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UK gamers will need to get up early in the morning if they are to take advantage of heavily-discounted consoles at several supermarket chains. So impressive were the price cuts that a number of games retailers have been dispatching staff to their local Sainsbury's to pick up some new stock.
Microsoft is co-funding a research institute aimed at finding ways to use videogames to teach maths, science and engineering to children.
Those of you desperate for your next dose of Halo fiction but not desperate enough to start downloading Master Chief / Cortana slashfics are getting some relief next month as Tor Books announces the sixth book in the Halo series, The Cole Protocol, will be hitting book stores on November 25th, just in time for the holidays. The new novel, written by Tobias Buckell, reveals the location of the Spartan Grey Team and delves deeper into conflicts brought about by the Human-Covenant War.
Remember the lawsuit over the Chicago bus ads for Grand Theft Auto IV that the city took down after a TV report created bad publicity? Seems a settlement is in the pipeline. GamePolitics is reporting an agreement has been reached but there's no comment and no specifics.
Back in April, Chicago saw a headline-grabbing wave of violence -- close to 40 shootings, seven of them fatal, 13 of the casualties school age. Around that time the GTA ads went up on city buses, like they were in other cities, per a $300,000 contract between Take-Two and the city. Because local television's business model depends heavily on the exploitation of others' fear and misery for profit, Fox News Chicago called up a bunch of chickenshit pols and huffed about the appropriateness of the ads. So they were taken down. Take-Two then sued for breach of contract.
I'm not sure what the terms of the deal are but maybe this'll teach someone to show a little spine next time some blow-dried shit-for-brains TV reporter waves a microphone in their face.
Take-Two Nearing GTA IV Ad Settlement with Chicago Bus Company [GamePolitics]
Look at the calender. Do it! It's F-r-i-d-a-y. Time to Tell Us Dammit, no make that, TELL US DAMMIT. Here's how it works: We ask a question, you answer it. Simple and no strings attached! This isn't some marketing survey or whatever. It's an emotional investment in you. Yes, we're interested in knowing you, Kotaku reader person. You probably know fucktons about us -- more than you even want to, we're sure. But, hey, we'd like to know about you. That way you won't be some faceless blob -- and we might feel a tinge of guilt when we ban your arse. Or not, because really we're incapable of human emotion. Who knows! Not I, not I.
Question: What's the most you've shelled out for a game?
[AU: Ha! What are the odds the Americans at the MOST pay what we have to put up with everyday? --SB]
Yes, yes. Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl writer Stuart Beattie loves Halo — so much so that he wrote a spec script based on Eric Nylund's book, Halo: The Fall of Reach. This isn't connected to the Peter Jackson Halo film project, which has since been killed. Beattie wrote the script between film projects on the hopes that someone somewhere will bring it to the silver screen. So far, it's apparently still only a spec, but Beattie now says he's in talks with Microsoft to get the picture made. As we've mentioned, the spec is based on the book The Fall of Reach. After the jump, the scribe lays out the script's plot in his own words:
Posted by Seamus Byrne at 9:55 AM on October 3, 2008
GTbyCITROËN has been unveiled at the Paris Motor Show, and it's an interesting spot of marketing fun. Citroen partnered with Kazunori Yamauchi from Polyphony Digital to design an ultimate fuel cell concept car, and then engineered the beast as a driveable concept vehicle for the Motor Show. The car is now available as a downloadable addition to Gran Turismo 5 Prologue so anyone can take it for a spin. Naturally, they claim the car's in-game and on-road performance are true to form, but how many of us will get the chance to test that theory? Full release after the jump.
Now this is odd. I've heard of energy bars and drinks "designed" specifically with gamers in mind, but food? Isn't that called pizza?
Not according to Gamer Grub which just announced that they have been named the official snack supplier of the World Cyber Games USA 2008. That means they will be providing their brand of snack-things to the players in the Tournament Area and Player Lounge at E for All in LA this week.
Gamer Grub comes in three (atrocious) flavors:
Students at the University of Northern Kentucky will have to pony up if want to enjoy their leisure time playing video games at the Student Union. The Northerner reports students will have to pay $4 an hour to use any of the game systems, one controller and one game. But surprise! The students hate it, as they should. What's worse is they'll still be charged the full $4 even if they bring their own games and controllers or stay for only half the time.
