Joystiq

Listen: We're not going to say that if you head out to your local GameBlast3000 retail outlet and ask the disinterested staff to find you an Xbox 360 with a Lot number of 0831 or higher, that you'll nab yourself a cool-running 65nm GPU, Jasper-equipped Xbox 360. Some folks posting on the Xbox 360 DVD Drive Database (seven as of publishing time) claim to have nabbed just such a beast; however, not a single one of them has responded to requests in the comments to verify their claim with something as simple as a photograph of the manufacturing label.

Microsoft, of course, wouldn't confirm the shipment of new models, issuing us the boilerplate response, "We are constantly updating internal components on our consoles and therefore will not comment on details of specific components or manufacturing processes." Since we learned that Jasper systems would begin shipping as early as last month, and can speculate that the recent price drop was probably hinged on further lowering the system's manufacturing costs, we fully expect to see Jasper systems any day now. We're just not convinced this is the proof we've been waiting for. Caveat emptor.

[Via JOEyGADGET]

Intent on making Puzzle Quest: Challenge of the Warlords impossible to avoid regardless of your platform preferences (seriously: DS, PSP, Xbox Live Arcade, Windows, Mac OS X, Wii, PlayStation 2, mobile phones), D3Publisher has announced the puzzle phenomenon will be its very first foray into the wide, wide world of iPhone apps.

Having proven their chops getting things to run on Apple platforms with Cider, the alchemists at TransGaming will be responsible for the iPhone port, bringing all the match-three slash RPG gameplay you know and love to the App Store "this fall."

EA's marketing machine is ratcheting up its efforts on Mirror's Edge – how else will it hit those sales numbers? The latest salvo in its ongoing campaign is the above "story trailer" providing some beautifully animated background on Faith's outlaw-courier origin and the oppressive government she's avoiding by running around on rooftops.

It's no secret that we're a fan of these trailers; in fact, the only thing we can really take umbrage with here is this: they're making us pine for a "cel-shading" option in Mirror's Edge. C'mon, DICE – how hard could it be? Just click that "cel-shading" box on your game-making tool. Done!

We'll be honest, this doesn't sit well with us. You see, there's an "us" and "them" thing here: we write about the video games, get showered with free gifts, and get invited to hang out and drink beers with all our favorite developers in their space-age offices from the future, while you sit at home and pretend you can imagine what beer tastes like in zero-G. That's been the status quo for centuries ... until now.

The ne'er-do'wells at Ubisoft Montréal want to throw away centuries of tradition just to participate in Les Journées de la culture – a weekend of free activities happening all throughout Quebec. Show up on their doorstep tomorrow between 9am and 4:30pm, leave your cameras and whatnot at home, and get a 30-minute tour of the five-story facility. Wanna drink space beers with Prince of Persia producer Ben Mattes? No dice, chum. Some things are still off-limits.

[Thanks, Dom]

MTV Multiplayer cornered Banjo-Kazooie creator – and de facto Rare defender – Gregg Mayles in San Francisco recently and asked him to not only comment on those things Peter Moore told the Guardian last week, but also to comment on those Killer Instinct 3 rumors. Ostensibly catching his breath in between all the body blows, Mayles avoided mentioning Moore by name, instead saying, "I don't take much notice about what people say about our games I work on," continuing, "We've always been seen as a bit, I don't know, willing to take a chance on doing something different and trying to come up with new experience."

As long as a Banjo-Kazooie update is on the table, Multiplayer asked about the possibility of another Killer Instinct installment. Without saying "no" Mayles handily shot down the speculation, explaining, "... what we're not gonna do is just say 'okay, there's this kind of vocal, fairly small vocal minority of real die-hard fans out there that want to see [Killer Instinct], so therefore, we should be doing [Killer Instinct].'" Hear that, small vocal minority? You can keep screaming but Rare can't hear you. Maybe with Banjo coming to Xbox Live Arcade, you guys could start asking for a similar treatment for fellow Nintendo 64-alumnus Killer Instinct. That's better than nothing, right?

Sometimes, video games just aren't expensive enough. Sometimes, we'll think to ourselves, "Just $60? What am I going to do with all this money I make blogging about video games?" Sensing our dilemma, EA's offering a pair of extra-spensive Xbox 360 bundles for two of their highest-profile (and most promising!) fall releases. We've already filled you in on the $150 "Ultra Limited Edition" Dead Space bundle but also wanted to showcase this rather fetching messenger bag Mirror's Edge bundle.

$130 bags you the Xbox 360 release of the game along with a ME-themed Timbuk2 messenger bag (read: much nicer than GameStop's preorder bag), complete with Faith's face on the inside flap – just the sort of conversation starter we all want sewn directly into our baggage.

Hey ladies! Be honest, if there's one problem with today's Rock Band and Guitar Hero plastic guitar offerings, it's this: they're not pink and/or heart-shaped enough, right? Here to right this egregious wrong are pop starlets Aly & AJ, both of whom have lent their considerable skills (being women?) to the design of the above two "fun and feminine" plastic guitars.

Of course, since these guitars are built exclusively for the ladies, you'll find they're only compatible with the Wii and PS2 since ... uh, we're really not sure why that is. Regardless, if that works for you, and you've got $69.99 to burn ('spensive!), hit up your local retailer in mid-October. Check out another pic of the guitars – and a video of the teenagers pitching the gear on E! – after the break.

