Don't go throwing that Wii in the trash just yet, kids! Sega are here to save the day. They know you're jack of the shovelware, jack of the short shrift you seem to be getting from cash-chasing developers, and want to help. That's why they're releasing The House of the Dead: Overkill. They're releasing it just for you.

There's a lot of Wii fans worried about the decline of decent hardcore games on the system. No, guys — we're not making a 30 hour-plus RPG here, but we are making something you are going to have a complete blast playing. We are making it with a nod to one of the greatest arcade series of all time and we hope you'll just purely enjoy teaming up with buddies and posting those high scores on the forums with the rest of us...It'll beat the shit out of grooming a horse.

Don't ever accuse Sega of not knowing which of the converted they're preaching to.

GC 2008: The House of the Dead: Overkill [IGN]

Adding to our Too Human Frankenreview, Famitsu has given the game a score of 7, 7, 7 and 7 — 28 out of 40. Not amazing, but not terrible. The publication liked the game's online and co-op play features. One Famitsu editor even slated the game as a "Pick of the Week". Stay tuned for our review later in the week.

[2chan]

Thanks, Jelmer for the tip!

Cinematic Trailer [EA]

Well, do we? The question's come up a bit recently, prompted by comments from guys like EA boss John Riccitellio and David Jaffe. While exploring the idea, MTV have posted a few pics of what they think game boxes could look like with developer credits on them. The results are...crude, which they admit, but also a little off the mark. The idea of putting credits on a game box obviously stems from movies, where DVDs have credits. Thing is, DVD credits are on the back of the box, where they don't clutter up the cover art. Shift those credits to the back of a game box - you can remove bullshit bullet points to make room - and we might just be on the right track!

If Video Game Boxes Gave Credit, They'd Look Like This... [MTV]

If you're not interested in Far Cry 2 yet, you may well be after this. Ignore the Irish chap and his corny sales pitch and just focus on trying to remember the last FPS you played on a console (this is the 360 version) that let you build complex, detailed maps as though you were playing Advance Wars.

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Developer Spike is back with another bosozoku adventure. That's right, Kenka Bancho 3 is coming to the PSP. The game, which features a high school gang leader who has a laser eye beam, looks like the PS2 titles that proceeded it. Man, I wish i had a laser eye beam in high school — heck, now even. The game features 2 player ad-hoc play and will be out this November in Japan. So there ya go.

싸움짱 3(Kenka Bancho 3)스크린샷 [VideogamerX via PSPHyper]

Freshly released to commemorate the beginning of the Leipzig Games Convention, here's a bunch of new screenshots for Mortal Kombat vs DC. Which show that the Joker loves nothing more than a good punch in the face. And that Green Lantern's looking look like our first choice character when we get our hands on the game.

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Peter Moore announced that EA Sports would be adding tennis to its line-up of games in 2009, with rights for the Wimbledon tennis tournament exclusively going to EA. Although Moore didn't provide a name for the EA created tennis game — unless it's simply EA Sports Tennis — he did say that development on the EA Sports addition would be leading on the Wii, with the game supporting the Wii MotionPlus peripheral.

EA Reps also namedropped professionals like Chris Everett, Pete Sampras and Boris Becker, hinting but not confirming that Grand Slammers throughout the years would be featured.

Today, Tecmo Co. Ltd. announced that Tecmo president Yoshimi Yasuda will resign. The Board of Directors accepted Yasuda's resignation — which was for "personal reasons". Starting September 1st, Chairman of the Board Yasuharu Kakihara will assume the position of Tecmo's president.

Yasuda has been at the centre of the Itagaki vs. Tecmo legal suit. Dead or Alive creator Tomonobu Itagaki is suing for unpaid DoA 4 wages. These were "special incentive" wages that Itagaki claims were agreed to by the former Tecmo president and the board of directors, but the current president is claiming these "special incentive" wages were made single-handedly by the former president and not approved by the Tecmo board.

As we posted earlier, Itagaki left Tecmo and filed suit for unpaid bonuses. As Itagaki stated then, "President Yoshimi Yasuda chose not only to violate this agreement, but also turned defiant, telling me 'if you are dissatisfied with the decision not to pay the bonuses, either quit the company or sue it.'"