I never used the game room at my school, but it was still free. We just couldn't steal anything. I realise things cost money, and it appears this particular game room was quite expensive, but to nickel and dime already poor college students who will be paying off loans for years after they graduate isn't the smartest of ideas. Hell, just secretly raise tuition or offer some kind of membership program. Just don't do hourly charges.
Any Kotakuites out there have to pay to use their school's game room, too? Or is this an isolated case?
Adam and I had a chance to run over to NetDevil's office last week to talk with them about their work on the upcoming LEGO massively multiplayer online game LEGO Universe. We also got a tour of their place, including the fabled LEGO library and got some more hands on time with an up-to-the-minute build of Jumpgate Evolution.
In the coming weeks (blame TGS) we'll be posting some in-game videos, hands-on impressions, interviews and tour videos on the site. While LEGO Universe isn't quite playable(by me) yet, producer Ryan Seabury took some time to talk to us about where the game was headed and what we could expect to see. He also showed off his totally kick-arse real-world Starcraft LEGO diorama. Look for that one a bit later today.
In the meantime amuse yourself at my expense:
We've been following the epic saga of CNBC reporter Jane Wells' son and his on and off love affair with the PlayStation 3 with bated breath here at Kotaku Tower, sitting on the very edge of our seats, feet littered with discarded popcorn containers as we wait and see just what happens next. First he trades in his Xbox 360 for a PlayStation 3, then he misses his Xbox Live friends and turns to World of Warcraft for comfort. Now for the finale which ties it all together!
So this weekend, he dragged his PS3 back to the same Game Stop where he bought it to trade it in for another Xbox. This, even as a friend in line with us complained about his Xbox acting up now that it's out of warranty.
ACK. That's Lee Redmond, who hasn't cut her fingernails since 1979, in a promotional photo for Guinness World Records: The Videogame. That kid with her must be frightened out of his mind. We sure as hell are.
Press release after the jump:
Not sure exactly how this alleged scam works/worked. Yewchoo Ng, 27, of Boulder, is accused of ripping off a bunch of retailers for more than $180,000 by buying new 360s and PS3s, prying off their serials and slapping them on old consoles, returning them for the cash and then, I presume, selling off the good merch on eBay or something. For this he's facing 20 years in the federal slammer and a fat fine.
For this scam to work, you really need access to a cheap supply of defective consoles, right? Unless, what, he was slapping serials on ColecoVisions, Atari 7800s, boxes of rocks with "PLAYSTASHUN 4" written on them? That's a hell of a lot of overhead for a ripoff, so my guess is the $180,000 is the value of all the machines he bought/returned, not his tainted profit.
Sorry, I just can't understand how he had that many defective/inoperable consoles to carry out this scam as described. Any alternative ideas?
Man accused of stealing $180,000 in Xbox, PS3 scheme [KUSA-TV of Denver]
You've every right to be! Game movies have, to the last, been truly awful. And since we haven't seen Max Payne, it's not out of the woods yet. But hey, you watch this trailer, you at least you know their heart's in the right place.
Posted by Kym Weathersten at 5:14 PM on September 26, 2008
We're on the home straight (sorry couldn't resist). With just 3 sleeps to go until Top Gear Australia graces our screens, another sneak peek has hit You Tube. If the preview is any indication, the local version of the popular UK program should make for entertaining viewing.
Here, three Japanese celebrities promote Hudson's latest Momotaro Densetsu game in the 20th anniversary of the popular Japanese series. Famitsu notes that Hudson has railed in a "new-half" (aka, a "shemale") for the promotion. So, two of them were born women, and one of them is actually a women. So, who's who? Rather, who's what?
『桃太郎電鉄 20周年』のテレビCMにニューハーフなニューフェイス [Famitsu]
The Max Payne movie is getting a teen-friendly PG-13 rating. This comes in the wake of the film's director John Moore (pictured, not rapping) railing against the MPAA for slapping the picture with an R-rating. But according to Moore, the film wasn't really cut that much to finally get the coveted PG-13 rating — just a frame here and there. Moore's already calling the film "as effective a video game movie you're ever going to see" and even adds that the film's disc release will have a "Gamer Dedicated Cut". He explains:
It's a little slower and a little more atmospheric. There are some rougher edges on it, but it's not going to be a bloodfest. I want this to be the Max Payne that I set out to shoot... The movie you see in the theatres will be an intense experience and the movie you see on DVD will be as intense an experience with some extra sensibilities for people who really adore the game.
