Tired of your old iPod Touch? Up until Saturday, December 17th, you can trade in select models of the iDevice family and nab either an extra $50 in credit, or if you’re trading in your high-end device, you can walk away with a free Xbox 360 and Kinect sensor. That’s not a bad deal if you’re not hip to auction/seller websites like eBay or Craig’s list.

For full details, hit up Gamestop’s official website.

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The rhythm genre, for the most part, has been over-saturated these past few years. After the sucess of titles like Gitaroo Man, PaRappa the Rapper, and DDR, the market started to flood with Guitar Hero after Guitar Hero iteration, until finally, it imploded, with basically only Harmonix Music Systems remaining. Thankfully, Harmonix kept things fresh with the much needed keyboard instrument, and of course, the Dance Central franchise, which took the country by storm.

But is Dance Central 2 in danger of flooding the market once again? Read on to find out.

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The Android marketplace has grown at an exponential amount, no doubt due to the fact that pretty much every mobile handset out there is Android enabled (and Angry Birds are on them). Well, today Google can really boast with some really big numbers: 10 billion apps have been downloaded from the Android Marketplace.

To celebrate, a number of apps and games have been discounted to .10c a pop. Today’s offerings include the following: Asphalt 6 HD, Color & Draw for Kids, Endomondo Sports Tracker Pro, Fieldrunners HD, Great Little War Game, Minecraft,Paper Camera, Sketchbook Mobile, Soundhound Infinity & Swiftkey X. I bought everything there was on offer – you should hurry up and do the same, and follow Google Mobile’s blog to nab more discounts over the next ten days!

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Worried that the looming specter of the Wii U is staged to make your favorite paper weight even more useless? Well, Reggie Fils-Aime is hear to quash all your fears, give you a pat on the head and lull you to sleep in those giant meaty arms of his. The Nintendo of America executive believes there’s plenty of room in the closet for both consoles.

“The consumer buying Wii hardware today is going to be a different consumer than the one who will be buying Wii U in the future,” said the beefburger boss. ”This is the first holiday that the Wii is available at $149.99 or below, so it’s an expanded demographic we’re reaching.

“We haven’t announced pricing for Wii U, but you can definitely expect that pricing is going to be different and that the games are going to be different,” added the tenderloin tycoon “We do believe that Wii and Wii U will coexist for some time. As we drive the install base of Wii, we’re really setting people up to take their gaming library and be able to transfer it over to Wii U.”

When asked about what will keep the Wii afloat heading into the future, the pastrami president touted Nintendo’s WiiWare and Virtual Console services and their weekly updates — funnily enough purchases that will likely not be making the transfer over to the Wii U thanks to Nintendo’s brilliant online program. See, there is a reason to keep the Wii around after all. And besides, with no Wii U GCN support, you’re going to want to keep that Wii around to play P.N.03 anyway.

Nintendo’s Reggie Fils Aime Talks Zelda, Future of Handhelds and Wii’s Big Holiday Push [Time]

Games journalism sensation and all around good guy Jonathan Holmes has been producing a show for quite some time now, that quite simply, features himself talking to various women about video games. The show itself is not only a commentary of the state of the modern game industry –  it has a ton of laughs in it to boot. Well, now Jon’s taken the video series a step further: due to fan demand, he’s produced a small album featuring the main theme song, and other tidbits.

You can pick up the album now at Bandcamp, as well as a few free tracks to mix as you please for the project. Make sure you subscribe to Dtoid’s Youtube channel and keep your eyes peeled for more TTWAV related adventures in the future! Follow the source after the jump for more information, and how you can contribute to the project. Read more… »

Word around town is that Team Ico lead designer, Fumito Ueda, is parting ways Sony. Ueda has served as the creative mind behind Ico, Shadow of the Colossus, and Team Ico’s forcoming PlayStation 3 exclusive, The Last Guardian. It is believed that he is leaving the studio to work on personal projects.

