Filed under: Gaming

As much as we’re going to miss covering the entertaining side show that has been the life of Bo Stefan Eriksson for the last nine months, we’re relieved that the former Gizmondo Europe director has finally admitted some culpability in this strange saga — and that he’ll soon be forced to leave the country and become someone else’s problem. After a Los Angeles jury failed to reach a unanimous verdict in Eriksson’s grand theft auto case last week — resulting in a mistrial — the imaginary friend-loving Swede apparently decided that a retrial coupled with the separate weapons charges would be too much to bear, and ended up receiving a pretty sweet deal from prosecutors. In exchange for pleading guilty to two counts of embezzlement and one count of illegal gun possession, the one-time mobster weaseled his way out of an auto theft charge and ended up receiving a three-year sentence plus three years of probation — but because of the time he’s already served as well as “other allowances,” he should be free in about a year. Once he gives up his orange jumpsuit, Eriksson faces immediate deportation from the US, although his lawyer has stated that the now house-less and car-less felon was planning to leave anyway (expect us to be liveblogging his bon voyage party). The only matter that has yet to be settled is how much loot will have to be paid to the British banks who repo’d Eriksson’s Mercedes and non-crumpled Ferrari, so after December 7th, ol’ Stefan will be lucky to have enough money in his commissary account to afford a package of Twinkies.

[Via GamesIndustry.biz]

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BOLD MOVES: THE FUTURE OF FORD A new documentary series. Be part of the transformation as it happens in real-time

Office Depot Featured Gadget: Xbox 360 Platinum System Packs the power to bring games to life!

Filed under: Gaming, Peripherals, Wireless

In case you haven’t been following the virtual rock and roll scene lately, videogame publisher Red Octane recently revealed that there would be no wireless ax for the Xbox 360 version of Guitar Hero II — even though owners of a “last-gen” console, PlayStation 2, will be able to jam out sans tether. Now since the 360 already ships with wireless technology on board, it would seem relatively simple to implement a cable-free controller for this particular deployment. Not so fast, says Red Octane. According to the studio, Microsoft isn’t actually allowing third-party manufacturers to make anything using its proprietary wireless standard — so while the capability is there, the all-important green light from Redmond is not. It’s not clear at this point why a year-old system is being stifled by this seemingly arbitrary restriction, but with the PlayStation 3 offering developers Bluetooth out of the box, it seems that Microsoft either needs to change its tune or risk losing the small-but-vocal “rocker wannabe” demographic to the enemy.

[Via Joystiq]

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BOLD MOVES: THE FUTURE OF FORD A new documentary series. Be part of the transformation as it happens in real-time

Office Depot Featured Gadget: Xbox 360 Platinum System Packs the power to bring games to life!

Filed under: Gaming

*Price includes Tom Clancy’s G.R.A.W., NHL ‘07, Live Arcade Volume 1, three-month Xbox Live Gold membership, 1,250 Microsoft points, a wireless modem, and three years of Sympatico high-speed internet from Bell Canada.

With “next-generation” consoles being released every three to four years nowadays (save for Sony’s PlayStation 3, which has a stated 10-year life span), some people (read: parents and spouses) are a little hesitant to throw down upwards of $300 for a system that will probably be gathering dust in the attic even before the wireless controllers need replacing. Well Canadian children will soon have a new angle to work when begging their folks for an Xbox 360, thanks to a package that Bell Canada will be offering from November 5th through sometime next year which includes Microsoft’s latest console, a handful of games, and broadband service for CAN$59.95 a month (or CAN$54.95 for you lucky Quebecers). The catch here is that you need to sign up for an unusually long three-year commitment; furthermore, it’s unclear if you’ll be able to purchase the nearly-worthless console at the end of the contract or be given the opportunity to upgrade to an Xbox 361 once it hits stores. It’s also not clear what kind of upload / download speeds you’re getting with this offer — an important piece of the puzzle in deciding whether or not this bundle is a good value. Still, if you’re the type who’s already renting your apartment, leasing your car, and paying way too much money to Rent-A-Center each month for your home theater gear, this promotion may be right up your alley.

