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 Post subject: Re: GAME NEWS 14/11/2009: Final Fantasy XIII due March 9
PostPosted: Sat Nov 14, 2009 8:38 am 
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Final Fantasy XIII due March 9

Square Enix's latest J-RPG headed to North America and Europe in early 2010, Leona Lewis' "My Hands" named as theme song; new trailer inside.

Japanese gamers have known since early September that they'd be able to wade into Square Enix's highly anticipated Final Fantasy XIII on December 17. However, Square Enix has continued to string along North American and European gamers, saying only that the game would debut on the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 in the West, hopefully, within three months of the game's Japanese debut, sometime in spring 2010.

Today, Square Enix ended the mystery, announcing that Final Fantasy XIII will be available in North America and Europe on March 9. The publisher also said today that "My Hands" from Leona Lewis' upcoming album Echo has been chosen as the game's theme song.

Final Fantasy XIII was announced for the PlayStation 3 alone alongside Final Fantasy Versus XIII as part of the 2006 Electronic Entertainment Expo. However, Square Enix caused a stir at E3 2008 when it announced during Microsoft's press conference that the Japanese role-playing game would arrive in tandem on the Xbox 360. All said, Square Enix expects Final Fantasy XIII to shift some 6 million units worldwide across the two platforms.

Set in the futuristic city of Cocoon, Final Fantasy XIII follows the plight of female protagonist Lightning, as well as myriad supporting characters. Though Square Enix has released limited information about the game's plot, it will apparently see Lightning and her cohorts fighting against their "destiny" to destroy a separate locale known as "Pulse," and the denizens of that place.

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 Post subject: Re: GAME NEWS 14/11/2009: Final Fantasy XIII due March 9
PostPosted: Wed Nov 18, 2009 9:24 pm 
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March? :banghead: totally wanted to no-life my winter break+new year playing it....

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 Post subject: Re: GAME NEWS 14/11/2009: Final Fantasy XIII due March 9
PostPosted: Thu Nov 19, 2009 6:56 pm 
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John_Doe wrote:
March? :banghead: totally wanted to no-life my winter break+new year playing it....


Lol i wanted to do the same thing. =[

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 Post subject: Re: GAME NEWS 14/11/2009: Final Fantasy XIII due March 9
PostPosted: Sat Nov 21, 2009 8:49 pm 
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Another game heading for Spring. Gosh, we need to figure out if we can stuff more hours in a day.

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 Post subject: Re: GAME NEWS 14/11/2009: Final Fantasy XIII due March 9
PostPosted: Sun Dec 06, 2009 6:24 pm 
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Max Payne 3 delayed, Borderlands sequels teased

Rockstar Vancouver's shooter sequel pushed to Aug.-Oct. quarter as Take-Two president Ben Feder says 2K Games has "long-term publishing rights" to Gearbox's action-RPG hit.

Take-Two Interactive stock plummeted as much as 21 percent following the company's downward revision of its full-year earnings estimates. Financial carnage aside, the report also bore some unwelcome news for those wanting to play Max Payne 3. The long-awaited return of the landmark shooter series has been pushed back into the August-October quarter of 2010, the fourth quarter in Take-Two's fiscal year. The game had originally been set for a winter 2009 release before being delayed to the first half of 2010.

Set for release on the PC, Xbox 360, and PlayStation 3, Max Payne 3 is currently in the works at Rockstar Games' Vancouver studio, which took over development reins from Finnish shop Remedy (Alan Wake). The game will see the former New York police detective living in squalor in a Rio de Janeiro slum, having bulked up and gone bald. Details on the game's story are slim, but screens show that events soon descend into the gun-fueled violent gameplay that the series is known for.

In more welcome news, Take-Two also used the announcement to tease the prospect of a sequel to its best-selling action role-playing game, Borderlands. In a conference call with analysts, chairman Strauss Zelnick praised the game, saying it shows "every sign of becoming an important, long-term franchise." Company president Ben Feder then announced that the 2K Games label has secured "long-term publishing rights to Borderlands sequels."

The Borderlands IP remains the property of its developer, Gearbox Software, which has also hinted a sequel is planned. For the moment, though, the suburban Dallas studio is focused on the pipeline of downloadable content for the first Borderlands, such as the just-released--and well-reviewed--Zombie Island of Dr. Ned.

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 Post subject: Re: GAME NEWS 06/12/2009: Max Payne 3 delayed
PostPosted: Tue Dec 08, 2009 2:36 am 
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any news on SC2 or diablo 3?

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 Post subject: Re: GAME NEWS 06/12/2009: Max Payne 3 delayed
PostPosted: Wed Dec 09, 2009 1:04 pm 
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Nothing much from last time, but if anything comes up ill let you know :wink:

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 Post subject: Re: GAME NEWS 06/12/2009: Max Payne 3 delayed
PostPosted: Thu Dec 17, 2009 8:38 am 
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Sony losing $36 per PS3 - Report

iSuppli analysis of redesigned console's innards concludes electronics giant spends $336 making every $299 Slim, the system's lowest loss per unit to date.

Shortly after the PlayStation 3 launched in November of 2006, iSuppli broke the onyx behemoth down to its various components. The hardware research firm determined that it cost Sony more than $840 to produce a single 60GB version of the system, each of which then sold for $599.

After revealing a massive 70 percent reduction in manufacturing costs for the console, Sony debuted the PS3 Slim in September at a trimmed down $299 price point. Now iSuppli has weighed in with its assessment of the new hardware, determining that each Slim is still losing money for Sony, but not nearly as much as its predecessors.

According to iSuppli, the hardware and manufacturing costs for the 120GB PS3 Slim add up to just over $336, making for a loss of more than $36 for each unit sold. Given that iSuppli's analysis doesn't include other expenses, like software and transportation, the actual loss on each PS3 Slim sold in the US is even greater. However, iSuppli noted that the PS3 is more expensive in a number of other countries, and the cost of materials will only fall in the next year.