Eurogamer asserts that his departure may have exacerbated the delay of The Last Guardian – which was originally penciled in for a late 2011 release, but was noticeably absent from industry trade shows all year. The game is currently slotted for release at an unspecified time next year.

It doesn’t sound as though Ueda is in much of a hurry to leave though. The 41-year-old designer is said to be continuing his work on the game in a freelance capacity before he leaves to pursue his own creative endeavors. Should the rumors prove correct, it will be interesting to see what the visionary behind two of the most beloved games of the past generation has up his sleeve for us next.

The Last Guardian creator Fumito Ueda leaves Sony – rumour [Eurogamer]

Want your game inspired artwork to be viewed by hundreds of thousands of people? The Smithsonian is making this dream a reality via it’s upcoming exhibit, The Art of Video Games. In addition to showcasing more than 80 games that span from Pac-Man to Portal, the United States’ national museum will put fan artwork on display as well.

The Smithsonian has created a Flickr group to which gamers brandishing an artistic flair can submit their work.

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There’s no denying the popularity of the Call of Duty series. In fact, COD is in the same conversation as Mario when it comes to the most sucessful gaming series of all time – ever since Infinity Ward’s smash hit COD4, the series has taken off and never looked back. Fans tout the series’ ability to put you into a five hour action movie without fail, and provide a competitive multiplayer element that thousands of people will still be playing years later.

So is Modern Warfare 3 the same old song? Read on to find out.

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We’ve already seen the Brotherhood team up with the best espionage expert in the business and make their way to the Battleground of Souls, but this is something completely different. Square-Enix has announced that Ezio’s digs will be available for us in the upcoming FFXIII-2 – for use with the character Noel Kriess.

Personally, as a huge fan of the AC franchise, I can get on board with something like this, especially since I’m not a fan of Noel’s default blue carpet getup. To me, optional costumes are one of my favorite additions to a game – if it allows me to enjoy a character I wouldn’t have enjoyed otherwise, it’s always a good thing. Hit the jump for a look at the costume!

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The 3DS has been hit with more criticism than pretty much any system in recent memory. A lack of launch games along with the lack of enthusiasm for the third dimension has made it hard for the Big N to push units.

Thankfully for them, Mario has come along to save the day. Make no mistake – 3D Land is a system seller. Read more… »

Free-to-play games have a stigma that they are not free at all. Of course, you can play unencumbered up to a point; but, just when things are getting good, a horrible and unwelcome window pops up. The gist is if you want more content, if you want more leveling, if you want more of anything, you have to start emptying your wallet. This sad model has left the free-to-play (F2P) space practically a wasteland.

This all changes with the December U.S. release of SD Gundam Capsule Fighter. In a big way, Softmax and OGPlanet aim to turn the F2P stigma on its head with a free game that plays just like a paid title. In other words, every gameplay element, every mode of play, all progressions are available to the player without the solicitation of money. And, to be honest, it has shaped up to be a rather entertaining game to boot. AND it’s Gundam. What more can you ask for?

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It’s been a very exciting few years for Kirby fans.  Last year brought us the charming and innovative Kirby’s Epic Yarn, and just recently the equally inventive Kirby Mass Attack landed on the DS.  It would be inaccurate to call the more traditional Kirby’s Return to Dreamland a ‘return’ to its roots, since the game went through a very tumultuous development after initially being proposed once Kirby 64 was released.  Kirby’s Return to Dreamland nonetheless demonstrates that you don’t have to reinvent the wheel to bring out the qualities that makes Kirby so endearing.

Return to Dreamland feels like entering a time capsule.  The game channels the spirit of the older 2D Kirby platformers, most notably the excellent Kirby Super Star.  No yarn, no Kirby clones.  This is straight Kirby classic: Inhaling enemies, developing copy abilities, and using them to both navigate through differently themed worlds and access special areas.  The fittingly simplistic story chronicles Kirby as he teams up with Waddle Dee, Metaknight, and Dedede to assist a stranded alien named Magolor, who has crash landed on Popstar and whose ship components have flown across the world. Read more… »