And Moore already has his fingers crossed for the inevitable sequel.
Max Payne Director Wins Battle with MPAA, Gains PG-13 Rating [GameDaily] [Pic]
A German gamer has been arrested near Frankfurt on suspicion of involvement in the death of a British student, Matthew Pyke.
While news of attorney Jack Thompson's disbarment today by the Supreme Court of Florida might have been unhappy news to some...one..., it certainly seems to have become a reason to celebrate for others.
For instance one game developer took it upon themselves to throw a little party to celebrate the day's news complete with cake, cookies and drinks. Yes cake. Right here on Kotaku. Surprised?
Know of any more of these going on? Send pics!
Look, I know that Hawaii is a very laid-back sort of place. Bright sunshine, sandy beaches, news reporters who wear Hawaiian shirts on broadcast television even when not covering a luau, but it can be taken too far. For instance, if you are driving a city bus filled with passengers on a busy street in Honolulu, it's probably not a good idea to break out the PSP and play a couple rounds of Hot Shots Golf.
"With two hands... at times, while he was driving in traffic, yes," (bus passenger Denita) Waltz said. "And also at the stoplights, and at that point I was very scared."
The driver, an 18-year veteran with The Bus, has been suspended without pay pending further investigation. Not sure what further investigating they need to do here, really. What game he was playing? His high score? Does that affect putting people's lives in danger?
Hell yes it does.
Bus Driver Suspended For Playing Games While Driving [KITV Honolulu]
Take that! The all-female Takarazuka Revue troupe is best known its musical stage shows where women actresses play both male and female roles. The Revue's shows range from the traditional (Guys and Dolls, Oklahoma!) to anything but (stage versions of Oliver Stone's JFK, Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby). Next February, the Takarazuka Revue's Cosmos troupe will bring its crossing-dressing musical sense to a stage version of Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney, complete with romance and intrigue. It's interesting to note that Takarazuka has decided to go with the game's English language character name, Phoenix Wright, instead of the character's original Japanese name, Ryuichi Naruhodo. The ace attorney will be played by actress Ranju Tomu, pictured in costume. Hit the jump for a shot of her without the man makeup.
Polls, polls, polls. Forget for a moment how the candidates are doing in Gallup polls, how are they doing on Xbox LIVE? Microsoft has released the results of its LIVE poll, and the results are:
Obama/Biden: 43 percent
McCain/Palin: 31 percent
Undecided: 13 percent
Other: 13 percent
According to Microsoft, almost 100,000 LIVE Americans participated in this LIVE survey, making it larger than combined samples from Gallup or NBC polls. Take that for whatever it's worth.
[Pic]
Posted by Seamus Byrne at 11:29 AM on September 23, 2008
Remember when we all watched with gaping maws at the ignorance of politicians and pundits on ABC1's Q&A program? Remember when Daniel Silk wrote a substantial letter of complaint to the ABC about how poorly the discussion was handled? Well Daniel has had something of a result from his letter, which led to an assessment of the program and an apology and admission that some of the remarks made by Tony Jones could be "confusing and misleading". A footnote has been added to the Q&A webpage for the particular program. It doesn't fix what went wrong on the night, but a GG to Daniel for raising the alarm in an official capacity -- and the Q&A team will probably be more careful to get things straight should gaming come up again in future.
The full reply letter to Daniel from the ABC after the jump. [Thanks to Daniel for sharing!]
We thought EA giving away free gasoline in Los Angeles was a pretty nifty way to promote Mercenaries 2. Apparently so did Nintendo, as they showed up at an LA-area Mobile station this morning to dole out courtesy life-giving automotive blood to thankful motorists in order to promote the release of Wario Land: Shake It! See, Wario tends to fart a great deal, and thus he has gas, therefor...free gas. I'll pause while you ROFL in you preferred manner. Me? I'm all about ROFLcoptering myself.
Done? Good. Nintendo has passed along some shots of the event, including one of a lucky 9-year-old who walked away with a Wii and a copy of the game. Despite being a little less original than it would have been a month ago, fully approve of giving away free gas as often as possible, even if the Brits don't quite agree.
Any girl gamers reading this - move along please, nothing to see here.