"In light of these factors, the PlayStation 3 probably is already at or near the tipping point for profitability," iSuppli director and principal analyst Andrew Rassweiler said in a statement.

As for specific improvements under the Slim's hood, iSuppli underscored the benefits of Sony's 65-nanometer and 45-nanometer semiconductor chips. Not only are the chips cheaper than their counterparts in the original PS3, but they also require less power (and thus created less heat) to achieve the same results. That allowed Sony to get by with less expensive cooling solutions and a cheaper 220-watt power supply. The older PS3 models had a 400-watt power supply.

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 Post subject: Re: GAME NEWS 17/12/2009: Sony losing $36 per PS3
PostPosted: Thu Dec 24, 2009 9:41 am 
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THQ locks up WWE for 8 more years

Feuding companies resolve differences over wrestling game license, publisher paying out more than $33 million in next four years as part of court case settlement.

Like any great tag team of the squared circle, the alliance between THQ and World Wrestling Entertainment has been a tumultuous one. The pair has been tied up in multiple court battles (along with former WWE toy licensee Jakks Pacific) since 2004, with the wrestling organization trying to have its game deal annulled due to unauthorized sublicensing and alleged racketeering.

The two companies appear to have put their troubled past behind them, as THQ today announced an exclusive new eight-year deal to make and sell games based on the WWE license worldwide. The new THQ-WWE deal goes into effect January 1, 2010.

Additionally, THQ settled its legal disputes with both WWE and Jakks. The three companies came to a mutual agreement that will see no party admit any wrongdoing. However, THQ said it would be paying WWE $13.2 million under the settlement, while Jakks will receive $20 million from the publisher, split up over the next four years. Finally, THQ/Jakks Pacific, the joint venture under which the two companies originally produced WWE-licensed games, will be terminated at the end of the year.

The agreement should put THQ investors at ease, as recent years have seen the WWE-branded games account for roughly 25 percent of the company's total revenues. From the time THQ acquired the license in 1999 through September, the publisher has reported more than $1.4 billion in revenues from WWE games sold at US retailers alone. hell

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 Post subject: Re: GAME NEWS 24/12/2009:THQ locks up WWE for 8 more years
PostPosted: Thu Dec 31, 2009 9:13 am 
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2009: Q1 Timeline

January:

* NPD: 2008 game sales reach $21 billion, Wii Play sells 5.28M
US retailers rack up another record year as Nintendo dominates hardware and software charts; Sony sees December system sales shrink.

* Microsoft deleting 5,000 jobs after profits slip
Software giant letting go of 1,400 employees today after lower-than-expected $4.17 billion in quarterly profit; Xbox division's income rises 14% to $3.18 billion.

* US retail PC game sales down $210 million in '08
NPD reports store-bought computer-game sales decreased 23 percent to $701 million; ESA plays up overall game-industry total of $22 billion.

* Sony announces restructuring, $2.9 billion loss
PlayStation 3-maker says it will cut TV division by 30% worldwide as operating margins plummet; game losses to increase $338 million.

* RUMOR: Confirmed: Microsoft Flight Sim studio closing
After 12 years, ACES Studio permanently grounded as part of parent company's mass layoffs.

February:

* EA suffers $641 million Q4 loss, increases layoffs to 11%
Publisher posts disappointing holiday quarter, increases job cuts; game delays pull down full-year guidance to $4.2-$4.25 billion; Warhmmer OL subscribers drop to 300,000.

* Activision Blizzard posts Q4 loss despite record revs
[UPDATE] Call of Duty: WAW, Guitar Hero World Tour, and Wrath of the Lich King help mint $2.3 billion in three months; megapublisher still loses $72 million but rules out "mass layoffs"; Wii DJ Hero confirmed for this year, Starcraft II beta coming in "next few months"; Modern Warfare 2 officially official.

* NPD: Wii Fit sells record 777,000 in January
US gaming industry sales climb 13 percent to $1.33 billion, led by Nintendo's fitness trainer; Left 4 Dead, Call of Duty, World Tour, Skate 2 among other top sellers.

* Ex-Obsidian dev: Aliens RPG 'canceled'
Game designer David Kondor's resume says it's "game over" for console and PC RPG inspired by the 1986 film.

* RUMOR: Microsoft motion-sensing deal confirmed?
Israeli newspaper says software giant has bought start up specializing in cutting-edge form of camera-based motion-sensing; is this the 360's answer to the Wii?

March:

* NPD: Wii tops 750,000, SFIV hits 849,000 in February
Demand for Nintendo's console and Capcom's long-awaited fighter helps monthly game sales top $1.47 billion; Killzone 2 guns down 323,000.

* GDC 2009: OnLive unveils on-demand game-streaming
Cloud-computing service promises top-tier games from EA, Ubisoft, Take-Two, others, delivered to any PC, TVs in winter 2009; video demo inside.

* GDC 2009: New DS Zelda announced, Wii ships 50 million
Nintendo president Satoru Iwata's GDC keynote address reveals Link's new portable adventure, Wii sales stats, console's "complete storage solution" SD-card compatibility; Full Legend of Zelda: Spirit Tracks trailer inside.

* Sony dropping PS2 price to $99.99
Cash-strapped console maker heeds publishers' calls, will lower nine-year-old console's price to double digits beginning April 1; cut mirrored in mainland Europe, but UK misses out.

* RUMOR: Blizzard denies 'next Xbox' rumors
World of Warcraft developer scotches British report claiming that it was in talks to develop a game for Microsoft's next console.


2009: Q2 Timeline


April:

* Will Wright leaves EA, founds Stupid Fun Club
Sims and Spore designer leaves longtime home to establish "entertainment think tank" bankrolled by Electronic Arts.

* Bethesda terminating Fallout MMORPG deal - Interplay
SEC filing reveals that the Fallout 3 maker and IP holder is ending fallen publisher's massively multiplayer licensing agreement due to "failure to commence full-scale development."