[Via digg and HappyBeggar]

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BOLD MOVES: THE FUTURE OF FORD A new documentary series. Be part of the transformation as it happens in real-time

Filed under: Gaming

It’s not really fair to judge the PS3’s online component before, like, the console is actually released and gamers start putting it through its paces, but it’s still interesting hear Eurogamer’s take on a pre-launch version of the PlayStation Network, courtesy of some exclusive face time with Sony exec Phil Harrison. From the site’s extensive coverage of many aspects of the service, the most noticeable theme is that Sony seems to have been closely watching the successes and failures of Xbox Live, and is serious about its promise to meet or exceed all of Live’s capabilities. Therefore, many of features that 360 fans have become accustomed to — consistent UI, multiple methods of communicating with friends, and downloadable content – are prominently featured in the Network experience, with other aspects — namely a full web browser, multitude of game-specific mini-stores, and pricing in real currency as opposed to “points” — clearly designed to one-up Microsoft’s offering. Other nice touches here include the ability to create a master account and regulated “associated” accounts (helpful for parents looking to police their kids’ usage), a global “Wallet” with which you make all micro-payments (including those required by third-party publishers), and of course, an upgradable OS that leverages the hard drive on both versions of the PS3. Downsides? Unlike Xbox Live, the first iteration of PlayStation Network doesn’t let friends communicate while playing a game; even though you’ll get a notification of new messages during gameplay, you have to exit the game in order to read them and respond. Also, it’s still not clear if / how Sony will implement player rankings a la Live’s leaderboards, which is a feature that naturally-competitive gamers have come to expect. All-in-all, though, it sounds like Sony has put a lot of thought into the usability of this increasingly important aspect of the console experience, and assuming that the company is able to overcome potential shortages, lack of rumble, and other well-known nitpicks, the PlayStation Network looks poised to attract the same fervent following as XBL.

[Via PS3 Fanboy and Joystiq]

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BOLD MOVES: THE FUTURE OF FORD A new documentary series. Be part of the transformation as it happens in real-time

Filed under: Gaming

This whole PS3 delay game has really become something of an amusing sideshow at this point: after so much bad press concerning nearly every single aspect of the console, you’d think that Sony would do everything possible to ensure that things run smoothly from here until launch, and yet word on the street is that Europe may be victim to still another postponement. It should be noted we have no independent confirmation of the following information, but Spanish gaming site MeriStation is reporting that Ken Kutaragi recently admitted that supply problems for Japan and North America could force the European PS3 launch to be delayed until May — which would mean that Japanese and American consumers might have their systems nearly six months before the eager gamers in the rest of the world. Now keep in mind that Kutaragi also supposedly said that Sony has not modified its European launch plans at this time, so right now we’re only looking at a “what if” scenario. Still, this rollout has been plagued with nothing but problems since day one, and as much as we’d like to see Sony pull this one off considering the shaky condition it’s currently in, we’re starting to think that these little issues and public gaffes may add up to big problems.

[Thanks, Mercenary]

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BOLD MOVES: THE FUTURE OF FORD A new documentary series. Be part of the transformation as it happens in real-time

