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Hal manager Takashi Ikegami is really quite taken withKirby’s Epic Yarn, so much so that he believes it could be the start of a brand new franchise outside of Kirby’s influence.Mario’s Epic Yarn, perchance? Ikegami thinks so. “When I first saw them (the game’s visuals), I thought they were perfect for Kirby,” he says. “I think there’s a lot of potential for expanding this style to other series, like making a game calledMario’s Epic Yarn....

Halo 3has been successful. I know that’s the equivalent of saying the sky is blue or that 60% of you are reading this sans pants, but did you realize exactly how successful it has been? According tothis InformationWeek article, Microsoft’s sales of the Xbox 360 console doubled during the first fiscal quarter, a jump Microsoft attributes to the Master Chief. Profits during the period hit $165 million, a stark contrast from the $142 million loss just one year back....

The other day, the handsome CTZ and I went over to LucasArts studios, located in the Presidio of San Francisco, to go through a comprehensive hands-on with the multiple versions ofStar Wars: The Force Unleashed. While Hamza will be providing you impressions of the Wii version in another post, and Dale previously provided you with theimpressions he garnered from CES, it’s left to me to handle the hands-on of the Xbox 360 and PS3 versions....

Perhaps more than any other tradition in gaming, I would be most upset over the industry deciding to shy away from boss fights. (Actual boss fights, not “shoot it until it dies.”) That’ll probably never happen during our lifetime, thankfully; not so long as companies like Capcom keep putting out games with so many retro sensibilities. In thisBionic Commando Rearmed 2clip, we’re shown the MegaCopter. Obviously, you’ll want to skip it if you are afraid of having its weakness revealed, but then again, it’s not exactly a huge secret or anything....

I had to laugh when I sawthe announcementofStreet Fighter IV, thinking that this ‘fourth’ game was more like the millionth (without hyperbole). I do admit it’s refreshing to see aStreet Fightertitle not followed by a chain of randomly strung together words, but then we won’t see anything else for over a year,according to Capcom. After showingthe trailerat Capcom’s Gamer’s Day in London, the House of Ryu’s European head of communications Ben LeRougetel dropped the bombshell that development is still too early for any concrete details, and eager quarter-turners won’t get their nimble fingers onStreet Fighter IVfor over a year....

Halo 3’sextra special Spartan Recon multiplayer armor will finally be available to any player willing to crank out some Achievement points in bothHalo 3andHalo 3: ODST. The latest issue ofGame Informerspells out the process involved. First you’ll need to complete the four Vidmaster Challenge Achievements includedin the last update. After that, you’ll have to complete the three additional Vidmaster Achievements inODST. If you aren’t an avidHalo 3fan, you may recall the Recon armor from the news generated by it....

Because, by the looks of it, I’ll be killed horribly if I dare say no.You’ve already seen the gameplayof this upcoming PS3/Xbox 360 horror/infidelity/puzzle/platformer-thing, so Atlus’ new video gets back to fueling the fire, by way of street interviews asking folks about marriage, and if they’d marry their current squeeze. Awkward stuff for that dude about 15 seconds in. 2D and in-game scenes are shown as Katherine heightens the pressure for Vincent to put a ring on it already, all set to some lovelyFugue in G Minor....

You know, I love RPGs, but I get tired of watching themmake the same mistakes or reinforce the same clichesover and over. Yeah, there is something great about the classic structure of grinding up your party’s levels as you fight your way through countless random encounters, but it would be cool if RPG fans got to check out something radically restructured, wouldn’t it? One man has decided to take matters into his own hands when it comes to the state of RPGs....

It’s too awesome to be bogus*, mates. Sony is bundling copies of theelectrifyingopen-world action titleinFAMOUSwith PlayStation 3s in the UK. Available on May 29, the 80-gigabyte PS3 with a copy ofinFAMOUScan be pre-purchased for a cool 279.99via Amazon UK. The price is indeed slashed, but it appears that nothing was yanked out of the bundle — the controller and cords are still being offered with the PS3, as is standard. (You never know....

When wefirst heard aboutBitComposer Games’Jagged Alliance 2: Reloaded, it was unclear if non-European countries would get to play the remake. It seemed like a big enough deal that someone would pick the title up, and hey, that someone is none other than Kalypso Media. Kalypso will publish what’s now being calledJagged Alliance 2: Back in Actionin “North America, Asia, and English-speaking export countries as well as through its extensive digital distribution channels....

I feel like every post onThe Late Show with Jimmy Fallonopens with one of three things: (1) making fun of Jimmy Fallon, (2) defending Jimmy Fallon because he puts a spotlight on gaming or (3) a combination of the first two. It’s a trend that must be stopped, because the man is going to continue to have games on his show, and we game writers are just going to have to come up with some other way to introduce that fact....

When it comes to videogames, John Carmack is kind of a big deal. Lead programmer of games likeDoomandQuake, he’s unarguably one of the folks that put first-person shooters on the map. So it seems fitting that Carmack will be receiving a Lifetime Achivement award at the 2010 Game Developer Choice Awards. The ceremony will take place during the Game Developer Conference in San Francisco on Thursday, March 11, and will be hosted by game designer Warren Spector....

This era of gaming that we’re currently entrenched in has had more than a few defining titles, but the creations of Irrational Games (Bioshock)and Bioware (Mass Effect, Dragon Age)are standing near the top of that heap. So of course I’m intrigued bya discussionbetween Irrational Studio head Ken Levine and Bioware co-founders Ray Muzyka and Greg Zeschuk in the most recent episode of Irrational Interviews. Touching on what it’s like to launch a new MMO, becoming the industry presence that they are after nearly 20 years in the industry, as well as the business side of game development, the trio gets into some intriguing discussion....