* Chinatown Wars sells under 90,000 units in March
Raw sales numbers shows startlingly small DS debut for Grand Theft Auto series, but Take-Two and analysts confident of game's long-term success.

* NPD: Resident Evil 5 infects 1.5 million, March game sales sink 17%
Capcom's PS3/360 zombie apocalypse a big hit despite US game-industry nosedive; Halo Wars and Pokemon score, GTA: Chinatown Wars doesn't break top 10.

* RUMOR: UMD-less PSP2 due by early November?
Pulled podcast may have revealed that Sony will soon announce a new portable with a sliding front--and no optical disc drive.

May:

* Guitar Hero tops $2 billion, Activision Blizzard earns $981 million in Q1
Rhythm franchise only third series to top lifetime-sales milestone; COD4 sales hit 13 million; World Tour, Lich King top multiplatform, PC charts for quarter; MMORPG revenues more than $100 million per month.

* Thief 4 officially uncloaked
Eidos Montreal crafting the cutpurse Garrett's new adventure; release date, platforms, gameplay details still under wraps.

* NPD: US April sales slide 17%, DS tops 1 million
Second monthly double-digit decline trims US game sales to $1.03 billion; Wii Fit, Pokemon Platinum, Mario Kart Wii, Wii Play, Mario Kart DS, and New Super Mario all finish in top 10.

* 3D Realms still in business, $20M Duke Nukem Forever bill revealed
Texas studio issues statement confirming elimination of game's team, but asserting its existence continues despite having had to shoulder massive development costs solo.

* RUMOR: Call of Duty: Cold Warfare next up for Treyarch?
Studio reportedly seeking "Vietnam War-era tunes, as well as Cuban, African, and Soviet Union music," pointing guerrilla warfare hot spots of '60s and '70s.

June:

* Motion-sensing camera, 360 MGS debut at Microsoft E3 event
E3 2009: Expo kicks off with news on Halo Reach, Left 4 Dead 2, Crackdown 2, Forza 3, Lionhead's new virtual friend, and more; Kojima announces all-new project will debut on 360.

* New Metroid, Mario Galaxy, Wii Vitality Sensor headline Nintendo E3 event
E3 2009: The Big N returns to the LACC, showing off New Super Mario Bros. Wii, Wii Fit Plus, Mario and Luigi RPG: Bowser's Inside Story, Golden Sun DS, more.

* PS3 motion controller revealed, God of War III due in March
E3 2009: Final Fantasy XIV due in 2010, Gran Turismo PSP and $249.99 PSP Go coming Oct. 1, Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker, Team Ico's The Last Guardian, and Rockstar's PS3 exclusive Agent unmasked--full event live blog inside.

* E3 '09 tops 41,000, E3 '10 already booked
E3 2009: ESA declares trade show's return to large-scale format a success, will be back at the Los Angeles Convention Center June 15-17 next year.

* RUMOR: PS3 Slim, price cut due this fall, Xbox 360 Elite replacing Pro in September?
Reliable mole tells Ars Technica that Sony will introduce rumored model for $300--the same price Microsoft will allegedly slap onto its 120GB console.


2009: Q3 Timeline


July:

* Square Enix retires Eidos publishing label
Japanese pub consolidates operations in Europe and NA, confirming some headcount reduction; British company's name will live on through dev studios.

* Midway's Chicago HQ closing, final buyout price $49 million
Sixty employees at publisher's offices laid off, but 100-plus Mortal Kombat dev team rehired by Warner Bros.; $69 million to $76 million in assets and development costs written off.

* June US game sales sink 31% as Prototype triumphs - NPD
Analysts' fears exceeded as hardware sales nosedive 38 percent year-in-year--but rise monthly; DS still sells 766,500 as Activision's superhero platformer swoops off with nearly 600,000.

* Nintendo sales slide 40%, profits plummet 60%
Slowing hardware market, lack of hit new releases, currency fluctuation batter Mario maker's first fiscal quarter; worldwide Wii total tops 52 million.

* RUMOR: Microsoft names internal Halo label?
US patent filing for "343 Industries" raises possibility of division named after game antagonist 343 Guilty Spark.

August:

* Starcraft II officially delayed to 2010
Following wide speculation, Blizzard Entertainment confirms heavily anticipated PC sci-fi RTS will now ship during the first half of next year.

* July US game sales sink 29%, Wii Sports Resort on top
NPD reports game industry's fifth straight month of double-digit decline; hardware down 47%, software 26%; Nintendo and EA titles claim entire top 10 best-seller list.

* $299 PS3 Slim unveiled, existing console prices drop Aug. 19
GamesCom 2009: Thinner, matte-finish 120GB model goes on sale first week of September; 80GB $299, 160GB $399 starting tomorrow; new PS3 motion-control details at TGS; PSN to offer 100MB "PSP Minis" casual games; digital comics coming in November.

* $299 Xbox 360 Elite official, Pro 'phased out'
[UPDATE] Microsoft confirms $100 price cut of 120GB console begins Friday, 60GB model $249 "while supplies last"; 31 million 360s sold; HD cables no longer packed in; avatar store "exceeding wildest expectations."

* RUMOR: New WOW expansion name and races revealed?
Enthusiast blog claims massively popular MMOG's latest expansion subtitled Cataclysm, goblins joining the Horde, Worgen falling in with Alliance.

September:

* US PS3 sales up 300% at 'top retailers' - Sony
SCEA declares Slim has energized console sales at select stores, with PlayStation-platform hardware sales up 140% week-over-week.

* NPD: US game industry slips 16% in August, PS3 sales nearly double
1.9M units of EA's footballer couldn't prevent double-digit decline; analysts believe Sony has hit "sweet spot" with $299 PS3 Slim; Arkham Asylum, Wii Sports Resort score, while Wolfenstein, G.I. Joe flop.

