Games are art, games aren't art, yo mama so fat, yada yada yada, blah blah blah. Enough of that tired old, stuck-in-a-loop argument! It's time to move on and focus on game carts as art. These are from the recent Famicase exhibition in Japan, where artists were tasked with coming up with their own imaginary games, then designing the imaginary cart for their imaginary game. Some highlights are below, while you can see the entire collection here.

To men huddled around the big tables at Capcom HQ, the idea of porting yet another big-selling, zombie-based title to the Wii must sound like a no-brainer! You've got to wonder, though, whether they consulted with the tech guys before pushing forward with the project. Because as far as the 360 version was concerned, the thing that stopped it from being an awful beat-em up and made it such an awesome game were the hundreds of zombies the 360 could process. From these screens, it doesn't look like the Wii can do hundreds. It can do dozens. Maybe.

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Why? For some recent work they've done on the OTT WW3 RTS. First, and above, the game's box art, which could well be box art of the year. Note, developers: the world needs more Soviet women in leather hotpants, tesla mechs and armoured fighting bears. After the jump, one more thing the world needs more of: elite Japanese schoolgirl psionic commandos.

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(Not) surprisingly, the online rollout of Konami's first major expansion for Metal Gear Online has been a complete disaster. So what are they doing to make amends? They're...they're...well, they're saying sorry! A notice on the company's site explains that the Gene expansion's release has been "marred by major system related problems resulting in great inconveniences for all our customers". Least they're being honest about it. As for what they're doing about it, however, don't expect a fix anytime soon, as they go on to say "unfortunately there are no permanent solutions we can announce at this present moment".

A full report and apology for the problems surrounding the release of Metal Gear Online "Gene Expansion" expansion pack [Metal Gear Online]

Here's Logitech's new, officially licenced QWERTY keyboard for the Wii. It's wireless, it's a keyboard, and yes, it's the requisite white. It also has a few Wii-specific additions, like dedicated buttons for zoom, quit, ok, etc. It'll communicate via a dongle, should be out next month, will be a must-buy for Animal Crossing (which will support keyboards) and will cost $US 50.

[Logitech Wii Keyboard]

While the PS3 is outselling the PS2 on a monthly basis, it's still well over 100 million units shy of its older brother in the lifetime sales department. But don't let that stop Sony from dreaming about the future! Kaz Hirai is hoping for a day when, all things going according to plan, the PS3 sells more consoles than the PS2 did. FYI, the PS2's sold around 150 million. "It's not fun for me replicating the PS2 numbers. I've seen that movie already", the SCE boss said. "I want to try to see if we can exceed the PS2 numbers after nine years, otherwise why are we in this business?". Because you like the free pens and fancy party foods?

Sony sets 150m sales target for PS3 [FT]

If you've been chasing a 40kg UFO constructed of steel and flashing lights, look no further than this eBay auction. Pandemic's moving out of its Brisbane studio, and needs to find a home for this custom-made alien saucer. The starting price is a hefty $1199, though the listing says this is to pay for it to be taken down from the company's lobby and placed on the back of a truck.

Wondering what you could do with your own Destroy All Humans-themed UFO? Pandemic's Rob Davis supplied us with the following suggestions:

* Fill it with ice and drink beer out of it
* Children's Play area (safety not guaranteed)
* Two Words: UFO Jacuzzi

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The OFLC's classification database is packed full of surprises, both sad and delightful. The most recent of these was not one, but two ratings for Silicon Knights' Too Human. Why would a game get two (or more) ratings? Most of the time it's because a game is released on multiple platforms, but not simultaneously, so the later release has to be classified separately.

However, this is not the case for the Xbox 360-only Too Human.

The first entry for the title is dated May 30, and smacks the game with an "MA 15+". Yet, the second entry on June 18 shows it with the softer "M". My first thought was "Ah damn, not more censorship!", so I contacted Microsoft to find out what the deal was.

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MCV is a games industry rag based in the UK. In the magazine, there's an "International news" section, where each country gets a paragraph write-up and a small flag for added national flavour. It seems in a recent issue, Australia missed out on the latter - in its place, we received the stars and stripes.

