, has also been the subject of cancellation talks. Maybe Marvel should just stick to movies.

Electronic Arts, Marvel Dissolve Game Deal [GameTap]

CNet Networks announced today that GameSpot veteran Ricardo Torres has been named the new Editor In Chief of the online publication, replacing former site lead Greg Kasavin in the role. The site had been without an official EIC since Kasavin's departure in January of last year to work at Electronic Arts. Torres, who shared editorial director duties with former GameSpotter Jeff Gerstmann, has been with the site since 2001 and has been focused on previews and worldwide event coverage.

Torres, who spoke to us recently about the departure of longtime reviewer Alex Navarro, said of the new responsibilities via press release "I'm eager to continue the site's tradition of excellence and I'm confident we can move forward into 2008 and set a new industry standard for how video games are covered." Torres recently set editorial standards for wearing cornrows, pictures of which we desperately wish we had in our possession.

We wish Torres the best in his future endeavors at GameSpot. Full statement from CNet after the break.

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Including Monday, there was a heap of content from the US to bring across from the Australia Day long weekend. It should keep you busy for, oh, ten minutes?

First Look At Tiberium On GT TV
EA's upcoming FPS based in the C&C universe comes up for air.

80GB PS3 Not Dying, But Being Reborn Bigger?
Is a new bundle with a bigger hard drive and Dual Shock 3 controllers on the way?

SSBB Shipping With Showstopper Bug?
Scary bug could put a damper on SSBB sales.

Wii Boobs (So Old), Dreamcast Moobs (So New)
Extremely NSFW. Well, the second clip anyway. The first one should come with complementary eye bleach.

Turok Teammate Killing Feature Patched Out
I can't believe this was seriously considered. There's enough jerks online as it is without giving them a reason to be stupid.

Three Vibe Hands-On With Rez HD
Get your vibration on with Q Entertainment's Rez HD.

EA vs Fox: Lawrence Recants Mass Effect Judgement
Admitting that you're a little light in the brains department won't make it any better.

Kotaku Originals: From EA vs Fox to Kotaku Krafts
Originals, originals and more originals from Kotaku!

The next issue of German gaming pub NMag features a cover story on the upcoming Wii racer Mario Kart Wii as well as a few tiny tidbits on what we can expect from the waggle-enabled iteration. In addition to appearances from drivers like Mario, Wario, Luigi, Waluigi, Bowser, Peach, and Donkey Kong, the mag confirms that Boo and Baby Peach will also have driving duties. Not surprising, as we'd seen the former in at least one trailer, with the latter only making sense, given that Baby Mario and Baby Luigi will also star.

The mag, by way of GoNintendo, also mentions that at least 32 tracks are planned and that the dreaded "snaking" method of boosting will be included.

Mario Kart Wii - some new info from NMag [GoNintendo]

Pursuit Force Extreme Justice hits tomorrow. What I played of the demo I quite liked, which is surprising because I hated the original game. My early copy, which arrived at my door today, came with this Pimp Glass, sunglasses and fingerless gloves. Hold on there guys, you're mixing your seventies references and it's about to blow my mind. Either throw in a pimp stick and robe or make with the fake Magnum stache.

The Space Invaders inspired design that we posted about late last year has become an official Threadless item, ready to be snapped up by t-shirt fans with an extra $15 (or $US 17, for the ladies) in their pockets. Putting me in poppy orange is like putting me in madras, so I'll be passing, but retro fans with an eye for steampunk may find it suitable enough. Everyone else seemed to like it at the time, so a link to the online haberdasher is provided below.

Interloper From Beyond The Heavens [Threadless]