* Wii officially $200 starting Sept. 27
As widely rumored, console's first price cut set to go into effect on Sunday, nearly three years after original launch date.

* No UMD conversion for PSP Go
Previously purchased disc-based games won’t be playable on Sony’s new handheld due to "legal and technical reasons"; no PSP Go Rewards program in NA.

* RUMOR: Bungie and Capcom teaming up?
Mega Man creator Keiji Inafune pays visit to House of Halo, expresses interest in collaborating on future project "if things clicked."


2009: Q4 Timeline

October:

* PSP Go launch adds 100+ games to PSN
New handheld's debut accompanied by first PSP Minis, debuts of PixelJunk Monsters, Thexder Neo, sales on Puzzle Quest, Prinny, and more; full list and price breakdown inside.

* The Wii has stalled - Iwata
Nintendo president says top-selling console has hit a wall due to dearth of "high demand" software, "preparing for next year."

* Sept. US game sales nearly flat, PS3 beats Wii, 360 - NPD
$1.28 billion haul, 1% growth ends months of double-digit decline; Sony's console sells 491,000 systems; Halo 3: ODST sells 1.52 million units; analyst split on implications.

* DSi XL hits US & EU Q1 2010, DS sales top 113 million
Fourth DS hardware revision will sport 4.2-inch screens and larger stylus, cost ¥20,000 ($220.50) in Japan; 11.7 million units of DS hardware sold in last six months.

* RUMOR: Modern Warfare 2 massacre sequence confirmed, skippable
Activision authenticates leaked video as showing optional sequence where gamers can participate in slaughter of unarmed civilians in an airport.

November:

* EA cutting 1,500 jobs, over 'a dozen' games canceled
Publisher slashes staff by 17 percent to save $100 million annually, to focus on higher-margin titles; reductions at Skate, Madden, and Dante's Inferno devs; over one-third Mythic reportedly pink-slipped.

* World of Warcraft shutting down in China?
Citing "gross violations," regulator revokes NetEase's permit to operate game in authoritarian nation; internal government power struggle blamed.

* US game industry shrinks 19% in Oct., NBA 2K10 tops - NPD
Halloween month saw a scary drop to $1.07 billion in non-PC domestic sales; 2K Sports' basketballer barely beats Borderlands, Uncharted 2 in combined sales; Wii beats PS3.

* Final Fantasy XIII due March 9
Square Enix's latest J-RPG headed to North America and Europe in early 2010, Leona Lewis' "My Hands" named as theme song; new trailer inside.

* RUMOR: Halo Reach screens, details surface
Forum leaks appear to reveal passel of weapons, settings, and details from next year's installment in the sci-fi shooter series.

December:

* Medal of Honor redeploys in 2010
EALA and DICE collaborating on long-rumored reboot of classic series, which will follow modern-day special ops commandos in Afghanistan.

* Max Payne 3 delayed, Borderlands sequels teased
Rockstar Vancouver's shooter sequel pushed to Aug.-Oct. quarter as Take-Two president Ben Feder says 2K Games has "long-term publishing rights" to Gearbox's action-RPG hit.

* THQ opening Montreal studio
Publisher breaking ground on what will be largest development house in its stable next year, hiring 400; first core-focused titles due in 2013.

* Take-Two stock sinks 20% on lowered earnings estimate
[UPDATE] Grand Theft Auto publisher's grim 2010 outlook sends shares down 30%; MLB annual loss could hit $35 million; mystery AAA game delayed to FY2011.

* RUMOR: Logitech prepping PSP Go UMD add-on?
Online report indicates third-party peripheral manufacturer is building a disc-drive add-on for Sony's most recent handheld revision.

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 Post subject: Re: GAME NEWS 31/12/2009: 2009:Year In Review
PostPosted: Fri Jan 08, 2010 1:09 pm 
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Halo Legends slips to Feb. 16

Blu-ray, DVD, OnDemand, and downloadable arrivals for animated anthology based on Bungie's sci-fi shooter series pushed back a week.

As if Halo fans haven't waited long enough for the series' film debut, Warner Bros. Home Video has pushed the release of Halo Legends back a week. Originally set for a February 9 launch, the animated anthology is now set to launch on DVD, Blu-ray, OnDemand, and downloadable services February 16.

Like The Animatrix and Batman: Gotham Knights before it, Halo Legends taps a variety of notable creators and animation studios to produce short films for a compiled home-video release. Directors Shinji Aramaki (Appleseed) and Mamoru Oshii (Ghost in the Shell) will be working on the project, as will familiar studios like Production I.G. (Blood: The Last Vampire), Studio4˚C (Tekkonkinkreet), Toei Animation (Dragon Ball), Casio Entertainment (visual effects work on Big Man Japan), and Bones (Cowboy Bebop: The Movie).

When it arrives in stores, Halo Legends will do so in three different packages. There will be a standard DVD release with all eight episodes of the anthology and a two-disc special-edition release that includes audio commentary and videos on the making of the anthology and the growth of the Halo franchise since its debut as an Xbox launch title. Finally, the Blu-ray edition of Halo Legends will include the special-edition extras, as well as a series story overview recapping through the conclusion of Halo 3.

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 Post subject: Re: GAME NEWS 08/1/2009: Halo Legends slips to Feb.16
PostPosted: Tue Jan 19, 2010 6:06 pm 
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Analyst predicts DS2 reveal by September

Last week, Nintendo president Satoru Iwata talked vaguely about the next version of the company's DS system, but he suggested it could be a ways off in light of the company's enduringly successful existing line of handhelds. Despite that, one analyst believes the successor to the DS is waiting in the wings and will be revealed this year.

In a note to investors, Electronic Entertainment Design and Research analyst Jesse Divnich said he expects Nintendo to officially announce its next handheld platform "within the next eight months," with a retail launch by mid-2011. Although the DS is still on top in the portable gaming market, Divnich said an earlier-than-expected launch for a "DS2" (as he refers to it) could remove the threat of a would-be competitor hitting shelves first.