Filed under: Desktops, Laptops

With its high-profile XPS line and recent purchase of boutique gaming house Alienware, for awhile it looked like Dell would be the only major PC manufacturer willing to cater to serious gamers. Not anymore. In a move that caught everyone, including us, completely by surprise (you’ll notice the lack of backlinks to any rumor posts about this), HP announced today that it will acquire Alienware rival VoodooPC for an undisclosed sum. After the deal closes — following the usual regulatory rigmarole — HP will form a new business unit dedicated to gaming in its Personal Systems Group, with Voodoo co-owners (and brothers) Rahul and Ravi Sood assuming the roles of Chief Technologist and Director of Strategy, respectively. As you’re probably aware, the acquisition comes at somewhat of a turbulent time for HP: not only is the company still reeling from the bruising merger with Compaq under former CEO Carly Fiorina, it’s currently undergoing unwanted public and governmental scrutiny over the so-called “pretexting” scandal that led to the recent resignation of chairwoman Patricia Dunn. Although we doubt that the Voodoo deal is going to make everyone forget about the alleged spying that has occurred, it’s nice to know that once HP finally puts this ugly mess behind it, consumers (especially gamers) can expect to benefit from some hot products and lower pricing that can only be realized now that Dell has some real competition on its hands. [Warning: PDF link]

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SPONSORED BY: BOLD MOVES: THE FUTURE OF FORD A new documentary series. Be part of the transformation as it happens in real-time.

Filed under: Gaming

Press releases are boring. We go through literally hundreds of them a day, and for the most part, they’re self-serving documents full of half-truths and inflated claims about products and services. So imagine our delight when we stumbled upon this little doozy of a release from marketing firm Ipsos Insight, which details a study done on behalf of the Immersion Corporation concerning gamers’ preferences and purchasing plans with regards to the trio of next-generation consoles. You probably remember Immersion as the company that successfully sued Sony over the use of computer-controlled vibration technology in its PlayStation and PS2 Dual Shock controllers, and since Sony has apparently neither paid Immersion the $90 million it owes nor licensed the rumble tech for its SIXAXIS PS3 gamepads, the release comes across as a thinly-veiled reminder that gamers really, really like playing with input devices that shake and buzz in their sweaty hands.

Not only does the (completely unbiased) poll report that 72% of the 1,075 respondents agree vibration feedback enhances their game experience, it goes on to note that 59% of those surveyed would prefer rumble on the PS3 controller, while only 8% care about motion / tilt sensing (sorry, Nintendo). As if these numbers didn’t paint a clear enough picture of the message Immersion is trying to convey, two further questions spell it out even more explicitly: when asked if the lack of rumble capabilities would affect their buying decisions (apparently 74% of those polled weren’t even aware of the “no rumble” policy — clearly no Engadget readers amongst that bunch), 5% said that it would definitely cause them not to buy a PS3 and 32% claimed that they were less likely to pick one up for this reason and this reason alone. Now obviously Immersion knew exactly the results that it wanted before it conducted this “study,” and probably phrased the questions in order to get the most desirable data set, but even non-statistics majors like ourselves could have figured out that gamers accustomed to the fun of Dual Shock would be in for a letdown the first time they picked up a rumble-free SIXAXIS controller.

Okay, Sony, the cards are on the table, and even if these numbers are skewed, you know full well that you can’t be the only player in the game without a little vibration action going on. So what’s it gonna be: are you going to keep hoping that some appeals court finally overturns the numerous prior decisions against you, or are you going to shell out some dough just like Microsoft and Nintendo did, and finally give the majority of your target audience what it wants? To us, it doesn’t really seem like much of a choice at all.

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SPONSORED BY: BOLD MOVES: THE FUTURE OF FORD A new documentary series. Be part of the transformation as it happens in real-time.

Filed under: Gaming, Handhelds

If you thought you were going to have to wait until the PS3 came out to rock Playstation 1 titles on your PSP, you’ve just been granted a reprieve. Well, kinda. MaxConsole is reporting that a clever hacker named Yoshihiro has just released the first PS1 emulator for your trusty portable console, and that the so-called PSX-P app will run on firmware versions below 2.71, with users of 1.5 and above obviously requiring the eLoader exploit. As a reminder, the only way you can legally use this program is if you already own a Playstation and a number of games, as it requires the SCPH1001.BIN PS1 BIOS file and ripped ISOs of your game discs — which can be found elsewhere, but we like to keep it legit ’round here. So all is well and good, right? Eh, not really; since PSX-P currently lacks a dynamic decompiler, games apparently run super-slowly, in the neighborhood of 10fps: i.e. a good proof of concept for the homebrew community, but until Yoshihiro or one of his colleagues manages to achieve a playable frame rate, for now this breakthrough is little more than a frustrating tease.