[Via VideoGamesBlogger]

Continued →

As if two new PSP games and an impressive collaboration with the famed animators at Studio Ghibli wasn't enough for one day, Level-5 has also dropped some additional details on sequels to two of their biggest DS titles: Professor Layton and Inazuma Eleven

The third Professor Layton offering is the only one of these five Level-5 games not being released in 2009; instead, it's set for a November 27th release in Japan. The soccer-themed Inazuma Eleven will return in 2009 with Inazuma Eleven 2, packing a new storyline, more characters, and a new team made up of space invaders! Level-5 will be "formally unveiling" all five titles later this week in Tokyo; we'll try to wrastle all of 'em up at TGS next month.

Recent scans from Japanese gaming weekly Famitsu detail a new Nintendo DS project titled Ninokuni: The Another World from the fine folks at Level-5 (which is currently putting the finish touches on the PS3's White Knight Story). "What's so special about this project?" you ask, clutching your Totoro plushie. Get this: the animation will be handled by the legendary Studio Ghibli. Not altogether too surprising; anyone familiar with the excellent animation in Level-5's Professor Layton series knows that there wasn't much room for improvement.

Famitsu says there will be a console version though a platform has not yet been decided; Level-5 wants the experience to be distinct from the DS release and that desire will affect the platform decision. Both versions will come with the same "Magic Master" book – shared by the main character of the game – which will need to be referred to while playing the game (let's hope it's portable!). With TGS just around the corner, we're hoping to hear more – and maybe see more – soon.

[Via Opposable Thumbs]

This might come as a shock to some of you – well, those of you that are easily shocked – but Mirror's Edge marketing cat Martin Frain says the game could sell as many as three million units across three platforms ... and that's his conservative estimate! Why such big numbers, Mr. Frain? He says, "We're being helped immensely, just by the look of the game ... You look at a screenshot of Mirror's Edge, and you know what it is."

There's another game from last year that immediately comes to mind: Assassin's Creed had an immediately recognizable look, was an unproven IP, had mixed reviews, and was released into an unusually busy holiday game season, yet still went on to sell over six million units. So, can EA spark the same interest in this unusually colorful parkour playpen, being released into a similarly frenzied gaming season?

Spencer at Siliconera – or old Eagle Eyes as we actually call him – stumbled upon an entry for "Metal Gear Solid Existence" during his hourly stroll through the Japanese Trademark database. The trademark was apparently registered for use with a video game (surprise!) so there's a good chance we'll see the Snake saga return under this headline. Will Kojima be back at the helm? Who knows! But with TGS around the corner, this might be a good time to start speculating wildly. Well, what're you waiting for?

[Via PSP Fanboy]

Forced with making up for lost time in the battle for rhythm game supremacy, Konami is evidently taking the curious path of removing bullet points from the back of Rock Revolution's future box art. First, despite a corporate lineage that includes Karaoke Revolution, Konami axed the expected vocal portion, leaving just guitar and drum tracks. (Wouldn't want to cannibalize those Karaoke Revolution sales, would we?)

Now, Konami has axed the axe, telling MTV that they'll only be offering the unwieldy drum kit in mid-November, about a month after the standalone game launches October 14th. The full peripheral lineup from the Guitar Hero and Rock Band games should work just fine with Rock Revolution but, something tells us Konami's going to have a tough time leading this revolution. Well, there's always a chance of a legal payday!

If you'll recall, three of Retro Studios' key developers – Mark Pacini, Todd Keller, and Jack Matthews – left the Nintendo-owned studio, famous for the Metroid Prime series, last April. Now the trio has announced the formation of an entirely new entity: Armature Studio. Armature isn't your run-of-the-mill developer though – a "core creative team" will be tasked with creating new intellectual properties and then partner with an external development team to implement the design. It's an outsourcing model (think Wideload) that allows smaller creative teams the ability to develop AAA titles.

But while the model is great, it's not very valuable without a publishing partner to help get those games out there. Cue: "a long term, exclusive publishing deal with EA" – presumably the secretive EA Blueprint, since that imprint's Louis Castle is serving as executive producer for the Armature titles. For the guys at Armature, they're just excited to "rethink how games are developed for this generation of consoles." Yup, "consoles" – no longer limited to Nintendo hardware, Pacini says, "What really gets me going is that now, no platform is off limits." Xbox 360? PS3? Gizmondo?

Here's the thing: selling a Collector's Edition for a game made for collectors isn't fan service ... it's stealing. But if you're comfortable with that, and want to slip a crisp $70 bill into Joe Blizzard's overstuffed g-string, here's what he's offering in exchange:

• The Wrath of the Lich King expansion pack, helpfully jammed onto a DVD-ROM (take that, floppies!)
• A 208-page WotLK art book ... full of art
• Frosty, the baby frost wyrm – an exclusive in-game pet (what, no plushie?)
• A DVD jam-packed with dev interviews, intro cinematic (plus director's commentary)
• Soundtrack CD, featuring the #1 hit single: "Waltz of the Lich King"
• Mouse pad (adorned with a handy map of Northrend)
• Two starter decks for the collectible card game (see: collectors!) and two exclusive cards

You can try to resist, collectophiles, but alas ... you can't. Blizzard will once again triumph over frugality, and your epic quest for debt-free living will end on November 13th.

[Via WoW Insider]

This is it! It's happening, just as the ancients had foretold. Blizzard has officially revealed the release date for its latest get-rich-quick scheme. Wrath of the Lich King – the second expansion to the sorta-popular World of Warcraft – will cast an icy blue glow over retail shelves everywhere on November 13th for the doesn't-include-your-subscription asking price of $39.99.

That means you have exactly two weeks before Thanksgiving to storm the shores of Northrend with your fancy new Death Knight, mess up some undead frost wyrm dragons, earn as many Achievements as possible, and put Arthas on ice for good. In the meantime, if you're curious what any of that means, crawl through Massively's "What's new in Wrath of the Lich King" primer, embedded below.