"Nintendo has always had a controlling stake in the handheld market, despite facing numerous competitors, and EEDAR believes one of the biggest reasons for Nintendo’s success in the handheld market is their ability to remove opportunity gaps for competitors to enter," Divnich said.

For example, Divnich pointed to Nintendo's transition to the DS. By launching the system in late 2004, Nintendo beat the Sony PSP to market, undercutting any upper hand the new competitor would have had in going head-to-head with the then-aging Game Boy Advance platform.

Divnich also pointed out that publishers' support for the DS could be waning, with Sega, Capcom, and Ubisoft all indicating fewer investments in the platform for the future.

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 Post subject: Re: GAME NEWS 19/1/2009: Analyst predicts DS2 reveal by Sep
PostPosted: Sat Jan 23, 2010 2:52 pm 
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No Half-Life 2: Episode 3 until 2011?

Game Informer's rumor column claims the long-awaited final installment of Valve's iconic series won't arrive until next year--if it arrives at all.

Source: The Loose Talk rumor section of Game Informer's February issue.

Last fall, Half-Life series hero Gordon Freeman was voted Greatest Game Hero by GameSpot's users, despite having not been in a new game in two years. The last title to feature the crowbar-wielding physicist was 2007's The Orange Box, which featured Half-Life 2: Episode Two and its two immediate forbearers: 2006's Half-Life 2: Episode One and 2004's Half-Life 2. (The package also included Team Fortress 2 and the award-wining Portal.)

Initially, Half-Life 2's episodes were supposed to allow the developer to release new expansion every several months. It began in June 2006 with Episode One (initially subtitled "Aftermath") and was to end "by Christmas 2007" with Episode Three. However, that scheme was derailed when Valve struck a deal with Electronic Arts to distribute the Orange Box. That compilation arrived in October 2007, and since then, Valve has remained mum on the subject of Episode Three, instead focusing on its wildly popular Left 4 Dead series.

With nary a peep about Episode Three in 2008 or 2009, many were hoping at least some new information about its release--or fate--would arrive this year. Don't count on it, says Game Informer, which claims to have knowledge that the game won't arrive until 2011--at the earliest. "There won't be any game from the franchise in 2010," the GameStop-owned magazine declared, before raising the possibility of the Half-Life 2 series skipping directly to Half-Life 3 in "a few years."

The official story: As of press time, Valve's notoriously recalcitrant PR department had not responded to requests for an update on Episode Three's status.

Bogus or not bogus?: Not bogus that Episode Three isn't coming out in 2010. With Half-Life 2: Episode Two already showing its age in 2007, it's likely that Valve wants to take the time to ensure the next Half-Life title to be graphically competitive. Given the visual caliber of today's first-person shooters, that may require a true sequel with all-new technology.

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 Post subject: Re: GAME NEWS 23/1/2009:Xbox down 11%, 5.2 million 360s sold Q4
PostPosted: Fri Jan 29, 2010 12:03 pm 
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Xbox division revs down 11%, 5.2 million 360s sold in Q4

Microsoft quarterly earnings rise 60%, but Entertainment & Devices Division sees three-month revenues fall to $2.9 billion; Xbox unit sales down 13% despite price cut; Xbox Live now 23 million strong.

Less than 24 hours after Nintendo reported revenues for the last nine months of 2009, Microsoft announced its earnings for the October to December quarter of last year. Overall, the software giant saw record revenues of $19.02 billion, an increase of 14 percent. Net income--aka profit--was an impressive $6.66 billion for the quarter, a figure company officials credited to the rapid adoption of Windows 7 and brisk PC sales.

Despite being cheaper, holiday quarter Xbox 360 unit sales fell 13% to 5.2 million.
Unfortunately, Microsoft's overall success did not carry over to its Entertainment and Devices Division, which makes the Xbox 360 and Zune multimedia player. Year over year, the department's revenues fell 11 percent from $3.26 billion to $2.90 billion, with Xbox 360 and PC game revenue dropping by 12 percent, or $295 million. (Non-gaming revenue, including the Zune, fell 8 percent, or $59 million.) Part of the reason for the decline was the Xbox 360, which saw quarterly unit sales fall 13 percent to 5.2 million consoles despite price cuts to both its Elite (now $300) and Arcade (now $200) models.

Microsoft also repeatedly blamed the lower game earnings on unfavorable year-on-year comparisons "due primarily to the release of two significant games in the [holiday] quarter of the prior year." While never identified by name, the two titles were likely the first-party 360 exclusives Fable II and Gears of War 2, released in October and November of 2008. Major 360 exclusives for the 2009 holiday season included Forza Motorsport 3 and carryover sales of Halo 3: ODST, which launched in late September.

Microsoft also still claims its Xbox 360's software attach rate is an industry high of 8.8 games per Xbox 360. However, it conceded that "attach revenue declined [from Oct.-Dec.], given the challenging year-over-year comparison."

That said, Microsoft's report had some bright spots for the Xbox 360 platform. The company announced it decreased "cost of revenue" by 23 percent, or $478 million, mainly due to lower 360 production costs. That figure was somewhat offset by increased royalties to Xbox Live business partners, which were brought about in turn by a surge in popularity of the 360's online service. Some 23 million people have signed up for Xbox Live, an increase of 35 percent year over year, according to Microsoft. The company did not break out how many of the 23 million were paying Xbox Live Gold subscribers.

Speaking with analysts in a post-report conference call, Microsoft CFO Peter Klein said he expects Entertainment and Devices Division revenue "to trend with the rest of the game industry, and full [fiscal] year revenue should be roughly flat." Looking past the end of Microsoft's fiscal year on June 30, Klein said that the company is looking forward to the launch of Project Natal but offered no forecast of the motion-sensing system's financial impact.