[Via DCEmu, thanks wraggster]

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SPONSORED BY: BOLD MOVES: THE FUTURE OF FORD A new documentary series. Be part of the transformation as it happens in real-time.

Filed under: Gaming, Handhelds

Many people look upon GamePark’s GP32 handheld console as a revolutionary product in the world of videogames — it was, after all, one of the first platforms to actually encourage homebrew and emulation — and now DCEmu is reporting that the company is poised to launch what it’s calling the GP32’s successor, the “XGP kids.” Shaped more or less like a tiny PSP, this new model is the third in the XGP lineup (following the original XGP and XGP mini), none of which should be confused with the similarly-named GP2X (this latter console is manufactured by GamePark Holdings, a company composed mainly of disgruntled ex-GamePark employees). Although not all its specs will be revealed until September 16th, we do know that it will be powered by a 140MHz ARM processor (probably overclockable), sport a 2.2-inch, 220 x 176 LCD, feature 8MB of RAM and 2MB of flash memory, and support USB 1.1 file transfers, but unlike the GP32, will eschew the old school SmartMedia slot for more modern SD cards. The best part here is the anticipated price (according to Wikipedia, at least); unlike the $300 XGP, $230 GP2X, and $150 XGP mini, the XGP kids is expected to slide in at under a C-note — $75, to be exact.

[Via DCEmu]

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Filed under: Desktops, Gaming

It’s not often that you read a review of a computer with a line like “You could kill someone with this thing,” but the folks at bit-tech.net got to write that gem in their look at Dell’s new gaming-oriented XPS 700, referring to the deadly-looking 3-millimeter thick piece of aluminum that forms the case’s side panel. Unfortunately, they weren’t as impressed with the system’s performance as they were with its decapitating potential, finding it decidedly lacking when put up against their comparable custom-built rig — although much of the blame seems to be pegged on the slow memory that Dell ships with the XPS. Still, they did find the system got most of the core elements right and delivered decent gaming performance at a reasonable price; given the cost of upgrades from Dell, though, they recommend going light on the memory and video card options when you order and swapping them out yourself when you get this sucker home.

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Filed under: Gaming

As you’ve probably already discerned from the headline and the pictures themselves, the images above supposedly depict the demo kiosks that Sony and Nintendo will be setting up in retail locations to lure people into buying the PlayStation 3 and Wii, respectively. Since the photos are low-res, a little blurry, and of unknown origin, they have all the makings of a jolly good Internet hoax, but we’ll play along for now and assume that they’re the real deal. So, what new information can we glean about the upcoming consoles based on their respective kiosks? Well, by mounting the LCD so high, Sony is obviously targeting taller individuals with its marketing strategy, while Nintendo is going after the brainier crowd as evidenced by the lack of any informational pamphlets adorning its display. With all of this speculation swirling around, one thing is certain, though: tucked behind the Wii kiosk’s center column are a bevy of first aid kits, for the inevitable injuries that will occur when arm-swinging gamers collide with innocent passers-by in the impending blood baths sure to plague our favorite big box retailers.