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EA announced at its Leipzig Games Convention press conference today additional details on the cast of Command & Conquer: Red Alert 3, including the casting of Jenny McCarthy, pictured, as Tanya, the staple special ops unit. But that's not all. The leaders of the three factions — Allies, Empire of the Rising Sun and the Soviet Union — will be played by JK Simmons, George Takei and Tim Curry, respectively. In the trailer we were shown, Takei's lines appear to be dubbed with his own voice, dialogue intentionally out of synch with his lip movements.

Also announced was the appearance of Kelly Hu, who will join Gina Carano and Gemma Atkinson as the Empire of the Rising Sun's obligatory sexpot. EA's definitely going straight for the groin with this one.

Finally, in the cinematic trailer shown at Leipyzig, it appears that Peter Stormare will play a part in Command & Conquer: Red Alert 3. Oh snap!

Here we are, the first trailer for the latest version of EA's footballing juggernaut, FIFA 09. Hope it's not based off the in-game models and engine, because if the ball moves around in the air like that while you're playing, you'll get a better game of football playing NHL 09.

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Wow, just wow. You are looking at the box art for Japanese Wii title Captain Rainbow from developer Skip. The game follows Nick, Captain Rainbow's alter-ego, who's no longer popular as he used to be and goes to Minmin Island in hopes of becoming popular again. There his path crosses with other characters from Nintendo games like Punch Out's Little Mac who wants to become a great fighter again and Super Mario Bros. 2's Birdo who wants to pick up dudes. Oh, so the side of the box, it reads: "This is not a cool hero game!" Next to that: "Calmly read in detail the explanation on the back!" Under the game's logo, it says "Please Turn Over" in a phallic speech bubble. Rather polite.

自分と他人の幸せ、究極の選択を迫られるアクショベンチャー! [Game Watch]

During EA's press conference in Leipzig earlier this morning, it was announced that the game destined to sell a gagillion copies - The Sims 3 - has a firm release date. And that date's February 20, 2009. That's a global, simultaneous release as well, mind you, just in case you're in Europe and were going to bug us about that in the comments section.
GC08: Live blogging the EA press conference [VG247]

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According to VG247, part of Sony's Leipzig press conference (at least, one of the parts we don't already know about) is to be devoted to an unveiling of the "next generation of EyeToy". Seeing as the successor to the EyeToy peripheral - the PlayStation Eye - is already out, we'll presume they're talking about a next-gen sequel to EyeToy Play, the game that came bundled with the original PS2 camera. We'll also presume it'll be taking advantage of all those neat features we've been shown over the past few months. And be subsequently excited. But remember, until David Reeves takes to that stage later today, chalk this one up as a rumour.

GC08: "Next gen" EyeToy game to be revealed in Sony presser today [VG247]

According to retired Army lieutenant colonel Hank Keirsey, the Japanese enemy U.S. Marines faced in the Pacific Theatre were no longer "enslaved" by the Bushido and had switched from offence to "intricate defence". From game site Multiplayer:

Keirsey described a foe that was not running at the Marines but rather set up in bunkers, "burrowed into the coral," aiming their guns across the beach to pierce a row of their enemy in a single fusillade. He suggested that the Japanese would barricade behind a steel door, hunkered in, prepared "to make every inch very costly to the Marines."

Against these tactics, he said, the Marines' counter was the flamethrower, six to a battalion, each essentially a 70-pound bomb strapped to a man's back... The battle I played felt ferocious. Setting trees, grass and eventually men on fire in the thick of a Pacific-theatre battle of Marines and Japanese soldiers is as impressive a feat of video game engineering as it is a reminder of the heat and punch of real war. Is it one-sided or accurate in its portrayal of both sides? That I don't know.

While the in-game flamethrower does not run out of fuel, it can explode, causing player to be blown to bits. Note: Japanese WWII veterans were not consulted for Call of Duty: World At War. Rather, Keirsey studied the war and has interviewed U.S. vets.

How The Japanese Enemies In 'Call of Duty: World At War' Fight [Multiplayer]

Yes, yes, we know. Square Enix has confirmed Final Fantasy XIII on the PS3 for Japan only. While it's multi-platform in North America and Europe, there's been no official announcement of the Xbox 360 getting that title there. That doesn't stop this Japanese retailer from teasing the possibility of an Xbox 360 version of the game being released. A prophecy of things to come or merely wishful thinking? YOU DECIDE.