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 Post subject: GAME NEWS 26/2/2009: Blizzard, NCsoft vets form En Masse
PostPosted: Fri Feb 26, 2010 7:46 pm 
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Blizzard, NCsoft vets form En Masse

Korean MMORPG creator Bluehole Studio staffs Western publishing, localization arm with Warcraft, Aion alum; fantasy-themed Tera to debut at GDC next month.

The Asian gaming market is flush with home-grown massively multiplayer online role-playing games, and a portion of those will soon be making their way to the West. This week, Korean MMORPG company Bluehole Studio announced the formation of En Masse Entertainment, a new subsidiary focused on bringing "global" online games to Western audiences.

En Masse is led by a number of veterans of the Western MMORPG scene. The publishing arm is headed up by Dr. Jae-Heon Yang, who previously served as chief technical officer at NCsoft. Patrick Wyatt, whose extensive credits at Blizzard Entertainment include work on the Warcraft, Starcraft, and Diablo franchises, serves as En Masse's chief operating officer. EA, Microsoft, and NCsoft vet Chris Lee fills the role of vice president of publishing. Aion producer Brian Knox will reprise that role at En Masse.

En Masse's first project will be Bluehole's Tera, a fantasy-themed MMORPG that emphasizes real-time, dynamic combat. While details on the game remain largely under wraps, players will be able to choose from six different races, who must "work together for the common good." En Masse also said that individual player actions will have an impact on the "balance of power" in the game.

Tera is scheduled to launch for the PC in Korea this year, with the Western rollout to follow. En Masse intends to debut the project at the 2010 Game Developers Conference, which takes place in San Francisco from March 9 to 13.

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 Post subject: GAME NEWS 02/3/2009: PS3 crashes end, PSN restored
PostPosted: Tue Mar 02, 2010 11:51 am 
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PS3 crashes end, PSN service fully restored

Following nearly 24 hours of the "ApocalyPS3," afflicted units of Sony's console begin to come back online, initially with an erroneous date; this evening, Sony sounds official all clear, blames false leap-year reading.

The past day has been a traumatic one for owners of the PlayStation "Fat." Last night in Australia--one of the first territories across the international date line--reports began to surface that non-Slim units of Sony's console were suffering from "Error 8001050F," which force-quit games shortly after they were started. As a result, thousands--perhaps millions--of owners of pre-2009 PS3s were locked out of the PlayStation Network for an indeterminate amount of time.

With furious console owners decrying the "ApocalyPS3" in myriad forums, this morning Sony announced that a solution to the problem would arrive within 24 hours. By this afternoon, the global crisis appears to have begun abating. Around 3 p.m. PST, all the older-model PS3s in the GameSpot offices began working again. Similar reports began popping up on other game-news outlets and in online forums.

Though Sony had not responded to requests for clarification about the cessation of Error 8001050F, it did say this morning that the problem was likely associated with the internal clock in older PS3s. Indeed, the problem's sudden abatement was accompanied by a resetting of afflicted consoles back to Sunday, February 28. This was true of all the PS3s in GameSpot's US office, including debug units used for testing preview games. The fact that no system updates needed to be downloaded and installed adds weight to Sony's theory.

Unfortunately, the erroneous date raises the issue that many believe was at the center of the problem--that the clock error was causing problems with the PS3's trophy system. Sony warned specifically that playing afflicted PS3s could result in loss of trophies. Several GameSpot editors who resumed playing games on older units were earning trophies, but with the wrong February 28 date affixed. Inquiries sent to Sony Computer Entertainment America about the status of the trophy system were not answered as of press time. However, gamers worried about losing trophy data may want to hold off until the official announcement before resuming playing.

[UPDATE] As of 5 p.m. PST, afflicted PS3 "Fats" were awarding trophies with the correct date and time.

[UPDATE 2] Around 6 p.m. Sony declared the PlayStation Network was fully operational and gamers could resume playing as normal. A spokesperson also revealed the exact problem which led to the nearly day-long outage.

"We are aware that the internal clock functionality in the PS3 units other than the slim model, recognized the year 2010 as a leap year," said Patrick Seybold, SCEA's director of corporate communications and social media, on the official US PlayStation Blog. "Having the internal clock date change from February 29 to March 1 (both GMT), we have verified that the symptoms are now resolved and that users are able to use their PS3 normally."

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 Post subject: Re: GAME NEWS 02/3/2009: PS3 crashes end, PSN restored
PostPosted: Wed Mar 10, 2010 1:28 pm 
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O so that's what that was, well I feel horrible for smashing my router now.....

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 Post subject: Re: GAME NEWS 02/3/2009: PS3 crashes end, PSN restored
PostPosted: Thu Mar 18, 2010 7:18 am 
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Gears of War 3 due in April 2011?

UK magazine Edge claims trailer for Epic Games' trilogy capper will arrive next month; game allegedly pushed out of Q4 to keep focus on Natal.

Source: The online edition of UK game-industry magazine Edge.

What we heard: As far back as November 2006, Microsoft has been making references to a "Gears of War Trilogy." At the 2008 Game Developers Conference, Epic Games design director Cliff Bleszinski made a surprise appearance to announce Gears of War 2 would ship later that year--just two years after the original.

Given those two precedents, many expected some news about Gears of War 3 at Epic Games' GDC 2010 press briefing leading up to a fall 2010 release. However, the developer instead used its presentation to show off some new features of its Unreal Engine 3 and how they're being used in the massively multiplayer action game APB.

With Gears 3 missing from GDC, speculation brewed about whether the game would stick to the series' biannual release schedule. Citing "a trusted US publishing source," Edge says the game will arrive in April 2011, after the first quarter but before publisher Microsoft's fiscal year ends in June. A trailer for the game will reportedly unspool next month, with a full reveal set for the Electronic Entertainment Expo in June.