[Via Joystiq]

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Filed under: Gaming, Handhelds

Probably not too hopeful about taking a big bite out of the PSP’s or DS’s market share, a company called Performance Designed Products is nonetheless releasing a new pair of portable 2.5-inch consoles that bring together the magic of Disney with the gaming excitement that only 90’s era 16-bit processing can provide. Although not being advertised as such, the flame-adorned “Classic Pals” and all-pink, heart-shaped “Princess Pals” are clearly being targeted at either one gender or the other, a notion only furthered by the mix of characters chosen for these so-called Disney GAME iT! devices. Each product comes preloaded with 12 different, relatively simple games (suggested ages are six and up); boys get such titles as Mickey’s Apple Cart, Pluto’s Buried Bone Treasure, and the oddly-named Goofy’s Loco Coconuts, while the girls’ edition sports winners like Sebastian’s Sea Urchin Symphony, Susie’s Buttons and Baubles, and Flotsam and Jetsam’s Potion Commotion. Although you can pick up a separate $15 kit that connects the $40 systems to your TV, there’s no way to add additional games a la more traditional consoles — which actually, will probably work out just fine, as chances are good that your kids will smash these portable units to bits before getting sick of the limited content.

[Via GameZone]

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Filed under: Gaming

We have a special place in our heart for stupid gadget criminals over here at Engadget, not so much because we pity their lack of intelligence, but due to the consistent comic relief they tend to provide us and our audience; regular readers of this site will probably remember such dim-witted individuals as the laptop thief who got busted for contacting customer support, the gentleman who snatched a handset from a gathering of cellphone experts, and of course, the clueless teenagers who were caught trying to extort a ransom for the iPod they had just stolen. Well the latest in this series of tragi-comic tales comes to us from Berryville, Arkansas, where two young men had made a habit of stealing videogames from the local Wal-mart by stuffing them down their pants. They probably thought that they were pretty clever by removing the games from their cases so as to discard the ever-present security tags, but what turned out to be their downfall was the fact that they would immediately sell the stolen discs to a GameStop location — one that was located right next door to the Wal-mart! It didn’t take long for the ace sleuths in the ‘mart’s loss prevention department to make the GameStop connection, after which the two braniacs were quickly identified by police detectives perusing the stores’ security footage. Oh, how we love stupid criminals: we keep getting older and (arguably) wiser, but they stay just as stupid.

[Via Joystiq]

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Filed under: Gaming

Sure, graphics and games may be all that are important to you when it comes to next-generation videogame consoles, but your spouse / significant other is probably even more concerned with how the device(s) will fit in to your home decor. Luckily for him / her, Games Radar got its hands on an exact wooden replica of the upcoming PS3 (straight from Sony, so you know it’s the real deal), and did a little comparative photo shoot with the Xbox 360 so all of us have some idea of what to expect. As you can see, Sony’s machine is living a lot larger than Microsoft’s offering, but with its all-black exterior, the PS3 might actually be less obtrusive sitting among the rest of the gear in your rack. As appreciative as we are to Games Radar for providing some perspective on the aesthetic merits / detriments of both systems, we still think they could have taken a page out of DocCRP’s book, and photographed the mockup next to every single object ever produced in the history of mankind. Oh well, maybe Doc just set the bar a little too high; keep reading for another angle, and then head over to GR for the rest of the *shudder* “pr0n”…

[Via Guardian Unlimited]

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Filed under: Gaming

Following the horrific incident in 2004 in which four dim-witted individuals perpetrated a home invasion and mass murder in order to “reclaim” their repo’ed Xbox, comes another tale of disputed console ownership leading to tragic consequences. A 20-year-old Seattle man returned to his former residence on Thursday in an attempt to take possession of an Xbox that he had supposedly purchased, and in a classic example of “if I can’t play with this toy then no one can,” tossed the ‘Box right through a window and into the front yard. Not content with destroying what may have been his own property, the young man returned later that night and set fire to home’s back porch, and although no injuries were reported, the structure was apparently completely gutted. Making the suspect even more eligible for the “Stupid Criminals’ Hall of Fame” was the fact that he called the house from a payphone (while it was still burning, presumably) to brag of his crime and make additional threats. The lesson here: videogames may or may not incite folks to violence, but fighting over them sure does.

[Via Joystiq]

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Filed under: Desktops, Gaming