Having worked for five years in magazine publishing, I can say that this sort of thing happens from time to time. Even with an army of proof readers, bits and pieces fall through the cracks.

Mind you, on the games front it wouldn't be so if we were like the US. Cheaper games, no censorship issues, better release dates. Just makes you want to let out a big fat sigh.

[Thanks Vuki]

Rockstar just sent through the placeholder box art for Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars on DS. I'm glad it added the "placeholder" proviso because, compared to Grand Theft Auto IV, this really isn't artwork... more a collection of fonts. Not that there's anything wrong with fonts, I just like having pictures mixed in. Don't you?

I was ready to ignore this release, until I noticed the brief mention of "computer games". It's entirely possible a gadget expo could have decent games, but I'm sure the organiser's definition of "gadget" gaming is very different to ours. For example, the press release mentions gamers and gaming several times, but doesn't specific what exactly we can expect.

I'm not sure about you, but when I think of gadgets and gaming, I get images of the iPhone and, *shudder*, the N-Gage. Yet, I'm sure these guys will find a way to include the PSP and DS. Of course, I might have missed the magical link between gaming and GPS!

Full release after the jump.

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Insider Describes the World of Sony's MAG
An exclusive look at Sony's 256-player online title.

Soul Calibur IV Breaks Street Part II: Gameplay Video
Street dates: they're there to be broken.

New Sonic Wii Game Revealed, Brings Much Needed Swordplay To Series
Because Sonic without a sword would be like Mario without a... SCUBA suit?

The Five Most Embarrassing Moments of Nintendo's Presser
Come and feel all awkward with Nintendo!

Rumour: Prank Results in Half-Arsed 'Confirmation' of GTA IV for PC
The other GTAs made it to PC (and the earlier ones only had PC releases) so this isn't that far-fetched.

Kotaku Originals: Wonder Septuplet Powers, Activate!
E3 was a massive outlet for news. Make sure you didn't miss anything.

While we're waiting for the real Spy updates and unlockables (and not fakes which momentarily fooled even Valve) OMFGNinja.com has gone and created an amazingly deep three-part advanced tutorial on how to play the Spy. It is mesmerizing, and showcases how any character in this game, with enough skill and planning, can become downright unstoppable. The leaping backstabs in part one, above, are jaw-dropping. The other two videos are at OMFGNinja, so follow the link and give them some credit. Youtube resolution sucks, but you get the idea of what the character class can do.

Advanced Spy Tutorial [OMFGNinja]

Old-old-old school developer (and hooved animal enthusiast) Jeff Minter put some screenies up on his Live Journal of Gridrunner+++, the Xbox Live Arcade port of Gridrunner ++. It looks like an acid trip. There's a sheep in the upper right of this screen, in case you were wondering. The other two are on the jump.

Shader-stuff In Game [Stinkygoat (Jeff Minter)'s Live Journal, via GamerBytes and thanks reader Ryan L.]

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It's not hard to imagine that Sony knew Microsoft would choose E3 to make its curtain-call announcement of Final Fantasy XIII for the 360. It's likewise reasonable to believe they searched their catalogueof works under development for the best candidate to generate any buzz. What we got was a mixed bag -- the trailer of an incredibly expansive shooter, but it didn't even have a title. It was just MAG: Massive Action Game. It sounded tempting, but very incomplete.

In fact it was shown to a focus group less than a month before E3. One among that group, after seeing the MAG E3 debut, reached out to me, under a promise of anonymity, to describe what was shown and asked of the group. Put simply, MAG -- whatever title it comes out under -- will be a mercenary combat MMO. It will more than likely carry SOCOM branding, as Zipper Interactive is behind it. And if so, it could be called SOCOM: Shadow War or SOCOM: Zero.

For purposes of identity protection, my source, who has experience in other video game focus groups, will be called Orange. Being identified could cost Orange, and others, future work.

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This picture (full resolution after the jump) is not a cosplayer getting up to face the day as a Combine Elite soldier from Half-Life 2. It's actually a render of one into a shot of someone's bedroom. It's crazily reminiscent of this gallery, cosplay enthusiasts, in costume, hanging about in everyday settings. (The best is Chewbacca in the kitchen).

Also after the jump, from Deviant Art, a cartoon on why Gordon Freeman doesn't talk. (If you're guessing the punchline right now, you're right.)