No, wait. SQUARE ENIX DECIDES. Hit the jump for a close-up of the store made box art.

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Ah, familiarity. Some say it breeds contempt, but we say it breeds a sense of comfort, as change is dangerous when it comes to PC sales charts, and must be avoided at all costs. This week's charts, then, are big on familiar, as they look a lot like the last charts we posted. Indeed, they're almost identical, with only the order of the games changing, not the games themselves. Come on, Blizzard. Hurry up and release that Lost Vikings Battle Chest, it's time to shake things up a bit.

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Once again that Microsoft has "Never Say Die!" tattooed in neon green across its corporate chest, the company has announced it is sticking by Denis Dyack and Too Human. While the reviews have been mixed at best, Microsoft states:

Microsoft Game Studios and Silicon Knights are committed to finishing the first instalment, but Too Human is an overarching epic with a rich and vast game universe that cannot be told in one instalment.

This game will begin the saga of the god Baldur in the narrative tradition of classic trilogies, such as Star Wars and Lord Of The Rings. We will talk about the full trilogy and we are very excited about its potential.

Star Wars, Lord of the Rings, Too Human? All in the same Microsoft breath.

Too Human trilogy 'very exciting', says Microsoft [MCVUK]

NWN 2's Ammon is on the left, while Too Human's Baldur is on the right. Do they look alike? Yes, but not crazily so (for one, Ammon has facial hair). I just hope bald guys with glowing face tattoos do not become standard elements in role-playing games to come. If they do, well, the trend was spotted here.

Not that I'm concerned - I usually play as female characters. I'm not weird, honest, I just think they look better.

Fresh from the Games Convention in Leipzig, which hasn't yet kicked off, but from which trailers are already spilling forth. This one - for Killzone 2 - is very easy on the eye (always great to see "real" action from a game so far off), but is also remarkable for its pioneering achievement: it's the first trailer we can remember to go beyond the usual simulated in-game footage and use simulated in-game multiplayer chatter.

Yes, yes, Japan will have it in September, but we'll be able to get our super-crazy-power attacks on sometime in December. Actually, that's about four and a bit months away, which will seem like eternity for hardcore fans.

If you're not familiar with the game, the player controls Goku and must gather seven dragon balls (which means three pissed-off dragons and one somewhat-pissed dragon). Attacks and moves are performed by drawing lines and shapes on-screen using the stylus. Press release follows.

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At the Games Convention Developers Dave Perry from Earthworm Jim developer Shiny Entertainment stated that Sony lost more money selling PS3 at a loss than it made during the five years of PlayStation 2 peak sales. That figure is estimated as being in the $US 3 billion ballpark. The data that Perry cited came from DFC Intelligence. Not taking a stance on the "console war", Perry was using this data to point out how much of an investment Sony was putting in the PS3.

Microsoft also has lost a lot of money on the Xbox 360 — that Red Ring of Death clusterfuck cost the company a billion dollars. Microsoft lots a billion on the original Xbox, and Sony, of course, was in the red with the PS2 for the first few years it launched. Seems like only Nintendo has this making-money-on-game-consoles schtick down.

Sony Has Lost More on the PS3 Than it Made on PS2 [1up via The Escapist]

Warhammer Online has been in development for years now. And as a project has seen its fair share of ups and downs. Contributing to both those ups and downs have been literally hundreds of staffers who have worked with developers Mythic over the years, from the game's announcement in 2005 through their acquisition by EA through to today. But in a move that's sure to reignite the controversy over crediting in the videogame industry, only those currently employed at Mythic will be recognised in the game's credits. A former Mythic dev has told Shacknews:

This has been an ongoing problem in this industry for many years. I spent three years on WAR and I, including many other people who spent just as much if not close to the same amount of time, will NOT be credited in the game.

I was told they made SURE to not include anyone in the list who was not at the office the day of the credit list creation. This is wrong on many levels and should not go unnoticed.

Sure, many will point to the film business, and say the exact same thing happens there, particularly with screenplays. But you know what? That doesn't make it right.

