When Henry Ford famously told consumers that, when choosing a Ford car, they could have “any colour… so long as it’s black”, his business model was prompted by a quicker drying time for black paint. In contrast, when Sony released the PlayStation 3, you got the feeling they just wanted people to feel like they had some sexy, PVC-clad rectangular gimp permanently sitting in the corner of their bedroom.

Thankfully – or not, depending on how you like it – things are about to move on with the introduction of the new DualShock 3 controllers.

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The long awaited and much aligned Marvel Vs Capcom 2 has finally hit the marketplace at a reasonably challenging 1200 MS points. Those of you who have been awaiting the day you would be able to play this arcade classic on a console with online support should start getting yourself to an XBox. Now.

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Busta Wooolf! King of Fighters fans will be glad to hear that phrase once again as KOFXII is now available for both the Playstation 3 and Xbox 360. Boasting gorgeous sprite animation that was meticulously designed, the King of Fighters series is about to make its mark on the world once again.

Hit the jump for a brand new trailer! Read more… »

This is a bit of shameless self promotion, but I thought I would share the news that my long awaited car chase machinima film Collateral Collision that I have been working on is finally complete. And in good time too, considering that it has been nearly a year in the making.

Collateral Collision is the result of a huge collaborative effort from the Live For Speed (an online PC racing simulation) community, along with my dedicated passion for movie car chases. The aim was simple – to deliver the most authentic representation of a movie car chase that was physically possible within the realms of a machinima film.

As a result, Collateral Collision was a hugely ambitious project, with incredibly long filming times and editing sessions. Not a second that you see has been overlooked and every sound you hear has been meticiously dubbed from other sources. To say the least, a tremendous amount of effort has been put into this project, in terms of both the filming and the editing.

You can watch the film in its entirety after the break.

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I’m not a big fan of sequels, and the Final Fantasy games have been no exception. Final Fantasy X-2 had a goofy name, a goofier premise, and the combat, while functional and fun, was easy to break into a million pieces. The Final Fantasy Tactics Advance games were a neat change of pace from the darker tone of the original game, but I unfortunately found them to be boring. Additionally, don’t even get me started on the various sequels and prequels to Final Fantasy 7.

Yet, for some reason, I felt hopeful and excited for Final Fantasy 4: The After Years. Perhaps it’s because I hold the original game on a very high nostalgic pedestal. At the tender age of six, it was the second RPG I ever played (long before I ever thought about approaching games from a critical perspective). It’s easy to see why Final Fantasy 4 holds a special place in my heart. So, I embraced FF4: The After Years with open arms, but with the critical eye that I’ve crafted in the eighteen years since. My verdict? The game is good, but there certainly could have been much more effort put into it.

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In-game advertising is now a large and integral part of our gaming, but, unbeknownst to some, it has some rather humble beginnings, culminating in an epic and interesting journey.

Hit the jump to see how it all happened!

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Today 2K Games announced that a downloadable release of NBA 2K10: Draft Combine will arrive in September on the Xbox 360 and PS3.

For 400 Microsoft Points ($5), gamers will be able to create custom characters, run them through drills, and play 5-on-5 scrimmages. The more you play your custom character, the better he gets. When October 6 rolls around and NBA 2K10 hits stores, you will be able to import your custom character into the game.

2K VP Greg Thomas explained, “We’re giving our dedicated NBA 2K fans an incredible opportunity with NBA 2K10: Draft Combine. Gamers will have exclusive access to online content and get to test drive NBA 2K10′s new gameplay features, advanced player progression system and the all-new My Player career mode before the game launches.”

For the official list of features and my personal take, hit the jump. Read more… »

Yesterday publisher Top Cow announced that the comic book-based supernatural shooter The Darkness will receive a sequel sometime in the future.

Tentatively titled The Darkness 2, the new game is currently in development, but not with original developer Starbreeze Studios. StarBreeze CEO Johan Kristiansson stated, “I heard that there were talks about a Darkness sequel, but Starbreeze is not involved in anything like that right now. We are busy on two projects together with EA.” Read more… »

Since 1990, The Secret of Monkey Island has captivated many gamers through brilliance in writing and comedy, as well as an intuitive use of the point-and-click puzzle adventuring that has popularised the series and genre as a whole.

With nearly twenty years of swashbuckling, voodooey questing under his belt, Guybrush Threepwood returns for an encore – and a much needed face lift – in LucasArts’ The Secret of Monkey Island: Special Edition for the Xbox 360 and PC. But after two decades and a generation of gamers, can Guybrush keep you laughing and intrigued? Or has the game lost its silly, piratey flare after all these years? Read more… »

There has been plenty of speculation regarding Transmission’s upcoming Ashes Cricket 2009 in terms of whether it will be big enough to satisfy cricket fans. However, with the announcement that One Day Internationals, Twenty20s, and the entire Ashes series will be included, there is more to look forward to in this cricket title than any that have come before it.

A playable demo has just been released on Xbox Live, so hit the jump to check out some pretty swish in-game footage.
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If you were alive during the 80s, you might vaguely remember a line of crude toys called “Madballs“. The product’s popularity was rather short lived, and it spawned an unsuccessful TV show and comic series.

After more than two decades, Playbrain has attempted to resurrect Madballs as an Xbox Live Arcade shooter, which happens to have the worst title in the platform’s history: Madballs in Babo: Invasion. Read on to find out whether or not this incessant creation should be put to rest. Read more… »

Achievements have become a part of gaming culture.  Milestones such as Gears of War‘s “Seriously…” or Left 4 Dead‘s “Zombie Genocidist” have become badges of honor for many gamers.  Yes, I killed 53,595 zombies.  Here’s my proof!

And iPhones, like them or not, have actually become a viable platform for both game and software developers.  Apps such as facebook, MySpace, and Twitter have kept millions of people connected to each other 24/7.

Booyah said, “Here’s a crazy idea: let’s combine these two things!” Read more… »