Why so late? Two reasons. First off, Edge's source says that Microsoft pushed the game out of 2010 so it wouldn't divert consumer dollars from the fall launch of Project Natal, the Xbox 360's camera-based motion-sensing system. Secondly, the first quarter of 2011 is when Electronic Arts will publish an as-yet untitled shooter from Epic Games' Polish studio People Can Fly, maker of the Painkiller games. Releasing Gears of War 3 then would pit one Epic game against another--something the North Carolinian studio wouldn't abide.

The official story: "Microsoft does not comment on rumors or speculation." -- Microsoft rep.

Bogus or not bogus?: Though factually thin, the April 2011 theory makes sense. As noted above, the timing is spot-on. Microsoft has said it is treating Natal's debut with the same importance as a console launch, meaning even the mighty Gears series might have to move out of the way. There's also the not-so-small matter of Halo: Reach already filling the shooter slot on many 360 owners' holiday shopping lists.

Finally, April has proven a sweet spot for shipping blockbuster series and recognized IPs. Since it launched on April 28, 2008, Grand Theft Auto IV has sold over 15 million units worldwide. Ubisoft and Microsoft are also betting the month will be fortuitous for Splinter Cell: Conviction, which launches April 13.

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 Post subject: Re: GAME NEWS 18/3/2009: GoW3 due in April 2011?
PostPosted: Tue Apr 13, 2010 6:13 am 
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GoW3 trailer.

http://video.destructoid.com/#142503

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 Post subject: GAME NEWS 13/4/2009: Netflix Wii discs go wide
PostPosted: Tue Apr 13, 2010 5:32 pm 
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Netflix Wii discs go wide

Video rental company announces full rollout of its free-for-subscribers, on-demand video streaming service through Nintendo's console.

In late March, Netflix began to roll out its video-streaming service to select subscribers who owned a Wii. Now, that service has entered wide availability, as the Los Gatos, California-based company said today that it had begun shipping discs that will allow all subscribers to watch movies and TV shows offered through Netflix on their Wii.

Netflix can be accessed on the Wii's Channels menu in much the same way that console owners launch a game. Once selected, the disc will contact the Netflix servers and present the subscriber's video queue as well as lists of top picks from popular genres and new releases "based on members' personal preferences." Users will be able to rate video selections, as well as fast-forward, rewind, and pause them as on other streaming platforms.

The rental company was also quick to note that online streaming does not impact the number of DVDs sent to subscribers through the mail. Further, Netflix does not impose a limit on the number of streams that can be performed each month.

As with its PlayStation 3 equivalent, Netflix is offering subscribers the Wii streaming service free of charge. Microsoft, which was the first to gain Netflix streaming in 2008, requires users to subscribe to Xbox Live's Gold-level membership, which costs $7.99 for one month or $49.99 per year.

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 Post subject: Re: GAME NEWS 13/4/2009: Netflix Wii discs go wide
PostPosted: Wed Apr 21, 2010 10:32 pm 
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http://www.qj.net/qjnet/news/jaffe-psn- ... -dung.html

This made me lol. This guy is a moron thinking it should be bound to one and only one PS3. Oh gee my PS3 started on fire and I sent it in. Ohh man I gotta spend another $20 for a shitty game!

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 Post subject: Re: GAME NEWS 13/4/2009: Sims 3 for PS3, 360, Wii
PostPosted: Tue Apr 27, 2010 8:26 pm 
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Sims 3 confirmed for PS3, 360, Wii, DS

Two months after EA lists the Sims 3 as coming to consoles and handhelds, the company officially unveils non-PC/Mac versions of ultrasuccessful sim game.

In February, Electronic Arts laid out its release slate for the coming year. At the end of the list of games scheduled as coming in the October-December quarter was "The Sims 3 on Console Title TBA (consoles, handhelds)." The schedule backed up reports that initially surfaced in 2006 that the Sims series was coming to consoles. It also made perfect business sense, as the Sims 3 has sold over 4.5 million units to date on the PC and Mac, making it the top PC game of 2009.

Today, EA officially announced that the Sims 3 will ship for the DS, Wii, Xbox 360, and PlayStation 3 this fall. Published under the EA Play label, the game will sport many of the same customization and character creation options as the PC edition of the game, as well as some new features. These include karma powers, which players can use to give their in-game incarnations instant luck--be it good or bad.

The PS3 and 360 editions of the game will also feature an online exchange system where players can share content they've created with others. The two versions will feature online integration with Facebook as well, allowing them to broadcast their achievements and trophies on the social networking service.

On the Wii, the Sims 3 will be set in a beach town and will have some adventure elements, including quests. The game will have the requisite traits, careers, and life goals, and players will be able to challenge each other in a new "Life Moments" mode.

Finally, the DS version of the game will let players use the handheld's stylus as a design tool to customize physical objects, such as houses and furniture. The handheld can also be used to tailor sims' clothes and alter their physical features and hairstyles. It will sport a story mode as well, which puts players in charge of various members of a family as they go through life.

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 Post subject: GAME NEWS 20/6/2009: E3 2010 hits 45,600
PostPosted: Sun Jun 20, 2010 2:10 pm 
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E3 2010 hits 45,600

The 2010 Electronic Entertainment Expo wraps, and the Entertainment Software Association has already booked next year's event. The E3 show runner and industry trade body today announced that the annual event will return to the Los Angeles Convention Center June 7-9, 2011.

As for this year's event, about 300 exhibitors and 45,600 attendees from 90 countries descended upon Los Angeles for the show. That figure is slightly higher than 2009's attendance, when some 41,000 developers, analysts, investors, journalists, and retailers turned out at the LACC.

News from this year's press briefings included Microsoft's announcement of a new Xbox 360 model and Kinect's Nov. 4 debut; Sony saying its motion-control technology rollout will begin in September; Nintendo debuting the 3DS and the next Zelda game; and lots more.