Warhammer Online Not Crediting All Developers [Shacknews]

Home looks nice enough, but it also looks a little...bland. I can wander around aimlessly playing games in my living room, I don't need to log onto my PS3 to do it! But an adults-only section? That sounds much more enticing. Home boss Peter Edward has told ICGamers that, while there won't be any such areas when the service first launches, "in the long-term, we expect to see them". Don't go expecting some kind of Second Life-ish wang fest, however, as adult areas are more likely to introduce things like gambling and 18+ movie trailers. No reason it can't go the other way, either - if Sony can restrict access to areas of Home based on a user's age, they can just as easily create kids zones crammed to the brim with over-excited 11 year-old boys and junk food commercials.

PlayStation Home will include adult-only areas [ICGamers]

Yesterday we trashed the old Perfect World trailer and today they released a new one. For the record, I have nothing against the game. Anything self developed earns my respect. I will say this though, this trailer is 10 times better than the one we trashed. It seems to be a lot more action packed and that is most welcome. On that note I received an email from a fellow GDC Conference Associate today telling me that he works on the game. He thought Trailer Trash was pretty great and really appreciated the coverage. While I agree with most of the Kotaku-ites out there that Trailer Trash had its faults, I am glad to see that the makers of the game have no hard feelings. Hey, It's all fun and games.

Believe it or not, this contraption is indeed a high-specced gaming machine, even if its outward appearance suggests the melding of Mica-coloured SS Commodore and an autobot. Launched by Acer yesterday, I'm sure the G7700 made more than a few people wet themselves - some over its looks, others over the price (we'll get to this).

Inside this metallic box sits an Intel 3GHz QX9650 (or a 2.66GHz Q9450 if the budget won't stretch); not one, but two NVIDIA 9800GTXs in SLI; 8GB of RAM (or less for the thrifty); a Creative X-Fi sound card; and "advanced" liquid cooling. All this adds up to 45kg of raw power, or cooked power, if the cooling happens to give.

How much is this majestic compilation of hardware? Just a ball-snapping $4,500, including GST. Yeah, I'd still prefer to build my own for much less as well. Love the case, though.

Hit the jump for additional mighty-morphin' pictures and an epic press release.

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Remember when we thought the Xbox 360 was sold out at one Japanese store? That's not all. It's sold out across the whole damn country. Like, sold out sold out. It's so sold out that Microsoft Japan actually put out an official statement about the situation in The Land of the Rising Sun, apologising for the lack of consoles. Since demand has eclipsed supply, Microsoft's supply has gone totally dry. The company is ramping up production, and the console will not be shipped to stores until next month.

We've translated the full statement after the jump.

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Activision sent this sexy piece of work as part of a teaser email today ("Darth Vader's secret apprentice is coming..."). I'm not sure if it's been seen or distributed before, but hey, I thought you guys might like to check it out. I particularly like the part that has Darth Vader in it.

Brilliant. Having teased it yesterday on their community site, Relic have today come out and formally announced that their Dawn of War sequel will feature the Tyranid as a playable race. And it's about damn time. Bringing the Tyranid into the series will be perhaps the sequels' most radical departure from the first game, seeing as they'll play so differently to the two-legged races. If you're new to Warhammer and need a reference point, know before you shoot your mouth off that when Blizzard decided to rip 40K off wholesale while designing Starcraft, they based the Zerg on the Tyranid. Above's the first screenshot, while after the jump, the latest trailer has been expanded to give the Tyranid a little pre-rendered love.

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Sony's Leipzig press conference has the limelight all to itself at this year's Games Convention, what with Microsoft saying nothanks.jpg and Nintendo not even bothering to show up. So it's press conference will be full of surprises! And shocks! And all kinds of things you've never heard nor dreamed about! And...oh, wait. Gamekyo have snuck into Sony's presser rehearsal, caught wind of some of it and spilled the beans. Seeing as there are those amongst you who still like to be surprised by this kind of thing, we'll post the spoilers after the jump.

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Yes! you heard it right, a new Resident Evil 5 Trailer. With each new trailer Capcom releases, the game looks that much more chilling and polished. The game will be released in North America on Friday, March 13th, 2009 for PS3 and Xbox 360.

Microsoft - All Our Instruments Cross-Compatible Too
So much instrument love. Can you feel it?

A Look at the New Far Cry 2 Trailer
The prettiest fire and weather effects you'll see all day.

Firemint Real Racing For iPhone/N-Gage
Australian dev Firemint gets its iPhone racing on at GC 2008.

Frankenreview: Too Human
Run-of-the-mill hack'n'slash or RPG opus? Let the critics decide.