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WTF is going on at EA Sports? First came the manifold glitches and problems in NCAA 09, now we're seeing accounts of corrupt profiles forcing Xbox 360 racers to ditch their gamesaves and start all over.

After reaching a certain level of progress -- the theory is cumulative laps driven, as it's struck gamers at differing points in their careers -- the profile becomes corrupted and freezes the game right at the load screen. There is no other way to play the game except to delete the file and start all over. You can see a video of it here -- but it takes 7 minutes to explain what was just said above. There is, however, a swell parakeet whistling in the background.

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Ever want to roundhouse punch EA Sports honcho/former Xbox chief Peter Moore in the jaw? Astoundingly, word is you can do just that in Face Breaker, coming out Sept. 5. ButtonMasher reports thusly:

While previewing Face Breaker at the EA booth it was mentioned that Peter Moore's face had been scanned and entered into the game using the boxer editor. The face, which is creepily accurate, can be attached to any of the bodies and manipulated. Peter asserts that he suits a more chiseled look but the demonstration featured him as a blue monkey.

From talking with them more about the addition to the game it seems that his face will be included in the retail build of the game and will more than likely be an unlockable character.

That's a pretty shrewd move. Not sure how many sales it will do on that feature alone, but I'll put it in my GameFly queue.

Here's what the rest of the game will look like, btw.

Break Peter Moore's Face [Button Masher, thanks reader Paul K.]

Swear, I don't have a sentry gun fetish. Although it would be cool to meet a girl who did (I don't judge). Last week we churned up a video of a guy who developed a paintball sentry, and now reader Mohammed I. passes along a less functional, but no less impressive version: A Lego Sentry. Props to the builder, and especially for the game-screen render around it. Seriously, new desktop pic. It's a work of art and should stand for all time. Until some bastard-arse Spy whips up a Lego sapper.

Team Fortress 2 Sentry [Lair of the Legomancer, via Shift Gamer, thanks reader Mohammed]

British Gaming Blog takes a look at the highly anticipated games that weren't demoed at E3, and the titles would form an impressive show unto themselves. If only. All Points Bulletin. Tekken 6. Indiana Jones and, I mean really Ubisoft, no Beyond Good and Evil 2? Quoth BGB:

UbiDays 2008, Ubisoft announce Beyond Good and Evil 2 with an enigmatic, minimalist trailer. The fans go wild. E3 2008, Ubisoft announce Party Babies for Wii. Girls aged 5-12 go wild.

Agreed. Probably the biggest no-show of the whole conference, the Bungie/Halo game fiasco notwithstanding.

Missing in Action: The No-Shows of E3 [British Gaming Blog]

Yesterday we posted pictures of guys who got their hands on Soulcalibur IV, 10 days before its release date of July 29. Today, we have video. I guess you can just walk into any store and ask them to break the street date and get your game. Here's Yoda vs. Ivy, Yoda taking it 4-1 with a lot of button mashing and bad camera work. If the game looks repetitive, I think these guys' admittedly bad technique (" I hadn't played a Soul Calibur title since Soul Calibur 2 a couple years ago, so our match is pretty bad.") might be to blame, not the game. If any of you manage to snag this, we'd appreciate a more informed breakdown of gameplay in the comments.

Soul Calibur [sic] IV Gameplay [Youtube]

In an age where 20 hour games are long, Valhalla Knights 2 is an anomaly. It takes between 60 to 80 hours to complete and up to 135 hours if you want to fully complete it. The game was penned by the scenario writer for Final Fantasy XII so it does have a very involving story. Good news is that you won't spend most of that 135 hours grinding as there's even sneaking abilities so you don't have to constantly engage in battle. Also, no random encounters. Yay!

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Up to now, the only occurrences of a platinum blonde wig and a PSP in the same frame could be found in someone's cosplay Photobucket album. Sony probably saw that and, in the interest of portraying the real people who would really use its Go!Explore GPS gadget and service, came up with the above promo shot. Other photos (found by Pocketgamer.co.uk) are on the jump. Wherever the hell this entourage is going, I half expect them to meet the Dos Equis World's Most Interesting Man when they get there.

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