I’m a bit late to the party, and since it’s not really news anymore, I’m not going to go into the details. In short, id Software, developer of such titles as Doom, Quake, and the cult classic Commander Keen, was purchased by ZeniMax media–the parent company of Elder Scrolls developer, Bethesda Softworks. It’s not entirely a shock as id Software has been without a major triple A title for quite some time. With the way the industry has been going, many companies have found themselves in the midst of mergers, and acquisitions. It’s a shame that id Software had to fall into the later category, especially since the game had maintained its status as an independent developer for so long.

So what does this mean for us fans of their classic shooters? Well, it’s hard to say. ZeniMax is a larger company and while I hope that id Software is allowed to finish the projects they have in production, I can’t help but feel that they might be reorganized. Bethesda has been rather fond of creating first person, action based, role-playing games, and while their latest titles such as Rogue Warrior and Wet are a breath of fresh air, you can’t help but realize that Bethesda will be making sequels to both Elder Scrolls and Fallout at some point. Until then, I can only hope that titles such as Doom 4, and Rage see the light of day. Of course, they are still hiring according to their website, and from the sound of the press release they have on their front page, nobody should be worried. That said, you never know what might happen. Let’s just hope for the best.

 [Image Source - id Software]

The following titles were released for Xbox 360 this week. Almost all of these games, with the exception of the Live Arcade title, are headed to Ps3 this week, so in the future, I might consolidate these posts a bit more. I’m still testing the waters with these release features, so if I can limit the number of posts about them, I’ll probably see fit doing so. I’ll also make sure to note PSN and Xbox Live! exclusives.

Hit the jump to read more. (more…)

This weeks releases for the various Nintendo consoles include their fair share of shovelware, which is not surprising considering their popularity. Fortunately I’ve managed to weed through them for the most part and have come to what could probably be considered the better releases for the week. I hope these help you decide on what to get, oh and I haven’t included the metacritic links this time. Not because I don’t care, but because I feel that there are a number of titles out there which are quite good and end up getting panned any ways. If I feel that a game isn’t up to par, trust in me, I’ll let you know. I’ll also be forward with you if I feel I’m a bit biased about something.

Check out these releases after the jump. (more…)

I’ve decided to start a few weekly features where we simply summarize the newest titles being releases here in the US. For your convenience, we’ll be linking each title to PriceGrabber.com so that you can easily click on them to find the best deal from multiple vendors. I’ll also try to include links to metacritic just incase you want to view some scores before laying down some cash for these.

For this weeks releases, hit the jump! (more…)

While I personally feel that I’ve posted a bit too much on the subject, I figure that you might really care about the potential for a new Xbox 360 console in the near future. That said, our previous two stories regarding this matter seem to contradict, without outright denying any of the claims made by either party–namely Steve Ballmer, and Major Nelson. Thankfully, Ballmer, chief executive officer at Microsoft,  has apparently issued a brief statement to IGN in order to clear any confusion in regards to his prior statements about the Natal Xbox 360. Ballmer noted “I confused the issue with my poorly chosen words. There is no news in my comments. Things are as reported after E3. Sorry.”

So there you have it, there is no new console as we may have been led to believe. I have to wonder if I was alone in wishing that Microsoft kept things in the current generation for just a bit longer. For me it was just a bit too soon, and I’m happy to hear that I won’t be spending any money on a new 360 model–though I’ll likely be suckered into purchasing the Natal camera once it’s complete. If that means more hours of me sitting infront of my TV looking like an idiot while trying to play games, then so be it.

[Image Source: Microsoft]

Easily the best looking SNK fighting game developed prior to the announcement of King of Fighters XII, Garou: Mark of the Wolves was the ninth and final title in the Fatal Fury series. For some time, it was considered the best looking 2d fighter, only rivaled by the likes of Capcom’s Street Fighter 3. There were several announcements over the years regarding a potential sequel in development, though it seems that the series has taken a back seat to the more popular King of Fighters.