Hellgate Creator On Why Hellgate Sucked
I had to raise an eyebrow when the MMO elements were announced. Definitely tried to do too much.

Neutron, Exit Games' cross-platform multiplayer gaming service, just got upgraded with iPhone support, the company announced today.

The service is said to include real-time, turn-based and tournament multiplayer options, game lobbies and various matchmaking capabilities, buddy lists, leaderboards, profiles, in-game voice and text chat and last, but certainly not least, billing and in-game microtransactions.

"The iPhone presents a very unique opportunity for mobile online gaming as it is both specifically designed for online services and comes with the App Store, an already successful and accessible distribution channel", said Christof Wegmann, CTO of Exit Games. "Neutron's support of this new and innovative mobile device will ensure that iPhone game developers have a means to take advantage of its wireless connectivity and add social gaming features." Wegmann further adds, "The iPhone will surely establish itself as a dominant mobile gaming platform and we're pleased to support multiplayer and social features in games developed for the device."

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It looks like Shaun White may have a bit of competition. While Destineer's upcoming snowboarder Stoked wasn't built using the Assassin's Creed engine (and it doesn't sport a Wii version with Balance Board support), it does have some things going for it. First off, it was created with the help of snowboarding movie creator Absinthe Films.

"It's all about defining your riding style and crafting the line that suits you," said Peter Anthony Chiodo ("Tony"), Destineer's Director of Product Development. "Stoked leaves well-worn resorts behind and gives players absolute freedom to ride wherever they want and trick off of anything they can find in some of the most famous backcountry locations the world has to offer. Gameplay is focused on style and finesse, not button mashing; Destineer and Bongfish have created a game that looks and plays like a snowboarding movie."

Adds Patrick "Brusti" Armbruster, co-founder of Absinthe Films: "Developing a snowboard video game has always been a dream of mine. There are endless synergies between a snowboard film production and a game developer that were just waiting to be activated. Bongfish and Destineer have realised this potential, and have shown a real passion for snowboarding, and together we've worked to bring snowboarding luminaries from across the planet together for this project."

Stoked includes five famous mountains featuring over 45 square miles of open terrain in each location, hidden drop points for helicopter starts, dynamic weather, multiplayer support and tons of real world pro riders. Among the list: Travis Rice, Nicolas Mueller, Wolle Nyvelt, Annie Boulanger, Romain de Marchi, Tadashi Fuse, Gigi Ruef, and Bjorn Leines.

Stoked is scheduled for release in November. More details on the jump.

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Microsoft has decided that if you want to make an Xbox Live app for the iPhone, you will have to give it away for free.

The coders behind the 1337pwn Friends List were contacted by Microsoft and were told they could keep their app on the App Store — but only by reducing the price to Zero.

We have looked at a similar previously, and were fairly unimpressed, so perhaps this is a quality-verus-branding issue for Microsoft and they just don't want people to be charged for limited functionality.

It is just possible, though, that this is merely leading up to the announcement of an official Live Anywhere iPhone app. Oh, and the Zune, obviously. We wouldn't want to forget the Zune.

Microsoft: iPhone Xbox Live Apps Must Be Free [Wired Game|Life]

Typically when a Mad Catz controller press release crosses my desk I don't spend much time worrying over it. But this, this is much different. Mad Catz today announced that they've secured the licence to make controllers and accessories for a number of Capcom games including Bionic Commando, Resident Evil 5 and (gasp) Street Fighter IV.

That's right, Mad Catz are making the Street Fighter IV fighting sticks. I hope that makes you as nervous as that makes me. I've never been a big fan of Street Fighter on a console. Why? Because frankly it's not a game meant for console gaming. Sure you can play around with it at home, but SF is a arcade cabinet game and it always will be. Don't bother arguing with me, I will stubbornly refuse to listen and may even start making blah, blah, blah noises.

So when I started talking to the Capcom folks about Street Fighter IV (Ok, gushing), I told them how I fully expect the console version to suck. Really suck. No Brian, they told me, that's not true. Wait until you see the controllers. They're really going to be something special. Then comes the news today, Mad Catz is making them. Lies, LIES, I tell you. But after a bit of hyperventilating I touched base with some friends in the know and have been reassured (at least they tried to) that the controllers are still going to be filled with delicious awesome.

I wait, arms crossed sternly in front of chest, to be surprised.