Microsoft claim that Halo: Reach can outsell the likes of God Of War III and Call Of Duty 7 to be 2010's biggest game on all formats.
The platform holder told said that the game takes the Halo series to an "entirely new level" and that it is confident it will attract new players to the franchise. Director of Xbox marketing, Stephen McGill said:
"It's an exciting time for Halo fans and we're thrilled by the response from trailer shown at the VGA’s last month which was phenomenal.“
"Our hope for Halo: Reach is to be the biggest title of 2010 not only for Xbox, but across all platforms - a forecast which has been mirrored by industry professionals.”
"Halo: Reach takes the legacy of Halo's rich multiplayer gameplay to an entirely new level, delivering experiences that we think old and new players alike will enjoy for years to come.”
We certainly think that Halo: Reach will be a big selling game this year, but to come out and say that it will beat everything else is a little too optimistic, especially with the like of Mass Effect 2, BioShock 2 and Zelda Wii coming out as well.
Executive producer for EA’s upcoming Dead Space 2, Steve Papoutsis has asked fans what they would like to see in the Collectors Edition of the game. OK, so we can confirm that a Collectors Edition is on the way, then.
Speaking via Facebook, Papoutsis said:
"If we were to put out a Dead Space 2 Collector's Edition, what would you want to see in it? I will have our Executive Producer Steve Papoutsis comment on some of your suggestions next week...so make them good!" So far, the usual suspects have crept up - CD Soundtrack, poster, Isaac action figure, art book etc… But someone has replied, requesting that they but in “a Big Mexican Sombrero!!” Yes, there really are some stupid people in this world.
So what useless piece of junk that you’re never going to use would you like to see in a Collectors Edition of Dead Space 2? How about a pin badge? That sounds pretty cool.
Sega’s attempt to nock Mario Kart off the cart racing genre could be happening sooner rather than later as Sega has given out a release date for Sonic and Sega All-Star Racing, due February 26th. The games has a ton of iconic Sega characters such as Sonic, Dr. Robotnick, AiAi, Alex Kidd, Ryo Hazuki from Shenmue, Akira and Jacky from Virtua Fighter, Billy Hatcher and even Banjo-Kazooie, to name a few. Needless to say that the fan service being brought here is awesome to die hard Sega fans.
Sega’s Napoleon: Total War is due out on the same day as All-Stars Racing with the highly anticipated Alien vs. Predator out a week later.
We were pretty gutted when we heard that development on Beyond Good and Evil 2 had stopped last year, but apparently work is still under way.
In an interview with French website, GameKult, Ubisoft executive, Geoffory Sardin conferment that work on Beyond Good and Evil was “still in production”. So are there any plans to bring the sequel out this year? We have no idea. Chances are that it’ll do a Splinter Cell: Conviction on us, or even worse: a Duke Nukem: Forever. Let’s hope that doesn’t happen, though.
The highly anticipated God of War Trilogy will be exclusively sold through GAME stores and it’s sister-company, GameStation.
So you have to buy it from certain stores; that’s ‘pain in the ass’ number one, but do you want to know what the second ‘pain in the ass’ is? Well, the Trilogy is going to cost you £110!
Unfortunately, as pricey as the pack is, it does look pretty special for God of War fans. Not only does it contain God of War III and HD re-makes of the first two titles in the series , but it boasts an art book, soundtrack and a ton of in-game extras, all contained in a sculpted Pandora's Box.
But is it really worth that much money? Guess it depends on how much you like the series.
 Rare is considering allowing more publishers to use its characters in third-party games, after Sega licensed Banjo and Kazooie for Sonic and Sega All-Stars Racing.
The head of Rare Studios, Mark Betteridge said:
"It makes sense to keep our characters in the public eye and in players' awareness, and this opportunity was one we couldn't pass up - not only did it allow Banjo and Kazooie to appear as they've most recently been seen in a Nuts & Bolts-style vehicle, but we'd be entrusting them to a well-known publisher with its own compatible stable of characters."
When asked if Rare would consider allowing publishers to 'borrow' more of its characters in non-Rare games in future, he added:
"As long as we felt it was beneficial to the franchise. We're wary of spreading any of our properties too thin, but at the same time the feedback on Banjo appearing in All-Stars Racing has been great, so as long as we choose carefully we're happy to give players extra opportunities to take control of Rare characters."
Doesn’t sound like a bad idea to us. Imagine if we saw the cast from Killer Instinct re-appear in something like Soul Calibur. That would be awesome!
Nintendo have announced that their latest DS console, the XL, will be available to buy in the UK from March 5th.
The new handheld, which will be available in either Red Wine or Dark Brown colours (hmmm, nice), will come pre-loaded with Dr Kawashima’s Brain Training: Arts Edition and Dictionary 6 in 1, along with the Flipnote Studio and the DSi Browser. The price of the Dsi XL has yet to be announced, but Nintendo have said that "the retail price is expected to be higher than that of the DSi."
Now everyone in the family can have a DS now! We’re sure that your Nan will enjoy playing her Brain Training on her new, enormous handheld.
It’s no surprise, really, but Activison’s Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 was the best-selling game of 2009 in the UK, according to data released today by ELSPA and GfK Chart-Track. EA’s FIFA 10 took second place while Wii Sports Resorts took the bronze medal. Some surprises in the chart revealed that Mario Kart Wii was still in the Top 10. Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare was sitting in 16th place and Dr Kawashima’s Brain Training was still hanging on in 19th.
ELSPA director general, Michael Rawlinson said:
"There is no doubt that 2009 belonged to Activision, but it was a strong year for many software developers and publishers."
"The rise of family-orientated, multiplayer games in 2009 also demonstrates how videogames have expanded into new genres finding fresh audiences. If nothing else, last year confirmed that we are now a nation of enthusiastic and energetic gamers here in Britain."
If you want to see the entire Top 20 of 2009 then hit the link below.
Perhaps one of the most over-complicated mates to play with your mates online, Nintendo’s Friend Codes are nothing short of a pain in the ass, but if rumours are to be believed then Friends Codes could be a thing of the past. IGN has said that they have "heard rumours that friend codes will be going away for Wii, it'll just be a system code." We can only hope and pray that it’s true.
Nintendo president, Satoru Iwata admitted, last year, that Nintendo's restrictions on interaction via Wii Connect 24 could be improved and has said the company will be working to improve the service in the future.
"First of all, I don't think the current system we have with friend codes is perfect"
"However, if it's an online world where you can get access to anybody without any restrictions, I as a father do not feel like allowing my daughter be engaged in that kind of world."
So what do you think? Is ditching the Friends Codes really a good thing… If you want our opinion, then we think it is.
Sony has postponed the launch of its flagship racer, Gran Turismo 5, which will no longer be out in Japan in March as previously announced.
Most concerning is Sony's failure to set a new release date, leaving the games eventual release up in the air.
The delay has been put down to "production-related matters," although UK and US dates had not yet been set, series producer Kazunori Yamauchi had previously said they shouldn't deviate too far from the Japanese release. Looks like you’re stuck with that copy of GT5 Prologue for a little while longer.
UPDATE!
Sony has released a statement saying that the expected delay of Gran Turismo 5 will only be applicable in Japan.
"This information on the GT release is only applicable for the Japanese market."
"SCEE will announce the launch date for this game in the PAL territories in due course."
So could GT5 be released over here before it’s out in Japan? Chances are quite unlikely, but you never know. Stranger things have happened, at least… we think they have.
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