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 Post subject: Re: GAME NEWS 20/6/2009: E3 2010 hits 45,600
PostPosted: Thu Jul 08, 2010 8:53 pm 
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BioWare confirms Dragon Age 2

Previously announced new Dragon Age project will be a full sequel; sets March 2011 release window.

BioWare today confirmed that Dragon Age 2, a sequel to last year's hit action role-playing game Dragon Age: Origins, is in the works for a March 2011 release. That actually represents a slight delay for the game, as an insert into the packaging for Dragon Age: Origins - Awakening strongly hinted the sequel would arrive in North America next February.

Dragon Age 2 is set over a 10-year period, according to BioWare. It will see the player transform Blight-survivor Hawke from "a destitute refugee to the revered champion of the land," with new combat mechanics for the game's three classes, as well as "an entirely new cinematic experience." As had previously been confirmed for the 2011 untitled project, Dragon Age 2 will be coming out for PC, PlayStation 3, and Xbox 360.

Dragon Age: Origins shipped in November 2009 to critical acclaim and was followed in March of this year by the Awakening expansion pack. It also received a number of smaller paid-for downloadable content expansions.

BioWare has several major projects in the works in addition to Dragon Age II. The highly anticipated Star Wars: The Old Republic massively multiplayer online game is slated for release next year, and the firm still has to wrap up its sci-fi space opera trilogy with Mass Effect 3.

Dragon Age 2 has not yet been rated by the ESRB or PEGI.

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 Post subject: Re: GAME NEWS 08/7/2010: BioWare confirms Dragon Age 2
PostPosted: Mon Jul 19, 2010 1:11 pm 
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Starcraft II cost $100 million to make

Blizzard spends a not-small fortune developing sequel to popular sci-fi RTS, says Wall Street Journal.

The original Starcraft was released some 12 years ago and has become one of the most popular PC titles ever, selling over 11 million units to date. The first entry in the game's sequel, following years of fan anticipation, arrives in two weeks bearing an unprecedented budget.

According to the Wall Street Journal (subscription required), Activision Blizzard has spent over $100 million on the three-part sequel to the science-fiction real-time strategy game, which kicks off with Starcraft II: Wings of Liberty on July 27.

The report stated the $100 million was purely development price and made no mention of marketing expenditures. That lofty figure well exceeds Gran Turismo 5's $60 million development cost, one of the most expensive video games to date.

Activision Blizzard CEO Bobby Kotick has previously labeled the Starcraft franchise as one of the company's seven "pillars of opportunity." Kotick said each pillar has the potential to reap between $500 million and $1 billion of operating profit for the publisher throughout its life. The other pillars are Call of Duty, Guitar Hero, World of Warcraft, Diablo, new Blizzard MMOG, and Bungie's new intellectual property.

Kotick wasn't the only Activision Blizzard executive speaking about the game though. Blizzard president Mike Morhaime told the paper that the publisher should be able to migrate some of its World of Warcraft subscribers to Starcraft II.

"We've brought in a lot of new players in the beta testing who've been playing World of Warcraft but have never tried Starcraft," Morhaime said.

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 Post subject: Re: GAME NEWS 19/7/2010: Starcraft II cost $100 million
PostPosted: Tue Jul 20, 2010 7:53 pm 
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rich people will be rich, with that budget :o

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 Post subject: Re: GAME NEWS 19/7/2010: Starcraft II cost $100 million
PostPosted: Thu Jul 22, 2010 2:12 am 
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3 parts @ full price each

100mil/3 = true cost of each game

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 Post subject: Re: GAME NEWS 19/7/2010: Starcraft II cost $100 million
PostPosted: Thu Jul 22, 2010 6:39 am 
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Not gonna be hard to break even with that and make an outstanding Profit. At least for Starcraft II. Blizzard made an estimated $150 million a month from WoW in 2008. And the Hype this has is surely gonna rake in some dough

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 Post subject: Re: GAME NEWS 19/7/2010: Starcraft II cost $100 million
PostPosted: Fri Jul 23, 2010 5:16 am 
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yeah.. might not make too much in america but probably in other places in the world

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 Post subject: Re: GAME NEWS 19/7/2010: Starcraft II cost $100 million
PostPosted: Wed Jul 28, 2010 2:07 pm 
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Free L4D2 for Banned users

Valve offers free Left 4 Dead 2 for erroneous Modern Warfare 2 bans
Developer wrongfully banned thousands of Call of Duty gamers in the past two weeks; company president offers mea culpa, free copies of Left 4 Dead 2 as recompense.

During the course of the past two weeks, Valve's anti-cheat software automatically banned as many as 12,000 Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 soldiers on the grounds of bamboozlement. The Seattle game developer has since overturned (for non-cheaters) the decision and is offering free copies of the zombie-killing shooter, Left 4 Dead 2, as payment for time lost.

"This was our mistake, and I apologize for any frustration or angst it may have caused you," Valve president Gabe Newell wrote in an e-mail to afflicted persons according to a Steam forum user user.

In addition to offering an apology, in the letter, Newell explained exactly why some gamers hoping to frag enemies in Modern Warfare 2 had their accounts banned.

"The problem was that Steam would fail a signature check between the disk version of a DLL and a latent memory version. This was caused by a combination of conditions occurring while Steam was updating the disk image of a game. This wasn't a game-specific mistake. Steam allows us to manage and reverse these erroneous bans (about 12,000 erroneous bans over two weeks)."

In addition to reinstating wrongfully banned virtual soldiers, Valve is hoping to win gamers back by granting all affected persons a free copy of Left 4 Dead 2, as well as an additional copy to gift to a friend.

Valve's anti-cheat software, Valve Anti-Cheat(VAC), was created by the company and was first used in 2002 to help clean out the bad apples in Counter Strike. Based on Valve's zero-tolerance policy, all bans are permanent. The technology has since seen revisions and has been employed in many games, including Team Fortress 2, Counter Strike: Source, and others.

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