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Every MMO is a gamble in my opinion, regardless of who is behind its creation: a lot of them are pretty shabby clones of other MMOs.Neo Steam: The Shattered Continent, the first offering from Atlus’ online portal, looks pretty cool concept-wise though, and today marks the start of a campaign that allows players to get their first crack at the game. Starting today and running through May 12th, Atlus Online will randomly distribute golden tickets to people who have joined the Atlus Online community....

JeuxFrancehave been on one of their secret sneaking missions again, this time liberating a bunch of newDragon Quest IXshots previously imprisoned within the pages of the brutalShonen Jumpregime. It was a mission fraught with danger, violence, and a severe lack of cake, and many were killed in the process. The images come to you via one of the site’s last remaining survivors, who thrust the link into my arms early this morning, bleeding from his eyes, nose and mouth, and missing at least seven of his limbs....

The fabledFall updatefor the Xbox 360 (slated for this November) will give fans not only a new dashboard, but the ability to download games to their hard drives. The idea behind this is to streamline and compress load times. According to Boris Schneider-Johne, Xbox Product Manager Germany, only older titles will reflect dramatic changes and increased load times. Apparently the newer stuff will be as good as it gets. …There are prominent examples, for instance: Project Gotham Racing 3, one of the first games for the Xbox 360....

Microtransaction rapeis all the rage nowadays and it sure didn’t take Microsoft long to seek other means to squeeze out a bit moreGears of Warmoney from your pockets. From the book of “Why in the hell are you charging this?”, BradyGames is offering up, for a price, five 100-pointvideos of Cog tag locations. You know, that same content you may get forFREEanywhere on the Internet — likeright hereorhere, for instance....

Take a gander at the worst cover art this side of the galaxy. Just kidding. I’ve long believed that excellence in cover art wretchedness belongs to whoever was doing the stuff for fantasy author R.A. Salvatore’s earlier fiction, and to some degree the wizard who scribbled on the front of John Marco’s stuff, butMass Effect 2’snew cover is no good either. It just isn’tSiege of Darkness-level bad. This is indeed the new cover art forMass Effect 2— a not-so-subtle difference from what wasrevealed moons ago....

Not a lot out this week. The only stand out title isSid Meier’s Civilization Revolution. I got some extensive hands-on with the game a while back and really enjoyed it. Check out my preview if you’re thinking about picking upCivilization.What’s looking sw33t to you all this week? I know Colette is going to have a massive orgasmic attack overChocobo’s Dungeon.DS:Sid Meier’s Civilization Revolution, Carnival Games,AMF Bowling Pinbusters,Purr PalsX360:Sid Meier’s Civilization Revolution,Beijing Olympics 2008,Unreal Tournament 3PS3:Sid Meier’s Civilization Revolution,Beijing Olympics 2008Wii:Final Fantasy Fables: Chocobo’s Dungeon, Wonder World Amusement ParkPC:Devil May Cry 4AMF Bowling Pinbusters(DS)Beijing Olympics 2008(PS3, X360)Devil May Cry 4(PC)Purr Pals(DS)Unreal Tournament 3(X360)Final Fantasy Fables: Chocobo’s Dungeon(Wii)...

You know developers mean business when they bring the name of the latest installment in a popular series back down to the basics. As is the case withWolfenstein, which was the focus of discussion for much ofepisode 52 of GameTrailers TV. Wolfensteindelves into the paranormal with an alternate dimension called the Veil, offering an explanation as to why you are suddenly able to slow down time, and to of course keep the narrative interesting....

Not to be a non-conformist or anything, but my Wii actuallyisgathering dust, despite what the Nielsen data says. But it’s probably because I’m a full time blogger, and I never clean my house. According to the Nielsen Group, Nintendo Wii consoles in homes aren’t as dusty as the forum kiddies claim them to be. And if they are, it isn’t from non-use. Their data shows that Wii are used during game time pretty consistiently throughout the year, andnot just “at Christmas....

Nintendo of Japan has just announced their next handheld unit, tentatively named the “Nintendo 3DS.” The portable platform will offer 3D gaming without the need for 3D glasses, and will be backwards compatible with DS and DSi games. The “Nintendo 3DS” is the successor to the Nintendo DS series and will be on display at this year’s E3. We can expect the “Nintendo 3DS” to launch in Japan by the end of the fiscal year, which means that we’ll see it somewhere betweenE3 2010(in June) and March 2011....

We all know by now that Australia gets the short end of the stick when it comes to Nintendo releases. The country can wait up to a year after the North American release before getting asniffof a new Wii or DS game. Frustrated gamers may be tempted to pirate these titles, but Nintendo, fresh offwinning $1.5 millionfrom one Aussie pirate, has claimed that piracy affects Australian release dates. “Nintendo Australia is always pushing for games to be released here at the same time as the rest of the world, so we were pleased to getNew Super Mario Bros....

On October 22nd, Nintendo released a press releaase giving details about litigation against a company called “Supreme Factory Limited.” As you know,Nintendo has been crackingdown on mod chips, and this company was accused of infringing on Nintendo’s intellectual property rights by making similar devices. Apparently the release was wrong in saying that a final, substantive judgment on intellectual property right infringement has been handed down by the Court against Supreme. On November 2nd, Nintendo was ordered to take it down from its Web site....

The best game show ever, without a doubt, isPress Your Luck. Why? The Whammy. Maybe I’m dating myself here (the show went off the air in 1986), but if you know what I’m talking about… you know what I’m talking about. Ubisoft definitely knows what I’m talking about, as they’re planning to bring three classic game show titles to the Nintendo DS, Wii, and Windows PC this year.Press Your Luck 2010(“No Whammies!...

At the recent 1C event at the Russian Consulate in San Francisco, we saw a return of some older titles just about to make their debut. However, one of the new titles brought forth wasOff-Road Drive. Developed by 1C-Avalon and coming out in Q4 of this year,Off-Road Driveactually has some interesting components that make it more than a typical muddy racer. Billed as an “off-road simulation”,Off-Road Driveis like one of those incredibly fascinating yet entirely bizarre four-wheel challenges that basic cable stations show on Saturday afternoons....