I was pretty sad when they failed to bring over the PS2 port that was released in Japan the other year–especially since I never got a chance to buy them game when it came out here for the Dreamcast. Thankfully, 1Up reported that Garou will be headed to Xbox Live Arcade on June 24th in Japan. While there’s no word yet on if the title is heading to America as well, Siliconera noted that the only Xbox Live Arcade game to be released in Japan before hitting the US market would be a Shogi game (a Japanese version of Chess).  Garou: Mark of the Wolves also comes with worldwide online play, so it would be quite a shame to see that go to waste.  I guess all I can do is cross my fingers.

[Image Source - Racketboy.com]

Larry Hryb, Microsoft’s Director of Programming, aka Major Nelson, posted on his popular blog in order to clarify the statements made by Steve Ballmer regarding the “new Xbox 360″ coming next year. While Nelson didn’t deny any claims regarding the new console being developed, he went on to note that the Xbox 360 is not even halfway through it’s current lifecycle, in reference to the statements Microsoft made at their press conference during E3 the other week.

Nelson also mentioned Natal in his post, stating that it will play an important role in expanding the lifecycle well into the next decade, but also stated that there was no word on when the motion controller will be officially released. Despite that, Ballmer’s statements give me the distinct impression that we’ll be seeing a 2010 release for the camera.

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Microsoft’s Chief Executive Office, Steve Ballmer, has confirmed that a new Xbox 360 will be available sometime in 2010. Ballmer went on to note that the new system will come with technology that will bring games close to reality, and will include a ‘natural interface’, as well as a camera that can recognize movement and voice. I can only speculate that he means the recently announced Project Natal.

Rumors can be confirmed, as Ballmer stated openly during a speech on the recession to those in attendance at the Executives Club in Chicago, a new Xbox 360 will hit the store shelves in 2010.

The new device will be equipped with technology that is “really, really, close” to an actuality. The console, which was described as having a “natural interface,” will have a built in camera with the ability to recognize movement and voice.

In my honest opinion, Ballmer’s statements are pretty vague, so while he does say a “new Xbox 360,” it could merely mean a new SKU, or a bundle, complete with a camera add-on. It could also mean the camera will be built into the system itself, but again, this remains to be seen. Microsoft also recently announced that they’ve added more ram to the existing consoles currently in production, as if the console actually needed it.

[via - TGdaily]

Electronic Arts has confirmed that a small team at the Swedish developer, DICE, is currently at work on a sequel to the first person action-adventure, Mirror’s Edge. EA’s European Vice-President, Patrick Soderlund, told gaming news site VideoGamer at E3 that “we have a small team on it and I’m excited about what we do.” While he didn’t state it directly, he implied that the game may still be in the early stages of development, stating that “you will see another Mirror’s Edge for sure. It’s just a matter of when that time is and what we do with it.”

DICE is also currently at work on the next Battlefield title, and while there is no news regarding which product will see the light of day first, the smart money is on Battlefield 3. EA had previously over-estimated the sales of the original Mirror’s Edge, and sunk quite a bit of money into the marketing and development of the game only to be met with mixed reviews. Having played it myself, I could easily see why they’d be hesitant to back a sequel despite that I enjoyed it–call it a guilty pleasure. The game played like the first 15 minutes of The Matrix, spread out over 5 to 10 hours worth of gameplay. It was fun but short, and these days, you can get the game for pretty cheap. Thankfully, the replay value has been extended thanks to new downloadable content, which provides several new levels.

A number of the “press leaks” that flooded the news prior to the E3 conference came from a Twitter account claiming to be Sony PR.  This impostor went forward promising some big things which all turned out to be false, save for the new PSP that was already leaked so long ago.  Recently, Jeff Rubenstein, an actual agent for Sony’s PR team has posted on the official PlayStation blog that “the only real PlayStation PR person identifying himself as such on Twitter is… me. Think of this as ‘Jeff’s Place’.” It’s good to know that he is looking out for us.

 Speaking of Twitter, we’ve recently set up a Twitter account so you can stay updated with our news and editorial content. Our username is @ButtonSmasherUS. We’ll also be linking to it on our blog roll to the right. I do wonder if people are actually using twitter as their main source of news. It just seems to me that you can only fit so much into a tweet, and you’d think anyone actually using it to post news directly would need to spam it. It makes me wonder if any of you use twitter for more than just quick updates, and links?

[Image Source: SCEA]